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Sea Sickness


Jasper1999
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Hey first time cruiser here and I'm wondering - how many people truly get seasick on cruises. I've heard from people that it happens to about 1 in 3 people and I also heard that because the ships are so large that you don't really feel much of the motion of the sea unless you run into very rough waters.

Cruising on Carnival Fantasy and because that's a smaller ship does that matter at all?

 

Thanks

D

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I am a first timer too :), myself I am not taking any chances and already have an order for anti nausea pills ready lol. I get sick during car-rides so easily and it lasts for hours, and the only boat I have been on was riverboats and I felt it then also. Dunno if it would be different on such a larger ship even if it's smaller. Either way I plan on being prepaired just incase :) Though I would love to also see what other people say about their experiences

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No matter HOW large the ship appears in port, it is totally dwarfed by the ocean. You WILL feel seas over 8-10 feet. Your ship is but a cork floating on the sea.

 

If you suffer motion sickness in cars, amusement rides, etc....then take preventative medicine on the ship. If you don't, then you will most likely be ok, unless it really gets rough! No way to predict that!

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I've been on the Fantasy and found her to be pretty stable although we never hit any rough seas. Conventional wisdom says that cabins midship and at lower levels are best if you think you might get sea sick. I love feeling the motion of the ship on the sea so prefer forward which is where the motion is typically felt the most.

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic. My first traditional ship cruise was also on an older, smaller ship, but no matter I was hooked.

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You never know! My first 3 cruises I was fine. No rough waters for the most part or winds. My 4 cruise we had 25 ft seas and 70 knot winds! Caught in a tropical storm on the way toi Halifax! I was fine waves crashed over the main deck and even into balconies! I was fine. You couldn't even walk the sairs wthout it seeming the steps were meeting you feet without moving them. Then the next cruise from Baltimore to Miami. Sick! Seas only about 9 to 12 ft and no real wind. Next cruise to New England water smooth no sickness. The following New England some rough seas again near Long Island to RI-sick 1 day. Fine for a 9 day from NY to Eastern Caribbean/ Bermuda. Guess what I'm saying is you never know for sure. I bring along Ginger. Sour apples and olives help. I'm not one for Bonnine etc. I go through the sickness and that's it. One thing on the 2 times of seasick - beginning day of both cruises. The one with the worst weather and seas was 2 days into the cruise. I think I had my sealegs so no problem!

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This is definitely a big concern of mine too. I get extremely car sick to the point of being sick for a good 24hrs after, but I remedy this now with sea bands and also Dramamine. I may even try ginger pills instead of the Dramamine on my cruise.

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Put the patch on, take a pill, wrist band- whatever you need to do.

 

Thankfully, I don't get sea sick, but I've been on some of the roughest seas extant (Beaufort force 12, that's the start of hurricane weather). Pitching will get you more than rolling. The up and down of the ship pitching fore and aft will get some. Others will judge their run down a passageway and launch as the ship pitches down, jump, and go airborne! Been there, done that! That was fun!!

 

The first time I experienced it on QE2, during a November nor'easter I was almost ready to lose it, literally. I then said to myself: "Self, you're a pilot. If you don't get air sick you will not get sea sick. Make believe you are the captain of QE2 and you have a job to do. Walk around like you're in charge and deal with it.

 

Ya' know what? It worked!

 

After that I dealt even more serious weather (force 12), and learned to love it!

 

Check out my signature below of QE2 digging her bow into rough seas. Where do you think the bow went next?

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I ALWAYS take something to prevent getting sea sick. I don't want to risk ruining my vacation. I remember my first cruise was so rough that when you walked down the halls you could hear people getting sick - not pleasant. Last October we left from New Orleans and my husband got a little sick once we got out in the open water - there was a little weather left over from a passing hurricane. He normally never gets sick. I think I made a believer out of using Bonnine. You might want to do the same and have a wonderful time!

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I'm scheduled to take my first cruise in July and wonder if I need to worry about sea sickness. I've taken a choppy 3-hour ferry ride from Seattle to Victoria, a choppy bay cruise in San Francisco and smooth trips from Manhattan to Statue of Liberty and a harbor cruise in Miami - all without any motion sickness. Would I be ok on a huge ship such as the RCL Enchantment of the Seas?

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I'm scheduled to take my first cruise in July and wonder if I need to worry about sea sickness. I've taken a choppy 3-hour ferry ride from Seattle to Victoria, a choppy bay cruise in San Francisco and smooth trips from Manhattan to Statue of Liberty and a harbor cruise in Miami - all without any motion sickness. Would I be ok on a huge ship such as the RCL Enchantment of the Seas?

 

As a pervious poster already stated the ship, regardless of the size , the ship is but a cork floating in the ocean. The RCCL Enchantment of the Seas is currently sailing in the Atlantic Ocean which is completely different than an inner harbor cruise. Absolutely cannot compare the two cruises. Whether or not you'd be Ok is something that no one can determine other than yourself. It you are prone to motion sickness than you need to take pre-cautions.

 

I just returned from the Enchantment of the Seas (Bermuda cruise). There was noticable rocking most every day but nothing that caused me any concern..... but that's just me. One day in particularly I noticed the crew was tying everything down which is the first sign of rough weather to come. The Captain than made continous announcements that the next 24 hours would be rough and there was no way to avoid it. He even stated in his announcement to begin taking pre-cautions for motion sickness if needed. Guest Services had the medication and was passing it out free of charge. We actaully experienced 18 foot seas for 24-36 hours. So bottom line if it's going to rougher than normal the Captain and crew are very proactive.... so should you be. For what it's worth all in all it was an extremely enjoyable cruise.

Edited by xxoocruiser
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My suggestion is to buy a pack of Bonine, which is like Dramamine but doesn't cause drowsiness. I took a half-pill every morning of both of our 7-day cruises and was fine (except one particularly rough night, when I had to take a second pill), and I am hugely prone to motion sickness. You can also take ginger pills every day on top of the Bonine.

 

Hope this helps!

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My suggestion is to buy a pack of Bonine, which is like Dramamine but doesn't cause drowsiness. I took a half-pill every morning of both of our 7-day cruises and was fine (except one particularly rough night, when I had to take a second pill), and I am hugely prone to motion sickness. You can also take ginger pills every day on top of the Bonine.

 

Hope this helps!

 

I also took Bonine every morning and found it to be completely effective. I had read about it on cruise critic before our cruise (thank you CC). I couldn't buy Bonine in Australia, so went immediately to the shop on board the Noordam before sail away and began taking the medication. I took the advice of many CC members to begin medication BEFORE you feel sick (some people even say to begin the day before and continue 1 day after cruise if you are really bad with motion sickness). I did switch half way at the ten day mark to taking the meds at night because at times I felt really sleepy which is unusual for me - others may not feel drowsy ( from memory it was non- drowsy) , but I suppose every individual is affected differently. Anyway, I never had a moment of sickness and was very grateful to have read about the Bonine before I sailed. Oh, and one thing I noticed when we did have rough seas - green apples were readily available and are apparently wonderful for malaise. Good luck and have fun.

Edited by Monsoonalblue
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I get motion sickness in the car, carnival rides, boats, etc. very easily:o

 

I take Bonine about 2 to 3 days before cruising at night before going to bed. Then continue the entire time while on the ship. I've never had a problem and we've only been on the smaller ships.

 

We've experienced some rocking on all our cruises.

On 2 cruises we've had someone in our group get a little motion sick. But nothing severe.

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Well, I never heard that as a statistic, but it might be right if you include every degree of seasickness. Everyone has to get their sea legs. For some it happens right away, for others it takes a few hours. For a very few it takes a day, and for an extremely small number it can take a couple of days. If it was a major problem for that 1 in 3, there would not be a cruise industry.

 

Yes large ships tend to move less than small boats, and a cruise ship is absolutely nothing like a small fishing boat or other small craft. Small boats bounce into and off of each wave, move relatively sharply and pretty much all the time. A large cruise ship, while it will pitch (fore and aft going up and down) and roll (side-to-side), it will do so much more slowly and gracefully (if you will).

 

How much a particular ship moves in a particular sea state is very complex, but all sorts of things come into play: wave frequency, wave height, wave frequency in relation to the ship's length, wind, relative direction of the seas, design of the ship, etc., etc., etc. You could have two ships in the same seas, and if they were not the same size they would move differently and it could well be that the larger ship would move more.

 

While extremely rough seas and high winds will make any ship bob around, lesser seas can and do cause the ship to roll and pitch. Stabilizers help reduce roll, but cannot get rid of all of it.

 

There are lots of preventive measures and remedies, some work better for some people than others (i.e. seabands work for some and do nothing for others). The patch is out there, but a caveat: it is really for people who have tried the other alternatives without success, and have tried it on dry land to see how they react. It is a powerful drug, and has both some mild side effects, and some rather serious ones.

 

For the most part, don't worry yourself into it, there is a psychological component in this. Most people don't get seasick, and if they do, they get over it fairly quickly. Until you get over it, stay out on deck and watch the horizon, or be someplace inside where you can see the horizon or motion of the waves. You will get your sea legs.

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I used to be a crew member on a cruise ship, and I never really had a problem with seasickness despite the fact that I sometimes get queasy while riding in the backseat of a car.

 

Certain cruises will be worse than others based on where the ship is sailing, the Caribbean is fairly calm in relation to a Bermuda cruise sailing in the open ocean. Of course if there is a storm then all bets are off, but the ships do a very good job of avoiding storms to keep everyone's stomach happy :).

 

In particularly rough seas, I used to get headaches right between my eyes, but that was the extent of it. Those who did get nauseous used to drink gingerale to settle the stomach as well as green apples with salt. It also helps to keep busy and not focus on the rocking ship, if you can keep your mind off it, that's half the battle!

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Thank you so much for all your replies, I firmly believe in mind over matter but wanted insight into what to do if I were to find my belly not my friend I've only ever heard of the seasick wrist bands and Dramamine but I'll definitely look into the Bonnine one since I get drowsy easy from meds. Thanks for your help.

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Thank you so much for all your replies, I firmly believe in mind over matter but wanted insight into what to do if I were to find my belly not my friend I've only ever heard of the seasick wrist bands and Dramamine but I'll definitely look into the Bonnine one since I get drowsy easy from meds. Thanks for your help.

 

It is a lot of mind over matter. I didn't reread but looking toward the horizon or land help somewhat as well. Bring some ginger as well! Many times after a cruise I find myself feeling like I'm still aboard. I found the times I did get seasick were 1st day. Once you're used to the motion you should be fine. Have a great trip!

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I never get seasick, even on the roughest seas, and my husband always does, even on a lake. I used to believe it was mind over matter, but now I am convinced it has something to do with your inner ear. Take Bonine with you if you're worried about it. There are other remedies also--ginger candy/pills and those wristbands.

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I didn't notice the ship movement until my friend mentioned it - then I started feeling woozy. Once I related it to riding on an Amtrak train I was fine for the rest of the cruise - no meds needed on ship.

However, for a whole week AFTER my 8 day cruise I was unsteady on my feet & sick on my stomach. Was not expecting that!

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I am also VERY prone to motion sickness - even patterned carpets can make me woozy. DH and I cruised to Alaska on the NCL Pearl in 2008 with some rough seas at times and I didn't feel sick at all. My plan was to strike preemptively. Several weeks before the cruise I tried Dramamine non-drowsy, Bonine and Bonine kids. I ended up taking the Dramamine non-drowsy (Bonine made me VERY drowsy and seemed to stay in my system for a long time) and ginger pills starting a day or two before the cruise. I also had seabands on for the first couple of days. When we first got on the ship and sat down to eat I felt a little icky watching the water's movement (we weren't even sailing yet) but settled down quickly and was fine. There is also a homeopathic oil that you rub behind your ears. I believe it is called Motion Eaze. I ordered it online but saw it recently in a store. Bottom line: don't be afraid find a medicine that works for you - you don't want to spend your valuable vacation time sick.

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My daughter and I are doing our first cruise in a few weeks and she gets car sick extremely easy so my biggest fear is her being seasick.

 

I've already bought Bonnine, ginger pills, and ginger gum. Hopefully between the 3 of those she'll be okay.

 

But watch me be the one that gets hit with it!!:(

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I agree with all of the posters. You never know if and when you will be bothered by the motion. I can't even watch a Merry-Go-Round without getting ill but have not had problems on the ships - Until we sailed in the Atlantic Ocean North to Canada. The ocean did not look rough but boy could you feel the rocking. I had heard the North Atlantic was rough and now I agree.

What I tried (bought them in port) was Ginger Snap Cookies. I would nibble on them and the waves of nausea would pass. So each time I cruise now I pack a box of Ginger Snaps.

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A pilot will look out on the horizon. Never stay focused on up close things.

Ginger pills work, but you have to take a daily dose. I start about 3 days before the cruise. Take Preventative remedies before you get that quizze.

We once got into some rough seas. Deck chairs were flying every where. the crew was tying them down. The funny part was my Wife and I were getting a Message at the time. That therapist just working on me, grinding her palms in to the middle of my back. I got up from that table, with knees of jelly. But no sea sickness.

Regards, jdc2204

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