Designated Smoking Areas - Do they need to be more secluded?

Are the designated smoking areas appropriately secluded enough from guests?

  • I am a non-smoker, and YES, the designated smoking areas ARE appropriately secluded.

    Votes: 55 43.7%
  • I am a non-smoker, and NO, the designated smoking areas ARE NOT appropriately secluded.

    Votes: 47 37.3%
  • I am a smoker, and YES, the designated smoking areas ARE appropriately secluded.

    Votes: 17 13.5%
  • I am a smoker, and NO, the designated smoking areas ARE NOT appropriately secluded.

    Votes: 7 5.6%

  • Total voters
    126

Kriszee1

New Member
I am a smoker and I agree that the breezeway by the castle is a TERRIBLE spot. I am one that has searched high and low for the place where I am supposed to light up. It ticks me off when a smoker is in a non-designated space and I let them know it.

I am still looking for the alleged spot in China, but after years and years of searching, I have given up. Some of them are very hard to even find.

If there was NO SMOKING at all in the parks, you'd have some VERY cranky people in lines. It's not a 2 hour zoo trip, we are talking an hour wait just to go on 1 ride. The witch from Snow White would seem like Cinderella if I had to go 6 hours without one.
 

Timekeeper

Well-Known Member
Original Poster
Good point. Disney can't, for example, molest guests with their Donald Duck costumed cast members. :lookaroun

Exactly, LOL

Actually, I think the better word is "shouldn't," rather than "can't," as that lady's 2 years after-the-fact accusations are obviously clear and convincing evidence that the event did occur [sarcasm]. :brick:
 

MissM

Well-Known Member
My selection would actually be:

I am a non-smoker, and SOME the designated smoking areas ARE NOT appropriately secluded.

The one on the side of the Castle is awful. HATE that location. The new one on the Frontierland boardwalk is also a terrible location due to heavy guest flow.

But others are much better placed and sufficiently out of the way. Some are a little far from certain parts of the park I know as I don't smoke but Love and his brother do but they're both very courteous smokers and ONLY go to the designated areas. Normally, they drop me off at a shop or something to wait in the A/C near wherever the closest spot is. Sometimes that can be a little bit of a walk.

I do think it's a challenge because if they use all the little "out of the way" places for it, you also lose the little out of the way places to escape from people unless you want to be in smoke.

So it's hit-and-miss for me.
 

wizards8507

Active Member
The new one on the Frontierland boardwalk is also a terrible location due to heavy guest flow.

I'll agree with that, particularly when trying to avoid the parade route(s). Though, I'd say the 8-wheel double strollers with shock absorbers are the biggest problem on that boardwalk.
 

rct247

Well-Known Member
Here's my background... I'm a non-smoker who as a child had severe asthma that was triggered by cigarette smoke. I have grown out of my asthma. I have worked at a waterpark that completely banned smoking and I have worked at a Disney theme park as a cast member. While, I do have slight disrespect for smokers naturally, I do understand that they should be allowed to smoke in designate areas.

With that said, I picked the first choice, however, I some locations are NOT exactly "secluded", but as a previous post mentioned, if they were secluded, they would be harder to find. I have found that often there are not enough spots to smoke for smokers.

Here's some interesting observations I have made as a CM.
1. A large percentage of cast members seem to smoke.
2. Two of your typical smoking ash trays on top of trashcans can fill 1 regular water bottle full of cigarette butts every 3 hours.
3. Attached below is a map. Sorry for the small size. The blue circles are existing smoking areas at Disney's Hollywood Studios. The red squares are where smokers tend to congregate other than smoking areas.

picture.php


So, I think there should be more locations and some locations could be more secluded. Ideally, I wish people would just stop smoking, but that's unrealistic.
 

wolf359

Well-Known Member
I'll agree with that, particularly when trying to avoid the parade route(s). Though, I'd say the 8-wheel double strollers with shock absorbers are the biggest problem on that boardwalk.

I'd be fine making all outdoor areas free to smoke in if in return we could ban strollers and scooters entirely. Okay maybe not, but man, what a beautiful day it would be if I wasn't being constantly blocked, cut off, or outright clobbered by the wheeled among us.
 

David S.

Member
I am still looking for the alleged spot in China, but after years and years of searching, I have given up. Some of them are very hard to even find.

I hesitate to say this, but it's unfortunately in the pretty garden area. This often makes me spend less time in the garden than I would, and during the Flower and Garden Festival when they display the Chinese Zodiac animal figures in the garden (with some in the smoking area), I have to cover my nose in order to enjoy them!

There's nothing like the peace, serenity, and cigarette smell of a lovely Chinese garden! ;)
 

2bornot2be

Well-Known Member
Smoker

As a smoker I believe the smoking areas schedules are fair in the parks. The Hotels are a different story. I believe the smoking areas at the resort hotels are poorly scheduled.

Some of the resort hotel smoking areas are placed in high traffic areas and its upsetting when I walk across the resort to the smoking area to smoke and a non-smoker walks through the designated area with the “non-smoker wave”.

Also yes CM’s should enforce the smoking rules but they should also enforce other rules like changing and feeding your child in designated areas.
:veryconfu
 

Chevross

Active Member
As someone who is deathly allergic to cigarette smoke, I'd vote that they need to be a little secluded, but at the same time the signs need to be very clear on where the smoking areas are at so (A. People could find them easily, and (B. People who are allergic or don't want to be around smoke will know to avoid that area.
 

SeanC

Member
I quit smoking a few years ago, however I was annoyed by one smoking location in particular as a smoker...there is a smoking section in AK off Dinoland where there is pretty dinosaur statue in the middle of the section. Parents bring their kids into the smoking section to take a picture with the dinosaur and give the smokers dirty looks. This happened to me on several trips. One time I was even asked to put the cigarette out or go away. I just pointed to the smoking sign and said sorry.
 

RAXIP

Well-Known Member
In a related bit of news

The smoking area at the Africa gate will be relocated to Camp Minnie-Mickey near Campfire Treats effective August 15. Guests wishing to smoke also may do so near Rainforest Café (outside turnstiles), the Expedition Everest bridge, the courtyard behind Chester & Hester's Dinosaur Treasures and the Rafiki's Planet Watch gate near Affection Section.
 

G-bone

Member
I'd be fine making all outdoor areas free to smoke in if in return we could ban strollers and scooters entirely. Okay maybe not, but man, what a beautiful day it would be if I wasn't being constantly blocked, cut off, or outright clobbered by the wheeled among us.

This!:sohappy:
 

The Disney Kid

Well-Known Member
I'm a nonsmoker and I think that smoking areas OUTSIDE are ridiculous! Anyone so stupid that they can't get upwind of a smoker deserves what they get.

As a Libertarian the whole "Second Class Citizen Smoker" thing is offensive to me. Reminds me of a time when certian groups couldn't use the same water fountian.
 

David S.

Member
I'm a nonsmoker and I think that smoking areas OUTSIDE are ridiculous! Anyone so stupid that they can't get upwind of a smoker deserves what they get.

As a Libertarian the whole "Second Class Citizen Smoker" thing is offensive to me. Reminds me of a time when certian groups couldn't use the same water fountian.

I always thought "Libertarianism" was about freedom for individuals AND businesses. Meaning Disney, as a business, would be perfectly free to decide that they don't want people smoking AT ALL in their parks. You know, like the way they decided the Magic Kingdom is an alcohol-free park. And yet they don't have to have "designated drinking areas" so alcoholics can get their fix!

If Disney wanted to truly ban smoking completely on their own property, that is THEIR right!

Disney is not saying smokers are "second class citizens" just because they restrict the activity, just as they are not saying drinkers are "second class citizens" in the MK by not allowing it AT ALL!

As far as people being too "stupid" that they can't get away from a smoker, are you saying it is their fault and they are "stupid" if they walk through a smoking area poorly placed in the middle of a pathway and didn't know it is there? Or if a smoker lights up right next to you in an area where they are not supposed to? How would a "non-stupid" person get away from a smoker if they are right in back of you in an outdoor queue line? After all, by your definition, you seem to be saying they should have the "right" to smoke in an outdoor queue line, since designated "smoking areas outside are ridiculous" in your opinion!
 

wm49rs

A naughty bit o' crumpet
Premium Member
I'm a nonsmoker and I think that smoking areas OUTSIDE are ridiculous! Anyone so stupid that they can't get upwind of a smoker deserves what they get.

As a Libertarian the whole "Second Class Citizen Smoker" thing is offensive to me. Reminds me of a time when certian groups couldn't use the same water fountian.

Yeah, equating the restricting of a "habit" which can have negative health impacts on others to the civil rights movement. Quite the non sequitur there......
 

Scooter

Well-Known Member
I am an ex smoker who believes that if the Federal and state Governments TAX cigarettes to collect income from cigarette smokers, then the smokers should be allowed to smoke. There needs to be more designated smoking areas in all the parks and they need to be better marked. I totally understand the danger of 2nd hand smoke. (Although I doubt it's validity)
I think there should be shelters built with exhaust fans that draw the smoke up into smoke filters so smokers are protected from harsh weather and their 2nd hand smoke won't waft into the non smokers path.
Smokers shouldn't have to walk a quarter of a mile just to find a designated smoking area.

Perhaps too, we should put turkey leg carts way off in a secluded area because, God forbid, the site and/or smell of someone wolfing down a turkey leg like a neaderthal man makes them sick.:lol:
 

ccw7759

New Member
While at WDW last year with a "smoker", we just carried a park map with us. The designated
smoking areas are clearly marked on the park maps. We had a little trouble finding a few of them, but I must
say that all in all, they were mostly quiet and a relaxing break from the masses! I just sat "up wind" from the smoker and enjoyed the break!
 

Mr Bill

Well-Known Member
I'm a nonsmoker and I think that smoking areas OUTSIDE are ridiculous! Anyone so stupid that they can't get upwind of a smoker deserves what they get.

As a Libertarian the whole "Second Class Citizen Smoker" thing is offensive to me. Reminds me of a time when certian groups couldn't use the same water fountian.
People choose to smoke. Nobody chose to be black.
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom