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Oh hell, I coulda' told ya that!

We stopped in St Croix and ST Thomas - I had 9 bottles in my room!!!

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We've never tried Carnival because of the mixed reviews we've seen and heard over the years.

I finally decided it was time to give them a try, so we have one booked on Carnival for October. I have an aft balcony, so I figure I should be able to light up in peace without bothering anyone. I'm curious to see for myself how they stack up to some of the other lines.

All the cruise lines have pros and cons. NCL isn't what it used to be either, but I've yet to have a really bad cruise on any line. ;)

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Posted this moments ago on another post....might go better on this post:

I'd like to share my experience with MSC Cruises, an Italian cruiseline fairly new to the American market. I took the MSC Orchestra out of Ft Lauderdale last spring. They have a dedicated cigar lounge, the Havana Club, amid ship adjacent to the atrium. Big leather chairs, good music (Sinatra, Latin Jazz, etc), cigar art, real cigar ashtrays, a well kept humidor stocked with cc's, and a bar stocked with Havana Club rum. There is an attendant there who takes great pride in "his" cigar lounge. I spent a lot of time there when at sea, and during the day I sometimes was the only passenger in there for 30 minutes or so. At night, however, it was quite busy. I came to "know" about 10 other regular cigar smokers, and we had a blast. The Italian passengers were a friendly, boisterous bunch and they enjoy their cigars too. Officers would come in to enjoy their stash of cc's, and I even met the author of a very well known series of travel books who was on the cruise doing a review. She said it was one of the top 3 cigar lounges on the seas (the Orchestra has several sister ships that also have the same lounge). Best of all was the price...kids sail free, so my wife and 2 kids went for a very low price.

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great thread guys. Does anyone have any experience on Princess? Wife just booked a caribbean cruise in June on Princess. Any help would be appreciated

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The wife and I cruise Princess quite a bit and they are still one of the better cruise lines out there. The food is good and one of the best things about cruising with one cruiseline all the time is the membership advantages. When we book a balcony room we get upgraded to a suite...we get free Internet and free laundry as well as free wine or a bottle of champagne when we board. We are Platinum members which also means more discounts on deals on the ship. The bigger and newer ships are really good and depending on what boat you are on we've probably been on it...let me know which one and I can tell you pros and cons about it.

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thanks for this. I will ask the wife which boat we are on and post.

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The boat that we will be on is the Princess Empress. HAs anyone been on that boat? CAn you share your thoughts/experiences with me?

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In less than three weeks the wife and I take our first cruise as a Diamond member on RC. Took us a while to get that and can't wait.

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Has anyone been on RC's Explorer of the Seas?

We'll be on her July 3rd for five nights to Bermuda.

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Dave,
Explorer is the sister ship to the Navigator which I have been on several times.
Beautiful ship.
My son has been on both and says they are mirror images for the most part.
You will have a blast on this ship.

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Confirmed. Both of those ships are really nice above and below deck. I sometimes would forget which one I was on when I boarded them or really a lot of the sister ships from any line really.

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BTW,
Very nice cigar lounge on the Navigator with a great booze selection.
They are open with service in the evening but open without service all day, any time you want to sit there and enjoy a cigar.
I believe the Explorer will be the same.

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Did he say how the cigar bar was?

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He was into girls then more than cigars.:r
He can tell you how the cabins he visited were.:r

I am sure it is identical to that of the Navigator and if it is, you are in for a nice treat, specially in the late evening. The two ships are literally designed identically so I see no reason why one would have it and the other not.
The lounge in the Navigator was spacious, relaxing, nicely done.
In the evening, cigars and high end booze for sale.
During the day, no one there to sell you anything but it is open and available for use.
If you need a drink during the day, plenty of nearby bars to get one and then go in the cigar lounge.
If you tip the bartender in the bar next door extra, they will keep checking up on you to see if need another drink.

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This was a good article. Norwegian allowed cigarette smoking in all the places listed. However, cigars and pipes could not smoke on the balconies but could smoke on deck and in the cigar lounge.

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Here is the "skinny" on this ship. ( I think you are trying to say Emerald Princess...Empress is another ship on RCL. )

Casino with private cocktail lounge for cigars and spirits and it came into service in 07.

This is the sister ship to the Crown and Carribean and these are big ships that have the outdoor movie theaters which are fun but you gotta get there early.

It will take you a day or 2 to get your bearings as far as where things are on this boat. Remember to use the main floor to get back and forth from one of the ship to the other...not all floors go thru. I would advise doing the late dinner or the "Anytime Dining" so you can plan your day around your activities instead of the other way around. Also, eat at the Crown Grill as this is a restaurant you will pay $20 per person but WOW,,,is it good and it's more personal and you won't regret it.

Again let me stress to you that if you want to use the pool get a chair early as they fill up esp. on those days at sea.

Speak Easy Cigar Lounge on Emerald

http://i556.photobucket.com/albums/s...peakeasy03.jpg

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RCL has been having issue with their Diamond Level service as they have downgraded in some of those areas. The Concierge Level is a nice thing to be able to use but for somebody who has given RCL a lot of business only to have it downgraded is not right. Call or go online to see what your Diamond status still gives you. This is why we stayed with Princess because of all of the freebies we get. Laundry for free is a great service because we don't have to pack so many clothes now and when it's dirty we send it out and it's back the next day. Free Internet is a great thing as well. We have been upgraded from an Ocean View to Mini Suite several times while everytime we have a balcony we're upgraded to Mini Suite. The great thing with being in a mini suite is that you can order in room service and get the exact same menu as the dining room. If you are in a room like an Ocean View or Balcony you don't get the same menu.

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I'm on the Disney Magic (transatlantic to Barcelona) right now. Having a great time! They had a cigar seminar the other day and I won three cigars (Fuente's) during the Q&A (for having the right answers -- thanks to CA :))

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I'll be on the Carnival Freedom departing Jan 1. The ports are San Juan PR, St Thomas, Tortola, Antigua, and Nassau. Has anyone been on this ship ? I'm looking forward to being allowed to smoke on the balcony and it also has a cigar lounge.

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Thanks for bumping this thread with your inquiry. I just spent 30 minutes reading it and enjoyed it immensely. I have been on several carnival cruises...none in the last three years or so...and it sound's like they are difficult with smokers. I never had a problem smoking on a balcony in the past but it appears things may have changed.

I hope someone can chime in and give you some feedback.

Good luck.

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We just got back from a cruise on the Carnival Miracle and I smoked in the cigar bar and on the Lido deck if that helps! No cigar smoking on the balcony though.

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Interesting. We were on the Carnival Spirit a couple of weeks ago. We had an aft balcony and I smoked a cigar out there every single day. :confused:

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Well we were told that you weren't 'supposed' to smoke on the balconies. ;-)

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We took a cruise in September on Norwegian Jade. It had a bar on one of the top decks that sold cigars and you could smoke them right there. The boat also had a cigar lounge, but that was empty the whole trip. The best part: we had a balcony room on the fantail! I smoked just about every night with no problems at all. None of the smoke ever came in the room. Just about all the rooms on the fantail near me had a smoker of some sort. The guy right next to me smoked a couple cigars a day. It was a great trip. Also, my b-i-l had a balcony room on the side of the ship and smoked a couple cigars out there. He didn't seem to have any problems either. To me, the 'no smoking on the balcony' is just a suggestion.

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Interesting...this is contrary to what we were told and understand. One of the reasons we booked it was because it was one of the few ships where smoking on the balcony was permitted. On our previous cruises, Holland America and MSC, it was clearly not permitted (though the MSC Orchestra had a great cigar lounge), and we decided next time we'd go on a ship where I could smoke on the balcony because I thought that would be so enjoyable. We had orginally booked a cabin on the Spa deck, but later found out that was the only deck where smoking was not permitted on the balcony. We called Carnival to confirm, and they did. So now we are on the Panorama deck, where we were told by Carnival and our travel agent that yes, I can indeed smoke cigars on my balcony.

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More info:

"Cabins
All Carnival Cruise Line cabins permit smoking except for designated Spa Cabins. The Spa Cabins are part of Carnival's fleet-wide healthy living initiative, which also includes designated healthier dining options and improved fitness and spa facilities. The penalty for smoking in a Spa Cabin is $250 as of 2010, and ejection from the Spa Cabin. At the Captain's discretion, you may be relocated to another available cabin or removed from the ship at your own expense. Smoking is allowed on balconies"

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Celebrity pissed me off when they got rid of 'michaels', their cigar bar and only allowed smoking on the aft of the ship on the outdoor bar.. But they allowed cigarettes in the casino..

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I just got back last week from a 5 day trip on the Carnival Inspiration. The ONLY place on the ship to smoke cigars was one half of a bar at the aft of the ship. Cigarettes were allowed in the casino, all open decks and 2 other bars. No smoking in ANY of the rooms. I was not happy about this. It will be my last cruise with Carnival.

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Just Got Back From A New England Cruise On The Princess. Large Cigar Bar On Deck & Smoking Allowed On Balcony. (I Always Get A Balcony For This Reason.):tu

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We cruised Norwegian and loved it. Had a comfortable cigar lounge and you could smoke cigars on deck...but not on the balcony.

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Uh... am I just in need of more caffienne here?

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I believe that each ship has its own policy regarding cabin smoking. You would need to check for any cruise you want to go on.

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This is directly from Carnival's web site on their FAQ page:

"Can I book a non-smoking stateroom?

Staterooms onboard are not designated as smoking or non-smoking. Guests have the choice if they would like to smoke in the cabins or not (smoking is not allowed in Spa staterooms). All cabins are fully refreshed after each cruise to guarantee incoming guests’ comfort and enjoyment. If upon boarding you are not completely satisfied with the freshness of your stateroom, simply call housekeeping and they will refresh your room again for you."

Link

This specific question is near the bottom of the page (about a dozen up) on the "Life Onboard" tab.

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I was told by the crew as I boarded the ship that the ONLY place I could smoke was in the lounge. All rooms were smoke free.

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Who would know you smoked a cigar on the balcony? I don't see how they could truly enforce it anyway, unless your neighbor decided to rat you out. My cruise ship never said we couldn't smoke on the balcony (to my knowledge, anyway, as I never looked into it) so we did. I would never smoke inside the cabin. That would be just plain rude for the next passenger.

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I took a Princess Cruise a few years back. i was able to smoke on my balcony as well as smoke in the cigar lounge/bar that was part of the casino.

I hope they kept it the same way.

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Anyone know about Royal Carribean Freedom of the seas? I hope they at least have a cigar bar.

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Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas has a more restrictive smoking policy than Carnival. There are only a few lounges that allow smoking, and while smoking is allowed on outside balconies, cigar and pipe smoking is only allowed in the cigar lounge. Fortunately, Freedom of the Seas has a cigar lounge, the Connoisseur Club. I've not been on this ship, but you can look up pictures of the club online...it looks pretty nice.

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All this talk of cruising has got me thinking about my next cruise -- January 26, the maiden voyage of the Disney Dream :D

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Is Disney completely non-smoking ?

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I had Carnival bust my balls a bit.

I was on the deck having a cigar, then it started raining. Went up to the cigar lounge, but I was 5 min early before you could smoke. Made me put it out... 5 min later...

yeah.

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Just got back from a cruise on the NCL Epic. Nice dedicated cigar lounge, and I had no problems smoking on my deck. I could have sworn I saw some people lighting up cigars in the casino as well, but not 100% sure.

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On the contrary -- Disney is very cigar friendly! I have been on eight (ninth coming up in January) Disney cruises and never had a problem. On several cruises they have had some pretty nice cigar events.

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I was disappointed on my New Year's Eve cruise that the Carnival Elation did away with the cigar area in the Cole Porter lounge. I was forced to either smoke in the smoking area in the very loud pool area or on the port starboard deck area. Two weeks ago I talked to a Carnival rep that was working a local cruise show. She said that Carnival was eliminating all indoor cigar smoking areas on all ships. I guess I'll have to switch to NCL which has very nice cigar facilities.

John