Connoisseur Club on Indy

[Frogmill0]

We are booked on Indy for a Canaries cruise in October and we understand that, following the refurbishment of the ship, the Connoisseur Club is now the Library and RC Online. I guess this means that smoking will no longer be allowed in there and hence there will be no indoor venues on the ship where one can smoke.

 

RCI's website still indicates that smoking is allowed in the Casino but that policy dates back to 2013 and on a recent cruise on Navigator it was not until we boarded that we found that smoking in the Casino was banned. I assume it will be the same on Indy?

 

Can someone who has cruised on the refurbished Indy confirm what the smoking policy on the ship actually is, please?

[Clarea]

The policy right now is that cigarette (not cigar) smoking is allowed in the casino. Cigars can only be smoked outside on one side of decks 4, 11, and 12. You may also find that certain itineraries have banned smoking in the casino, I've read this about UK and Aussie itineraries.

[Merion_Mom]

The policy right now is that cigarette (not cigar) smoking is allowed in the casino. Cigars can only be smoked outside on one side of decks 4, 11, and 12. You may also find that certain itineraries have banned smoking in the casino, I've read this about UK and Aussie itineraries.

Recent reports from the Independence said that there is no smoking in the casino.

[Annabellecruiser]

there was no smoking in the casino on my cruise 16/30 June

[GEORGET]

You can only smoke on deck now, Casino while out of UK is also no smoking.

there is a door onto the deck by the casino and most used area near the Fish and ships.

hope it helps j

[Frogmill0]

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

[SailingShelley]

Cruising on a ship that is non smoking on the inside with all the entertainment and activities to keep busy, sounds like an excellent opportunity to curb or even give up smoking!

....Just a thought as I know, easier said than done! :eek:

[jyasneski]

Very disappointed the cigar smoking lounges are being phased out. Really enjoyed a cigar and bourbon each night.

[sandebeach]

Does anyone know if the Navigator will still have the Connoisseur Club in May 2019? We are looking at a cruise out of Southampton and my husband really enjoys a cigar and a Scotch after dinner. Also, will smoking still be allowed in the casino? I know that Navigator is having a dry dock but I do not know when?

 

 

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[SailingShelley]

Does anyone know if the Navigator will still have the Connoisseur Club in May 2019? We are looking at a cruise out of Southampton and my husband really enjoys a cigar and a Scotch after dinner. Also, will smoking still be allowed in the casino? I know that Navigator is having a dry dock but I do not know when?

 

Why not "Ring Royal" and ask? :halo:

[Clarea]

Does anyone know if the Navigator will still have the Connoisseur Club in May 2019? We are looking at a cruise out of Southampton and my husband really enjoys a cigar and a Scotch after dinner. Also, will smoking still be allowed in the casino? I know that Navigator is having a dry dock but I do not know when?

I would bet that the Connoisseur Club will be gone after the 2019 dry dock.

 

Also, I believe there is no smoking in the casino on UK based itineraries.

[sandebeach]

I don't like this, but thanks Bob!

[Frogmill0]

In reply to Sandebeach, Navigator will not be sailing from Southampton next year after its refit. Its place will be taken by Explorer which is in the same class of ship and, as far as I know, still has its Connoisseur Club.

The situation is now that RC seem to be working towards banning smoking inside all their ships, no doubt with the aim of ultimately banning it altogether, and I'm very disappointed by this continuing insidious crackdown on smokers. I've taken up the matter with RC and received the usual platitudes about this is what the majority of their customers want but in an age when society (including RC) seems to want to bend over backwards to support other minority groups it seems ironic that smokers are the one group that are constantly targetted.

Yes, smoking on designated areas of outside decks is permitted (at the moment) but good weather on cruises is not guaranteed and when the weather is bad access to the outside decks is prohibited (this happened twice on our recent Baltic cruise) so there will nowhere at all to smoke on the ship. Moreover, my wife is disabled and she finds it quite difficult to get out to the smoking areas and anyway, apart from on Deck 11, it's difficult to get a drink and nowhere convenient to put one because there are no tables. Surely it's not unreasonable to expect one indoor venue where one can have a drink and a cigarette in comfort?

My wife and I feel so strongly about this that we would like to cancel our forthcoming cruise on Independence. We consider that we should be allowed to do so without financial penalty on the grounds that, when we booked, RC's terms and conditions specifically said that smoking is allowed in the Casino and in the Connoisseur Club. In fact, the T&Cs still say that so my argument is that to move the goalposts without prior notification is a breach of contract. I have raised this aspect with RC and their response is that the changes are not sufficient to make it a breach.

So my question to the legal experts out there is, can we cancel the cruise and receive a refund (we have already paid in full)?

Irrespective of whether we cancel or not, we have decided to transfer our long term allegiance (we are RC Diamond Plus members) to a cruise line that is more smoking friendly - there are still some around!

I realise that this post will probably arouse the wrath of the anti smoking brigade but I would point out that RC's ships are already 95% non-smoking so for anyone who really does find the smell of smoke obnoxious it is not difficult to avoid it. Live and let live!

[sandebeach]

Frogmill10, Thank you for your reply. Rainy weather is my big concern. We did a British Isles Cruise last summer on HAL, out of Copenhagen. We had lots of rain, but I like the casino, so I would go in and play slots. But no place for my husband to have a cigar when it was raining outside. I have not booked yet, but I am glad I learned about the no-inside smoking rule before I booked. I will have to discuss this with my hubby, I do not want him to be unhappy. Good luck with a refund on your cruise!

 

 

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[George C]

I rarely smoke cigars and really looking forward to a non smoking casino. But think it’s a shame not having a cigar lounge for people that want one.

[sandebeach]

I rarely smoke cigars and really looking forward to a non smoking casino. But think it’s a shame not having a cigar lounge for people that want one.

 

 

 

Hi George, the Explorer does still have a Cigar Lounge but if no inside casino smoking, doesn’t that mean that the Cigar Lounge would not be open and available for cigar smokers? I called RC but they could not answer my question when I said I was asking specifically about the Cigar Lounge and UK sailings, not sailings from the US.

 

 

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