Royal Caribbean Drops Wine Bar in Favor of Non-Smoking Casino

Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas is getting a few things sorted out during a regular maintenance docking in Cadiz, Spain. The three-week drydock, however, is not going to just see nuts and bolts replaced, but a few designer and commercial choices enacted by the company.

Royal Caribbean Decking Out Freedom of the Seas with New Casino

Among those is the disassembly of the ship’s signature wine bar which will be replaced by a non-smoking casino, reflecting a larger trend in the cruise-faring sector. As new exotic destinations now allow or are very close to allowing onboard casinos to keep churning during docking times, companies are taking notes and updating their facilities.

The Freedom of the Seas was launched in 2006, and it already features a commercial casino. However, the company is capitalizing on a new trend – that of non-smoking gamblers who would much rather have a quiet game without someone blowing smoke in their face.

Smoking has been a hot-button topic for both travelers and workers, who have, for the most part, opposed the matter. Not fully able to decide what to do, however, Royal Caribbean has chosen to feature both smoking and non-smoking casino floors, its latest ship plans suggest.

Royal Caribbean already has ventured into non-smoking casinos and has expanded its commercial gaming floors onboard its ships, following a similar move for its Oasis Class ships. In 2023, the company did the same for Wonder of the Seas, signaling that some amenities may have become obsolete or people may have simply lost interest.

Smoking has been a sensitive topic not because of health issues solely. For the most part, Royal Caribbean is trying to make things enjoyable for everyone, and a rule that only allows active players to smoke has been largely turned a blind eye to. This has driven smoke on casino floors across the company’s ships, prompting it to look into expanding with non-smoking options instead.

To Smoke or Not Smoke – It’s No Longer a Dilemma

Yet, the latest development is hardly surprising. In 2022, Royal Caribbean International president and CEO Michael Bayley admitted that the company was aware of attitudes towards smoking – with many people firmly opposed.

“The dilemma is that there are many people who do want to smoke in the casino. I know that’s not a popular response, but it’s it’s the truth,” Bayley said at the time. It appeared a little counter-intuitive for the company to feature a second, separate casino, but ultimately, Royal Caribbean decided that this was the best way to make its travelers happy and not antagonize regular customers.

As to the profitability of this extra venture, it’s hard to pinpoint the value casinos are driving for the company, as it lumps it with multiple other income streams. However, in Q4 2024, Royal Caribbean said that it had brought $183 million across all of its brands under the “onboard and other,” no small part of which is surely driven by the casino trend.