Smoking in Bars & Pubs Today

Canada was a global leader in smoke-free hospitality legislation. Unlike Europe’s patchwork of partial bans, Canada moved decisively:

• Municipal pioneers: Waterloo, Ontario passed a by-law on January 1, 2000 banning smoking in all public places, including restaurants, bars, billiard halls, bingo halls, and bowling alleys [citation:1]. This was an extension of a 1996 by-law that required restaurants to be at least 50% smoke-free [citation:1].
• Province-wide momentum: Between 2002 and 2006, most provinces enacted comprehensive smoke-free legislation [citation:8]:
  • Newfoundland and Labrador: July 1, 2005 — banned smoking in bars, bingo halls, private clubs, and patios of licensed premises [citation:10].
  • Nova Scotia: December 2006 — prohibited smoking in all workplaces and public places including outdoor restaurant and bar patios [citation:8].
  • Ontario and Quebec: May 31, 2006 — banned smoking in all enclosed workplaces and public places, including bars and casinos [citation:8].
  • Alberta: January 1, 2008 — Calgary and Edmonton implemented total bans with Calgary allowing a transitional phase for establishments that installed smoking rooms before July 2006 [citation:8].
• Patio bans: Many provinces went further, banning smoking on outdoor patios and decks of licensed establishments — Newfoundland and Labrador explicitly prohibits smoking on patios of food and liquor premises [citation:10].

Europe’s approach has been slower, less uniform, and more complicated. The Tobacco Control Scale (2021) ranks countries by policy comprehensiveness — the Netherlands ranked 4th, while Germany ranked 34th [citation:2]. This variation creates very different bar experiences.

📊 Key European Data (2010-2016):

• A study of 16 cities across 8 European countries (Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Netherlands) found that overall in-bar smoking prevalence was 39.6% in 2010 and 34.4% in 2016 — a modest decline [citation:4].
• The split is stark: In bars covered by comprehensive smoke-free legislation, smoking prevalence dropped from 24.2% to 13.0%. But in bars where smoking was legally allowed, it actually increased from 73.3% to 88.9% [citation:4].
• What predicts in-bar smoking? Bars for locals, with a counter for drinks, slot machines, no outside seating, and no food service — these “traditional” pubs are where smoking persists [citation:4].

🇳🇱 Netherlands vs 🇩🇪 Germany: A Telling Comparison

A 2025 study compared smoking at outdoor football club venues in the Netherlands (stronger tobacco policies) and Germany (weaker policies) [citation:2]. The findings are revealing:

• On the playing field: Smoking less common in Netherlands (25% vs 64% in Germany) — a success.
• But displacement happened: At the terrace/patio (the “bar-like” area), smoking was more common in the Netherlands (44% vs 19% in Germany) [citation:2].
• At the entrance: Also more common in Netherlands (20% vs 11%) [citation:2].

A major 8-country European study (2009-2011) measured secondhand smoke exposure in outdoor areas of hospitality venues. The results were surprising [citation:3][citation:6]:

• Indoor ban pushed smokers outside: The median outdoor nicotine concentration was higher in places where indoor smoking was banned (1.56 µg/m³) than in venues where smoking was still allowed indoors (0.31 µg/m³) [citation:3].
• Semi-closed terraces are problematic: The highest outdoor SHS levels (nicotine: 4.23 µg/m³, PM2.5: 43.64 µg/m³) were found in semi-closed outdoor areas of venues where indoor smoking was banned [citation:3][citation:6].
• Smoke drifts back inside: “Indoor settings where smoking is banned but which have a semi-closed outdoor area have higher levels of SHS than those with open outdoor areas, possibly indicating that SHS also drifts from outdoors to indoors” [citation:3].

🇨🇦 In Canada:

• You don’t smoke indoors — ever. The ritual is now: order a drink, step outside (often to a designated area away from entrances), smoke quickly (especially in winter), return inside.
• The social aspect has shifted: Smokers no longer bond over a shared indoor cloud. Instead, they huddle outside in small groups — often the same people, night after night.
• Patio smoking is banned in many provinces (Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, and others) [citation:8][citation:10]. In some cities (Calgary, Edmonton), outdoor patios are also smoke-free [citation:8].
• Winter is brutal: Canadian smokers brave -20°C weather for a 5-minute smoke — a powerful motivator to cut back or quit.

🇪🇺 In Europe (varies by country):

• Indoor smoking persists in “traditional” pubs — especially those without food service, slot machine venues, and “locals’ bars” [citation:4].
• Terrace culture: In countries like France, Spain, and Italy, smoking on outdoor terraces remains common and socially accepted. The ritual is often: coffee/drink + cigarette, lingering outside for an hour.
• Displacement is visible: In countries with indoor bans, smokers congregate at entrances and terraces, creating “smoke clouds” that drift back inside [citation:3].
• National differences are huge: A bar in the Netherlands (strict policies) feels very different from a bar in Germany (weaker policies) [citation:2].

• Comprehensive bans work — partial bans don’t. The evidence is clear: countries with full indoor smoking bans see dramatic reductions in in-bar smoking (from 24% to 13%). Countries with partial bans see smoking actually increase [citation:4].
• Patio bans prevent displacement. Canada’s inclusion of patios in smoke-free legislation avoids the European problem of smokers crowding entrances and terraces [citation:2][citation:8].
• Enforcement matters. Canada’s high compliance rates come from clear rules, public support, and consistent enforcement [citation:4].
• The “smoke-free generation” goal requires addressing outdoor exposure. As one researcher noted: “This underlines the need to adopt and enforce smoke-free sports policies that apply to all places of a sports venue, including entrances and terraces” [citation:2].