Brilliance of the Seas - is cigarette smoke an issue?

[CherilynM]

We are considering a Baltic cruise on Brilliance next year and so have been checking out reviews on CC. It seems she had a minor refurb in April last year  and clearly some people love this ship!

 

The major red flag for us though is the comments about cigarette smoke, starting with the CC review stating as the 'Con': "Air quality is smoky throughout ship despite smoking restrictions". I'm not sure how recent this review is, but a few passenger reviews also include remarks about the smoke from the casino drifting to other areas, including the Centrum, because of the layout. I can see how this could be the case and as cigarette smoke really irritates my lungs this is a bit of a deal-breaker if it is really noticeable in the public areas on Decks 5 & 6.

 

I would have thought there would be more reviews mentioning it if it was a real issue but curious to hear the experiences of past passengers please  We have also noticed some mixed reviews about the food and also some negative comments about hard beds (though admittedly almost all are pre-2017) and the cabin bathrooms looking a bit dated. Any feedback on these from recent cruisers welcome too!

Edited February 1, 2019 by CherilynM
Clarity

[ONECRUISER]

Just near entrance and inside Casino

[Clarea]

We've found that the centrum simetimes acts as a cigarette smoke distributuion system.  It does not happen all the time, but I usually notice it a couple of days.

[Milwaukee Eight]

Cigarette smoking will continue to be an issue as long as Royal allows the Casino to be used as an indoor smoking lounge. 

[katrina915]

Not first hand info, but my sister went on Brilliance and REALLY complained about smoke and she  walked to avoid the casino.   I am hoping this isn't the same for Radiance. 

[Clarea]

5 minutes ago, katrina915 said:

Not first hand info, but my sister went on Brilliance and REALLY complained about smoke and she  walked to avoid the casino.   I am hoping this isn't the same for Radiance. 

 

Same ship design, I would expect the same issues.

[HicksRA]

I’ve been on several classes of ships, and the worst I’ve experienced was on Radiance which is the same as Brilliance. But it was in Alaska and the weather was relatively cold most of the time. So rather than go outside, all the smokers sat in the casino and smoked all day which boiled out into the centrum. The smoke in the entire centrum was choking to me. 

[katrina915]

What a shame. Radiance class used to be my favorite. 

 

Too late to get out of my July cruise to Alaska- I guess I will be hanging outside since I have asthma. 

[CherilynM]

Thank you everyone for your replies. Sounds like it does seem to be an issue - enough to make us reconsider.  An indoor smoking area without doors near an open shared space is just bad design.

 

Given decreasing rates of smoking these days, it amazes me that so many cruise lines are still allowing smoking in casinos and bars (with the notable exceptions of Celebrity & Azamara). Maybe Royal Caribbean aren't getting the feedback about it from passengers? Although perhaps there were enough complaints from passengers from the UK and Australia, as their Policy states: "Smoking is not permitted in the casino for any ships departing from Australia and the United Kingdom".(https://www.royalcaribbean.com/faq/questions/onboard-smoking-policy)

 

The policy also says there are designated non-smoking areas in the casino (except on cruises departing from China and HK). When will they figure out that having a non-smoking area within a smoking area is next to pointless? 

 

Rant over, sorry - just disappointed as it was a really great itinerary!

Edited February 2, 2019 by CherilynM
Accuracy

[CherilynM]

6 hours ago, katrina915 said:

What a shame. Radiance class used to be my favorite. 

 

Too late to get out of my July cruise to Alaska- I guess I will be hanging outside since I have asthma. 

 

Oh Katrina that's not good  But July is more than 90 days away - couldn't you still cancel?

[chrismch]

The only place I smelled and saw smoking on Brilliance was in the Casino, which I avoided and on one side of the outdoor pool. I did not notice the smoke smell in the Centrum and I am usually very sensitive to that smell. 

[fla gang]

We were on the Brilliance in November and could smell it pretty strong in the centrum. I was at a slot machine and this lady sits down next to me smoking one after another, and trying to cough up a lung. That ended my gambling for a while.

[spookwife]

definitely an issue by the  casino entrance.  

 

its the one aspect of this ship class we don't like.  

 

I would imagine that a European itinerary would not  result in any significant decrease in smokers on board .

[MJSailors]

To the OP

You may want to consider a Celebrity cruise as there is no smoking permitted anywhere inside the ship and there are a few outdoor areas for smokers.

 

[pilotboy1985]

I did a Transatlantic on the Jewel of the Seas (Sister ship to Brilliance) and I remember smelling the smoke in the casino, and around the entrance to the casino, but I don't recall it being a problem in the Centrium. 

 

Don't forget, there are more than two places on that ship. It's not like you're going to spend all your time at the Centrium, so I'd think the smell of smoke shouldn't effect the cruise too much. The Schooner bar is so lovely on that cruise, and that big room in the very back by the pool tables. The viking lounge is a great spot as well. You wouldn't smell smoke in any of those places. 

[SargassoPirate]

1 hour ago, MJSailors said:

To the OP

You may want to consider a Celebrity cruise as there is no smoking permitted anywhere inside the ship and there are a few outdoor areas for smokers.

 

And any RCI status that you have is recognized by Celebrity, so you can garner a few perks.  We have slowly migrated over to Celebrity because of their stricter no smoking policy, better enforcement ( our experience ) of chair hogs, and fewer feral children running loose on the ship.

 

 

[island lady]

On 2/1/2019 at 6:49 AM, Host Clarea said:

We've found that the centrum simetimes acts as a cigarette smoke distributuion system.  It does not happen all the time, but I usually notice it a couple of days.

 

Me too.  Sea days are the worst of course.   Wish they would put doors on the casino entrances, instead of using the Centrum to distribute the acrid air.  😞  Simple fix there...not sure why RCI does not do that.  

[island lady]

On 2/1/2019 at 10:01 AM, katrina915 said:

Not first hand info, but my sister went on Brilliance and REALLY complained about smoke and she  walked to avoid the casino.   I am hoping this isn't the same for Radiance. 

 

They are twin sisters...same set up.  

[Milwaukee Eight]

9 hours ago, island lady said:

 

Me too.  Sea days are the worst of course.   Wish they would put doors on the casino entrances, instead of using the Centrum to distribute the acrid air.  😞  Simple fix there...not sure why RCI does not do that.  

Personally, wouldn’t need those doors if they just prohibited smoking indoors. 

[cb at sea]

Smoke hasn't been an issue for us....unless you walk thru the smoking areas.....but that's a very short time!

 

[Milwaukee Eight]

13 minutes ago, cb at sea said:

Smoke hasn't been an issue for us....unless you walk thru the smoking areas.....but that's a very short time!

 

Radiance Class ships all have the same problem. To walk the inside area on deck 6 requires one to walk through the Casino. 

[Wine-O]

We were on Brilliance TA last Fall, and there was a man at the entrance of the Casino sitting at a stool next to a slot machine reading his book and smoking his cigarettes.  All his smoke drafted into the non-smoking section of the ship.  I complained to one of the casino managers, and he said there is nothing he could do about it.

 

If you want to go to the Park Cafe, you either have to walk thru the smoking section on the starboard side of the pool or walk to the port side.  

[Wine-O]

Made it tough to go to the Pub on Brilliance as you had to walk thru the Casino.  What a waste as it was a nice venue and wasn't used very much, and I suppose it was too hard to get to, having to walk thru the smoke to get there.  

[katrina915]

18 hours ago, CherilynM said:

 

Oh Katrina that's not good  But July is more than 90 days away - couldn't you still cancel?

I have nonrefundable plane tickets.  I will be fine. I was on the radiance in 2014 and it wasn't an issue.  I just avoided deck 6. I can avoid the centrum area also if need be.  

[gaz1]

You only need to read the comments on this post to realise this a ridiculous situation.  

I have to avoid the entire centrum area?  

I have to walk up to a different deck to get to the other end of the ship or avoid deck 6 altogether?

Surely Royal Caribbean can see that an increasing minority of passengers are affecting everyone else?

It appears that their smoking policy was last revised in January 2014 when they stopped smoking in the casino for cruises departing Australia & UK.  

It's now 2019, I imagine the percentage of smokers has diminished substantially & a majority of the western world bans smoking in public areas.

Surely the solution on this class of ship is simple; ban smoking in the casino.

Until they do, they've just lost another customer.