Earlier we have mentioned to you about Marriott Newport News at City Center going smoke-free. Keeping up with their ethics, Marriott International has declared that all its US and Canadian hotels will ban smoking totally. The move follows a growing trend in the industry with the Westin Hotel chain and Anaheim’s Disneyland resort having led the way earlier this year. Marriott’s decision, however, is one of the largest of its kind, affecting more than 2,300 hotels and almost 400,000 guest rooms with the Marriott, JW Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, Renaissance, Courtyard, Residence Inn, SpringHill Suites, Fairfield Inn, TownePlace Suites and Marriott ExecuStay brands involved. More than 90% of guest rooms in Marriott’s U.S. and Canadian system are already nonsmoking. But now, smoking will be banned in not only the remaining rooms but also in public spaces, such as restaurants, bars, meeting rooms and employee work areas.
The company will start putting the change into effect in September, and by the end of that month, nearly 400,000 rooms are expected to be smoke-free. It may be time for some enterprising hotelier to open smokers-only hotels. There may be a new niche market since travelling smokers are losing even more places to lay their heads….bearing in mind that Smintair, a luxury airline that allows passengers to light up.
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