Smoking in the park...

[Bud Parsley]

OK first off: I am not starting a debate here on the pros and/or cons of smoking. That is not for this thread or this section of the boards. So please don't hijack this thread into a political/smoking discussion or I will ask Mike & Chris to delete it!

Now, my question for you is this: do you think smoking should be allowed in the park and if so, to what extent? Washington state passed some pretty hardcore anti-smoking laws recently. Idaho is pretty lax about the whole thing. Yet the majority of Silverwood's guests are from Washington.

Truth be told I'm not even sure what the smoking restrictions are at Silverwood, if any exist. I know smoking is not tolerated on the rides but can you smoke anywhere in the park, or only in designated areas?

Disneyland by comparison has designated areas, but they obviously don't always work. You still see people lighting up in various areas. And of course many non-smokers get very worked up about this because now someone is breaking a rule that the park is attempting to enforce.

I'm curious to get people's thoughts on what Silverwood currently does, what you think they should do, and how to handle this very touchy subject.

Fire away, but please keep your posts carefully worded...

[65skylark]

I do not believe Silverwood, or any other theme park, should allow smoking.

And for anyone here (and I know there will be at least a few because there always is) who is going to use the argument, "But it outside" let me give you an example most people would never think about.

My son has a pretty bad case asthma. If he were to simply walk by someone, outside, that was smoking, and caught even ONE breath of smoke, it would very likely have him down and out for the rest of the day. At the very least, it would effect him for a few hours.

In a public place, even outdoors, you run the risk of hurting someone with health issues by smoking. I am not opposed to having designated smoking areas as long as they are clearly marked and away from where people would normaly be walking, waiting, resting, etc. Besides the health issues, having a smoke free park is a family friendly policy, anyway. A no smoking policy is going to make more people happy than upset. Even in Northern Idaho

[monkeybeast]

Silverwood has certain areas where you can smoke but they hope to make the theme park a non- smoking environment in the upcoming years. No smoking is allowed on the rides, the train or any of the shows.


Disney and Universal both plan on becoming non-smoking environments very soon possibly by 2009.

[voodoobones]

I think Silverwood should be smoke free. I hate it when I have my kids there and someone is smoking around them. They have no consideration. It just drives me nuts.

[skinnyguy]

I agree with what has been said, especially skylark's comments. My wife is severely allergic to smoking. It doesn't put her out for the entire day, but if she breathes in too much of it, her throat starts to close up on her, and it can take a couple hours for her to be completely back to normal and able to breathe right again. I think people who smoke have every right to do so, but I think they should be considerate of those around them. To some (like skylark's son and my wife), it's not just annoying, it's a serious health concern, and I people who are so ignorant as to just ignore that fact really bother me.

I could go on all day, but simply put, I think smoking should only be allowed in certain areas that are well off the beaten path. Some of the "smoking areas" are often so close to the main path that it's hard to avoid it, especially if the wind is blowing towards you!

[Nuttyguy]

Silverwood since 2003 (around there) has been a non-smoking park with designated areas away from walkways. Employees are responsible for asking people to put out their cigarettes or move to the designated areas. Any Silverwood map had the designated areas on it.

Before the designated areas were created and Silverwood became a non-smoking park, cigarette's were allowed anywhere in the park except inside buildings, on rides, or in lines.