Cigar Smoking on Cruise Lines - 101

[RaschNuts]

Just yesterday a BOTL member posted about how he was going on a cruise, another member responded with how he was going on one in April, and I was just on a cruise the begining of Nov.

I know when I was going on my cruise I thought there was a cigar bar on the ship but once we get on the ship learned it had closed. I was also trying to find information on the rules to Cigar smoking before I left and realized that there was little out there. So with my experience and the recent posts I thought a thread to help other's that are going on cruises or interested on going on a cruise to see what the Cigar guidlines are and any tips etc..

So please post what cruise line you have been on your experience and even the ship name to help members plan their trips.

-Josh

 

[RaschNuts]

The Cruise I went on was a 5 day out of Tampa on Carnival's Paradise ship. The smoking area for cigars was on the Lido Deck(10) near the pool. This was actually a great spot to sit and smoke, you could lay in a lounge chair or sit at a table. The bar was right there with a tv and there was great people watching. The "buffet" and Grill was a quick walk on the same deck so you could grab breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack and settle on your table. We didnt have any issues with anyone else complaining and there were actually a couple other cigar smokers that sat around also, although mostly cigerette smokers.

The one issue we ran into was ligheters. At night it sometimes got a bit windy and our torches emptied pretty quickly so we were stuck with a bic and would have to hide behind something to get it lit and go back to the seat.

The downside is that you couldnt smoke cigars in the casino or anywhere else but that was minor.

 

[zama80]

I have been on a number of cruises, all of them except one has been on Royal Caribbean. The other one was with Carnival. On all of these cruises I have booked a room with a balcony. Both of the these cruise lines allow smoking on the balconies, to include cigar smoking. Always check the smoking policy of the cruise line you choose, as they change them without notice. As Josh mentioned, there is usually a place on one of the decks where cigar smokers are allowed. Usually it is just on one side of the ship. One thing I noticed is that even if the cruise lines don't advertise it, there is an inside lounge where you can have a cigar as well. If there isn't one listed, just ask customer service. If you have a balcony make sure to ask your room steward for an ashtray. Royal Caribbean has the nice outside ones like Xikar sells. The cruise I am going on in a couple weeks does have a cigar lounge, but I had to really dig into their website to find it out. Anther thing I do is go to websites like cruisecritic.com and search the message boards for cigar lounges on the ship I have booked with. There is always a cigar smoker that has been aboard that can give you more info. Also, I ALWAYS bring a can of butane with me...and two lighters, and two cutters, matches, cedar strips, you get the idea.

 

[heavyd]

I've been on two cruises, both Royal Caribean, both times I had a balcony. On the first cruise, the people with the balcony behind mine (downwind) complained to the cabin steward. He mentioned it to me, but said, "don't sweat it." It was near the end of the cruise and I didn't hear anything after that. Cruise ship balconies are a great place to smoke

 

[SmokinNukie]

I have cruised a number of times. Primarily on Holland America, but also on Carnival, Royal Carribean and Norwegian. I always smoke on the outside deck near the back of the ship. I've never had a complaint. Norwegian claimed to have a cigar bar but I didn't smoke in it as I would have been the only one smoking and didn't want to create a problem for the other patrons.

 

[Fox06WRX]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

 

[CAJoe]

Princess has banned all smoking on balconies. You can only smoke in the cigar bar they have. In some of the retrofitted ships they are taking these out. Call ahead before you travel with them. I would just smoke on the balcony anyway...

 

[zama80]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

Cool. Where are you going? What ship? I would definately take some cigars, there are always other cigar smokers on board.

 

[Fox06WRX]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

Cool. Where are you going? What ship? I would definately take some cigars, there are always other cigar smokers on board.

We are going to Nassau and Freeport, I will be on the Ecstasy. Unfortunately we did not get a room with a balcony but, there is a cigar lounge on board and a bar the allows it!! Now I have to decide what to take lol

 

[zama80]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

Cool. Where are you going? What ship? I would definately take some cigars, there are always other cigar smokers on board.

We are going to Nassau and Freeport, I will be on the Ecstasy. Unfortunately we did not get a room with a balcony but, there is a cigar lounge on board and a bar the allows it!! Now I have to decide what to take lol

Oh cool. So you're going out of Canaveral? Let me know how that cruise is, especially the cigar bar.

 

[mdwest]

Check out the Greycliff Hotel while you are in Nassau.. they sort of have a cigar thing going there

maybe sign up for some rolling lessons.. or a tasting... (I think they do them daily)....

http://www.graycliff.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=184&Itemid=284

 

[Fox06WRX]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

Cool. Where are you going? What ship? I would definately take some cigars, there are always other cigar smokers on board.

We are going to Nassau and Freeport, I will be on the Ecstasy. Unfortunately we did not get a room with a balcony but, there is a cigar lounge on board and a bar the allows it!! Now I have to decide what to take lol

Oh cool. So you're going out of Canaveral? Let me know how that cruise is, especially the cigar bar.

Yep! I will be sure to post up my thoughts when i get back. I will try to take some pictures as well.

Check out the Greycliff Hotel while you are in Nassau.. they sort of have a cigar thing going there

maybe sign up for some rolling lessons.. or a tasting... (I think they do them daily)....

http://www.graycliff.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=184&Itemid=284

This is a GREAT idea! I was looking for something to do that day anyway.

 

[glfgd82]

What a timely thread! I am leaving for a cruise with Carnival next week lol.

I wasn't planning on taking any cigars but, maybe I should

Cool. Where are you going? What ship? I would definately take some cigars, there are always other cigar smokers on board.

We are going to Nassau and Freeport, I will be on the Ecstasy. Unfortunately we did not get a room with a balcony but, there is a cigar lounge on board and a bar the allows it!! Now I have to decide what to take lol

Oh cool. So you're going out of Canaveral? Let me know how that cruise is, especially the cigar bar.

Yep! I will be sure to post up my thoughts when i get back. I will try to take some pictures as well.

Check out the Greycliff Hotel while you are in Nassau.. they sort of have a cigar thing going there

maybe sign up for some rolling lessons.. or a tasting... (I think they do them daily)....

http://www.graycliff.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=184&Itemid=284

This is a GREAT idea! I was looking for something to do that day anyway.

I can confirm the the Graycliff experience is great, I did it when I got married back in 2008, the best memory from that whole time period (divorced now lol) Although the area seems sketchy...the experience is great!

 

[Cigary43]

My wife and I have about 30 cruises between the both of us and have been avid Cruisers since 1989 and we've probably been on most of them. There are big changes to the cruise lines when it comes to tobacco and while some ships are completely anti smoking ( cigars/pipes ) there are others that welcome them and have some great lounges set aside. As it happens we're leaving on the 15th for a week cruise out of New Orleans on RCCL ---Navigator of the Seas which is one of those mega ships. This will be my 3rd time on RCCL and am anxious for this one as I have researched this one quite a bit. The Cigar Lounge is very nice and the Promenade is one of the things on the ship that really is interesting which is on the 6th deck...we have a Promenade Cabin on the 8 th deck which lets us overlook the Promendade w/o letting those passengers look inside our cabin.

Here is some thoughts as to cruise lines and what to look for:
Princess is the line we were heavily invested in for years until they became one of the poorest run Cruise Lines...even though they are owned by Carnival there isn't much that separates them from the regular Carnival service. If you are a "foodie" then you will want to sail on Celebrity or Holland America or RCCL...in this order. We sailed on the Queen Mary 2 and by far it is the best ship to sail on but the food is not quite what we liked...they cater to the Great Britain type of taste..a little bland. We have sailed on every Princess ship and we've seen them slowly go downhill for the last 4 years until we just finally gave up and now will be sailing more on the other lines.

Specialty Restaurants-----you really need to try these because they are probably some of the best places to eat and the food is sooooo good and you really get your moneys worth...it's worth it.

If you are retired then look into the Transatlantic Cruises...these are cruises that are the cheapest by far...we did one early this year for 17 nights for about $700 each in a balcony...if you have points with your credit card then use your points to fly for free as you'll need it to fly back home or fly over to Europe and then cruise home.

It's a great idea to call the Cruise Line first if you are a cigar smoker....ensure that the ship you pick has a lounge...an inside lounge is far superior than an outside lounge area...if the weather sucks then your enjoyment is really curtailed.

I'll keep this thread checked to come back...I know there are a lot of things that I'm leaving out as far as information so when I see something that jogs my memory I'll chime in again.

 

[Evan]

I've been on several cruises and I always smoke on my private balcony without any problems.

Every princess cruise that I've been on (5 total) had a cigar bar.

The ships were:
Emerald
Saphire
Diamond
Ruby

I've also sailed on NCLs Pride of America a couple times.
This past May, I got caught smoking outside near the pool (while extremely intoxicated) and was told I could smoke at the rear of the ship at the Waikiki bar. No lounge on POA that I can recall but you can smoke on back of the ship at the bar.

 

[SDShark]

I went on a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Mexican Riviera out of Long Beach a few years back. They had an amazing cigar bar on the third deck I believe. It had a nice assortment of cigars and high priced spirits. One of the staff members there even tried recommending pairings of spirits with certain cigars. Also, one of the other patrons there said he could smoke from his balcony room. If you book Royal Caribbean, I am sure you will be okay to smoke.

 

[Solarius99]

My family and I have gone on a couple of cruises ourself (one was NCL Spirit of America sailing around Hawaii, the other was RC Explorer of the Seas out of Bayonne NJ down to Bermuda). Both times no problems smoking cigars on the balcony... the RC even had a cigar lounge but it was always empty and smelled like a stale ashtray. One thing I've learned... definately do your homework. But if you want some really good information, even down to review of certain room numbers (like, this room was okay but being below the bar one deck above there was always music playing until the early hours).

Check out http://www.cruisecritic.com

Every cruise line, every boat, lots of forums and such. Very useful information when planning a cruise.

 

[Cigary43]

Here is more info as I posted this on several other Cigar Forums: http://cruises.affordabletours.com/search/SmokingPolicy/

Most Cruise Lines have now adopted the policy of NO SMOKING on your balcony. I use to get a Balcony or Mini Suite Cabin for this alone and now they won't let you....Princess is one of those so that's another reason why I won't cruse with them.
Carnival and RCCL still allow smoking on private balconies unless otherwise noted.
Celebrity does not allow smoking on private balconies but they do have Cigar Lounges...just call ahead.

For those who love to cruise and want the best pricing there are about 3 places I use all the time and just check each one to see who has the best pricing:
Bestpricecruises.com
SmartCruiser
Cruises N More

Best prices are right after Labor Day til the first of the year....Christmas and Thanksgiving are notorious for most expensive times so we usually travel the weeks before Christmas and the weeks before Thanksgiving and after...most people stay home so the Cruise Lines know that and they really have great deals during this time. My wife and paid $780 total ( taxes, etc. ) for our cruise next week in a Promenade Cabin on the 8th deck so it really pays to always check the links for deals. I checked again the other day and the pricing went up to $1218 for both of us so we saved almost $500.

HAL has cigar lounges but no smoking on balconies.

 

[Evan]

I've never had a problem smoking on a private balcony. However I usually cruise with a group of 20 or more people and my balcony is usually sandwiched in between family members who aren't going to complain.

 

[Cigary43]

Back in late Dec. of 2011 they were warning people about smoking on balconys would no longer be allowed as of Jan. 2012. I was on a cruise where a mother and her two kids were turned in by the Cabin Steward because he smelled smoke inside the cabin and saw ashtrays on the balcony. They were summoned to the Security Area and at the next port they were kicked off because this was their second warning. If you get a balcony towards the AFT the smoke will tail off and it won't bother anybody which is where I always tried to get a cabin...if you got one towards the front the smoke would drift back and people were crying and whining about it. Your neighbors can be decent folk or they can be the neighbors from Hell where they slam the door cabin a 100 times a day...or leave their TV on the highest setting or they talk like they are deaf .....from what I hear on RCCL the Promendade decks the rooms are sound proof so I'm hoping this is true.