Maluku_Flyer

So Dovster should run for TB again. I'll vote for him.

I bet that the number of smokers on FT is a lot greater than the number that reads TalkBoard Topics.

SkiAdcock

That's certainly an option for him. However, even if he is interested in running for TB again (vs. chasing the UIG, presumably a much better pursuit ) & brings this up for a motion, he will still need to get 5 votes besides his own for the motion to pass. koko is termed out so he/Dov can't do a you vote for my male forum & I'll vote for your smoker forum, which sucks a bit for both of them

Cheers.

kokonutz

Sucks worse than a filtered cigarette!

Maybe we could do some inter-term quid pro quo deal, though.

Keep hope alive!

blackjack-21

Late to the forum, but I'm trying to "Keep hope alive" for Dov's request.

After spending countless hours (and many cigarettes while searching) trying to find a hotel (preferably a Hilton brand) in London, I was finally able to find several that still have smoking rooms (Park Lane, Tower Bridge) out of the many there. Noted that the Hilton across from LHR's T-4 has now gone NON-smoking as are most others at the airport. Checking other brands for London and Belfast, the lack of choices for us smokers is also very evident. And it's getting worse, as Dov indicates at the outset. Our favorite HGI in Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario, has recently gone NON, and the Fallsview Hilton in Niagara Falls for a while was showing totally non-smoking on the Hilton website, but now once again has a limited number of smoking rooms available on the 10th and 11th floors of the remodeled South Tower.

While I'd agree that a "Hotels with Smoking Rooms" availability forum would have a limited following on FT, still there may be enough of us puffers left in this world to find it a useful addition for quickly and easily checking for availability in many cities.

So while Dov's suggestion may have been tongue-in-cheek, still.......!

bj-21.

Dovster

It was not tongue-in-cheek at all. I was (and still am) very serious about it.

Maluku_Flyer

And I still support it. But I'm obviously not a TB member.

nsx

Would a General Hotel Discussion forum accommodate this need? How about a thread in Travel Buzz (which is really General Travel Discussion)? Or do you think putting all the smoking discussion in one thread would result in an overloaded, mostly useless megathread?

Dovster

It would, indeed, result in such a megathread. It would be like putting all the GLBT discussions in one large thread on Travel Buzz.

BTW, my suggestion was not only for hotels but also all travel facilities which allow smoking.

For example, as you enter the terminal in TLV (from landside) you will see signs announcing that there is no smoking in the terminal.

As you are advised to arrive at least three hours before your flight for Security, and are not allowed to leave the terminal once you go through Passport Control, three hours without smoking is not a cheerful prospect for someone who is about to board a 12 hour flight to the US.

Wouldn't it be helpful for him to know that there are actually two rooms in the Departures area where smoking is allowed?

Many non-smokers, even Israelis, don't know about these rooms so you may not find this information on the Israel local forum but I suspect that before long it would be posted on a "Smokers' Forum".

boboqui

It'd be very useful to know which restaurants, hotels, airports, etc. don't discriminate against smokers.

Kagehitokiri

again - wiki / master thread in travelbuzz ?

Dovster

Consider how long a master thread would have to be to include hotels in Paris, airports in Italy, car rentals in Vegas, trains in Prague, bars in Florida, restaurants in Israel, etc, etc, etc.

Either it would be so long as to be useless or else (as is more likely) people would not bother posting to it because it is simply too general.

Kagehitokiri

some seem to say wikis are answer to that (im not a big wiki person)

QtownDave

I'm a smoker and agree that it is becoming an issue while traveling but instead of a smoking forum I just wish there was a rule discouraging the usual predicable anti snark rants in every thread about the subject.

84fiero

That might be another reason to have a dedicated forum where such a principle would be more easily enforced - similar to the Religious Travelers forum where there is a clear rule that it is not the place to debate religion.

nsx

Even 1% of FT'ers would be enough for a forum. That's still a lot of people.

I find the arguments for a Smokers Travel Issues or similar forum compelling. I've never smoked, but I have seen many changes to travel over the decades to make travel more difficult for people who smoke. Not to mention the tightening of screws at work and in public spaces. The situation bears a more than superficial resemblance to religious persecution.

I believe that FlyerTalk has an opportunity to provide one safe haven for smokers to commiserate and exchange travel tips. I think it's worth a try. I'm open to suggestions on how to accomplish this, starting with where on FT the discussion belongs. Maybe we could call it the Smokers' Lounge? @:-)