Should smoking be banned from cruise ship balconies?

- 54% tell Cruise Critic it should, 24% think it should be banned everywhere, and only 18% say no

LONDON, Sept. 6, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Results of a poll released today by Cruise Critic® (http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk), the world's largest cruise reviews site and cruise community, reveals that more than half of cruisers feel that smoking should be banned from balconies, and just under a quarter of respondents believe that it should be banned everywhere.

With changes to onboard smoking policies recently announced by cruise lines including Disney, Seabourn, Cunard and Royal Caribbean, Cruise Critic asked cruisers whether smoking on ship balconies should be prohibited. Of the more than 500 cruisers who responded to the survey, 54 percent agreed that smoking shouldn't be permitted on balconies and 24 percent said it should be banned on all areas of a cruise ship. Only 18 percent of respondents disagreed with the ban and responded, no, it's a personal choice, and a mere 3 percent don't mind.

Disney sparked the latest debates on smoking and cruise holidays following its announcement to ban smoking on its ships' balconies in August this year. Effective from November 15 2013, passengers may no longer smoke on cabin balconies, a ban which includes electronic cigarettes. According to a Disney spokeswoman, the policy change was prompted by passenger feedback, and the responses from the Cruise Critic survey seem to correspond with these opinions.

This month, Royal Caribbean is the latest cruise line to announce a ban on balcony smoking, except for Asia-based ships, and this becomes effective from January 1 2013. 

"Smoking onboard cruise ships is a highly debated and contentious issue within the cruise industry, and cruisers have very strong opinions on this topic, as revealed in this survey," explains Adam Coulter, UK editor of Cruise Critic.

"Taking into account this feedback from Cruise Critic members, it could be predicted that going forward, many more cruise lines will look to implement increasingly stringent regulations towards smoking. However, whilst a large number of cruisers support this ban, it's important to acknowledge that many feel they should be offered a choice. With certain cruise lines adapting their policies, it will be interesting to see the impact this has across the industry within the future," Coulter summarised.

Cruise Critic has provided an update on cruise line smoking policies (which offers information for smokers and non-smokers alike.

Notes to editor:

Poll information:

The smoking attitudes poll was answered by 579 respondents and ran on the Cruise Critic homepage 8/15/13 to 8/27/13. Only one vote per IP address is included in the results tally. To view the poll and results, visit:  http://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/polls/dailypoll_archive.cfm?ID=2659

About Cruise Critic (www.cruisecritic.co.uk)

Cruise Critic® is an online cruise guide, offering a comprehensive resource for cruise travellers, from first-time cruisers to avid cruise enthusiasts. The site features more than 100,000 cruise reviews and hosts the world's largest online cruise community where travellers share experiences and opinions with fellow cruisers. Cruise Critic was the first consumer cruise site on the Internet, launched in October 1995 by The Independent Traveler, Inc., a subsidiary of TripAdvisor, Inc.

TripAdvisor, Inc. (NASDAQ: TRIP) manages and operates websites under 20 other travel media brands: www.airfarewatchdog.com, www.bookingbuddy.com, www.cruisecritic.com, www.everytrail.com, www.familyvacationcritic.com, www.flipkey.com, www.gateguru.com, www.holidaylettings.co.uk, www.holidaywatchdog.com, www.independenttraveler.com, www.jetsetter.com, www.niumba.com,  www.onetime.com, www.seatguru.com, www.smartertravel.com, www.tingo.com, www.travelpod.com, www.virtualtourist.com, www.whereivebeen.com, and www.kuxun.cn. TripAdvisor branded sites make up the largest travel community in the world, with more than 260 million unique monthly visitors*, and more than 100 million reviews and opinions covering more than 2.7 million accommodations, restaurants and attractions.

*Source: Google Analytics, worldwide data, July 2013

Cruise Critic and The Independent Traveler are either trademarks or registered trademarks of The Independent Traveler, Inc. in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. © 2013 The Independent Traveler, Inc. All rights reserved.