Hammocks to prevent sea sickness

People have complained about threads I started involving "strange" questions. Those are advised not to read any further because again I will not be complaining about a grumpy waiter but have a "technical" question about cruising :D

This website which looks quite serious says

"Hammocks are a great way to get a lot of motion on the boat out of the way. But, you may not be able to find one. This is why it is a rare solution for your problem. But, on the off chance that you do, they are very useful. It cancels out a lot of the motion of the boat, and you should feel loads better"

There are a few videos on youtube showing people successfully attaching hammocks in their balcony.

I had a suite with a table and a couch on my last cruise. I barely touched those. When given the option, I would like those moved out to have plenty space to try a hammock. Preferably a "2 dimensional hammock" hanging from one point instead of two so both pitch and roll would be "handled".

So, why aren't hammocks (or hanging beds) a standard feature on ships? Stability of the ship itself? It wouldn't work after all?

The beauty of a hammock is it will sway independently of the ship's motion. It's not actually the MOTION that causes sickness, but how YOU perceive the motion...many folks will get queasy if the ship is moving up and down....and they see the horizon staying in one place....Unfortunately, most ships don't have hammocks....and there's few places to attach your own.

Bring Bonine, just in case. It's an "internal" hammock.

The beauty of a hammock is it will sway independently of the ship's motion. It's not actually the MOTION that causes sickness, but how YOU perceive the motion...many folks will get queasy if the ship is moving up and down....and they see the horizon staying in one place....Unfortunately, most ships don't have hammocks....and there's few places to attach your own.

 

Bring Bonine, just in case. It's an "internal" hammock.

A bit to my surprise, I had no trouble at all (it was my first cruise, and the sea was quite mild) and I actually liked being rocked to sleep. But I did see the MDR half empty, the bags near the elevators, and a poor girl at our table who obviously had a very bad night. I can imagine cruise lines not advertising hammocks because it would imply that for some people ships can be uncomfortable at times.

It won't happen due to liability issues. If even one person falls off the hammock, they will sue, and would probably win thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of dollars by claiming negligence. You probably won't understand this because countries outside the U.S. aren't nearly as litigious as Americans. When you consider that a woman sued McDonalds, and was awarded 6 figures, when she dumped hot coffee on her lap, and complained that the company served their coffee too hot, you can imagine how much a hammock injury would cost.

Btw, you can't attach your own because it would have to be anchored to the wall, causing damage. Don't think for a moment about bringing one on board. You will be paying a huge amount for repair and could find yourself banned from the cruise line.

There are probably more people who want to sit on chairs or loungers on their balcony rather than those who would find swinging in a hammock beneficial. Also, lots of people like to enjoy a drink on their balcony, kind of hard to do that in a hammock.:)

Hammocks are standard accommodation on budget lines. On the Amazon...

In the last picture, the lower level aft is the kitchen...EM

:D :D Well, those don't look too tempting...... nor the ship!!! :)

It's going to put several hundred pounds of pull on whatever it's attached to. As for the single attachment point - somebody will attach this to a sprinkler pipe and with dire and expensive consequences. (Passage contracts, which are seldom read, state that a passenger is responsible for any damage done to a cabin.)

I guess a cabin steward will look the other way if somebody brings their own and the mounting isn't causing damage. But there is no way a cruise line will ever provide one. How often do you see these at a land based hotel? Almost nowhere because getting in and out of one takes some practice. Several things could happen:

1) somebody would roll over, fall out on their face, and sue

2) somebody would claim the extreme curvature hurt their back and sue

3) somebody who booked a guarantee would get a balcony too narrow or with no place to mount it would then whine that their voyage was "ruined" because they could not enjoy their hammock.

While lying in a hammock on a rolling and pitching ship might minimize one's motion relative to the center of the Earth, it would emphasize the perceived motion relative to cabin surroundings. It would surely be a challenge getting out of the stable hammock and onto a moving deck.

The structural support necessary for a single point of suspension hammock makes the concept impractical: a very large deck area would be required for the stand; alternatively major structural elements would have to be built in if ships were to offer hammock-friendly cabins.

This has to rank fairly high in the "not bloody likely" category.

People have complained about threads I started involving "strange" questions. Those are advised not to read any further because again I will not be complaining about a grumpy waiter but have a "technical" question about cruising :D

 

This website which looks quite serious says

 

"Hammocks are a great way to get a lot of motion on the boat out of the way. But, you may not be able to find one. This is why it is a rare solution for your problem. But, on the off chance that you do, they are very useful. It cancels out a lot of the motion of the boat, and you should feel loads better"

 

There are a few videos on youtube showing people successfully attaching hammocks in their balcony.

 

I had a suite with a table and a couch on my last cruise. I barely touched those. When given the option, I would like those moved out to have plenty space to try a hammock. Preferably a "2 dimensional hammock" hanging from one point instead of two so both pitch and roll would be "handled".

 

So, why aren't hammocks (or hanging beds) a standard feature on ships? Stability of the ship itself? It wouldn't work after all?

The cruise industry has evolved (and continues to evolve) to meet the needs/desires of the mass market. Today's cruise ships are an ocean going version of a land based resort. And they are marketed as being pretty stable by design.

To that end, ship's cabins will look and function just like a hotel room on land. Hammocks are a safety hazard and corporate lawyers wouldn't allow them.

I don't see a problem with these. I would gladly set one up on my balcony if I had the space - right next to the trampoline I use for exercise.

It's going to put several hundred pounds of pull on whatever it's attached to. As for the single attachment point - somebody will attach this to a sprinkler pipe and with dire and expensive consequences. (Passage contracts, which are seldom read, state that a passenger is responsible for any damage done to a cabin.)

 

I guess a cabin steward will look the other way if somebody brings their own and the mounting isn't causing damage. But there is no way a cruise line will ever provide one. How often do you see these at a land based hotel? Almost nowhere because getting in and out of one takes some practice. Several things could happen:

1) somebody would roll over, fall out on their face, and sue

2) somebody would claim the extreme curvature hurt their back and sue

3) somebody who booked a guarantee would get a balcony too narrow or with no place to mount it would then whine that their voyage was "ruined" because they could not enjoy their hammock.

HAL has some hammocks on their private island, on the beach. :)

Half Moon Cay is the perfect place to climb on a hammock and hope for a gentle breeze. :)

On a moving ship........ Not for me!!! :eek:

People have complained about threads I started involving "strange" questions. Those are advised not to read any further because again I will not be complaining about a grumpy waiter but have a "technical" question about cruising :D

 

This website which looks quite serious says

 

"Hammocks are a great way to get a lot of motion on the boat out of the way. But, you may not be able to find one. This is why it is a rare solution for your problem. But, on the off chance that you do, they are very useful. It cancels out a lot of the motion of the boat, and you should feel loads better"

 

There are a few videos on youtube showing people successfully attaching hammocks in their balcony.

 

I had a suite with a table and a couch on my last cruise. I barely touched those. When given the option, I would like those moved out to have plenty space to try a hammock. Preferably a "2 dimensional hammock" hanging from one point instead of two so both pitch and roll would be "handled".

 

So, why aren't hammocks (or hanging beds) a standard feature on ships? Stability of the ship itself? It wouldn't work after all?

I have to say that I quite enjoy your questions. They're just a bit different. :)

Just take a hammock stand along with your hammock and enjoy your cruise: http://www.amazon.com/Best-Choice-Products%C2%AE-Hammock-Construction/dp/B00JPLI1UG/ref=lp_13881891_1_6?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1419169912&sr=1-6

One German cruise line has hammocks. Start learning German so you can enjoy their ships. :D (I think I saw the hammocks on "Mein Schiff" cruise line TUI)

ah you pups ... the first ship I sailed on, we slept in hammocks . . .

The hammocks were hung in a large compartment at night and in the morning you had to 'lash and stow' and folding tables came down to be our mess tables and then the classroom tables for lessons.

CGC EAGLE as late as 1976.

By my last EAGLE cruise as a cadet in 77, the hammocks had given way to 4 high "racks" and smaller compartments as EAGLE was updated to accommodate a "mixed gender" cadet corps. I can say from experience that when SAILING unde full sail and the ship is holding a 10 degrees or better list from the press of the sails, a hammock was more comfortable then trying to stay in a 'rack'

if a guy had done something 'bad' during the day, you'd get up and night and cut one of the hammock ropes dumping him .... if it wasn't TOO bad, you cut the foot end .... if he REALLY needed to get the point you cut the head end! Today this is called hazing and I'm sure it doesn't happen!

Do they still use this ship for cadet training? It's definitely not for my stomach.:eek:

yes . . .

Do they still use this ship for cadet training? It's definitely not for my stomach. :eek:

Yes, CGC Eagle is still in service training cadets.

We spent a week aboard Royal.

First night out in the Atlantic we knew we were in for a different cruise ship experience when the cabin steward installed side boards on the bed at turndown. That is the one and only time a hammock would have come in handy.

One German cruise line has hammocks. Start learning German so you can enjoy their ships. :D (I think I saw the hammocks on "Mein Schiff" cruise line TUI)

Don't need to learn German. Several of the Serenity Decks on Carnival have hammocks. They have a wooden platform.

There were a couple of times I wished we had seat belts attached to the beds to keep one from rolling over, but never have I wished for a hammock. I can only imagine DH trying to get out of his in the middle of the night to use the facilities, and then his attempts to clamber back into it after. I'm pretty sure I'd find him sleeping on the floor by morning.

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

*LOL*

Reminds me of the time my DS was about 15 or 16. He set up a hammock in his bedroom and decided he was going to sleep in a hammock from now on *LOL*

Don't ask me what gave him the idea :)

It lasted a month or two *LOL*

I enjoy laying in one for a little nap on a nice day, but to sleep in one all night , every night of cruise .....I'll pass

Those photos are fabulous. Thanks for sharing.

Royal in full sail looks magnificent.

It won't happen due to liability issues. If even one person falls off the hammock, they will sue, and would probably win thousands, or hundreds of thousands, of dollars by claiming negligence. You probably won't understand this because countries outside the U.S. aren't nearly as litigious as Americans. When you consider that a woman sued McDonalds, and was awarded 6 figures, when she dumped hot coffee on her lap, and complained that the company served their coffee too hot, you can imagine how much a hammock injury would cost.

 

Btw, you can't attach your own because it would have to be anchored to the wall, causing damage. Don't think for a moment about bringing one on board. You will be paying a huge amount for repair and could find yourself banned from the cruise line.

So then why do cruiselines have rock walls, basketball courts, flow riders, ice skating rinks, water slides, and all the other "dangerous" equipment?

So then why do cruiselines have rock walls, basketball courts, flow riders, ice skating rinks, water slides, and all the other "dangerous" equipment?

If sea conditions are such those entertainments are dangerous, they are closed and no one is permitted to use them until conditions improve.

One would hope most adult people would use common sense but we know you can't count on that. :D