Growing up, my Dad was never one to spend long evenings in front of the TV. It was the Seventies and he was a Dad. So he was always busy doing Seventies Dad stuff. Woodworking in the shed and painting things around the house and of course tending to his beloved garden.
He never missed one show though. It starred an Irish comedian called Dave Allen. I am not sure if he ever made it big across your side of the pond though but to my Dad and millions of other British dads…..he was the king of comedy. Religion was his thing….. or making fun of it. Drunken priests, nymphomaniac Nuns and comical bishops all played a big part in his show……a throw back to his strict Irish Catholic upbringing. Here he is.
He would often finish his show with a top Ten Commandments list, very pre-David Letterman and very, very funny. He would choose subjects like drinking, smoking and general life subjects to base his commandments on. Dave Allen passed away some years ago and as a tribute to him…….here are my ten commandments……….on cruising.
1. Thou shalt not kill………….. unless a passenger enters an elevator before you exit. Then you shalt be allowed to beat them over the head with a Fun Ship Special glass until they breathe no more.
2. Thou shalt not covet they neighbor’s cabin. Look, if there’s somebody on your deck staying in the penthouse and wearing loads of jewelry and bling they’re obviously involved in some sort of unspeakable internet-based “business.” Therefore thou shalt report them to United States Customs and Border Patrol.
3. Thou shalt not call Carnival “the Wal-Mart of the Seas.” Neither can you stereotype anyone for the cruise line they choose to spend their vacations on. Unless they are on the Norwegian Epic in which case they are obviously blind.
4. Thou shalt not bring a power strip on the ship. It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle then it is for a power strip to be smuggled past Carnival’s Chief of Security Ramesh Wouldyoulikemylatexgloveupyourbottom.
5. Thou shalt not slap a big ugly “X” on your smoke stack or paint graffiti on the bow. Not if you’re a grown-up. Oh and note to basketball stars……….thou shalt not put spinners on your Aston Martins.
6. Thou shalt not have rumpy pumpy on the balcony lest you fall overboard. Thou thinkist that no bugger can see you but thou givest a great show to Rocco and his mates on the bridge.
7. Thou shalt not attempt to justify building a 6,000-passenger ship just because thou is jealous that Micus Arisonus got Princess Cruises and thou did not.
8. Thou shalt say please and thank you when asking Bigus Johnus for a table for two, otherwise thou shalt be known on the blog as Rudos Bastardus.
9. Thou shalt not refer to the cabin steward as a cabin “stewart.” It is steward and not “stewart” and if thou uses the word “stewart” again thou shalt find a towel animal on thy bed in the shape of a thingy.
10. Thou will never ever ask the captain “If you are here, who is driving the ship?” Thou is not the first person to ask this question and the next one who does will enjoy a tour of the propellers.
Amen.
Time for today’s questions……………….lets crack on.
Judy Sharum Asked:
JOHN PLEASE REPLY!!!!!!(Concerning June 30th blog reply)
I wrote about getting no special treatment boarding ships as a Platinum guest. You wanted to know when we were sailing again-Its Feb 7-15th on Miracle out of Fort Lauderdale.
My husband says same-all times we have sailed since being platinum-we have always been ushered in with everyone else. NO ONE asks if we are platinum or not. Last time I even asked the girl directing everyone where platinum’s guests go and she pointed to the line where everyone was!! We had everything filled and printed out-stood in massive line and waited to get to the front. I asked the girl at the check in about it and said she didn’t know of any special check in for platinum guests??? Is it just us getting this treatment????? I was under the impression that there was suppose to be a special section for checking in??? If not-why be gold, platium, or diamond?? All get to check in same line!?
As the Itin I have been wanting for finally came up now on The Miracle and we leave Feb 7th-Some clearing up would be helpful
Thanks John!!! Read you everyday!!!!
John Says:
Hello Judy SharumThanks for the follow up to this. I am going to make sure that your comments are sent to the right people. I am extremely surprised to hear this as I understood that we have designated VIP lines or VIP rooms for all our Platinum guests and so it was a bit of a shock to read that you have never received preferential treatment during embarkation. I will keep this on file and nearer the time of your cruise on the Carnival Miracle I will send you details of exactly what to do.
Thanks for the kind words and my best wishes to you and your husband.
JohnPnjkeith Asked:
John, Please ReplyHave all the beards gone up in smoke? Read on Cruise Critic today, no cigar smoking in cigar bar on Carnival Freedom. Say it ain’t so!!
Thanks
John Says:
Hello JudyYes, it is indeed true. Please bear with me while I answer the rest of today’s questions and I will write more on this subject in a moment.
Best wishes
JohnDwayne Asked:
Hi John, please reply.There have been some questions asked on Cruise-Chat.com about Dean Gaines up-coming schedule for the ships. If you have any information about his onboard schedule it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a bunch!
Dwayne
Carnival Cruise Line Moderator
Cruise-Chat.comJohn Says:
Hello DwayneDean Gaines for those who do not know is a very funny comedian, entertainer and impressionist who often works with us. I checked with the office and in August Dean will be appearing on the Carnival Fantasy, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Glory. If there is a specific cruise that you would like to know if he is on please let me know. Our fly-on entertainers are not usually on a same ship schedule and rotate around the fleet.
I hope this helps and I send you and all the Cruise-Chat.com readers my best wishes.
JohnMary H Asked:
Hello John, Please reply.Well it seems that Carnival has lost another loyal customer with their new pricing policy for 1A solos. I do have 3 more Carnival cruises booked at the old rate but after that will be returning to Celebrity and Royal Caribbean’s had booked the Oct 16th Med cruise on the Carnival Magic and was anxiously waiting for the transatlantic to be announced but the price for solos was increased. I have been on the Carnival Liberty TA with you as CD, Carnival Freedom TA 3 times with Todd as CD and the Carnival Dream TA again with Todd.
Now I have booked the Voyager for the TA from Barcelona to New Orleans on Oct 30th in an aft balcony cabin solo for the same price as a 1A solo on the Magic. I am platinum with Royal so get $200 off a balcony cabin and $150 OBC. I would have been Platinum on Carnival for the Magic TA but now it isn’t going to happen.
I love TAs and all the days at sea but it is time that you had some enrichment lectures as other lines do.
At least I will be seeing you again on the Med cruise and hopefully Ken Byrne too. I will miss Carnival.
John Says:
Hello Mary HI just wanted to say how truly sad I was to read your comments. I wish there was a magic wand I could wave that would make the price right for you to sail many more times with us. All I can do is pass your comments onto the important people at Carnival and promise that I will make your cruise on your Carnival Magic the best you have ever had. Please stay in touch by reading the blog thingy.
Best wishes
JohnApril Asked:
Hi John and the 344 wonderful Stephanies,Heidi and Kye too
I hope you can answer my question about dining times for your next Blogger cruise on the Glory –
Is there going to be one assigned dining time for the Bloggers?
Please reply if possible if not–lucky me will get to ask you in person on the Splendor in August
Cheers and hugs
AprilJohn Says:
Hello AprilI haven’t formally announced this yet but I am going to say that I think it will be best if like the last time we leave Bloggers to book their own choice of assigned or Your Time Dining.
See you soon.
Best wishes
JohnAbe Maunsell Asked:
Please replyI am a frequent reader of Cruise Critic and there is lots of talk about who is the best cruise director. Some say they do not like Jen Baxter and many have posted both good and bad things about Todd. I wanted to know who you think is the best and who is the worst cruise director.
Abe
John Says:
Hello AbeIt’s a bit of a shame that if the post topic was “who is the best cruise director” it turned into a negative thread thingy by people saying who in their opinion the worst CD is.
Anyway, the worst…………well I think all of our CDs are excellent including the highly energetic and caring Jen Baxter. Some have lots to learn and they will and nobody could ever be as bad as when I first started.
As for whom the best CD is. Well, as many CD’s read this I have to be careful but honestly my two favourite cruise directors still working are Graham Seymour who used to work at Carnival and now works for another cruise line………we miss him a lot. Then there is Ray Rouse who works for Cunard. He is the most professional and most experienced CD you could ever wish to meet…….he sets the trend for the rest of the industry to follow…… Carnival has a few rising stars that I won’t name here but who …….if they continue to work hard, have the chance to be the best in the business.
Best wishes
JohnDanny and Jennifer Asked:
Hi John, Please answer.It has been a while but we are still “crusin’.” What does Carnival do for New Years? We are taking our son and daughter and their families out of Baltimore the day after Christmas and we will be on the ship on New Years Eve. There will be 11 of us all together.
Hope you are enjoying that beautiful little princess and Heidi too!
JenniferJohn Says:
Hello Danny and JenniferCelebrating New Years Eve on a Carnival ship is a brilliant and totally fun way to bring in the New Year. There will be streamers and a balloon drop and a huge party on the Lido deck with lashings of free champagne. The live music and dancing will build up to the big countdown and the huge cheers of the guests complimented by blasts of congratulations from the ship’s horn will make this a night you and your family will never forget. Why not get all 11 of you together and ask if anyone has any questions. If they do, please let me know.
Best wishes to you all and happy New Year
JohnMaria Weems Asked:
Dear John (Please respond),I hope you are enjoying your “working vacation”. I just wanted to let you know what a wonderful time we had in the Carnival Liberty on our sailing of 6-12-2010. While there were many highlights on our trip, one of the most significant one for us was the outstanding service we received in the Silver Dining Room. Our group was made up of 11 people ranging from 4 years old to over 65. We had communicated with Elvis, the Maitre D, (thanks to Claudio Maitre D in the Dream) to warn him of our unique group. Elvis made sure we had a great waiter who would do well with kids. Our waiter was the exceptional Sirhtep (Tep) from Thailand (table 441). My husband & I had actually met him on our 2nd honeymoon cruise on the Carnival Victory in February 2007, where we were lucky enough to have him as a waiter. Dinner was taken care of, but what about breakfast, the staff saw our group (wearing coordinated T-shirts) and assigned us to the team of Teca & Danilo. They were sooo good we insisted on making sure we were served by them every morning. Kudos, to the staff of the Silver dining room and the entire crew of the Carnival Liberty, they really provided us a great vacation. We wanted to experience some more Carnival Class Service, so we booked our next cruise already, December 26 on the Carnival Valor. The cruise on the Valor will be the platinum trip for 4 of the 14 who are traveling with us (yes we gained 3 others). It will be a New Years cruise and some of us were wondering what kind of special things should we expect in relation to the New Year’s Eve celebration?
Thanks for all the fun blogs,
Maria & Doug WeemsJohn Says:
Hello Maria and Doug WeemsSometimes the questions on the blog thingy can enter the twilight zone somewhat. As to confirm that, how weird that two questions in a row will be about what happens on a Carnival ship on New Year’s Eve? Hold on……to save you scrolling up one question let me do some cutting and some pasting. Right …………here you go.
Celebrating New Years Eve on a Carnival ship is a brilliant and totally fun way to bring in the New Year. There will be streamers and a balloon drop and a huge party on the Lido deck with lashings of free champagne. The live music and dancing will build up to the big countdown and the huge cheers of the guests complimented by blasts of congratulations from the ships horn will make this a night you and your family will never forget. Why not get all 11 of you together and ask if anyone has any questions. If they do, please let me know.
Oh hold on……this must be the same group as Danny and Jennifer…..they had 11 in their group as well……..please tell me its the same group because if not that is very, very weird and I may start to think the blog is possessed and that will mean I will have to do a naked hand stand and recite boat drill backwards ……this is the only way to get rid of evil blog spirits…………..and the French.
Thanks for those very kind words and I know that the staff on the Carnival Liberty will be thrilled to read your words of praise.
Best wishes to you all and happy New Year
JohnRichard G Asked:
My wife and I are going to be taking our first Carnival cruise Jan/2/11 from Baltimore. We are really looking forward to it… I believe the Pride is going into dry-dock 2 weeks later. What will Carnival be doing to her. Should I be concerned that we will be going on ship that needs “freshening up”. Secondly what special arrangements, if any, are made for ships leaving from winter ports?
Thank you in advance
(I apologize if you have already answered these questions many many times)John Says:
Hello Richard GNo need to apologize and you have asked a very good question. Please do not worry as the ship is brilliant condition and will be undergoing her usual routine work but just a little earlier than previously scheduled. I promise that all the ship operations, events, activities, shows and ports of call are running as normal. The winter question is also a good one. It is certainly cold in Baltimore during the winter months and I know the ship’s crew have to chip away at ice on the decks a couple of times but the ship was able to arrive and depart Baltimore as scheduled. As to any other arrangements, well honestly I am not sure so please let me ask Kirk the CD who was there last winter and I will post his observations for you and everyone else to read. I promise you will have a fantastic time on the Carnival Pride.
Best wishes
JohnRickHoover Asked:
To my next CD (please reply)First off I will join the rest to thank you for your blog. I enjoy reading it every day (except the weekend of course). The thing that I have found in the 4 previous cruises is how wonderful everyone is on the ships. We have had wonderful conversations with everyone that works on the Carnival ships and even better service. Because of that we will continue to sail every year on Carnival until Carnival says ENOUGH!
I wrote to you a few weeks back about us being on our Carnival Splendor about our seating for dinner and you graciously helped us out. It will be our 40th wedding anniversary when we sail (8/1/2010) and we are bringing along our 4 (adult) children. 2 are married and their wives are coming along, one is engaged and bring along her fiancée and our other daughter and our foreign exchange daughter (flying in from Japan) are going to be there. 5 of the children have never been on a cruise ship and actually have never even seen one up close and personal so we are really looking forward to the “WOW” factor when they first see their Carnival Splendor.
Now for the reason for this missive…we are hoping that one night you can stop by our dining table for a toast. We would love to get a picture of you with the entire family. You may not want to be we would love it. Of course that is if we haven’t been thrown off the ship because frivolity will be happening.
Again, thanks for everything you do and to all the Carnival employees for the best time ever. Oh, and I would like to give out a shout to the greatest PVP that Carnival has…Maria Sanclemente. She has been an absolute angel for all of our cruises including doing one thing that I still find amazing…I will e-mail a question and she will CALL ME to give me the answer. I hope she never gets promoted because I would not know what to do without her.
Until we meet on 8/1/10…
One of your many fans,
Rick Debbie, Rachael, Jennifer, Jeremy, Joshua, Sarah, Carrie, Brian, YuikoJohn Says:
Hello Rick HooverIt would be an absolute honour to meet you and your family. Please can you leave me your cabin number in a brief note at the guest services desk when you board and I will make sure we meet. I am looking forward to my time on the west coast and now I am looking forward to meeting you and your extended family.
Thanks also for the kind words about Maria who I will make sure sees this as will her boss.
So, see you soon and my best wishes to you all
John
That’s all for today and thanks again for all the great comments and those about the bar department. I have collated all of them and they will be part of ongoing discussions. It seems that you love the soda card, would like to see more variety of beers and these and all your suggestions will now be looked at very carefully. Thanks again for taking the time to write.
Now I want to talk about smoking. Actually…..I don’t but I have to because it is a subject that continues to be one of the top issues of course. Yesterday I responded to two questions about smoking cigars and that cigar bars on two of our ships have become totally non-smoking.
Now, before I get into this a bit more there is the obvious subject of me being both a Carnival employee and an avid cigar lover. However, I will do my best to address this as subjectively as I can.
This is what is happening at the moment. There is a trial on a few of our ships where we have introduced more restrictive indoor smoking areas……for both cigarettes and cigars. This is similar I am told to other lines. Obviously we are going to look at the reaction to this from our guests. This means that the cigar bars on Carnival Glory, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Destiny are now totally 100% non-smoking and on other classes of ships some lounges that were smoking are now non-smoking. Now, no final decision has been made and won’t be for some time. I will say that when I was on the Niew Amsterdam they only had one inside smoking bar and cigar smoking was only allowed outside.
I personally understand why we are looking at this. As I mentioned yesterday, I know it is not much fun for non-smokers to pass through the cigar lounges to get to the internet cafe. And I have to say that we really didn’t think this all the way through by putting the computers there ……. that really was silly…….in my opinion anyway. On your Carnival Dream we have the Lanai with its comfortable seating, tables and bar service. If we are going to move smokers to more outside areas then we must make it a comfortable environment for them to enjoy a cigarette or a cigar…….as on your Carnival Dream and as I found it to be on the Nieuw Amsterdam.
So, to help them with this I am going to ask you a favor and vote in this poll during the next seven days. Maybe I could ask Host Mach to slap this on the cruise boards as well. Here are the questions.
Look, I know that smoking is the most controversial of subjects………..apart from global warming and my underpants fetish…….but as we continue to try and do what is best for you, our guests, then who better to comment and help us make the right choices than you. So, please have a good think about this and vote away. I will send the results and all your comments on this subject to some very important people.
Taking my Carnival name tag off for a moment and writing now not as a Carnival employee and someone who understand that we must do what is best for our guests …….. I wanted to say this. In my grandfather’s day, he could smoke almost everywhere. In my father’s day, he could still smoke a cigar on a plane. In my day, I could still smoke in a pub. Now I can only smoke in public……. if I’m on fire. I guess this tells its own story as to where not only the cruise industry is going……….but where the world is as well.
On a much happier note I have another big batch of Chef’s Table reservations to make for you today. Please remember that if you need me to make a reservation for you and your family to post the following.
TITLE CHEFS TABLE RESERVATION
NAME
CABIN NUMBER
SHIP
SAILING DATE
These will not be posted on the blog so please don’t include any other information on them. You will receive a confirmation e-mail directly from the ship soon thereafter.
Host Mach sent me this fantastic review of the Chef’s Table written by Edmond Dantes:
DW and I experienced the Chef’s Table on the Imagination last Thursday. I can tell you that it was the highlight of our cruise, and worth every penny of the charge. Chef Ajit and the wait staff were tremendous. The experience lasted around three hours, and DW and I both agreed that we could not cruise with Carnival any longer without being able to enjoy the Chef’s Table experience on the trip.
That is fantastic to hear Edmond and I shall indeed pass this to the ship. So, please let me know if you want to try this outstanding culinary journey and I will be honoured (spelt correctly) to make a reservation for you.
Much like the introduction of the Chef’s Table, the people with beards at Carnival are always coming up with new ways to make your cruise fun and memorable. Our comedy shows have always been a big part of our entertainment lineup and our comedy club on Carnival Dream is a huge, huge hit. On Monday we’ll be announcing an exciting new feature for our ships but PA 007 has managed to grab an advance copy of the press release which we’ll post here on the blog thingy on Sunday night. So check back on Sunday and you’ll find out all the details.
OK, I am going to hate this next bit for sure but…………….well……………here goes. I start my travels again soon and will by early August be a CD again as I begin my four-month contract as a cruise director on the Carnival Splendor. So……..I ummmm……. bugger …………..how do I say this…………come on John stop stuttering around like a Hugh Grant movie and get a sodding move on…………right…………I am here to ask if …….. ummm …………it’s ok to take a week off from the blog.
There, I said it………….and now I have to go for a poo…………back in a minute.
OK, right where was I….oh yes…the week off. You see, I haven’t had a proper holiday for …..well…… a long time so I want to ask your permission to take a week off from blogging and spend a week of rest and relaxation with the girls. I am not sure what we are going to do, Heidi doesn’t even know about this yet and I am even thinking of flying to Naples, Italy for three days. A friend of ours has a house there that he has offered to lend us.
I am not sure if we will go but if not we will do normal family things like go swimming and go to zoo and argue. I do hope you are not too disappointed or angry about this and of course I will be back a week on Monday.
I will be writing from the Queen Victoria where I will be attending a gala charity event. I was hoping to sail the entire cruise but I am needed back onboard the Carnival Splendor so I will be there just 2 nights. However ………I will be meeting………well………have a read of this e-mail I received from someone important at Cunard.
John
Queen Victoria will be berthed at the City of Liverpool Cruise Facility. That morning HRH the Duchess of Cornwall (Camilla) will be making a visit to her ship and will be on board from 1125 to 1220 hours. We have made arrangements for you to be presented to her while she is in the Grand Lobby just after her embarkation
Bugger me!
I am meeting The Duchess of Cornwall who is a huge Cunard fan and of course christened the ship. I will be writing all about my Royal adventures on the 26th. ……… then it’s off to America…….and back to my other job of being a cruise director.
I have to tell you a story from my time on the Niuew Amsterdam. It’s a bit late I know but I have had so much to write about these past few days that I haven’t had a chance to fit it in. Anyway, as you know I loved the ship and I have to say that I cannot recommend her and the Holland America product highly enough. I hope my blog about the ship did it justice ………probably not……..but anyway, she and her crew were amazing and I must go back one day and experience a full week of the HAL signature service.
Anyway, you may remember my blog featured twenty something photographs which I had sent while at sea. And for those of you who have tried to send a photo from a cruise ship while at sea, you will know that it is a slow, tedious and sometimes frustrating affair.
And therefore sending 20 of the buggers was not a pleasant day out. It was made slightly easier by the fact that I was writing from the Crows Nest which is a gorgeous lounge, right at the top of the ship over looking the bow and the ocean. It is full of huge leather chairs and it’s where the library is located so it lends itself to being the perfect place to relax with a good book, send photos to thousands of blog readers……..or in the case of one chap……..snore your bloody head off.
I faced this problem on the Nieuw Amsterdam as just a few seats away from me one sat Mr Bogpig, whose animal sound effects pushed me and every other passenger comfortably inside the seventh circle of Hell. The stress was carved on all our faces as we waited for the deep, rasping honk on the inhale, the wet, fluttering whistle on the exhale ………………and the small stream of dribble that ran from his mouth…….down his chin ………….to form a small wet patch on his white polo shirt.
Passengers were trying to read or play cards and did so while exchanging looks of horror at Mr. Bogpig , then looked away, no one wanting to volunteer to shake the bugger awake. One passenger started coughing loudly but the snores easily drowned out the tickled throat noises. I had to do something…..it was bad enough having top wait 10 minutes to download one sodding photo, let alone have to do it while listening to Animal Farm. I got my Raspberry out and played my ring tone at full volume, hoping that the theme from The West Wing might rouse him from slumber. Did it bollocks.
“Is it cruel to wake him?” asked one passenger to another……as nobody did anything I guess they decided it was. I couldn’t really say anything. After all, I was in effect a Carnival Corp employee but I couldn’t understand why the other passengers thought it would be cruel.
Holland America passengers are so nice. Eventually, most left the lounge to find other places to read and play cards. Leaving me and my photos……and Mr Bogpig……. snoring his head off, dribbling away. I left around 30 minutes later……he was still snoring and now the lounge was mostly empty. As I left I wondered if, when Mr Bogpig eventually woke that he would have thought it funny that the lounge was completely empty.
What is the correct way to deal with a loud snorer on a cruise ship? Throwing him overboard or taping his mouth shut………….is I think………… probably illegal?
Thank you so much for allowing me a week off. I will miss you.
Goodnight
Your friends
John, Heidi and Kye
Look, friends — there are a few things you should remember before you comment. The space below is for you to post your comments about the post I've just written above. If it is something that's unrelated, please use the Ask John tab above. Now, while I may not be able to reply to your comment below, I do sit in my underpants almost every morning and read everything that is here. So feel free to comment on the comments and then if someone wants to comment on the comment to the comment then go ahead as well. Please be courteous unless the poster is French...........then you can say whatever you want.
Go for it, take a week off… you deserve it. I think we all can live without you for awhile
Enjoy your time off… have fun with the family
Stefani (spelled correctly)
Have a grand time while you’re away, my friend! I’ll try not to bother you too often.
To me, cigars and cruise ships go together. The ability to enjoy a good cigar in a comfortable environment is one of the things I look forward to on every voyage. Forcing me out the door to enjoy a stick is, at the very minimum, rude and demeaning. So, there you have it… my opinion. I’m certain that it won’t be a popular one but it’s mine and I’m sticking by it.
Please tell the Duchess I said hi and give her a pat on the bottom for me…
Just kidding, of course!!
All the best to you and your wonderful girls!!!
Ciao!
Host Mach
Host Mach,
I agree with you 100%. I think Carnival has it right already. It’s a good balance already. The only thing I would change is make one side of the ship smoking cabins and the other side non-smoking cabins so we can smoke on our balconies without listening to the person on the next balcony making a coughing sound to let us know they don’t like our smoke. This would cause people to book early to make sure they got the side they wanted.
BIG ED
I don’t smoke cigars, but I’m in total agreement with you. Come on…leave us a few vices to enjoy.
Host Mach hit the nail on the head. Outside with cigars means it is time for a diff cruiseline.
Agree 100%, Carnival has it right, don’t mess it up. I don’t smoke Cigars, but feel their needs to be a relaxing enjoyable place for those that do. On our last cruise it was enjoyable for me to watch my husband and his buddies, sit around the cigar bar, talk war stories and enjoy a fine cigar and glass of brandy! And even those in our group who are non smokers joined in and have said they did not realize how nice it was. The air was not as bad as they thought it would be. Sure this will be unpopular as well, but it is my opinion.
I’m totally in agreement with you. I’m not a smoker either but have enjoyed the atmosphere of the cigar bars. I’m hoping Carnival will keep them. My DH tried to have one on the Legend in the sports bar but it was not a relaxing place, we both missed the music and feel of the cigar bar.
Did anyone think of “accidently” walking into his chair, of
fall over his feet is they were sticking out even a little????
How about a closepin on his nose!!!!
Not a Mr. Bogpig.
John, You and your family enjoy your week off. You earned it. Just make sure that the Stephanies keep the comments updated so we can reply to each others comments and questions.
BIG ED
We’ll miss you and your fun insights but take the time…we are going to be your pain in the fanny when we meet up with you on the Splendor on 8/1/10 anyway. You will need it!
You deserve time away just like the rest of us. Spend time with your family. Tomorrow is never guaranteed. Live every day as though it was your last. No regrets…..
Joseph….cruising on the Conquest on the 25th of July!!!!
Have a wonderful week John. I hope you do get down to Naples…..will you be flying on Ryanair or EasyJet? Wow, the last time I was in Naples was 1966….even I was young then!
We’ll miss you and your underpants but we’ll be okay.
Steve O
Hi John,
I posted the poll on Cruise Line Fans:
http://www.cruiselinefans.com/carnival-cruise-line/48765-carnival-cruise-smoking-poll.html
I assume Kuki or someone will post on Cruise Mates, but I’ll check.
bill
Go for it. You deserve the time off. Spend time with the girls. You can never get tomorrow back. Hope to meet you on a cruise soon. Sailing the Conquest on the 25th of July. Celebrating the end of a 26 year career in the Air Force.
Joe……
John, I agree with Host Mach on cigars! Host Mach does an awesome job on Cruise critic and puts an end to many rumors. Thanks Mach!
Now John as for your request for a week off. Let me see…. Ok Go ahead. Enjoy the family and your time to youselves!!!!!
Dan
Of course by all means take a week off to be with the girls! Enjoy yourself!
About the polls …I voted to keep the cigar rooms smoking. While I don’t smoke or even like cigars, I would want others to have the right to smoke in a designated area. I do think Planning should be involved though in placing of these smoking areas. I remember coming out of the dining room on the Carnival Victory and smelling the cigar lounge. Really next to the dining room was not a brilliant idea!
Enjoy your time off, you will be missed, but you sure do deserve it.
Hugs to you, Heidi and Kye,
Bobbi
Hi John,
Yes, take a week off and enjoy time with your family. It is a great time to take off. This means I will not have a week’s worth of blogs to read when I return from my cruise on the Carnival Elation.
As for smoking, I am a non-smoker. I do understand that smokers need a place to smoke. I just wish that Carnival would put up larger non-smoking signs on the open decks and more of them. I try real hard to avoid the areas where smoking is allowed. But it always seems to happen that a smoker will come and sit somewheres near me on the non smoking area of the open decks and smoke. And there will be times that a Carnival employee will walk by and say nothing. The only time I have noticed an employee stopping someone from smoking is in the food service areas. I would just like to be able to sit on the open decks and not have to breathe second hand smoke. Please put up larger signs and more of them.
Enjoy your time off. I wil let you know about our cruise on the Carnival Elation.
Cindy
John you are to respectful of us. You should forget about everything except Kye and Heidi for that week. Enjoy the time with your lovely ladies. have a excellent time in Italy. Say hello to Rocco. Ha,ha,ha. Bye for now.
Paul F. PIetrangelo
John, PLEASE REPLY
My hubby is one cruise behind me. We sail on 3/31/11 on the Carnival Destiny. And stay onboard for the following cruise 4/4/11. My Platinum cruise will be the 3.31 cruise and Randall will be platinum on 4.4.11 ( our 30th wedding anniversary). My question is this. I thought that you did not get a platinum card until your 10th cruise. My co-worker said no she called Carnival and someone told her that all people in the cabin get Platinum if one is platinum. I thought that I would get the Platinum card on 3.31.11 cruise and Randall would get gold then on the 2nd leg of the back to back , he would get a Platinum card. Can you verify if this is so? I am just curious. Julie
I’m not a smoker, and I hate smoking and the smell of smoke. But I don’t mind a dedicated cigar bar onboard. If that’s the room’s purpose (not a room used for something else, but allows smoking), then I have no problem with that. Even if I have to walk through it to get to the Internet Cafe, I know going in to expect smoke. What I hate is smoking on balconies and other lounges.
Enjoy your time off! You picked a good week. We’ll be cruising so I won’t have to spend $1000 on the sloooow Internet to get your updates.
Puhlease John?…How can you ever expect to have any survey favor smokers when in fact they are in the minority anymore in our society.Mathematically impossible, but a great way for the anti-smoking zealots to continue To perpeTuate their crap.
I am a non smoker but I am in favour ( spelled correctly LOL )
smokers having their private areas to smoke. So those #’s should be in their favour.
This way, we the non smokers do not have to inhale their smoke.
Tim – I’m a non-smoker who favors a cigar bar area for smokers that we don’t have to walk through to get somewhere. But I resent your comment regarding non-smokers “perpetuating their crap” – it’s called lung cancer!
I do not smoke but think smoking in the cigar bar should be ok
On a cruise on the Carnival Miracle from New York in 2007, I noticed the smoking was worse than any other ship I had been on. Of course, the Carnival Miracle doesn’t have a cigar bar (as far as I know) but the amount of smoking – especially in the Piano Bar and along an entire side of the pol deck – really turned me off.
I think the Cigar Bar should be for smoking cigars (makes sense I guess) but only if it is its own enclosed room. I remember walking through the Cigar Bar on the Carnival Triumph, which bothered me since there was no way around it easily (with the Galley being located below it).
John.
Of course you should take a week off. Like others, I am surprise that you continue to blog on a regular basis when you are suppose to be off and away from your Carnival duties.
You should maybe think about only posting on your blog only once a week while you are at home with your girls. Maybe post more frequently if you have breaking news so we are the first to know. LOL
Enjoy your remaining time with your family.
Mary
John, I have been enjoying your blog “thingy” for a number of months now and we, Colleen & I had the pleasure of sailing with you on our Carnival Dream for BC3 where we celebrated our 50th anniversary.
I do believe smoking on the Lanai on our Carnival Dream was a brilliant move by the Beards (or one of the Stephanies) :- )
Please take a break from this “thingy” and enjoy your self with your ladies as your holiday will soon be ending and once again you will be leaving them.
Caio’
ERNIE
Have a lovely vacation with your girls! “See” you when you get back!
Just a note: You MUST tell the waiting staff when you are going on a cruise that you are VIP, there is a Special line for that, and you go right up, no waiting. With 20 cruises, and 2 more coming up in a total of 12 years, I think I know the perks of Platinum! So Judy Sharum just show your tickets and you will be directed to the VIP (Platinum line). I have been on many ships on CCL, and they ALL offer this service. And when disembarking you are given #1 for your luggage so you are the first number called after those who carry off their luggage, and those handicapped in wheelchairs, etc.
Please Reply.
Dear John,
I always enjoy your blog, and now am going on my second cruise with Carnival on the Sensation! I emailed you almost a year ago asking you to send a copy of praise for our room steward, she was amazing! (you sent it, thank you). I am traveling with my same friend who tends to clam up and be shy with large groups. So our last cruise we only ate at the dinning room once because we were sitting at a ten top. Is there any possible way we could get a smaller table so we don’t have to buffet our way through this cruise!
We are leaving August 26, Sensation, Room V4 (we are going all out this time!)
Thank you so much!
HI John,
I have to say, when we sailed on the Triumph in Dec 2008, one of the highlights of our night was going down to the room where the cigar bar was located every night after dinner (late seating). We would relax in the very comfortable room, have a nice relaxing after dinner drink, listen to the awesome jazz/classical trio playing, and in my case enjoy a wonderful cigar. Quite the relaxing and perfect vacation experience.
Though it is unfortunate that people using the net cafe would have to walk through (bad design) I would be sad to have this experience taken away from us.
Just my 2 cents.
Keep up the good work!
Paulbill
Dear John,
Concerning the smoking….while I agree that having all walk through the cigar bar to use the internet is silly, I also think that having all smoking outside to be equally silly. There should be at least 3 indoor smoking areas. Forward, midship and aft. I am thinking of mostly weather concerns and also those with walking difficulties. Picture a perfect elegant night. After having spent a great deal of time preparing for the evening then having to go outside where it is always windy? Not good for the hairdo! Also, if it is bad weather, it can be extremely unpleasant. 3 indoor and well ventilated areas can’t be too much to ask can it? At least one of which has good entertainment and beverage service?
Of course you should spend some time with your lovely ladies! We can wait a week to hear from you again (although the withdrawal symptoms may be hard to bear.) I’ve been waiting over a month, so what’s another week or so.
Here’s hoping that Camilla hasn’t been following your blog too closely so she will not remember you when you meet!
Hugs to Heidi and Kye,
Maribeth Kring
Big Ed’s Little Cousin
Maribeth,
Just think, Maybe it was Camilla that asked for this meeting to be set up, ROFLMAO.
BIG Ed
When you end up spending your vacation in the infirmary or room on inhalers because of smokers so you can keep your asthma in control you won’t think smoking out side is silly.
John
Mike and I hope your week with your family will be as memorable as the many vacations you have given us over all these years. Lynn and Mike Sagara
JOHN PLEASE REPLY
John, you deserve every minute of your week off … and more! However, when you return, please could you repeat the list of ships which have the Chef’s Table experience? I know you put it on the blog before, but unfortunately I didn’t keep a copy. Enjoy your break!
John, If you make it to Naples (my favorite cruise destination) and if you have transportation available, take the girls to the Hotel Tritone http://www.tritone.it for lunch. It is in Priano along the Almafi coast and the food and views are awsome. It’s been six years since our last lunch there and the better half is still talking about how romantic it was.
Now, to be honest, I’ve only been on one Carnival cruise and that was when the Fantasy was brand new but after reading your blog thingy I’m seriously considering the Carnival Magic with it’s stellar Med. itinerary and fabulous shore excursions. And who knows, maybe I’ll get a chance to see you in person on the Carnival Magic or better yet, buy you dinner in the steak house in appreciation for the countless hours of laughs you have provided me.
Warm Regards to You & The Girls,
Tom Olsen
P.S. No need to post this.
have a wonderful vacation and give the delicious baby a squeeze for me
ann
Hi John,
We were lucky to have sailed with Graham Seymour on that other line for a TA. And yes he is one of the best we’ve ever had. He sings like a rock star, does a very funny R rated comedy show and was great at all the other shows. All your CD are good but only a few stand out. He was one.
Enjoy your week off, although we’ll miss you. And see you in September.
Thanks for everything you do for all of us you love cruising.
Lynda
On the subject of smoking… one of the reasons I prefer another cruise line over Carnival is b/c the smoking was so prevalent on Carnival ships. I couldn’t enjoy the night life on board because the disco was so thick with smoke, I couldn’t breathe the second I walked in. The pool deck reserves and entire side for smokers, and if I forgot and chose to walk down that side to get around the ship, I regretted it instantly. So much so that I would often turn around and retrace my steps to go by the other side.
Equally annoying is paying for a balcony cabin, and being unable to use the balcony because of the smokers on their balconies around my cabin. (and of course this isn’t specific to Carnival…it’s the luck of the cabin selection for any line).
As always, thanks for asking us, the customer, our opinions. It does make a difference!
John Please Reply
For the past few months I’ve become a John Heald blog thingy junky. Since 2005 we have taken 13 Carnival Cruises and I can truly say they have all been wonderful. I’m not saying that there haven’t been problems, but I feel that the difference between a good company and a great one is how they handle these problems. A perfect example of this happened on the Legend on our last cruise. This ship was involved in a minor fender bender with the ship with the crown. Our CD (the much abused Jen Baxter) did a fabjob of keeping everyone safe and claim. There was no frantic announce like OMG were going to hit, but instead a sweet claim voice came over the PA to please move away from the port side of the ship. Then at the show that night Jen appears on stage in a life jacket saying there is no need to worry (what a perfect way to put the FUN back into the cruise)
Needless to say I’m a Carnival fan for life. Our next cruise is Oct.2 on the Dream, I would love to ask for something special, but for the life of me I can’t think of anything that isn’t taken care of on board. I always check out my table in the main dining room when I get on board and being as broad as tall I don’t fit at all the tables, but the MD has always given me what I asked for. Thanks for the fun with your blog a maybe someday we will meet on board.
Dave Allen was the best!!! We used to get him on our PBS station when we first moved to Florida. I thought he was way funnier than Benny Hill.
I don’t understand what all this nonsense about dining room seating time is all about. I’ve never had a problem, whether we were sailing with 12 people or just my wife and I, concerning dining times. We always have the early seating. There was one time that we were assigned the late seating when there was 8 of us. We went to the Maître and asked to have our time changed as we asked for the early seating long before the cruise. He gruffly replied that the dining rooms were full for this seating. My answer, “I guess that you don’t understand, we demand the early seating.” After much bantering he “found” a table for us at the early seating. We paid good money for an enjoyable cruise and the late seating would have upset most of our plans as well as our senior digestive systems. All of us are, by nature, easy going people. However, it certainly got our dander up when we could not only get the seating that we wanted, but that we were assigned to different tables even though we linked our bookings together. This was out 8th cruise on the Carnival line and never had this problem before. Hopefully, we will never have this problem again as we much prefer Carnival over all of the other lines and look forward to going platinum. On another subject…… I’ve read some of the blogs related to tipping. I fail to understand how some people can be so mean and small that they withdraw their tips from their bill. When they go to restaurants ashore I’ll bet that they leave a tip. These waiters, assistant waiters and room stewards work very hard for long hours. We always give them extra cash beside the obligatory tips. I don’t think that I’ve ever seen a sour face on any of the crew at any time, including the deck hands that we run into. We do look forward to our next sailing. When we get you for our CD we consider that a huge plus. Larry
John -Please Reply,
I hope you get to enjoy your week off. You certainly deserve it and I am sure you will have a wonderful, real vacation.
We are sailing on Carnival Miracle on Oct. 18 and are Platinum. I was reading what Judy Sharum posted about the VIP lines and I know you are going to check for her for February. Will you please check earlier regarding VIP treatment for boarding in Ft Lauderdale so we will know what to expect? Thanks so much.
Frank & Gerri
Have a great week off with Heidi and and Kye, you so deserve it. I am sure everyone understands family time.
Mary Lee
I can see where some of the cigar bars are large and not cost effective to be used by a few cigar smokers, maybe a smaller bar near the casino would work. Hubby definitely enjoys his after dinner Cuban with a glass of brandy or sherry. Just our humble opinion.
John: Hope you totally enjoy your well deserved week off. I have been trying to figure out how to send msgs in to your blog.(talk about being tehnology challenged).Maybe someone could send me an e mail and enlighten me. Thanks Wayne
Hi John,
I received my confirmation for the Chef’s Table on the Carnival Ecstacy and want to thank you so much for your help! I really appreciate it.
As to smoking…
As a non-smoker, I don’t mind if there are designated smoking areas such as the Cigar Bar, I just won’t go in there. It is problematic if others have to go through that area to get to some other area though. I think the smokers should have a nice place they can go to enjoy a smoke if they choose to do so. No smoking in the “Cigar Bar” is a bit riduculus though. I understand the reasoning due to the internet cafe and that moving the cafe may not be possible, but surely something could be done to accommodate both groups? A different way into the internet cafe?
But I do mind smoking if it’s in a more public area such as the dining rooms, lounges, etc. Outside, if there could also be a designated area for smoking but not just smoking anywhere outside on deck/balconys because then the non-smokers can’t get away from the smoke.
As someone with allergies and for whom smelling smoke for more than a few minutes will trigger a horrible headache, I would prefer the main areas to be smoke-free. But smokers should have several places they can go to smoke if they wish.
Just my two cents.
Thanks again for the Chef’s Table reservations and enjoy your vacation, err…holdiay!
Kristie
Have a wonderful week of REAL vacation. We will miss you but you certainly deserve it. So do your girls!
elizabeth
John,
Have a wonderful week off. No thinking about work, it will NOT be allowed. Enjoy your family.
KathyG
Dave Allen!!! He used to be shown on my local public television station every week. Funny, funny show. I hadn’t thought about him for years. Thanks for the memory.
Carnival WILL continue to lose business from myself and other like-minded individuals when your fleet, with the massive ships, cannot even allocate one room for cigar smoking indoors. Essentially, we the cruiser must suffer because of the poor design of having internet cafes with access through a cigar bar. Members of our cigar club booked a cruise this past June and chose RCL because they continue to provide an indoor haven for a cigar that is not en route to other public areas. Surely Carnival can look at other rooms and configure one of them for cigar smoking if moving the internet cafe is too much of an issue.
RUN don’t walk …By all means take the week off…there is no greater way to spend time than time spent with your family and YOU deserve it as do Heidi and Kye…ENJOY and don’t think of us…we will survive..we’ll “talk” to you upon your return
Hello John (no reply necessary)
Lynda and I are looking forward to sailing with you on the Carnival Splendor in September. We are also booked on a little 5 day on the Carnival Fascination in October. (Also the Carnival Dream in November and the Carnival Elation in December but they are unrelated to this missive.)
I know you sometimes get some grief about prformance of the Miami office staff. So I thought you would appreciate a story about unbelievably fast service. Today I noticed a small price drop on our October cruise, $ 10 per person. Since we booked early saver I thought that I might as well submit the form for the $ 20 OBC.
I filled out and submitted the form and received the automated confirmation e-mail that I would be sent notice within 3 business days. It arrived at 3:14 p.m.. At 3:28 p.m. I received an e-mail showing the additional $ 20 OBC had been applied. 14 minutes on a Saturday! Wow
John
My wife and I are Milestone level cruisers and I feel obligated to comment on the smoking issue because a voice for smokers needs to be heard. I don’t smoke but my wife does and while over time places to smoke have become more restrictive she feels that a good balance has been struck. She loves the casino gambling and even though more of that space has become nonsmoking she feels comfortable with the rules. Please don’t let CCL cave into the antismoking crowd that would have all of the ships nonsmoking if they could.
We hope to see you this fall on the C. Splendor.
Regards
Roger T
Enjoy your week off and have a great time with your girls. Larry & Jeri
I hope you enjoy your week off. Be sure to leave that raspberry thingy at the house. I know you hate to fly but to be able to spend a couple of in Italy would be great.
On the smoking front – I am an ex-smoker but I feel that smokers still have the right to use the products in certain areas. An cigar smokers have the rights too. What would it be like for them not to enjoy the occasional Havana or Corona or whatever?
The next thing would be trying to control the drunks to one part of the ship. I know that non-smokers hate the smell and I don’t blame them but really, to take away all areas would not stop them from complaining. Even if it was relegated to the outside only, they would find some way of b!tching about it.
Anyway I hope you, Heidi and Kye have a fabulous time off from all of us bloggers. It will be very lonely without your great humor and stories.
Carol-Ann
See you on the BC4.
Just a note about Chefs Table. We participated in this new grand experience on Carnival Liberty in May. It was awesome! Worth every extra penny. It’s so wonderful to feel special and to be treated as royalty. The food was fabulous as was the service. I’m sure we will try this again on another cruise in the future. We’re heading to Canada/New England in October on Carnival Glory. Any info on that cruise about excursions are welcome!
Hello John,
All I have to say about smoking is that I smoked for 29
years. I quit 19 years ago. I finally learned that second hand smoke kills childern as well as adults . I have 3 childern and two grandchildern. My childern and wife, finally convinced me to quit.
Thanks for letting me have my say!
A frequent Carnival cruiser,
Ronnie
Hi John,
I, for one, would love it if the cigar bars were non-smoking and Carnival would bring back a jazz band.
It seems to me that the bar was rarely filled to capacity and a lot of square footage was going to waste. To fill it, a nice jazz quartet seem to work well.
Maybe move the Internet Cafe somewhere and make the old Internet Cafe a cigar area. You could even open the exterior doors and let the smokers get a gasp of fresh area.
bill
Dear John,
Enjoy your week off! You deserve every second!
Hugs to Heidi & Kye,
Laura
Dear John, Please Reply.
Thank you SO much for facilitating the reservations for the Chef’s Table. We submitted our request via your blog and within two days received confirmation from the ship’s Maitre D – wow! We’re so excited and we’re definitely looking forward to this wonderful experience.
Would you mind explaining what the next step will be once we’re on the ship? Will there be a letter with the information in our stateroom? When do they charge our Sail and Sign cards? We’re doing a back to back on the Carnival Imagination in December and signed up for the Chef’s Table on the 12/3/10 sailing. Do you happen to know what day it will on since that first leg is only three days?
Thanks for your patience in answering my many questions and thanks again for being willing to put yourself out there for all of us Carnival cruisers!
Jeannie P.S. If you ever decide to coordinate the reservations in advance for cabanas at Half Moon Cay, please let me know!!
John,
you should send the beards to look at how Norwegian do their embarkation. Seperate lines for VIP, latitudes members and the rest. Works like a charm.
Enjoy the holiday shame about meeting Camilla, it’s a tough life innit and someone has to do it. you’ll recover I’m sure.
Thanks for the Dave Allen memory, he was a king of comedy with a style of his own. That McIntyre bloke could learn that you don’t have to shout to be funny.
Hi John, thanks for a great blog and enjoy your time off….you deserve it.
Please leave the cigar bars alone on the ship. Us smokers need places inside to be able to smoke. A few of the bars will remain smoking I hope too.
I think Carnival would embrace smokers a little more as so many lines have very restrictive rules on smoking. I believe that smokers would be more inclined to sail on Carnival over the more restrictive lines and hence improve Carnivals share of the cruise line industry.
thanks again
Tim B.
John has Carnival ever thought about doing a a Jimmy Buffett concert on the big screen? He is hugely popular.
Please Reply
Hi John!
My lovely new bride and I just returned from our Honeymoon cruise aboard the fantastic Carnival Liberty. We had a wonderful time! The ship was fantastic! The service, the food and the crew were great!
I know there were a couple of snags, such a tender issue in Half Moon Cay. It seems as one of the tenders broke down and we were down to 2 tenders to bring everyone ashore and back to the ship. We were on an organized tour, so we were led down to the tender area and were ashore by 10 am. During this time, we were unaware of an issue with one of the tenders. We had a great time on Half Moon Cay and can’t wait to go back someday. However, I’m sure there will be some negative comments by some readers or on Cruise Critic because of the issue. We totally understand that it was completely out of Carnival’s control and they crew did the best they could. Later that evening, we had a letter in our cabin from Captain Cutugno (more on him in a bit) explaining the situation and apologizing for the issue.
The other snag was that we had to miss Grand Turk on Thursday. We were looking forward too it. However, as we approached the island on Thursday morning (after a VERY rough night at sea), I noticed that we seemed to be having problems maneuvering. Soon after, Captain Cutugno came on the PA and announced that because of 42 knot sustained winds at the pier, we’d be unable to dock. He quickly substituted Nassau as an alternative. This was quite impressive, as he tried to make sure he took care of his guests. Again, we were not upset and totally understood the reason for not docking.
In addition to everything we loved about the cruise, we’d like to point out a couple of really fine points. First was Captain Giovanni Cutugno. Captain Cutugno was the first Captain I’ve seen that was incredibly visible and approachable. Just about every evening, he was walking around or hanging around the Casino Bar, socializing with the guests. I had written a letter to him to see if he could arrange a bridge tour. After a few days, we asked him about this at the Past Guest Party. He said that he was unable to clear it, but to see if I could get on the Behind the Fun tour. This ended up being sold out, but he pulled some strings and let me on it…something he didn’t have to do. It was greatly appreciated. He really made our cruise great and we can’t wait to sail with him again.
Secondly, I’d like to talk a little about our CD Butch. I read the blog the other day about the bad review about Butch. I couldn’t ever imagine anyone saying anything bad about him. He’s, BY FAR, the best CD we’ve ever had (we haven’t sailed with you, yet)! He was beyond friendly. He was extremely approachable and was always around the ship. I wonder when he finds time to sleep. He really made our trip. In fact, we’re looking to plan our next cruise, so that it’s on the Carnival Dream to be able to sail with him again. Please let him know how enjoyable he made our vacation and that he’ll do a FANTASTIC job on the Dream!
Sorry to ramble on, but we wanted to pass along this wonderful experience. Even though things didn’t go as planned, this was still probably one of the best cruises we’ve been on. We can easily see how the LIberty is one of the highest rated ships in the fleet.
Also, we had a chance to get an up and close look at the Norwegian Epic. And you’re absolutely right, it’s epically hideous! It was docked next to us in Nassau and was almost painful to look at. We talked with a gentleman at the airport today who had come off the Epic and said it was horrible. The cabins were small and for 4 days, he had an inch of water in the cabin after an air conditioner leaked. No thanks. It made appreciate Carnival even more. Thanks again, John.
Reid and Lyndsey Bartlam
I hope you have a wonderful vacation with your family. We are so excited to be cruising with you on the Carnival Splendor in september and thank you again for answering my previous questions.
Hi John,
First off want to say, enjoy your podcasts. I had written previously about this same topic and knowing you get thousands of email, I might have missed if you had responded that you had received but it was important to me that I wanted to write again and not assumed that you had received.
I am a big fan of download travel related podcast to listen on my IPOD when time permits. A few months ago I came across a Pod Cast on the Carnival Dream that I thought would be interesting to listen to. The Podcast can be found at: http://www.cruisenotebook.com/The_Cruise_Guys/Carnival_Dream_Information.html
There are actually 3 podcast casts available but the one I wanted to bring to your attention was the one labeled: Episode One: Getting There. If you have a “few” minutes in your schedule I would ask you listed to at least the first 90 seconds of the podcast at lease to the point where they commented about “Carnival’s very Famous Blogging Cruise Director” At least they got FAMOUS right.
I’ll leave the rest for you to hear. I look for travel podcasts to be informative, funny, interesting but this one …………………?
John-
On the smoking issue, I would like to offer a suggestion. We are balcony cruisers, and as non-smokers, it is hit or miss on any given cruise whether at some point, we will be driven off our balcony due to smoke from other passengers. I know many smokers claim that there is no way that it can be smelled, but please believe me it can. We had a Cat 12 on the Fascination one time, and our neighbor began smoking at 0530 am and would often be out smoking well past 10 or 11 at night – with that wonderful cough that accompanies it.
Anyway, now that I have vented a touch, my suggestion is that Carnival make the balcony rooms on one side of the ship smoking, and the other non-smoking. That way people can choose which works best for them.
Also, as a non-smoker, my other request would be that there be some efforts made to minimize the smoke in the piano bar. We have tried several times to enjoy this venue and often just stopping by for a look mid-day gives a sting to the nose of stale smoke. Perhaps an air purifier, or those little ashtrays that whisk away the smoke? I noticed that there seems to be some improvements in the casino area; perhaps the same could be applied elsewhere in the smoking venues? That way smokers and non-smokers alike would be able to enjoy all that Carnival has to offer.
Lastly, I do agree that on the Conquest Class ships, it is very nice that the Cigar Bar is no smoking – though having experienced it on the Valor pre-change – I learned to hold my breath walking through or else took another way around. But I very much agree that those who want to smoke, cigars or otherwise, should have appropriate areas in which to relax as on the Dream. Perhaps someday I will get to sail her and enjoy the Lanai.
I hope you have a wonderful week off with your family – it is much deserved!
Enjoy your time with your family. You deserve it!
John, Have a great week off with your girls. As much as you say you enjoy writing this blog it is work so you need a break from time to time to keep yourself fresh and in a good writing mood. I started reading this blog mostly for your tales of a life at sea as a CD. As I do enjoy your ramblings of land locked life it is very much like my own and I do enjoy it more when you get back on ship and I can live a life far away from my own vicariously through you. I notice you don’t do this much anymore but you used to get guest blog writers from time to time to give you a break like Jamie and others. As a suggestion have you thought of doing that when you are off ship on holiday?
On smoking, I will start by saying I am a non-smoker and do not like the smell of smoke but I will admit I do enjoy a good cigar from time to time and have enjoyed the cigar lounge on several Carnival ships. If it is call “Cigar Lounge” then there is no mistaking what it is and what you will smell if you go there and I have no issue with that. I am all for them staying on the ship as-is (now having to pass through there to get to the Internet room is well lets say someone goofed and needs a good bolocking). As much as smokers say they do not offended buy not smoking near non-smokers (and I thank those that practice that) do they not realize they reek of smoke? I find it amazing that the ladies will spend hours of time to look lovely with their hair done up, make-up, lovely outfit and accessories and perfume and then they smell like a ash tray to everyone all night.
Also to cover your beverage question, how about adding a few more single malt scotch selections in that lounge as the two go very well together. As you noted there is less and less places for smokers in the real world these days and the same should be true on ship. I for example would love to spend some time in the Piano Bar but the smoke keeps me out (not to mention what it must do to the poor piano players voice who has to work in there, it is there livelihood after all and if they lose there voice what will they do to make a living?) I sail in three weeks out of Galveston on my Carnival Conquest to the Eastern Caribbean and look forward to seeing the changes made you have talked about in the blog, enjoying some old favorites that have not changed, and of course a good cigar or two (on ship).
Keith
(Cruiselion)
John, please reply idc.
As far as Carnival is concerned, I cannot recall making any negative comments because any little niggles I have experienced have been just that & I have never felt the need to flag them up.
As a smoker & competitve Masters swimmer, I have, until now, refrained from becoming embroiled in the ongoing exchanges on your Blog on this sensitive subject. However, enough is enough.
I was involved in several heated exchanges in 2009 on Cruise Critic UK with British cruisers who were totally intolerant of smokers & claimed their cruises on balcony cabins were ruined by smokers in adjacent balconies. These claims, as are those of Carnival’s US clientele, wholly without foundation.
As a member of the Institute of Advanced Motorists since late 1975, I have adhered to the teaching of the bible of the British Police Traffic Department’s publication of Roadcraft.
My father was a police officer for over 30 years (2 of these spent in the Met in London) & I was fortunate, through his contacts, to be able to participate in & achieve the accolade of being named best driver on the road , skid pan etc. in the Scottish Police Civilian Roadcraft Competition in 1972 & Radio Clyde’s Motorist of the year in 1975 (beating several men in the process).
If you & other bloggers think my comments are irrelevant, please bear with me. I am not an ignorant female who knows sod all about cars. I know about big ends, carburettors, carbon emissions, centrifugal forces, slip differentials & valve clearances etc.
I am not a scientist, but my point is this. As a result of my interest in better driving, I have learned that if a vehicle, including a ship, is moving forward in open road or sea, anyone in an adjacent balcony cabin/car will not be subjected to fumes from fuel or cigar/cigarette smoke because it dissipates so rapidly in an open environment.
Should Carnival invoke a Smoking Ban on those of us who pay a fortune to secure balconies to indulge in a legal activity, I shall never cruise again with any Cruise Line.
I beg to differ maam. You can get a lot of smoke from the adjacent balconies, or those below. I experienced it personally on Carnival Dream and I am an asthmatic and do not tolerate the smoke. I spend the same amount as you to enjoy a balcony without smoke.
John,
In regards to smoking:
1. Cigar bars are ok and so are designated smoking areas, I know where they are, so I can avoid them and let the smokers puff away in peace.
2. I HATE it when I am trying to enjoy my balcony (that I paid extra for vs an inside or OV cabin) and someone is puffing away. I can’t enjoy my private spot, and can’t get away from it, other than going inside.
3. I would love it if One side of the ship and it’s balconies, or one area of balcony cabins were smoke free so those of us who don’t enjoy the smoke could be free of it.
Let those who smoke have their own spots and those of us who don’t have the chance to get away from it if we wish…
THANK YOU!!
Lisa
Lisa,
The one side of the ships cabins being smoking and the other side of the ships cabins being non-smoking to me would work perfect. This would have people booking early to make sure they get the side they want or need. Once one or the other side is full you take what you get. A family or group would just have to deside what side they want or split up the group.
BIG Ed
I am cruising out of NYC on the carnival miracle for the second time on 9/4/10.
My wife and I will be celbrating our 29th wedding anniversay on that day.
Any suggestions on how to have a special celebration on the first night on the ship?
thanks and keep up the hard work, it is appreciated
darryl
Dear sir,
My wife and I are sailing on the Miracle for the second time on 9/4/10.
We will be celebrating our 29th wedding anniversary that day.
Any ideas on how we can celebrate on the first day of the cruise?
thanks & keep up the hard work it is appreciated.
thanks
darryl
John,
Although I am a non-smoker, I don’t mind the cigar bar allowing smoking. However, the cigar bar should not be used for events such as trivia. I have encountered this on Carnival and it never works even during the day since you can’t take the cigar smell out of the room.
I also would appreciate continued efforts to make some of the areas non-smoking or at least non-smoking on certian nights. I haven’t been able to visity the piano bar on any of my cruises because the smoke smell is too strong. Same problem if the disco allows smoking. I would be fine with alternating smoking and non-smoking nights so my family could at least occasionally enjoy those venues. The Splendor tried to have a non-smoking area in the piano bar but that is useless. You cannot take away the strong smoke smell in a small room.
Thanks for your efforts.
Audrey,
First you say there should be a cigar bar but it shouldn’t be used for other events because you can’t get the smell out. Then you say the piano bar and disco should alternate nights between smoking and non-smoking. Wouldn’t the smell still be there also??
I’ve been in bars, clubs and restaurants that have real good ventalation systems that the non-smoking area is no problem. All they have to do is make sure the fresh air comes into the non-smoking area and exhausts out the smoking area. Keeping the air flow going away from the non-smoking part of the roon or lounge. It works because you can actually see the difference.
But you know what. You will still see non-smoking people sitting on the smoking side with their smoking friends. You will even see this in the casino on the Carnival Dream. The smoking part of the Carnival Dream’s casino is small and a smoker can’t get a seat at a table because a non-smoker is sitting there playing with a smoking friend.
BIG Ed
John
It will be dreadfully difficult not getting a daily missive but every one deserves a holiday now and again! I’ve only recently joined the Fans of John club but have thoroughly enjoyed reading your archives. You have been most helpful and informative to many cruisers and it is appreciated!
It has only been a few days but I’m really looking forward to participating in a Chef’s Table event on the Carnival Dream Sept 11. Your assistance with securing a reservation is most appreciated!
You deserve it, please enjoy your time with your family.
I am a non-smoker and I do understand that smokers need a place to smoke. I just wish that Carnival would put up larger non-smoking signs on the open decks and be stricter about enforcing them. As hard as I try to avoid the areas where smoking is allowed, it always seems to happen that a smoker will come and sit somewhere near me on the non smoking area of the open decks and smoke. A dedicated smoking area inside would be fine, but please not the piano bar or a place that one needs to walk through to get somewhere else. Also it would be great to the balconies on one side of the ship to be non-smoking. So many times I have been enjoying the fresh sea air only to have it spoiled by my neighbor’s smoking on his/her balcony.
Might be too late, but as an avid soda card user, please don’t put in those horrible soda fountains (the soda taste from the cans are must better – I never had an bartender serve me a stale soda)
Thanks for allowing us our input on these concerns.
Mary Ann,
They also need BIG signs saying “SMOKING ALLOWED” on the smoking side of the Lido. Just so non-smokers don’t sit there and do that hand waving by there face crap. I don’t go in your area and smoke so when your in my area remember I’m in the right area. This goes for the casino also. Signs should say “THIS AREA RESERVED FOR SMOKERS ONLY”
BIG Ed
Have a great week off with the family. And congratulations on being presented to HRH The Duchess of Cornwall on the Queen Victoria – I know that such presentations are a great honor (or “honour “for those in the mother country of the USA).
Dave Allen is the best comic ever! I lived in Soesterburg Holland in the early 80′s as my Father was stationed at the American Air base there. There was very little English TV but Dave’s show was much anticipated. We have tried to explain his humour to others with little success, but miss his show very much.
Do I think smoking should be allowed in the CIGAR BARS? Yes, I do! My husband loves to go to the cigar bar after dinner for a good cigar and to listen to some music. We are always respectful to non smokers and only light up where it is ‘allowed’…but if Carnival continues to cut back on where we can smoke, we’ll have to find another cruise line, and we love Carnival, so I’d really hate for that to happen.
John, as much as I’ll miss your blog, I hope you have a wonderful week off to spend with ‘your girls’.
Please reply – I think you should enjoy your time off and I dont mean to intrude, but you did ask that I remind you a month out about our trip. I am sailing back to back on the Carnival Liberty August 21st with 20 of our closest friends and family. This is the first cruise for quite a few of them an I cant wait to share my passion for cruising with them. The second week of the cruise my sister will be joining us and it will be her birthday. I was hoping if it wasnt too much trouble, if you could send her a little something to make it special. Also, I was going to ask you to arrange that we could all sit together. We have 2 different groups going the 2 weeks with our immediate family being the cross-over. 12 the first week and 15 the second week.
We have a lot of difficulties traveling with this group as granny lives with us and is 87, my husband is handicapped and our son is only 10, so we have the young, old and infirm, but dang do we make the most of it!! I would like to apologize in advance for the inconvenience our group will inevitably cause our poor stewards and waiters, but rest assured not one of our group would EVER withhold gratuities (we are generous tippers!) I would also like to thank you in advance but I will write a review and a thank you after the trip as well. I have also decided to slow the pace down a bit with the next cruise already booked for girls only next June on the Carnival Glory. Only 5 girls booked so far, hopefully we can keep it small, LOL!!
Have a great family trip John and we will be waiting when you get back!! I will just have to spend more time on the Carnival site….wishing and planning.
Carnival is on the right track as far as smoking, having it outside is the way to go. As far as Dave Allen goes, I wouldn’t want to be him on judgement day. Have a good vacation, you deserve it.
Have been on Carnival Freedom and Liberty. Walking
along the Promenade above the Cigar Bar in the morning – it stunk of Cigar Smoke because there is
an exit that leads right to the Promenade.
Cigar bars are fine if they are kept apart so none ot the
smell wafts over other places on the ship.
Enjoy your vacation John.
Tom
Hi John!
Thanks for asking our opinions about smoking on the ships.
I agree with what Big Ed said above about making the cabins on one side non-smoking and the other side smoking. It never fails that I end up in a cabin next to a smoker, and I can never enjoy my balcony because I’m always breathing their smoke. I never say anything (nor do I do the “fake cough”) because a person has a right to smoke in any area not designated as non-smoking, but it sure would be nice to separate the sides of the ship so that we wouldn’t have to worry about it.
I took my first Carnival cruise in April on the Carnival Dream and booked a spa suite for one reason only – not to enjoy the spa amenities (which I only used once during two weeks) but because the spa cabins are non-smoking. It worked out nicely, but I’d prefer not paying all that extra money just to avoid some smoke.
I think the Carnival Dream did a nice balancing act in most places. This was the first time I’ve ever been able to enjoy the casino because I could actually breathe! The only place that really bothered me was the Piano Bar. I wish that was completely non-smoking. I never got to enjoy the entertainment there because it was just too hard to breathe. It was bad just walking past there to/from the comedy club. Other than that, except for seeing a few people smoking in non-smoking areas (and no Carnival employees making them stop), I thought my cruise was comfortably smoke-free.
Sorry this post is so long. Please enjoy your week off! I’ll miss your blogs, but I’m willing to go for one week blog-free so you can spend time with your girls! Have fun!
Angela J,
Thank you for agreeing with me. If Carnival went with the split ship for cabins I would even give up the piano bars to the non-smokers. Just leave the sports bar and the casino bars smoking.
BIG Ed
I don’t like cigars, but would much rather have them smoked in the Cigar Bar that on a balcony next to mine. I would love a smoke-free piano bar
Hi John,
My sister and I are very excited to be booked on the fabulous Carnival Magic’s transatlantic voyage! I’m particularly excited as it will be our first time to visit Spain and our first transatlantic cruise.
My daughter and I will be sailing on the Carnival Ecstasy on 7/29/2010 which will be her 1st time on Carnival and my 9th. Platinum is just around the corner!
My sister and I enjoyed the spa pass on the Carnival Dream this past May and would like to know how much the spa pass will cost for two on the Magic’s transatlantic?
Thanks so much, we love Carnival and can’t wait for the Magic to make her way to Texas! It will truly be a thrill to be standing on our Cove Balcony as she docks in Galveston for the very first time! (We are expecting a parade!)
Hi John ( Please reply) I am loyal fan of your blog, and a cruise critic member as they say on that thread I am a lurker! I just got off a cruise on the Carnival Ecstacy 7/10 and had a great time! Next cruise is 1/14/2011 on Carnival Spirit and will be my 6th in less than 2 years, with the 7th following on Carnival Triumph 2/26/2011, I guess you can say I’m hooked! (1) Can you please tell me the 2 formal nights. I think the 1st is on the 1st full sea day, but no clue to the 2nd night. trying to decide when to book the steakhouse but don’t want it to interfer with a formal night (2) Can you tell me when they will open reservations on Carnival web site for booking the steakhouse for 2011—- I am not sure if your aware but web site still has 2008 & 2009 listed but nothing past 12/2010. FYI I was on a cruise in November 2009 and happen to have two table mates from Seattle and we struck up a friendship and have been emailing back and forth so the 4 of us decided to book the Spirit and we can’t wait to see each other again. So its true you can make life long frineds on a cruise. Julie G.
I enjoy a cigar every now and then but even more so on the cruise ship where we are meant to be relaxed. I had no problem and rather enjoyed smoking on the Carnival Dream outside lanai. I think it is a perfect solution and every ship should have a wind blocked alcove with comfortable seating to enjoy a good smoke and cocktail. See you on the Magic. 5/1/11
I’ve thought about it for a couple of hours & I have the solution. Make the cigar bar/smoking room like the Camp Carnival – private entrance, no side entrances, no accidental entries, no pass throughs… That way only those who want to be there will be there.
Dear John (please read)
I love your blog thingie! It brightens my day to read of your adventures on the high seas and about your beautiful girls.
I wanted to relay my experience aboard My Carnival Dream and pass along a few kudos to staff who deserve special mention.
We were first time cruisers along with my children, my brother and our parents who were celebrating 50 years of marriage. We booked 3 Cloud Nine Balcony Staterooms (12212, 12210 and 12208) and sailed July 3. The Cloud Nine Spa is heavenly! Wow, what a treat it was to just step down the hall and get away from it all!
My 15 year old son loved Club O2 and our Daughter loved Camp Carnival. She had a blast on the scavenger hunts!
I was impressed with the lanai. There were always chairs available there if you needed to get away from the hustle and bustle of the pools. The bbq there was good and never crowded.
We attended most of the shows. Dancing in the Streets is awesome! The comedy club was my husbands favorite. Our daughter loved the Fun Force guys. I don’t know if my son saw any of the shows as he was busy doing teenage “stuff”.
Now, kudos to staff. I have to say that our state room stewards were spectacular. Vida and August. They were just a pleasure to be around. They always said hello and were even calling my parents Mama Dot and Papa Ed in just a few days time. You have a treasure in those two! I believe Vida said she would be aboard the Carnival Splendor after her vacation so she might join you in California. Seriously, you know how people cruise a ship because of the Cruise Director? Well, I would consider following Vida and August around! BTW, Todd was great too.
We did the Your Time Dining and it worked perfectly for us. After we met Conrad (head waiter) we requested his section each night. He and his assistants were all fantastic.
I ordered flowers and an anniversary cake from Celebrations for my parent’s anniversary and they were both lovely. The cake tasted great. Very light and moist (I chose vanilla with strawberry filling). I was even able to get a pair of dress shoes for my son after one of his went missing. I think he lost it in the hotel parking lot before we boarded the ship.
I have nothing but good things to say about Our Carnival Dream! We are all ready to go again! Our son said to forget Disney and everything else. He is a cruise convert. Steve and I will celebrate 20 years of marriage next year and hope to be aboard a Carnival Cruise to celebrate! I would love to cruise to Bermuda but the Magic just might call me there. Europe looks temping!
Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the week with your girls! Take care!
Ursula Taylor
(Alabama)
We sailed on the Carnival Fantasy on July 12 and had a marvelous time. However, I must say that neither my husband (an ex smoker) or I went to any lounges or bars after dinner because of the heavy smoke! I thought the piano bar would be fun, but we couldn’t even walk by it without smoke billowing out. More attention to the smoky bars would be most appreciated.
Instead of polls stop killing us by exposing us to second hand smoke on cruise ships. The cruise lines are behind the real world in the USA on this. You can not smoke anywhere indoors around here. I have been booking Celebrity of late because they have a very restrictive smoking policy
Hi John – PLEASE REPLY
My wife and I were on the Carnival Splendor as part of Host Randy’s Cruise Critic Group a year ago last April when the Swinre Flu broke in Mexico and we ended up going to San Francisco. We are re-doing that Cruise in October….well al least we hope to do the Mexican Riviera part of that cruise and skip San Francisco this time.
We had a great time on that cruise as we have on all our of our Carnival Cruises together…We spoke with you outside on the Lanai at the Ocean Plaza on our January, 2010 Carnival Dream cruise when my wife called you over and started you off with an emphatic “I don’t want to end up on your blog”. You quickly had us all laughing.
Anyhow we have always had our “Welcome to …. ” picture taken on the gangway taken which we subsequently purchase and put in our album of ports visited. On the Swine Flu cruise we purchased our ‘Welcome to San Francisco’ picture but when we returned home the picture had been damaged beyond repair and we were wondering if it would be possible to arrange to get the picture re-done behind the ‘Welcome to San Francisco Lifesaver’ so we could purchase a replacement. If not behind the Lifesaver could the photographers work some ‘Carnival Magic’ to at least give us a photograph saying Welcome to San Francisco with the date of our original visit which we could supply them with.
See you in October
Dee and Jim
My husband and I are sailing on the October 10 sailing, and will be celebrating our 14th anniversary on the 13th. He would like to go to the steakhouse, but I’ve seen the menu and I’m a vegan. Do you know if the chef ever goes off menu to accommodate a vegan?
I feel that if bars are going to allow smoking the doors need to be closed. I found it very offensive to have to walk through the smoke billowing out of the Piano Bar on Carnival Dream. I love the piano bar, but due to the smoke, and being asthmatic I did not spend a single minute in one of my favorite places.
Ahhh…my first time visiting someone’s blog…this is new to me (funny for someone who is fairly tech-savy). Anyway, per Cruise Critic, I’m writing to find out about the Chef’s Table. We’ll be on the Pride on the 25th and with a 14 year old daughter who LOVES to cook and create (and brag to her her little sister, too), we’d love to be a part of the Chef’s Table if possible.
I’ve really gotten a kick out of some of the comments (never heard the one about the “wal-mart of the seas” before…and having a father-in-law from The Netherlands, I’m used to seeing speedos on older, plumper men and am indifferent to the controversy)
Thanks!
Laura
Please respond…
John,
While I can completely understand why Carnival is looking into moving Cigar smoking to a different areas. I hope that Carnival isn’t forgetting the cigar smoker. Why I make this statement is that when I took the inaugural cruise on the Dream they didn’t have a spot for cigar smokers or at least most weren’t informed, I have since learned that not everyone knew where cigar smokers could go and I spent all of my cigar smoking time on my balcony, while this wasn’t completely a bad thing it did make it difficult to get another drink while enjoying my cigar.
With all that being said I would like to ask to make a few suggestions. In my humble opinion I think that moving the Cigar smokers to the sports bar would be a good place to start and I know that not all ships have a sports bar but the ones that do would be okay. Also I have run into and issue on some of the older ships where good drinking material (i.e. single malt scotches and a good cognac) wasn’t provided at the areas that you could smoke a cigar. This would help in make a cigar smoker feel right at home. Since I will be sailing on the Glory in 3 weeks this would be very nice for my sailing.
I know I started this off taking about cigars but I would like to bring up one last thing and that is the subject of single malt scotches. Carnival has really gone backwards on their selection of these. I would very nice to see that they bring back a few of the ones you use to have or maybe update them with a good Mcaallens scotch but that is just a personal request.
Thank you for taking the time read this and hope these suggestion at least don’t fall on deaf ears.
please enjoy your short holiday and squueeze that sweet baby for me
ann mc
Please reply!!!
There appears to be an inexperienced cruiser posting on cruise critic that thinks they do not need to purchase insurance because of an incident that happend to another poster.A host on cruise critic told them to contact him who in turn contacted you as to their situation.Their mother died in a house fire a few days prior and they did not have insurance.
A follow up question as to whether anything was done and it was replied to that there was a resolution.
So what is the truth? Do you need insurance or if something goes wrong and you do not have it will a cruise critic host and you take care of it?
I don’t smoke, can’t stand to smell cigarette smoke (oddly a cigar does not bother my asthma where all cigarettes do) but agree that smokers should be able to smoke indoors, sometimes it’s just too unpleasant outside (rain?).
I would suggest that the cigar bars attached to the internet cafes be moved (i.e. change it to a nonsmoking bar, BUT designate a different bar as the Cigar bar). It was a poor design element that can be fixed by moving the bar. It would take too much money to move the internet area (because of wiring etc), but really, changing a few bar names (signage, deckplans, etc) shouldn’t be outrageous.
Also, I agree that at least on the balcony decks, one side should be designated smoking and one nonsmoking.
My 2 cents,
Julie
i called carnival twice regarding my may 2011 cruise on the freedom. the last time was 3 weeks ago and they assured me that there was smoking in the cigar bar. we were on the dream this year and sorely missed the jazz/cigar bar we had experienced on the liberty one year prior. we booked the freedom because it is the sistership to the liberty. there are two avid cigar smokers booked with me. honestly i am rethinking this cruise. i want to know before it gets too late to cancel. i am fuming that i was mislead by carnival when i insisted there were reviews that stated no smoking cigars in the cigar bar. they insisted that this was not true.
Hi John
I would like to see more restrictions on smoking, and NO I don’t think a total smoke free ship like Paradise was is needed. Just more restrictions
I would like to see Piano Bars non smoking, Disco and Casino non smoking.
If you want the “CigarBar”…then put smoke extractors in it, and wall it off somehow to keep the smell in there. Same with the Sports Bar.
I think outside smoking should be limited to a deckside area and maybe have a covered area.
I was lucky to not have smoker problems on my last cruise, a Balcony, in April on Liberty. But I do worry about that.
The trend is less smoking, and more restrictions on those who still do smoke. I really hope Carnival follows suit
Piano bar…piano bar….please a NON smoking piano bar..thanks
Just wondering. Have you ever been in a non-smoking piano bar? If you have, then you probably noted that it was all but empty and the few that were inside either had a single glass of wine or perhaps a bottle of water. Why not try to accommodate both groups instead of imposing your soviet style of thinking and enjoyment. That is, anyone who is not like us or disagrees with us is our enemy. I’d be willing to bet that you’ve already been on cruises were all smoking was banned indoors and spent little if any time in the piano bars. You should thank us smokers for helping all those underpaid piano players to make a decent living because you’re obviously not.
Removing the ability for me to enjoy my cigars on my vacation cruise will cause me to take my vacation money elsewhere. We have 13 people cruising with us this thanksgiving. I guess your revenue stream is doing well enough to alienate returning clientele?
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I would advocate for a complete non-smoking environment on all Carnival ships. Not only is smoking a health issue, and a severe one for many of us, but a safety issue as well. We just finished a cruise on Princess Star. They provide some non-smoking nights in the casino. Finally, someone is giving some serious thought to this serious issue. Thank you.
If you ban smoking I won’t be cruising with you.
We won’t be cruising with them either. We are booked on one in November and we almost booked on Freedom and/or Dream for this Sept. until I saw the Smoking ban in the cigar bars. The majority of non-smokers don’t have issues with smokers…sadly it is the minority of them that do and whine and complain the loudest. There are still a lot of people who smoke and spend money on travel. If it becomes too restrictive where they can’t enjoy their vacation (especially since being on a ship is a “trapped” situation), the cruise lines will lose money and will have to raise the fares and prices of drinks. Maybe they will put a “non-smoking” surcharge on to compensate for the loss of revenue (LOL)!
Thank you. The rest of us will be healthier. Welcome back when you kick the habit or at least have the courtesy to smoke outside and away from the rest of us.
I am a non-smoker. I do however believe that given that smokers just can’t step off the ship to have a smoke, then there needs somewhere that is set aside for them to go. Outdoors is not always an option as the weather can change on a dime sometimes. I love the suggestions that say to move the internet cafe to the library. In this age of technology, that is not hard to do. Why not expand the cigar bar into the “old” internet area for a quiet serenity area for smokers?
With that being said, I do wish that smoking was not allowed in cabins. I have asthma and walking into or just by a cabin that is smoky just chokes me. Think how some of you feel walking into an elevator with a lady who smells like she bathed in cheap cologne… or stand near someone who smells like they haven’t bathed in weeks. This is how smoke affects me and many others.
Dear John,
I am quite dismayed at the recent turn of events regarding the Cigar Bars. I am leading a small group cruise of cigar smokers. I have talked up how great Carnival is and how we have always had a better vacation with them than NCL or RCCL.
We originally were going out of Baltimore on Nov 7. But you know how that went. It took 2 days to get our group reinstated on another ship. And it was a rough 2 days, first we could book at current pricing but wouldn’t be a group. Then we could be a group but no group amenities finally we were re booked at our original rate and amenities but now we have to fly to Tampa instead of drive to Baltimore. But we got that worked out. Sure it cost more but we are dealing with it. However we did lose 3 cabins in the process. At this point we have 8 cabins and 18 people going, 10 are new to Carnival.
Now I read about testing a ban of smoking cigars in the cigar bars. So far the Carnival Legend is not involved in the test but I wonder how far off that will be.
I am trying hard to remain the Carnival cheerleader but it is getting more and more difficult.
Can you confirm that there will be cigar smoking allowed on the Carnival Legend? Is it one big crapshoot? Just smoking cigars on deck, while pleasant enough, will not cut it. Will we have to look elsewhere for our group trip next year?
Jamie Dailey
Limited smoking cabins would be okay. I’m not a smoker but long as they were confined I’m sure it wouldnt be THAT bad.
Hi John
I very much enjoy your blog thingy but definitely think you need and deserve a break! I hope you have fun with your family and friends and good luck with meeting the dutchess…. how fun!!
I am a non smoker (well former) and I think the restrictions are already enough for smokers. Yes poor design to have the cigar bar next to the internet cafe but to take it out on the smokers? a tough one. Isn’t there a way to enclose that area in some way? I am currently booked on the Destiny for my 50th birthday on January 20th and would hate to have to cancel that (along with the other 7 couples booked) because of no smoking restrictions. I know there are cigar smokers in my party and I am very much looking forward to this cruise! Some of my friends are newbies ( we are well into platinum ) and I have been going on and on about Carnival and really don’t want to cancel.
Having been on 22 cruises on six lines smoking is horrid. My wife, an ex smoker, concurs. We travel with a couple, one of whom is a smoker, and he always smokes outside. Smoke, to someone who’s allergic can be IMMEDIATELY FATAL. It is not a pleasure issue, but a health issue.
Smoking should be banned (preferably, even outside}, but at least outside, those allergic can see and avoid it, whereas inside they have no option but to pass through and expose themselses. I’m surprised Carnival and all other lines haven’t done this much sooner, especially in the casinos.
I totally agree with you. We have been on 16 cruises and most of them have been on Carnival. We went on the Paradise once when it was NON SMOKING and it was great. The air in the Casino was wonderful and the whole ship just smelled better. It did not last. They relocated it out to California and took away the Non-Smoking policy. I really missed that. The policy was really strict. We saw Canival put a woman off at a port because she was caught with smoking paraphernalia. It’s TOO BAD they got rid of the idea.
This comment was the mother of all exagerations. Did it ever occur to the person making this comment that if an outright ban goes into place that many cruise lines will be scaling down their operations. The industry is already hurting and not just for more passengers, they are hurting because the brigade of militant non-smoking advocates just dont spend nearly as much money as smokers do. Whether you like it or not, we smokers have rights too. Whether you realize it or not you need us to supplement your lack of spending onboard.
Whoa. I agree with a few things for the smokers.
1. A designated area where the non smokers can easily avoid exposure.
2. The woman caught with paraphernalia should have had it confiscated NOT been put off the ship until the cruise was over.
3. Smokers have NO RIGHTS only priveleges. When a behavior extends to the person or property of another individual then it no longer is a right, but a privelege extended ONLY when granted by the individual on which it infringes. Smoking exposes ANYONE who can smell it to respiratory, vascular, cardiac, and cancer risks and is therefore NOT a right, but a privelege granted by the consent of the other passengers and cruise line owners. The passengers give it when they sign the contract and agree to come on board under the contract that Carnival has made giving their consent to the smokers. Smokers have NO rights, only that privelege that has been extended to them courteously. Your anger won’t change that.
Carnival has got it right. Part of the relaxing experience is sitting down with a good smoke. Keep the smoking bars and smoking in the cabins/balcony. Separate smoking areas should be fine for everyone. ( except those control freaks) They can go on a separate ship.
I see countless comments on this and other blogs by some non-smokers about how offensive the smell of smoke is when they are on a cruise. If in fact every ship banned smoking totally, would the next step be that they would only dock in ports of call if smoking were banned on the streets ?
The simple truth (as I see it) is that there are really 4 kinds of passengers on a cruise. (1) The smokers who do not like the restrictions put on them but they live within the parameters established (2) The Non-Smokers who really do not care one way or another about the smoking policies (3) The Non-Smokers who actually do find the smell offensive and/or believe it is harmful to their health. (4) The Non-Smokers who like to get on the bandwagon.
I have no doubt that many of the ones who complain are also the same people in the drive thru line at McDonalds inhaling exhaust fumes from the car in front of them because they are too lazy to go inside to buy that nutricious Big Mac.
Obviously, I am a smoker and I fall into category #1. I have been on 58 cruises more than 20 on Carnival. Over the years I have seen more and more restrictions and I follow policy. When and if the policies are modified to take away what freedoms I do still have, I will no longer sail with that line. Celebrity is already off my list.
An interesting experiment in my opinion would be to run cruises with every other voyage being totally non smoking. Which cruises would have a higher occupancy. My bet is with the smoking cruises because the majority of non smokers do not really care about the smoke and it is the vocal minority putting it down.
It is excellent they are bringing up the issue of smoking areas. On the Glory young children and those of all ages had to pass through numerous smoking lounges on the way to other areas, not a healthy option. And in some areas the smoking was heavy, so certain activities had to be curtailed. For a “Family Fun Ship” this should be looked into. Thank you for asking.
I recently sailed on Carnival out of NOLA on June 12 for 5 days. I have to say that I encountered 2 workers who could not speak English and did not understand a word I said. I was trying to find my way around the ship day 1.
Secondly, the food in the dining room was less than satisfactory. It was not fresh, it was not presented well, and definately I would have gotten better at a restaurant on land. It was horrible – had not taste, meat was tough, over cooked.
I had sailed previously on Conquest and it was delicious! The chef or cooks – need some cooking lessons and nothing was FANCY or ARTISTIC as it was on Conquest.
I sent an email to Carnival and they hope I sail again. I do not think I will – it was basically COMMON, nothing special. It was like staying at Motel 6 and eating at Waffle House. I was very disappointed. I hear there will be 2 other lines out of NOLA and I have sailed RC and Princess I have not yet.
You bet I’ve told people about this experience. Most will go because of the food – if the food they expect is not there – they will not come. Even the buffet bar – same old salads every day – and whatever was left over the night before was on the buffet. Like anyone wants left overs!
Really disgusted with Carnival. Oh, by the way, yes I had to walk through a SMOKING area – to get to the internet cafe – should be in the library! The hallways REEKED of smoke from buggars smoking inside rooms. It should be totally banned – if they want to smoke – do it on LAND and not on a ship and cause a fire because they are drunk as a skunk.
The smoking in the cigar bar has never bothered me as it is a place specifically designated for that activity. I just avoid this area on the ship completely and any other areas designated for smoking. What cannot be avoided however, is when my neighbor is smoking on their balcony. It is not a simple matter of walking away and finding another location away from the smoker. I pay extra for the enjoyment of a balcony cabin and feel that cruise lines should do something about this situation before banning smoking in the CIGAR lounge.
I disagree with smoking on the balconies. I love having a balcony to sit and relex and take in the sunset or sunrise and I hate it when there is a smoker outside the cabin next to us smoking. The smoke ALWAYS filters over to our side and then we end up going inside and missing the relaxting time of our OWN balcony. I think they should be allowed in OPEN areas or the ship. I like how Carnival has the Smokers outside on one side of the pool area all to themselves. My father died of lung cancer because he smoked 3 packs a day so I am really an advocate of NON SMOKING. Why waste a precious life.
I think their should be some smoking allowed in certain areas on some ships and that some ships should be smoke-free. These should be for cruises shipping out of all U. S. ports. I have an asthmatic allergy to smoke and tobacco. We went on a Carnival Cruise out of Galveston in April of this year and found it impossible to not go through smoking areas (getting out of elevator right next to a smoking bar, geting from one area of the ship to another and having to go through the smoky casino, walking on the floor our room was on and having to smell the smoke on the way to our room, etc.). There should be separate cabin floors for smoking and non-smoking with a hefty penalty for those who smoke on non-smoking floors (like hotels do). And John, you were on our ship in April, and you are very entertaining and very funny. We enjoyed you very much.
Over the years I took 5 cruises on Holland America Lines. My last cruise was to the Medditerranean and I swore it would be my last because I couldn’t relax and enjoy a cigar except on the Lido deck. Smoking was banned virtually everywhere and not a single bar was designated for smoking passengers. There were no cigar bars. Even the casino which was 1/3 full was non smoking. I and at least 3 dozen smokers met each night up top and just regrettted ever coming onboard. We all took note that the ship was losing tons of our revenue because of the draconian restrictions in their (Holland America Lines) attempt to be politically correct. The bars were all but empty each night with only a few “non-smokers” drinking it up. If I ever decide to book a cruise again, it will only be on cruise line that want’s me to enjoy and spend my money. That includes enjoying a cigar in a inside bar preferably with some live entertainment. Smokers have rights too! And we spend money! Lots of it and we deserve to enjoy too! Any place with good ventilation can easily accomodate non-smokers who aren’t so uptight. I fully support Carnival’s decision to do their best to accommodate both groups! Perhaps I will even book a cruise with you soon. Steve
Steve,
When they take these polls they never ask one very important question. Are you a non-smoker that tolerates smoking. I believe there are a lot of non-smokers that have no problem with someone smoking near them. It is always those few thay try to make it hard on the rest of us smokers.
BIG Ed
ED there wasn’t a reply link where this post was so I’m pasting it here.
I’m sure you can tell us how many test mice have gotten lung cancer from being in a smoke filled cage. I’ve read that there have been zero. I’ve also read that of the 10% of smokers that get lung cancer most would have got it even if they didn’t smoke. So I don’t think that “I think I smell a cigarette” is enough to get lung cancer.
BIG Ed
I’d be very curious to know where you read these stats. They are not in any peer reviewed placebo controlled, double blinded scientific studies. I suspect these are decades old anecdotal reports put out by the tobacco companies. There are hundreds of studies showing marked increases in cancer, heart disease, lung disease, and vascular disease from smoking with an average decrease in lifespan of 7-15 years depending on the study and the genetic profile of the indivdual at birth. Further, second hand and even third hand smoke (i.e., handling clothing the smells of smoke after smoker’s have worn it) increases cancer risk albeit less than primary exposure. Second hand smoke can worsen immediately asthma and emphysema, and in severe asthma even be occasionally fatal.
I don’t see how you can possible want to “enforce” a rule that would needlessly expose anyone to possible sudden death however small the risk when the cause is UNECESSARY. Please smoke outside and avoid this entirely.
Hey Big Ed, I agree with you wholeheartedly. However, I dont believe that you or I should apologize for enjoying a legal activity. Not that you are, but I am unapologetic about the fact that I enjoy a cigar. You know know as well as I that we smokers spend far more than the anti-smoking kid totting skinflints that which to ban us from enjoying at all. Next is alcohol and fast food like McDonalds. I aven’t cruised in 2 years because I am still angry about my time being ruined by HAL cowtowing to advocates of the Nanny State. So I’ve decided not to sugar coat my responses to this group of intolerant petty skinflints.
The cruise lines need only look at revenue as their best pols, smokers and drinkers spend like mad having a great time while the other guests are pinching pennies and trying wrestle away freebies on their cruise with trumped up BS service complaints.
If carnival bans smoking, and does not provide equal shipboard indoor entertainment I will never patronize them again. Period.
I used to like to go on a lot of cruises, go to casinos, eat at nice restuarants. I would spend a ton of money in addition to the cruise lines’ small fare. But, since they are making smoking a crime and not allowing it everywhere, I will not go nor take a group of 50 or so smokers with me. Casinos are doing the same thing as are hotels and Ohio has restrictive smoking laws with no smoking in any public building. So, my big bucks will be have to be made up by the non-smoking, non-spending majority. And, I will move to a less restrictive state – about 4 miles across the Ohio where I buy my liquer and cigarettes as there are not nearly as high of taxes. Want the tyranny of the majority – great, none of you individually or as a couple or family will make up for my spending. You won’t have to breath my pollution and I will not have to look at the pathetic masses nor hear their baby-like wimpering.
Well said, John!
I feel the same way. For the price of a cruise I can hire a maid, chef and bartender for the week and stay home and enjoy my pool, not having to go thru the cattle call of embarkation and dis-embarkation. I can buy top shelf liquor without the 500% mark-up and automatic gratuity added to it. And not have to tolerate someones else’s offspring running wild thru the ship.. Wait… I think I have planned my next perfect vacation!!!!!!!
Or you could grow up
J. Tucker Neilson, MD, FACP,
I’m sure you can tell us how many test mice have gotten lung cancer from being in a smoke filled cage. I’ve read that there have been zero. I’ve also read that of the 10% of smokers that get lung cancer most would have got it even if they didn’t smoke. So I don’t think that “I think I smell a cigarette” is enough to get lung cancer.
BIG Ed
My wife and I cruise a lot. 120+ since 2001. I AM A smoker. I no longer sail on RCCL or Celebrity ships, I am considering not sailing with Holland, because of their smoking policy. I vote with my feet. The Eurpean lines seem to be somewhat less politically correct. So if need be that is where we will go. Some lines have tried smoke free ships, and found them sailing at less than capacity.
To Linda, (mom of DJ).
Out of all the politically correct garbage posts and responses I’ve seen here yours is the most infuriating and offensive. A) If you want to take your kids on a cruise, please cruise Disney! Sorry, but 99% of the adults onboard do not wish to share in the joy which is you. B) a vacation with such rules or restrictions is not much of a vacation. Since when did ruining other peoples good time become part of the American Dream? You don’t realize it, but you’re a victim of media because you allow yourself to be fed with this neverending stream of crap.C) You’re suggestion about electronic cigarrettes still has me laughing. It is the single most politically correct moronic thing I’ve heard. You have to be kidding me. Are you capable of having an original thought of your own???
Whether you like it or not we smokers are here and here to stay. In the early 1900′s they tried something called, “prohibition” if you recall. The movement that lead to it was a group of very vocal religeous and uptight ladies that blammed all society’s ills on alcohol. Overtime, they convinced the sissies in congress that as a nation we needed to ban alcohol. It didnt work then and it wont work now. I have an idea, why dont you and your family just patronize cruise lines that share your militant, intolerant and boring views. We smokers will then only patronize cruise lines that want to see us enjoy our time onboard (cigar or cigarettes in hand) while we fork over thousands of extra dollars in the casinos, gift shops and of course and lots (tons) of great alcohol.
We’re in the worst economic crisis since the great depression, we’re fighting two wars abroad, and petty people like you dont want people like me to enjoy while I am on vacation. Get a life, and stop inserting your kid and children into the discussion. That’s always the BS go position for people who want to take other peoples rights away.
My state bans smoking in the workplace, apartment owners ban tenant smoking in their units and increasingly, anywhere, on their property. You can no longer smoke within 10 feet of a building entrance/exit anywhere in my state. Hotels have either gone all non smoking or offer smoke free rooms to their guests. Second hand smoke has been shown to be equally harmful to those exposed. Many mouth and throat cancers are caused by cigars and chewing tobacco.
It seems to me that Carnival has a long way to go before it takes into account the health risks of smoking to it’s passengers and employee, the cost to property in terms of cleanup and replacement, and the general unsavory atmosphere that surrounds smoking.
Given my feelings and Carnival’s smoking policy, I would not book a vacation with your company.
Here goes another anti-freedom over-reactive militant non-smoker looking to impose is way of life on everyone around him. I suppose all of those “unsavory” smokers that helped win WWII or that are fighting in Irag or Afghanistan are unsavory too. If the cruise lines listen to militants like you, they will soon be out of business along with thousands of workers.
Steve:
Protecting the life of a child is not being an “anti-freedom over-reactive militant”. Your post sounds like a 3 year old stomping their feet, because they can not “be right”.
I am absolutely certain that none of those “unsavory” smoking soldiers would endorse harming a child.
No one is wanting it banned completely.
However, children must be protected. Right now, children on the Fantasy have to walk through the “nonsmoking side” (which we all know does not exist) to get to Camp Carnival. They have to walk through the SMOKING side to get to activities in the Aft Lounge.
Oddly enough, RCCL has had all nonsmoking cabins for years. Guess what, they are not out of business.
Oceania has the most restrictive smoking regulations on the seas. No smoking in the cabins. No smoking on the balconies….no smoking anywhere except 2 small areas of the ship…and they have been these restrictions for YEARS…without going out of business.
Contrary to what you think, the business world does not exist just so you can smoke a cigarette where ever you want to.
I would also imagine that these same “unsavory” smokers would be heart broken ….
when they think about the nonsmoking crew that are from 3rd world countries (who are exposed to your smoke at work all day long in the casinos) who return home after years of service with cancer to countries with no modern treatments for it.
Is that your idea of “freedom”…. make someone else sick and then send them home to die in agony?
Talk about being an ugly American…..
Freedom in the true sense is not selfish. It thinks beyond itself.
That is why a dedicated smoking room (or rooms) and cigar bar staffed only with people who smoke…..with proper ventilation is…. is the key.
Anyone who wants to smoke outside those areas merely has to use an electronic cigarette.
These should be areas that are dedicated to smoking only. No other activities in there.
Carnival is missing a HUGE money maker by selling these devices and cartridges in the gift shop at a cheaper rate than you can get them at home.
That way EVERYONE gets to enjoy this “freedom” that you seemed to be so proud of……
It would make since to me that the internet cafe be moved to an area of easier access and better ventilation to begin with. I smoke, but my husband does not, when I want to smoke I go to the side of the ship where you can smoke, the casino is already divided for smokers and non smokers. I am going to point out something for you and your bloggers that do not smoke.
On your next cruise take a look at the smoking area, you will find just as many non-smokers as smokers there. Why! because smokers are livelier people. They will strike up a conversation, even if it’s Do You Have a Lite, sometimes a smoker can’t get a seat for the non-smokers. I have sowed this to my husband.
Find the smokers and that is where you will find the action, and the non-smokers. Let Carnival or any of the cruise lines put a cigar bar on the back of the Lido with it’s own indoor access vented to the outdoors, own bar, big screen TV and sign saying NO non-smokers.
Oh! and have housekeeping try Fabreze it really work, like I said in the beginning I SMOKE.
Dianne
John -
I went on the Carnival Victory to the Caribbean in January and let me say that finding out that the ship had a cigar bar made my trip. I met many wonderful people there who shared my interest in cigars, some of whom I keep in touch with, and enjoyed many tasty beverages and cigars in that lounge.
I agree that the placement of it is silly, and in some ways I felt bad for those who had to walk through to get to the internet cafe. Believe me, I don’t like people walking through with a bad attitude any more than they like walking through the aroma of fine cigars. But please encourage Carnival to maintain the cigar lounges — and if anything, get the cigarette smokers out of there! That was my chief complaint of the lounge, other than it wasn’t open 24 hours a day!
Best,
Patrick
Hi John: I was on the Carnival Conquest Cruise that you were the Cruise Director on. I have to say I think you are one of the funniest people I have ever seen. I went on the cruise with my Mother ( I actually wrote you a note about her and you gave her a ship on a stick and a picture so thank you very much for that) and we would sit in our room and watch you on tv and just about pee ourselves laughing with you. I am going on the Spirit in September next year and I can only hope that the Cruise Director is 1/2 as good as you are. You made our entire trip soooooooo much more enjoyable. I have Fibromyalgia which keeps me in pain all the time and laughter is one of the only things that helps so I thank you again for your wonderful sense of humor and being my “pain meds”. I have one question or complaint if you will that I would like to pose to you. I have to give you just a little background first. I went on my first cruise about 17 years ago and my Mom went on her first cruise about 20 years ago. On both of our cruises the entertainment was absolutely fabulous. There was a lot of audience participation in the shows and comedy and we looked forward to going each and every night. I have to say that we went to 3 shows on that ship and walked out in the middle of 2 of them. We felt they were very juvenile and had a hard time staying awake to watch them. What happened to the good ole days with the fun shows? Have you had any other comments about the shows? I’m just curious because I have talked to several other people who have been on the Carnival ships and felt the same way about the entertainment. On a very positive note, the staff could not have been more friendly and helpful. Our room steward was great, he was right there whenever we needed him and was very helpful when we had questions. Overall, we had a fabulous cruise and like I said we already have another one planned for next year. I only wish you were the Cruise Director on that one as well. Thank you for listening to me rant on.
Hiya John been a while since Ive had chance to sit & read your blog hope you are having a great week off.
Thank you so much for the Dave Allen link I loved watching his Sunday night shows when I was younger & your take on his 10 Commandments sketch was priceless, add it to your welcome show Im sure it will go down a storm.
Hope you & your beautiful girls are are all well & enjoying your well earned time together.
Lorraine & a very poorly Mom, Susan send their love xx
Mwah
First, I appreciate your blog so much, as we prepare for our first cruise together! We will see you on the Glory in February 2011, and we are very much looking forward to meeting you! I talk to Danny about your blog a lot, and one of these days just cease my yammering on about it, he’ll probably decide to read it himself!
On the smoking issue, especially since we will be going on the Glory, which now will have a non-smoking Cigar bar (maybe want to rethink that name, if this decision sticks)…Dan and I are both non-smokers, and he is very sensitive to smoke. However, I DO think that smokers, both cigarette and cigar smokers, should be able to enjoy their smoke in peace and a pleasant atmosphere. To me that includes a cigar bar that is well ventilated, indoors, and away from any dining areas. My parents owned a cigar and pipe store for many years, and part of the enjoyment of cigar smoking, as I learned from their shop, was the ambiance and the company of other cigar smokers. I am in full support of the cigar bars remaining true to their purpose and I voted as such.
I guess I am a little more “let’s all hold hands and sing kumbaya” about this whole thing. I can be happy anywhere, and find a smoke-free nook somewhere to pass my time, and I refuse to let a little smoke ruin what is a big, big vacation for Dan and I (and hopefully a sparkly engement ring kind of event, Daniel!). We look forward to the cruise, and will enjoy every minute of it.
Enjoy your vacation with your lovely ladies. That Kye is a little doll, and you and your family deserve some time together! I am sure we will survive.
Missy
One other thing I haven’t seen mentioned that I think is very important.
AFter 22 cruises I’m always impressed at the dedicated, friendliness, hard work and sacrifice of the staff and crew. These people have to work in the smoking environment week after week and be exposed to cancerous and respiratory, cardiac, and vascular toxins as their reward for giving us pleasure and being away from their families for months on end.
Maybe we should stop being so selfish and thinking about ourselves and think about THEM for a change. AGAIN, smoking outside would be far more beneficial health wise to the staff and crew who are there all the time getting exposed to this deadly fume than it is to the non smokers only getting dosed for a short time (except for those with severe allergies, asthma, lung disease, etc where even a brief exposure could be lifethreatening)
To Dr, Tucker Neilson, Please get yourself a life! It’s militant crazies like you the are screwing up basic enjoyment for everyone. You just dont know what you’re talking about. Any thing in excess is bad for you. I’m sure you’ve read about the guy who died from drinking too much carrot juice. The coroner said it was from an overdose of vitamin A. Tell me Dr. Tucker, how many air poluting cars do you own? I’ll bet several. Probably an SUV or a crossover too. In other words, you think your personal polution is fine, while others is not. Your perfect world and mine can’t coexist, because you are an intolerant person. The New England Journal of Medicine came out with a study a few years ago which stated clearly that the so called effects of second hand smoke are greatly exaggerated and that many of the studies out there are based on junk science and funded by militant anti-smoking groups. Lastly, I yet to see any real doctor with so much time to blog away. Something tell me you’re not for real.
As to you questions/accusations. I own one car, yes an SUV though small. I have recently retired on disability for ankylosis spondylitis hence my time to post. I am a fellow in the American College of Physicians and was a former clinical assistant professor at Oregon health Sciences University.
I’m not talking about an EXCESS of anything. According to studies it is the levels of casual exposures that we are talking about in these situations that ARE cancer risks and ARE triggers for severe asthma attacks and bouts of exacerbation of lung disease. I workerd critical care units for decades and dealt with this constantly. I can’t stop you and take away your entitlement to your opinion, however ignorant it is, but it flies in the face of practical experience and clinical reality. As to the NEJM study, it is ONE study that is contradicted by dozens and therefore is the least likely to be correct and it did not say that second hand smoke was safe, only that it may not be as bad as other studies suggested. It addressed CANCER risk, not asthma and COPD exacerbation risk.. My point about long term exposure to workers EVEN with the NEJM study you cite still remains valid.
One other point. I am NOT advocated banning smoking on Carnival ships and never have. I am ONLY saying it should be limited to OUTSIDE where those sensitive to it can see and avoid it, AND to a designated area or areas where other passengers can walk through the ship at any time and not be exposed to the smoke/smell/or byproducts of the tobacco. Seems to be that everyone thinks I’m in favor of banning it. I’ve said my wife and I travel with a couple, the husband of which is a smoker. He only smokes outside for the reasons I’ve mentioned and is cognizant and courteous to the risks to other passengers. I’m asking the other smokers confine their dangerous habits to themselves, and not to others without their specific, not implied consent. That’s all. I also believe that the designated areas should only be staffed by smoking employees but that is obviously up to Carnival and their employees not to us the passengers.
I have to agree with Mach regarding the smoking of cigars in the Cigar Bars. I am a non-smoker, but my hubby enjoys his cigar on an almost nightly basis on cruise. PLEASE keep the Cigar Bars as cigar bars. If anything, make the piano bar and maybe even the casino non-smoking.
My husband smokes his cigar in the Cigar Bar rather than on our balcony. But he may reconsider this personal policy if he no longer has the nice comfy Cigar Bar to go to and get his whiskey and burn one!
Have fun on time off
John, I’m a non smoker been that way for 10 years now. I could care less about the cigar bar. How ever I’d like to see a sportsbar where you can not smoke. Was on the freedom in january and could not watch the BCS games because of all the smoke.
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I have been know to enjoy a good cigar from time to time. If there is no smoking in the cigar bars on Carnival Cruise Lines, we will not be spending our vacation money with Carnival…simple as that.
Asinine. Non-smoking cigar bars. You know, I’ll bet the cruise ships could cut down their insurance costs and passenger ticket cost if they instituted non-swimming swimming pools! After all, who needs to swim? And if you’re really addicted… hell, just go jump in the ocean!
While there should clearly be some common areas that ban smoking for those passengers who want such a thing, there should also clearly be equivalent areas that allow smoking for passengers who smoke and passengers who really don’t care one way or the other.
And both sorts of environments should be decently ventilated for everyone’s health and comfort! I fully agree with SaltyDawg: the cruise lines should realize that they’re targeted by antismokiing groups who figure that if they can force a nonsmoking environment on smokers for a week or two that maybe they’ll quit all together. It’s simple behavior modification mechanics and that’s NOT something the cruise ship lines should be letting themselves get dragged into.
Michael J. McFadden
Author of “Dissecting Antismokers’ Brains”
Can anyone tell me where I can get the dean Gaines cd I smell moke? I have looked everywhere. There must be a website
It is very glad to read your blog about the T shirt. thanks for your share.
please allow me to give the best respect to you.
Thanks a lot.
Think about it carefully – it is a CIGAR bar. Why on earth would SMOKING be allowed in there??
The experience I had on the Dream was a nightmare-the designated smoking area for cigar smokers was a small deck area on deck 5-1st night it was closed-locked from the inside-the other nights and days they would take away chairs and tables from the area-since they had a jacuzzi tub in the same area you had kids running around dripping water everywhere and you were competing with them and the staff who were constantly out there for a cigarette smoke-No place to sit back an enjoy a cigar in comfort and enjoy speaking to fellow cigar smokers. The few that I met were equally annoyed at the limitations for cigar smokers , but not for cigarette smokers. Cigar smokers are not looking to smoke everywhere or through poorly conceived walk through lounges. if anything we are pretty mindful of others rights. we just want a place of comfort to share the camraderie. The whole experience of smoking a cigar and sharing the experience is 1000% different than that of a cigarette smoker. My next voyage will be on a ship that has an indoor cigar bar or something close to that. One that actually allows cigar smoking-if Carnival choses to shun the cigar smoker the least I can do is boycott them and every ship they own for myself and my family. If you can’t figure out a way to accomodate segments of your customer base then you don’t deserve the business.
John (no need to reply)
Thank you so much for that link to Dave Allen. I have been trying for years to remember who it was that my Dad would watch late nights in the ’70s. (Yes, he did make it to this side of the pond.)
I was starting to think I’d made him up. Just as great as he was to my Dad, I’m now old enough to appreciate him.
Thank you!
Tamara