SHIPS travelling in British waters face a complete smoking ban next year. The Department for Transport is considering banning smoking inside vessels within 12 miles (19km) of the British coast. The move would mean that smokers could light up for only 17 of the 29 miles between Dover and Calais.

William Gibbons, director of the Passenger Shipping Association, said that annoucements would be made to let passengers know when smoking was permitted. “The rules will apply to all ships, whatever the flag,” he said.

P&O Cruises is the latest cruise line to ban smoking inside three of its ships - the Oceana, Ventura and Artemis. Passengers will be allowed to light up only in designated outside areas or on private balconies. A spokesman said: “We do not believe we will lose passengers. We hope that becoming smoke free will [create] a more pleasant environment.”

A survey by Cruise.co.uk recently found that two thirds of respondents preferred a total ban on onboard smoking. However, a spokesman for the pro-smoking group Forest said that the move was “part of the extremist health campaigners' agenda”.

ORGANISERS of an eight-stop bar crawl in Louisville, Kentucky, deny that they are encouraging binge drinking. The Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau has created an “Urban Bourbon” trail, with an award of a hip-flask for those who visit the city's best whiskey bars for a drink - including the one at the Seelbach Hilton, where F. Scott Fitzgerald enjoyed a tipple while working on The Great Gatsby.

However, a spokeswoman said: “People can have soft drinks or coffees if they like. Anyway, you wouldn't want to drink your way around the bars in a day - you could space it over a weekend.”

CAPTAIN CARIBBEAN In the week that England selected a new cricket captain, ITC Sports has released breaks hosted by former captain David Gower to watch the West Indies series next February.

SIP IN SECRECY Drinkers at the Stasi Bar in Berlin, around the corner from the former headquarters of East Germany's secret police, can down beers surrounded by old listening devices, document- shredding machines and a mannequin dressed as a member of the Stasi. A sign says: “Welcome to the capital of the German Democratic Republic (GDR).” Some locals consider the bar tasteless.

I SPY More than 100 taxis in Milan have been fitted with cameras to record journeys. The city council says that the move will help to improve driver and passenger safety.

HELLO, SLOVAKIA The Slovak Tourist Board has opened its first UK office - offering free brochures and information. “Slovakia is the emerging EU country that has taken the longest to emerge,” says a spokeswoman. Details: 01403 738844, www.slovakiatourism.sk

Times recommends

• The HQ of the great morairaway.com villa scam: a postbox
• The bloggers' travel guide to. . . Copenhagen and Malmö
• A Devon holiday with mates - on a budget