Seasickness

Hi guys

I am wondering if any of you can share your thoughts and experiences of sailing through the bay of biscay as any time I've left from Southampton it's been a Fjørd cruise.

I've cruised for many a year however never from Southampton to do an Iberian cruise and a tad worried as it's at the end of November!

Bit worried about the first day or two at sea as some people have said it can be quite rocky.

Thanks in advance any info would be greatly appreciated [emoji4] [emoji572] [emoji569]

Hi guys

 

I am wondering if any of you can share your thoughts and experiences of sailing through the bay of biscay as any time I've left from Southampton it's been a Fjørd cruise.

 

I've cruised for many a year however never from Southampton to do an Iberian cruise and a tad worried as it's at the end of November!

 

Bit worried about the first day or two at sea as some people have said it can be quite rocky.

 

Thanks in advance any info would be greatly appreciated [emoji4] [emoji572] [emoji569]

Thing is with BOB it can be flat calm or bumpy at any time of year. Just be prepared with seasickness tablets (sturgeon) -sea bands-ginger or anything else that would help.

Which ship are you on, some ride the waves better than others.

Do not worry about what the sea may be like...just look forward to the cruise, but be prepared and you will be fine.

If you can chose your cabin, midships lower down has the least movement

Just a side note, if you do feel a little seasick onboard, they do sell tablets at reception, about £3.50 - think they are Cinnarizine based.

I recommend Lloyds pharmacy own brand seasickness tablets.

Cheap at around £2.50 for a week's supply, and stops my wife getting sick no matter what the sea is doing (and she gets travel sick for the slightest reason).

They are the preventive kind, so you take one the night before your cruise starts, and then one every night before bed. Don't wait until you are sick before taking them.

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Another vote here for Stugeron which you can buy over the counter from the likes of Boots. The active ingredient is Cinnarizine. I'm prone to seasickness but they work really well for me but you need to take it as a preventative about 2 hours before sailing. I always listen carefully to the Captain's messages (flagging up if it's likely to be a bit bumpy) and in harbour before we leave port look out to see if there are a lot of white horses and take a pill as a preventative if it seems as though it may be choppy. They say in the information about the medication that it may make you drowsy and alcohol may make that worse but I don't find that is a problem - I don't avoid drink if I've taken a dose but don't overdo it either! The dosage is only 8 hourly so often an odd tablet taken when I think may be necessary suffices.

Stugeron every time! Take 2 once on board the first day (before departure) and then 1 before bed and 1 once you get up. If the weather looks rough, continue with one per evening and one per morning. 100% success rate for all members of our family, even those who would normally suffer from sea sickness.

Personally, I feel that wrist bands etc are placebo effect. Great if it helps you tell yourself you that you won't get sick, but if you really want to guarantee that you will feel OK then take Stugeron. Don't bother with other travel sickness tablets - have tried them all before being recommended Stugeron on here - all a waste of time (some make me feel worse).

Sole side effect is slight drowsiness, but it's a nice chilled feeling. Best of all, you can drink alcohol when on them with no ill effect!

As others have said, Bay of Biscay is more a legend than reality. Yes we've had one choppy crossing, but far more calm ones. You are more likely to get choppy seas if you are Canaries bound. And the worst (force 9-10) storm we had, which was scary, was in the Med, which is usually like a mill pond. So you can never tell.

We just use some Kwells if it's later on; you can get them for £4 I believe and they are really good - melt in the mouth and work quickly, so you don't have to take them before your cruise, only when you feel a bit ill at night. I say later on because if you take a tablet (obviously depends on the person and their weight) I can almost guarantee in 3/4 hours you will've fallen asleep. When they say "may cause drowsiness" they MEAN drowsiness. Obviously during the day Sturgeon would be a better option.

It depends on the ship as well. We went through the BOB in April/May on Oceana and she bobbed violently, leading DD to be spontaneously sick on the floor. Larger ships like Ventura and Azura handle the waves really well (sm didn't need motion sickness tablets even though the water was quite choppy. Oriana and Aurora are built for ocean cruising so they should hold the waves quite well too.

Dan

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At the risk of contradicting others, I would avoid Kwells which, in my opinion, are a complete waste of time - and make me feel worse. I would suggest that if you don't get sea sick after taking them it's because you weren't going to suffer anyway.

To be clear, Stugeron are NOT expensive, so there's nothing to be gained by buying the less effective products.

You have to have experienced proper sea sickness to know just what a wretched and persistent feeling it is and how it can ruin a day or more of your cruise. Having suffered, I researched this thoroughly and found that everyone who had taken Stugeron reported that it worked and I have to say that I have found that it's been 100% successful in all weathers and for at least a dozen people of all ages, shapes and sizes that I have recommended it to.

Put simply, why risk it? Kwells may help with moderate motion sickness (e.g. In cars). But in a sea storm it's Stugeron every time.

We just use some Kwells if it's later on; you can get them for £4 I believe and they are really good - melt in the mouth and work quickly, so you don't have to take them before your cruise, only when you feel a bit ill at night. I say later on because if you take a tablet (obviously depends on the person and their weight) I can almost guarantee in 3/4 hours you will've fallen asleep. When they say "may cause drowsiness" they MEAN drowsiness. Obviously during the day Sturgeon would be a better option.

 

 

 

Dan

 

 

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I would caution against taking a mix of different products. Unless you have a knowledge of drug interactions, I think it would be wise to stick to one or the other and not a mix and match approach day/night. There may not be a problem with these two medications, but I wouldn't take the risk - or check it out with a Pharmacist.

We always use Stugeron too. Very often the Captain will warn the passengers it it's going to be a rocky ride. Certainly when we went to the Fjords for the first time the Captain told us the North Sea was going to be bumpy - and it was. So I took Stugeron as we were leaving port, took another before bed and another in the morning and I was fine. I've always found the North Sea worse than the Bay. In fact we've usually had more bumpy weather off the coast of Portugal than in the Bay itself.

Stugeron certainly does the trick for us.

Sel, they've always worked for us! Partly a very weak resistance to drugs and partly never really experiencing a sea storm methinks! I'll make sure to pack some sturgeon next time we go, but I highly doubt we'll need it.

Kruzseeka I think I've said it in the wrong way! What I meant was that if we're feeling a bit iffy in the day we'd use a regular seasickness tablet such as sturgeon, but if it was at night and the ship was rocking terribly we'd use Kwellls if that makes sense; the only drugs I would mix are paracetamol and iboprufen. I like to think that I have enough common sense not to do that! ;)

Dan

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I used to take Stugeron when we sailed our own boat, but they always made me really sleepy. I rely on ginger now. Never felt sick yet.

 

Kruzseeka I think I've said it in the wrong way! What I meant was that if we're feeling a bit iffy in the day we'd use a regular seasickness tablet such as sturgeon, but if it was at night and the ship was rocking terribly we'd use Kwellls if that makes sense; the only drugs I would mix are paracetamol and iboprufen. I like to think that I have enough common sense not to do that! ;)

 

Dan

 

 

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Not particularly aimed at you Daniel undecided, but just thought it worth flagging up incase anyone hadn't thought it through and was tempted to use one then the other without working out overlap times etc. I've no idea if there would be a problem - hence my concern. I'd hate anyone to inadvertently make their problems worse! But you seem to have it sussed. Happy sailing! :)

I have sailed through the Bay many times over the years and had all sorts of conditions from almost dead calm to one passage on a Saga ship where the ship was badly damaged internally: al the shops wrecked, most of the glass shower dors pdestroyed and all passengers strictly confined to cabins.

So yes its reputation is more than myth, but the above was certainly not usual and the odds are for a choppy rather than rough.

David.

The reason I suggested the Lloyds pharmacy own brand was that they contain Promethazine Teoclate (Avomine), and do not seem to have the same side effects as others (drowsiness, reaction to alcohol, etc).

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Sorry to disagree but I find meclizine more effective than Sturgeon. Meclizine is the (free) medication issued by Royal Caribbean but I believe it can be obtained in the UK in the form of Sealegs. Generic meclizine can be bought on Ebay but I'm wary of recommending rhat

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Having done a few fly cruises in the Easter and Western Med with no hint of sea sickness I thought I didn't suffer from it until my first cruise from Southampton in May last year. On the evening of the first sea day while sailing in the Bay of Biscay I was violently ill, which I thought at first might have been caused by something I'd eaten or one cocktail too many, however I was fine for the rest of the 14 night cruise until we hit the dreaded BoB again coming home and I was violently ill again. The strange thing is the sea didn't seem particularly rough. This year I won't be taking any chances on my Caribbean fly cruise in November and will be reading this thread carefully to decide which medication to take before I sail!

Thing is with BOB it can be flat calm or bumpy at any time of year. Just be prepared with seasickness tablets (sturgeon) -sea bands-ginger or anything else that would help.

Which ship are you on, some ride the waves better than others.

Do not worry about what the sea may be like...just look forward to the cruise, but be prepared and you will be fine.

If you can chose your cabin, midships lower down has the least movement

We're on Ventura on an Iberian cruise. So going from Southampton towards Spain, Gibraltar and Portugal. We did Azura in North Sea which was OK no issues really but I've heard horror stories on the Bay of Biscay so would want to be prepared!

Thanks

Kris [emoji4]

We have cruised through the BoB many times and only had 2 rough crossings, and it was Rough!! We use Stugeron (cinnarizine) as we find this effective for us. I also find Kwells (Hyoscine) just as effective. In our early cruise days the injection given was Phenergan (promethazine), I have used these previously as antihistamine.

All three are known for making you drowsy to some extent. As we are all different we find different medications may work better than others, however only Hyocine is actually manufactured for motion sickness, alleviating motion sickkness is an advantageous side effect of the other 2.

Its a bit like V*agra, maufactured to treat high blood pressure, we all know the side effects.

I find V*agra, useful for aiding comfort during long haul flights, as it stops the person in front reclining their seat:D

I use the wrist bands. I used them for years on a plane and now take them cruising. We were on the Ventura in May when it was a bit choppy and I thought she did really well. I think its the luck of the draw and storms can blow up any time. Have a lovely holiday its a nice relaxing holiday cruising from Southampton.

That's great thanks everyone for the comments I think I'll be taking a trip to Lloyd's for some Stugeron

Another stugeron fan here :-) Also if you do get sick be brave and leave the cabin (bag in hand) and head outside midship centre. If you look at the bridge wing you can sometime see it moving up and down by several meters and if you have a cabin up there you will notice a massive difference by going centre. I was once on deck 14 on the Ventura at the very front. Very sick but things improved massively by going to the centre of the ship. :)