Just wondering what the ratio of smoking to non-smoking rooms is in North America and Europe these days? Not to mention other parts of the world. It seems to me that there are fewer non-smoking rooms than smoking rooms in most NAmerican properties, and that non-smoking rooms tend to get filled more rapidly. In Europe and Asia, the number of smoking rooms must be even greater.

This leads me to wonder if non-smokers have less likelihood of receiving an elite upgrade to suites, exec/tower floors, etc. from most hotel programs than do smokers? Fewer rooms, fewer opportunities to upgrade [unless one doesn't particularly care about getting a smoking room].

Any thoughts?

Beg to differ but I've the opposite experience in the USA. There are many more rooms for non-smokers in my experience. I think that more and more smokers are getting short shrift, with *fewer* upgrade opportunities, but that is only my impression, I really don't know for sure.

I have just two observations on this issue:

1. In general, I haven't noticed a difference with the exceptions noted in (2) below.
2. At Marriott, the concierge level floors are non-smoking. So, in this case, while I get free access to the concierge lounge, I never get on the same floor as the concierge lounge. It is no big deal to me at all, but in this case, it is the smokers who lose some of the premium benefits. Understand, I am talking about floors here, not rooms. The rooms are comparable/the same, usually.

For what it's worth...

My experience with Hilton has been that there are far fewer (upgraded) smoking rooms available. Also, at Embassy Suites properties, the 'good rooms' with balconies are usually non-smoking.

This has just been my experience (in the US)and I'm certain that it really depends on the property, the management company, the location of the property and typical guest profile.

As for international, I've never had a problem getting an upgraded, smoking room in Europe.

Cheers,

'toad

Well, as far as Europe goes, my take on it is that smokers have the advantage. I have been in several European chain hotels where I have requested in advance a non-smoking room, and had that confirmed on check-in, only to arrive at the room to find the usual delicious smoker aroma and several ashtrays. When I have raised this with the front desk (that I had requested and been confirmed in a non-smoking room), the best answer I can recall is "Well, if you aren't a smoker, that's a non-smoking room". No hope over there, as far as I can tell.
Even with the NS rooms that appear to actually be NS rooms (i.e.no ashtrays), they often stink, and there might only be 3 or 4 rooms on a floor which are so designated and so evrything still stinks.

According to the book, �The Penny Pinchers Guide to Luxury Travel� the author claims that one has a better chance of being upgraded to a superior room if asking for a nonsmoking room, however, he did not indicate if this was more likely to happen at a domestic or international hotel.

From my experience, smoking room upgrades are very hard to get. Almost all of the premium Holiday Inn chain rooms are non-smoking, ditto Hilton.

Today in the United States, I think non-smoking is definitely the majority and default (although it wasn't always this way).

Look at public places: often the default is non-smoking and only certain designated areas are smoking. Look at airports. Non-smokers don't go to a little, glassed-in room to sit, while smoking is permitted in the rest of the terminal? Nope, as we all know, it is the exact opposite.

So in the United States I'd think there are FAR, FAR more non-smoking rooms than smoking. While perhaps when non-smoking rooms were first created, only one floor would be non-smoking, today it seems that only two or three floors are smoking!

In Europe and Asia, I have far less experience, but I'd guess that it is just the opposite as the US, because a far, far greater percentage of the population smokes. There is far less accomodation for non-smokers in general in Europe than in the US. For example, a lot of restaurants don't have non-smoking sections, and, unlike the US, they don't have to.

When I am getting room upgrade and am asked "smoking or non-smoking", I say either - whatever is the best possible upgrade. I have found this makes things easier. But obviously this is not possible for anyone that has issues with the smell of smoke etc.

In Europe it takes one look in the elevator of many hotels to see what floors are non-smoking. At the HI in Nice (my last stop) only 2 out of 8 floors were non-smoking. So if you ask for non-smoking, it may be tight. And there are so many smokers that when the smoking rooms are full, they take the NS rooms and stink them up.

I travel mostly domestic. I have recently quit smoking, knock on wood etc. I am still wearing the patch. Anyway, being a new dad really convinced me I better take better care of myself. But this isn't about smoking, it's about upgrades. I don't smoke inside my own home and generally not in hotel rooms either. But the smell of smoke from prior guests didn't usually bother me much so I often just asked for best available upgrade. I can only recall two or three times where I could get a better room by taking smoking, and the two I remember clearly were Hiltons in ABQ and ELP. The room in ABQ was so putrid that even as a pack a day smoker I had to sleep with the balcony door a few inches open in mid winter. Most of the nice hotels seem to have most of their best rooms designated non-smoking. And I appreciate that. Even as a smoker I found it hard to be in a room after I smoked there, so I tried to get a balcony or some other way to go outside and light up.

I wonder if the hotels, indicvidually or as chains, have a "yield management" type system to track demand for smoking and nonsmoking rooms and adjust the ratio accordingly?

Shareholder I can offer you a 100% specific answer for at least one major Hotel! I am booked for the March Catman Do into the Waldorf Astoria for 6 nights. With my newly minted Gold Hilton card I too had the same thoughts as you about the upgrading odds. My ladyfriend I am travelling with smokes.

So I phone Hotel and ask causally WHAT % of rooms were smoking v/s N/S. I thought if it were 50/50 I'd book smoking and avoid a "domestic".

Answer. Of the 42 floors there in probably America's best known hotel FOUR (4) are smoking. Or say 10%. Amazed me.

Booked non-smoking .. ! Hate 10 to 1 odds!

Whether that 10% type figure is typical of other large hotels lke the 4000-5000 room monsters in Vegas I have no clue, but the NYC 10% frankly amazed me.

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~ Glen ~