Budget and Avis ban smoking in rental cars

by Katie Hammel on

First you couldn’t smoke on planes. Then trains banned smoking. Now, you can’t smoke in rental cars, at least, not if you rent from Avis or Budget. As of October 1, all cars in both rental companies’ fleets will be non-smoking.

Avis and Budget say the policy came about in response to the needs of renters, citing a non-smoking car as the most-popular rental request. Cars that have been smoked in also require additional cleaning and are out of service longer, costing the companies more money. A spokesman for the Avis Budget Group says they expect some smokers to be upset with the new rules and to take their business elsewhere, but that they think overall the new plan will attract more customers than it will lose.

Avis and Budget will be the first major rental car companies to ban smoking entirely (others offer “non-smoking” cars but many don’t guarantee them), though they are only instituting the ban among their North American fleet, not worldwide. Each car will undergo an inspection upon return and renters who have smoked in the vehicle will be charged a cleaning fee of up to $250.

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Ryanair: (don’t) smoke if you got ’em!

by Tom Johansmeyer on

Ryanair isn’t the first carrier to allow “smokeless” cigarettes on their planes. These devices mimic the sensation of puffing, I’m told by a user, with a water vapor that is released. What makes the announcement distinctly “Ryanair” is that the devices are now being sold on its flights.

You can buy a pack of ten of these smokeless wonders for €6. To purchase the equivalent of a pack of cigs, you’re looking at $17.

So, it really is just another way for Ryanair to squeeze a few extra bucks out of each passenger, but at least the airline isn’t taking something away (like your seat or your pissing privileges.

[Thanks, @brycelongton]

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German airline to offer smoking, not non

by Tom Johansmeyer on

How did this one get by me? An all-smoking airline!

Alexander Schoppmann is on the prowl for startup capital for an all-smoking airline. Once he gets the cash, he’s going to lease two Boeing 747s and run a route from Dusseldorf to Tokyo. This doesn’t do much for the few Americans who still prefer to light up, but if the Schoppmann can squeeze a profit out of this (which conventional airlines aren’t even doing), maybe he’ll export the idea.

If all goes according to plan, Smintair (for “Smoker’s International Airways) will go wheels up for the first time next year. Each plane will accommodate 138 passengers, with no economy seating. You’ll have to pay to play on Smintair, but if you have a serious tobacco jones, it could be worth the trouble – especially if you’re stuck on a plane from Germany to Japan.

Schoppmann is looking to use the upper deck as a passengers’ lounge, rather than cramming it with more seats. Smintair will be an upscale affair, so the poor and the nic-free should book their travel arrangements elsewhere. Flight attendants and pilots who aren’t interested in a smoke-filled workplace, the company says, need not apply.

The price tag is hefty: approximately $56 million. Part of this will pay for an older approach to pushing fresh air through the cabin – instead of the cheaper systems being used now. Even with the barriers, Schoppmann is optimistic. I guess the former stockbroker has some solid connections.

Cigar smokers: if you’re worried about discrimination, the hopeful founder remembers fondly the days when Lufthansa would serve a selection of Montecristos in flight.

[Via Blackbook]

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Hotel du Vin smokin’ consistency

by Tom Johansmeyer on

I had a great cigar-smoking at the Bothy at the Hotel du Vin in smoke-phobic Glasgow. Well, the Hotel du Vin in Cambridge, England, I was pleased to learn, offers the same environment! Behind the hotel is a small, covered, and heated outdoor smoking lounge where guests are invited to light up and relax. Its name, the “Cigar Shack,” is only half accurate – fortunately, it’s the first half.

The Hotel du Vin (and Mal Maison) properties in Great Britain pride themselves on offering a unique guest experience rather than the homogeneity of the major chains. This is particularly true at the Cambridge hotel, where room numbers are eschewed in favor of names (I spent the evening in the Taylor’s Port room, which is appropriate, given how much I enjoy the drink).

At reception, I was told about the outdoor smoking space and proceeded to it immediately after dropping my bags in Taylor’s Port. Though it’s not a carbon copy of the Glasgow Bothy, the Cigar Shack’s similarities are striking. The covered space is of roughly the same design, though it is a bit smaller. Also, like its Scottish cousin, the smoking lounge offers a fireplace and ample seating. Cuban cigars are available for purchase (in case you forgot to bring your own stash).

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Outside the Cigar Shack, there is a large patio with four tables that seat four people – and a bench that handles two comfortably. The lucky rooms are Graham Beck, Concha y Toro and tk-Zapata, which open directly into the this outdoor space. Sure, you have to sacrifice a bit of privacy, but I’m a sucker for access to outside, probably because I live in a city that charges a premium for it. It can’t be too bad, as I smoked several cigars in a row (during which I saw people enter these rooms), and nobody complained.

If you’re a smoker, this is the best alternative to being able to light up in your room. In fact, I find it preferable. It’s a great environment, with covered, climate controlled areas, an dprovides a bit of a social scene.

As always, non-smokers are welcome, too!

Disclosure: Visit Britain paid for this trip, and British Airways picked up the flights. There are many other reasons to stay at this hotel, but I’m sure the other writers on the press trip will cover them. I’m unashamedly a cigar guy.

Turkish smoking ban? Your survival plan

by Tom Johansmeyer on

I never thought I’d have to write about a smoking ban in Turkey. It just struck me as one of a handful of locations that would never extinguish the flame. But, on July 19, the impossible will come to pass.

In part, it exists already. Since May of last year, smoking has not been permitted in Turkish taxes, malls, offices and ferries. Of course, the prohibition does not seem to have been taken literally. Cabbies, for example, pass ashtrays back to passengers, so they can duck down, smoke … and not get caught.

The rules become much tougher this July. Lighting up will not be permitted in any enclosed establishment. Unless you’re sitting outside, you won’t be smoking in Istanbul. Fines of $2,800 suggest serious consequences.

This is expected to cause financial woes for roughly 15,000 teahouses in Istanbul, according to The Atlantic. Hundreds have shut down already, and the absence of smoking in these men’s havens, at a minimum, provides additional pressure.

Other signs of the apocalypse were not reported in the article, but you have to imagine they’re coming soon.