Cigarettes and Western Europe
 

What's the status of cigarette smoking in France/Italy/Germany/UK these days?
Is smoking permitted in: hotel rooms/restaurants/bars/clubs/the street/public conveyances
DH smokes (alas!), so this will matter quite a bit in trip planning.
Thanks!
QuinnAdams

The only place in Scotland where you may smoke is in the open air or in your own home. Most pubs and other public places now have a small group of smokers standing outside in all weathers. I'm so glad I gave up smoking many years ago, given the weather just now!

For France : you can smoke in the streets (or home).
Public transports, schools, hospitals and stores are strictly non smoking.
Restaurants and cafes are allowed to have a smokers zone (until next year, then they will be non smoking).
Hotels have individual policies.
Don't know for bars and clubs.

in GB (ex scotland) you can smoke in pubs, clubs, bars (a very small number are N/S). restaurants are generally ok (some are N/S). many b&bs are totally non-smoking but most larger hotels offer smoking or n/s rooms.

this all changes soon as american style smoking restrictions will soon be implemented (i believe next summer).

Italy: smoking is prohibited in all public places. Smoking permitted only in free air and at home You can still order a smoking or no smoking room in some cases but the majority of hotel rooms are non smoking already.

In Wales, smoking is currently allowed however many pubs and most public places either do not allow it or provide no smoking areas.
But smoking is becoming very taboo here.

Until next Summer when it will be banned in all public places.

About time too !!!

Muck

In the UK, laws vary by province and are outlined at www.forestonline.org/output/page17.asp Although smoking is banned on all public public transport (but typically at the owner's discretion in taxis), English airports all (well, all I've used lately) have enclosed, indoor, smoking areas.

BettyB might slightly mislead you about Scotland: smoking may be permitted in designated hotel bedrooms too, though this is at the hotel owner's discretion. 100% non-smoking hotels are now beginning in Scotland, but they're still the minority.

Many thanks to all for the information -- very useful in making our choices. I agree with Mucky and BettyB and am glad that I gave up smoking - nearly 20 years now - although I'd say it was one of the most difficult things I've ever done!

Of course my travel agent never bothered to mention the potential hotel situation or ask about smoking or non-smoking, but armed with your good advice I will now know what questions to ask! DH is a very considerate smoker, but I would have felt terrible if we arrived at a hotel only to find that he would have to go outside somewhere to have a smoke! I'm picturing a cold, rainy night with him in pajamas and a rain coat, boots, scarf, hat, umbrella and a cigarette standing outside some hotel trying to smoke without burning his gloves. Say -- that's an anti-smoking commercial for sure! Anyway, it would be great if he quit, but that has to be his choice and thanks again for letting us know what to expect!

QuinnAdams

That's exactly what we have here. Someone in an apartment across the street still smokes and you see him at all hours standing out under the awning - rain, sleet or snow - puffing away. And its the far end of the awning since the board ruled there is no smoking allowed within 10 feet of the front door of the building.

(No longer a problem in our building since the last smoker died about a year ago.)

And I am not aware of anywhere in western europe where you can smoke on public transit.

Most European trains provide for smokers (either with dedicated cars or "zones" within cars).

The "zones" usually only designate areas of a sealed tube where some people can light up, without physically isolating the smoke, which does not observe the regulations.

Sometimes the zones are separated from the rest of the car by ostensibly airtight compartments, but these never work because the flow of air into and out of the smoke zones isn't controlled adequately.

I live in Scotland.You cannot smoke in pubs,restaurants,etc.....(unless you go outside)...This does not really affect me much....I don't smoke....But I am sure that I was getting affected by other people's smoke...I used to notice that before the ban that my clothes would stink if I went to a club or late-night venue.....I'm sure that people will generally accept the new law,even though there are still some old-timers who speak of how great it used to be to light up a "ciggy"when you went for a pint in the pub........

No smoking in restaurants anywhere in Italy except for outdoor cafes. No smoking in the dining room of our hotel in Rome and didn't notice anyone smoking in the lobby either. No smoking on the trains we took from Rome to Naples and back again. No smoking on public buses.

"american style smoking restrictions"
Have you ever been to Missouri? Maybe East/West Coast U.S. style smoking restrictions would be more appropriate as you can still belch out cancer fumes in bars between KC and St Louis.

As a smoker who grew up in the lovely town of Hermann, Missouri (about half way between KC and STL), I'm glad that small towns still have the legal right of "working it out" by civility, rather than big city rules for all.

Don't rely on posters here.

"I am not aware of anywhere in western europe where you can smoke on public transit." says one

"Most European trains provide for smokers (either with dedicated cars or "zones" within cars)." says another.

Do either of them have the foggiest idea of:
- what they're talking about?
- what the questioner asked?

Fact:
- Smoking is permitted on virtually no trains in the UK or Italy. (I say virtually, because this is an operator's decision, and there's bound to be a small railway company somewhere that hasn't bothered)
- Smoking will be banned from trains in France in Feb 2007
- Robespierre's observations are correct about Germany.

To confirm what flanneruk wrote above :-)
<<<- Smoking will be banned from trains in France in Feb 2007<<
Smoking is banned from trains in France since 2004.

The February 2007 smoking ban in France will apply tor restaurants, cafes, hotels, all office places....

Norween,
Does that then mean that Flanners posts shouldn't be relied on either.

lol

:-)

Muck

NY traveller

Did you really mean that people are not allowed to smoke inside their own homes? Good grief.

A small clarification - the Smoking Ban in France for restaurants, cafes, bars, hotel etc will start in 2008 - not 2007. 2007 applies to hospitals, schools, trains, airports.

Just the mere fact that until now, smoking was not banned in hopsitals shows you how far this country has to go !

I am still dubious about restaurants and cafes in 2008 following the rules, but belive me, I hope to be proved wrong.

And don't even start in on the Italians, Spaniards, Irish pubs, etc following the rules so why not the French - remember the French are the exception to just about everything under the sun - god bless 'em !

-Kevin

Hi Q,

>I'm picturing a cold, rainy night with him in pajamas and a rain coat, boots, scarf, hat, umbrella and a cigarette standing outside some hotel ...<

I go out for my last smoke before putting on PJs. :)

((I))

I love it when people insist on sitting in a non smoking car of a train or whatever but don't give 2 thoughts to running off to a legal, hopefully becoming fewer and fewer, smoking place to puff on their cancer sticks.

Of course, it's also a safety issue as how many times have we read tragedies caused by these idiots smoking in bed and while it is unfortunate if they lose their lives these fires kill many others.

nytraveler said, "And I am not aware of anywhere in western europe where you can smoke on public transit."

Since I think of public transit ("public conveyances" in the OP's parlance) as inclusive of inter-city train service, I added what I know about smoking on them.

And my statement was not intended to apply to all carriers on all routes in all countries. I empoyed the adjective "most" to indicate that no universal proscriptions exist.

In Germany we saw people smoking all over the place. Every beer garden and outdoor cafe, it seemed like half the people were smoking. There was a lot of smoking inside restaurants too. I didn't see any smoking on public transport. We had non-smoking rooms in our hotels, but there were smoking rooms in all the places we stayed as well.

@ kevin_widrow : i don't know whee you get yout informations from but
<<< Smoking Ban in France for restaurants, cafes, bars, hotel etc will start in 2008 - not 2007. 2007 applies to hospitals, schools, trains, airports.<<<

Smoking Ban in France for restaurants, cafes, bars, hotel etc will start in 2007
Smoking is banned (and it is enforced) in hospitals, schools, trains since 2004
some airports still have smoking zones but most are non smoking, you still have smoking zones in universities

Norween -

It's prety much common knowledge around here, but if you don't believe me, a quick google search will come up with plenty of sites listing the new law. For example, from the LCI web site:

http://tinyurl.com/yhdth3


-Kevin

The delay (until 21 december 2007) for bar-tabacs (bar-tobacconists), night clubs and hotels is still under discussion (some senators try to have it cancelled) and smoking IS banned in hospitals, schools, trains since 2004

Several chains of hotels are also going completely smoke free because of the lack of interest. Marriott reported that 97% of their room reservations were for NON-SMOKING so they went smoke free. I'll bet their fire insurance dropped also.

Norween - not to belabor the point, but since you posted:

Here's the PM announcing the ban -

Dominique de Villepin : ... on pourra toujours fumer dans la rue. La mesure concernera, au 1er février 2007, les écoles, les lycées, les collèges, les administrations, les entreprises, les magasins, y compris les cours de récréation. Et bien sûr, dans les lieux privés, la possibilité de fumer restera entière.

(so apparently smoking had nopt yet been banned in schools)

and here is a long list of hospitals declaring themselves "hôpitaux sans tabac" http://tinyurl.com/tp6g4
all of which took place this may.

-Kevin

I think we need to remember the difference between

banned through legislation
banned through policy of the organisation

For example, smoking isn't yet legally banned in Britain yet it has been banned on public transport for many years.

Yes, makes sense. Banning smoking cigarettes and legalizing cannabis. Sigh, the UK govt has lost the plot.

Pot isn't legal - it's decriminalised, sort of. There's a difference.

The only places that indoor smoking will be allowed in the UK, other than private homes, are prisons and locked psychiatric wards.

I'm sure there's a message in there somewhere.

Wow! I knew there was controversy and some confusion, but not quite this much. Just to add to it, when I suggested to the "expert" (travel agent) that it was important to us to request a room where DH could smoke she said "that's not necessary; everyone smokes everywhere all over Europe." I was able, with your help, to tell her the times were a'changin', that I needed "smoking room" specified, and that "Europe" despite the euro is not one homogeneous location. She should have known, but don't get me started on that.

Anyway, many thanks, and Ira, I will pass along the suggestion about the best state of dress for that last cigarette!

I was just in Bologna - and no smoking was allowed (or occuring) in restaurants (yeah)