ABU DHABI // The city's first club dedicated to smoking has become its first completely non-smoking club. The Cristal cigar and champagne bar at the Millennium Hotel has banned smoking. Management at the nightspot, now known as the Cristal wine and champagne bar, acted before the Government imposes a long-promised ban on smoking in public places that all the capital's hotels will have to adopt. Nevine Albert, a spokeswoman for the hotel, said crowds had been smaller at the bar, which was first of its kind in the city when it opened in March 2002, but guests were expected to return once they became accustomed to the no-smoking rule.
The ban was publicised for a month before it took effect. "We had a strange response," Mrs Albert said. "Some of it was very positive and we got a totally new crowd. But at the same time, there are others who rejected the whole thing. "Some came, stayed for an hour and left ... We still have regulars, but they ask why we made this decision. The staff appreciate it and the singer's voice had been a bit affected by the smoke. Now there is an overall healthier environment and it is because we care for our clients and our guests.
"Anything new, in my opinion, starts with rejection. People refuse new things, but I am sure that will change when they see what we are doing." Other parts of the hotel, including the Citrus bar, the lobby and downstairs coffee lounge, are also non-smoking areas, but two other areas allow smoking. The ban will eventually extend to those too. Ian Carshalton, 43, a British surveyor who moved to Abu Dhabi two years ago, said he usually went to Cristal about three times a month. An occasional cigar smoker, Mr Carshalton said he had been there once since it banned smoking. "I might have a cigar every few months," he said. "You enjoy the smell when you're smoking them but if you're not, it is one of those nasty smells that just sticks to everything.
"I'm all for it. I noticed a massive difference when I went last week. I'm sure you can still smell a bit of smoke in the air, though. Everyone is going to have to do this sometime, so it gives people more of a chance to get used to it." Another cigar bar, the Havana Club at the Emirates Palace hotel, remains open and a hotel spokesman, Hazem Harfoush, said there were no plans yet to ban smoking. Abu Dhabi Municipality's proposal to ban smoking in public places has been shelved pending the adoption of a federal law, a date for which has yet to be fixed. All of the other emirates except Umm al Qaiwain have introduced some kind of anti-smoking legislation.
The Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority said that at this stage, it was not ruling on a smoking ban for hotels or offering advice to hoteliers about it. Most of the city's other hotels reserve space for smokers and non-smokers in restaurants and bars. Hotel rooms for smokers are also generally available. Reema Baroudi, of the InterContinental Hotel, said: "We are waiting to see what happens with the smoking ban. If the legislation does come in, we will have to ban smoking. We will have no choice. But it has not yet been discussed with management or myself.
"Nowadays people are becoming more and more conscious of smoking, particularly the smokers themselves, and will generally look to leave the restaurant or go outside to smoke." Suzanne McLean, a spokeswoman for Le Royal Méridien, said there were no plans to ban smoking. "It is a little too early for us to do this, but we do have designated smoking areas already," she said. "It has not been brought up with us at all."
rhughes@thenational.ae
