Royal Caribbean shares unpopular rule passengers must follow

When you take a vacation, there are a lot of rules you typically need to follow. These are generally there to make sure all guests, including you, are safe and have the opportunity to enjoy their time. 

And if we’re honest, some rules are there to protect the interests of the company you’re paying for your vacation. F

or example, when you visit Walt Disney World, there are rules that prohibit you from allowing your children to swim in fountains or lakes in the theme parks, and ones that govern how many times you can visit each ride through the Lightning Lane entrance if you buy the service.

Related: Royal Caribbean, Disney Cruise Line plan smaller ships

Cruising is no exception to this. And some of the rules cruisers have to follow are well-known, especially by people who have taken multiple cruises in the past. For example, you cannot buy liquor or wine while in port, or in the ship’s duty-free shop, and then take it back to your room to consume. And you cannot throw anything off of your balcony into the ocean.

On the other hand, there are some rules that aren’t as well known, especially when it comes to where and when smokers can enjoy a cigarette or cigar on a cruise ship. But there is one important rule that Royal Caribbean makes sure its cruisers know.

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Where can you smoke on Royal Caribbean ships?

There are generally two main places you can smoke on a Royal Caribbean cruise ship. 

Smoking is allowed in certain areas of the ships’ casinos for players who are actively gambling, although in reality the “actively gambling” part is difficult to enforce. And there are is generally some sort of outdoor area on the upper decks where smoking is allowed.

Royal Caribbean’s newest Oasis-class ship, Utopia of the Seas, allows smoking only in the casino and on Deck 15 port side, just behind the pool deck.

In addition, there are times at night where certain pool deck bars host cigar events where smoking is allowed. These are usually no earlier than 9 a.m. and cigars and bar drinks are usually being sold.

There are no other designated smoking areas, including on stateroom balconies, where passengers will face a $250 fine if they decide to light up.

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Royal Caribbean has smoking rule you don’t know

Many passengers, however, don’t know that one time when smoking is never allowed outside is when the ship is refueling. This often occurs when the ship is yet to leave its home port on embarkation day, but that is not always the case.

On a recent Royal Caribbean sailing of Utopia of the Seas, letters were delivered to staterooms to inform guests that the ship would be refueling while docked at Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day at CocoCay private island.

“Please be advised, early tomorrow morning Utopia of the Seas will begin refueling with Liquified Natural Gas, also known as LNG. As part of our safety protocol, while the refueling process is underway, we will operate at an elevated safety level until refueling is complete,” the letter shared with passengers.

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As part of this, smoking is 100% prohibited in outdoor areas during refueling, and for obvious reasons. But to be fair, I’ve been on the Utopia when it is taking on LNG, and if I didn’t physically see the fuel ship next to it, I would have had no idea refueling was even happening. 

There wasn’t any sort of odor or noise.

Royal Caribbean always prohibits smoking on balconies, but during refueling, it takes things a step further and doesn’t allow balconies or infinity verandas to be used at all. Open deck areas are fine to use. And if you are a smoker and the ship happens to be refueling while at CocoCay, smoking is still allowed in the casino (Note: CocoCay is one of the few ports where the casino can stay open.)

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You cannot smoke in the casino when the casino is closed.

It’s worth noting that the refueling process can take several hours. According to various reports, refueling a cruise ship can take more than six hours, so it can potentially mean increased safety protocol for an entire day of your cruise. 

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