However, along Ireland's rugged west coast, a traditional haven for revolt, a silent rebellion has taken hold.
Pubs are allowing customers to smoke in rooms and restaurants after food has been cleared. Despite the threat of a £2,000 fine and possible loss of their licences, landlords, some of whom have suffered a 50 per cent drop in sales, quietly allow customers to smoke.
With only 40 "smoke police" from the Office of Tobacco Control, Ireland's 15,000 publicans are taking the risk in the hope that their distance from Dublin gives them a good chance of escaping prosecution.
In a town in Co Kerry popular with tourists - even the Hollywood stars Julia Roberts and Brad Pitt have been there - at least half a dozen pubs are operating secret smoking rooms. In one traditional bar packed with locals and several tourists, people who asked where they could go for a cigarette were shown to a back room.
Pints of Guinness sat on a wooden table and the room was filled with laughter and clouds of smoke.
A customer leaned against the whitewashed wall, pulled out a cigarette and lit up. Next to him was the sign that has been plastered in every Irish pub: "No Smoking", with a warning of prosecution underneath.
A few cigarettes into the conversation we asked how they were able to get away with it?
..Later in a well-known fish restaurant in Co Kerry we wondered why such a smart place should have a few candles in small metal holders dotted around the bar.
When the restaurant had all but emptied, a waiter blew out a candle and placed the holder on the bar. "That's what we use as ashtrays nowadays," he said with a wink.