WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. -- A major hotel chain is going smoke-free next month and will add $200 to the bill of anyone who violates the policy, an executive said Monday.
Westin Hotels & Resorts is banning smoking indoors and poolside at all 77 of its properties in the United States, Canada and the Caribbean, said Senior Vice President Sue Brush. Smokers will have to go to a designated outdoor area, she said.
Enica Thompson, spokeswoman for the American Hotel & Lodging Association, said Westin is the first major American chain to go smoke-free and predicted that "many of the other hotel chains will probably want to see how it works out for Westin" before following suit.
Eight Westin hotels were already smoke-free, and at least 5 percent of the rooms at the others had been set aside for nonsmokers, Brush said. But market research found that 92 percent of Westin's guests were requesting nonsmoking rooms, and some of those who couldn't get them were "quite upset," she said.
Brush said White Plains-based Westin is positioning itself to attract guests seeking "personal renewal."
"When we talk to our consumers, what they want for their personal renewal is a smoke-free environment," she said.
Brush said customers will be advised about the policy at check-in. If a guest violates the rule _ "when we can observe it by smelling it or whatever" _ a $200 fee will be added to the bill.
"It's really a cleaning fee," she said. The 2,400 smoking rooms in the chain are undergoing deep cleaning and air purifying before the Jan. 1 changeover, "and once you smoke in there you've violated that entire environment and we have to clean it all over again."
The smoking ban will apply to hallways, lobbies, and restaurants, except for the eight restaurants that are run by outside companies and not under Westin's control, Brush said. "They will be invited to participate," she added.
The policy will not extend to Westin's overseas hotels or to other chains, such as Sheraton, that are under the same parent company, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. Westin was the brand that "had the least amount of smokers to begin with," Brush said.
A spokesman for Westin rival Marriott International Inc., John Wolf, said several Marriott hotels and 85 percent of the chain's rooms are smoke-free but there are no plans to go smoke-free nationwide.
Brush said there might be a dip in business at the beginning of the year as smokers go elsewhere, but Westin expects to quickly replace that business with travelers favoring the new policy.
"I don't think it will be a net loss," she said. "It should be a net gain."
Jacque Petterson of San Antonio, Texas, who maintains an Internet list of some smoke-free hotels, said, "This is just wonderful. So often you go to a place and the nonsmoking rooms are all taken or the smoking rooms and the nonsmoking rooms are mixed up and the smoke spreads. You're giving people a place to go without having to worry."
The Westin Hotel, here in Indianapolis, is very nice and attached to the convention center. As our city goes smoke free the powers that be have decided to remove the Football stadium, currently attached to the convention center. Smoke free will mean the money to pay both for the stadium and an expanded convention center will dry up by june or shortly there after.
As smokers are relegated to pup tents or day trips the hospitality industry will cease to exist here.
Again smoker's money is NOT welcome anywhere, why are we taking this abuse? There is no evidence that smoking or SHS has any effect on healthy people. Indianapolis is now building hospitols with luxury features, maybe that will be the trend in the future - ambulances will replace limos dropping off people at restaurants and conventions. Instead of vendors selling overpriced coffee and bottled water we will see oxygen vendors.
The same thing, others will probably follow suit, was said when Carnival Cruise Lines turned one of their Cruise Ships totally smoke-free.
I don't recall how long it lasted, but it was less than a year.
With that said, it is a private business and within in it's right to make this decision - just as it is the right of smokers to find other accomodations elsewhere.......and let Westin know why you will be going elsewhere.
As long as it is not the government forcing them to do this, I will respect their freedom of choice, and excercise mine by not using their facilities.
Posts: 1889 | Location: Virginia | Registered: Tue February 08 2000
"I don't recall how long it lasted, but it was less than a year."
I would expect this chain to go out of business or change back in about the same amount of time.
"With that said, it is a private business and within in it's right to make this decision - just as it is the right of smokers to find other accomodations elsewhere.......and let Westin know why you will be going elsewhere."
"As long as it is not the government forcing them to do this, I will respect their freedom of choice, and excercise mine by not using their facilities."
I agree completely. This is how it works in a capitalist society. They should not be forced to permit smoking anymore than they should be forced to ban it. Admittedly.....i will make a point of calling and making reservations at some of these and then when they tell me its smoke free, ill cancel them and tell them y...and prolly lecture them in the evil of their ways.
I do suspect that most smoking bans in this country will eventually go away as a failed attempt at forced socialism and behavior control thru the misuse of law. I certainly hope that those who have sucked this tobacco settlement money and used it to attack a free people r never forgiven. I certainly plan to do everything i can forever to drive them from my country.
There certainly is a market for this, and I certainly can't begrudge Westin's management for applying their own property rights and business sense to go after that specific market segment. But that market is only so big. After all, more than 25% of all adults still smoke, and they need places to stay where they will be comfortable. Balcony smoking is fine in many southern locales, but not up north in winter. They'll have to figure out what to do if they see their occupancy rates decline in the winter months.
As Gabz said, I just won't stay in a Westin property, just as I do not patronize rental car companies who will not provide an ashtray in their vehicles. I also will not patronize restaurants without smoking areas unless forced to when traveling in states with such bans, and even then, I ask to be seated in the smoking section just to make sure the staff knows they have customers who still prefer the option.
Posts: 968 | Location: Virginia | Registered: Tue July 10 2001
Although I would love to snub these places I decided when the Pittsburgh airport imposed their no smoking policy that I had left home for the last time, it has been over 10 years.
I don't drink and I don't enjoy restaurant dining. I find even fast food overpriced.
I have become a hermit, so no one will miss my patronage. I do enjoy making noise about smoking bans whenever I get the chance, but usually it is only online.
Indianapolis will impose the will of the medical community on March 1. Although the crime rate is up, the city and state have decided to build a new football stadium and expand our convention center, while laying off 40 local police officers.
I announced the Weston's decision on the local papers web site but proposed they did it in responce to the new local hospitol/resorts opening in the suburbs. The Weston here is connected to the convention center and I pondered online if each floor would have a register nurse on duty, oxygen at every bed, conversion of a ballroom into an operating theater, a boutique pharmacy, and staff to push beds and wheel chairs over to medical conventions for patients with drug company, hospitol room equipment, and specialists' booths for their infirm cliental to enjoy. I have not been back to see if there has been any responce or even if it was allowed to remain.
While it does not affect me personally (as a non-smoker) it will affect my choice when booking for a group.
The myth that smokers are x percent of the population and thus may be ignored itself ignores the fact that people 'go out' and travel in groups and everyone in the group must be accomodated assuming the chice is being made as a hospitality issue not a rehab issue.
They have the right, certainly. Do other hotels/restaurants/bars have the right to put a sign out saying smoking permitted, no restrictions, and let the market decide? Seems not. The fanatic anti-smoker nannies obviously don't believe in free markets or free choices.
Posts: 657 | Location: NY | Registered: Thu March 02 2000
If Westin has 92% of its guests asking for nonsmoking rooms why is it they only had 5% designated as nonsmoking rooms. It would strike me that they should have 92% of all rooms designated as nonsmoking. Then ALL guests could be accomodated.
I used to work for Westin and I can say that the cost of "deep cleaning" any hotel room costs nowhwere close to $200.00.
However, it should also be noted to anyone staying at the Westin, that there is a very real danger of becoming infected by some illness that can be attributed to germs left by previous guests on the blankets, pillows, or beadspreads. These items are NOT changed when new guests check into the hotel. In effect you are being exposed to any one of a number of infectious diseases such as staph, strept, skin diseases/rashes and others too horrific to mention.
However, it should also be noted to anyone staying at the Westin, that there is a very real danger of becoming infected by some illness that can be attributed to germs left by previous guests on the blankets, pillows, or beadspreads. These items are NOT changed when new guests check into the hotel. In effect you are being exposed to any one of a number of infectious diseases such as staph, strept, skin diseases/rashes and others too horrific to mention.
That is true for any hotel, motel, or bed you do not normally occupy, especially in a hospitol.
The question is we can get anything, anywhere, from anybody. The problem will be that once bans are implemented, air quality will drop everywhere, as it did on airplanes. How is the "Bird Flu" suppose to spread? Our best defence against all these germs is to maintain our own health, eat right, get enough sleep, and avoid contact with the diseased. Smoking Bans are designed to bring these diseased people into the mainstream again. The sickly and infirmed are being encouraged to mingle with the rest of us in bars and restaurantsm clubs, and entertainment venues. They have nothing to fear anymore, the smokers are banned into their living rooms. And we all know they are the carriers of disease and pestilance. That has been the line from the medical community for the last 50 years. Perhaps the medical community has realised that with the aging baby boomers government fusds to support their patients with impaired immune systems can no longer pay their medical bills, they will need jobs with medical insurance. People undergoing cancer treatments or have undergone a transplant can NOT venture out of their sterile enviroments. This can have an effect on their perception of life, they may not be able to find the "joy" in a life in confined spaces, may waste away, a dead patient does not require medical attention or further drugs to survive.
As medical science has advanced, civilization has been isolated to more sterile enviroments. Only the western or modern civilizations can afford the costs of medical intervention and prevention. Africa can not afford to contain their citizens in these enviroments and therefore has little medical care. If they had the money the medical community would be arriving by the plane loads.
Smoking Bans are designed to bring these diseased people into the mainstream again. The sickly and infirmed are being encouraged to mingle with the rest of us in bars and restaurantsm clubs, and entertainment venues. They have nothing to fear anymore, the smokers are banned into their living rooms. And we all know they are the carriers of disease and pestilance.
U dont need to believe it. I know who bob is. He is a bar owner. Hint: Ur buddy robert moffit likes to slam a significant person to him on his alamn website.
It is really nice that Westin Hotels are doing this type of public awareness against smoking. Smoking is a deadly habit .I think it is a very good policy to ban people from smoking in public areas.If you have been a victim of passive smoking you would realize the worth of my words. There are many options available in the market to quit smoking such as nicotine gums, inhalers and medicines like chantix, champix and zyban to support your will power and self control. You can find more information about such anti smoking measures at http://www.chantixhome.com
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