Smoke-free lodging more common, AAA says

WASHINGTON, Nov. 18 (UPI) -- Travelers across the United States have more smokeless lodging choices as more rentals go smoke-free or bar indoor smoking, AAA data indicate.

More than 8,300 smoke-free lodging options are available in the United States, nearly 6,000 more than in 2005, a USA Today analysis of the automobile association's data shows. The lion's share of accommodations -- more than 7,000 -- are hotels, motels, inns and bed and breakfasts, while the rest are condominiums, cottages and other rentals.

"Making a hotel smoke-free is the right thing to do because it protects guests and employees from secondhand smoke," Joe McInerney, president of the American Hotel and Lodging Association, told USA Today.

California has more smoke-free lodgings than any state, AAA data indicate, followed by Florida and Texas.

Twenty-three states have laws specifying the minimum number of non-smoking rooms in hotels and 534 cities and counties restrict smoking in hotels within their jurisdictions, reported Americans for Nonsmokers' Rights, a non-profit organization, USA Today said.