Cigarettes and cruise ships have coexisted for decades, but the truce is getting shakier. A recent debate among members of the Facebook group Cruise Lovers, picked up by Cruise Passenger's reader-voice column, asked the blunt question: should smoking be banned on cruise ships altogether? The responses split roughly into three camps — keep things as they are, tighten the rules, or outlaw the habit entirely.
The middle-ground camp had the most concrete ideas. Several readers, including a smoker who gambles regularly, backed a full indoor ban — no smoking in the casino, in bars or in cabins — paired with well-placed outdoor zones. The suggestion that kept coming up: designate the rear of the ship, where smoke blows away from the vessel rather than across sun loungers. One reader pointed to Norwegian Cruise Line's H2O area, an adults-only outdoor spot with a dedicated smoking section, as a model that already works. Others wanted the casino to go smoke-free while leaving open-air areas alone.
Defenders of the status quo pushed back hard. One non-smoking reader called total-ban advocates 'selfish', arguing her husband deserves a peaceful spot to smoke when they've paid thousands for a cruise. Another non-smoker's take: designated areas exist, so just avoid them. One commenter compared a smoking ban to banning alcohol — a habit many cruisers consider non-negotiable.
The outright-ban side had a safety angle, not just a comfort one. One reader described seeing two men light up at midnight in a non-smoking area at the back of the ship, then flick their cigarettes overboard — a fire risk on a vessel carrying thousands of people. Another argued that smoke drifts no matter how considerate smokers try to be, and noted only about 12% of Americans smoke anyway, so cruise lines might not lose much business.
That last point is where this gets interesting for the industry. Cruise demographics are shifting younger, and younger travellers smoke far less — Australian government data shows nearly half of smokers are aged 50 or over. Casinos are a major revenue source for cruise lines, but smoke-filled gaming floors actively deter younger passengers who've grown up in smoke-free pubs and restaurants. Lines may eventually have to choose between keeping a shrinking group of smoking gamblers happy and making ships more appealing to everyone else.
For travellers planning a cruise right now, the practical takeaway is that rules vary widely by line and ship. Most mainstream cruise lines ban smoking in cabins and on balconies (violations can mean hefty cleaning fees), restrict it to small designated outdoor zones, and some still permit it in parts of the casino. Vaping is often treated like smoking, so don't assume an e-cigarette gives you free rein. If smoke matters to you — either way — check the line's policy before booking, and pick cabins well away from designated areas.
