Will I need Gravol?

[mommy911]

Greetings,
Hoping someone can impart some advice to a new cruiser travelling with a baby. Has anyone been on the Star Princess and will we experience any severe motion sickness since our inside cabin (Caribe deck) has been booked closer to the front of the boat? Replies would be appreciated!

[mrsfuzzmo]

That's a tough question. Everything rides on how sensitive you are to motion and how the seas are. Some people can feel the motion as soon as they step onboard. Others don't have a problem with 20 ft. swells. For first timers that just don't know, a good rule of thumb is to take bonine (meclazine) the day before you board and one a day after that just to be safe. If the seas are rough, you are more prone to feeling movement the higher up you are and the farther away from the center of the ship you are. That being said, the least amount to motion is usually felt lower decks, center of ship.

[Kerry&LuAnn]

We have noticed more movement when our cabin has been in the front of the ship, but just enough to rock us to sleep at night! mrsfuzzmo is right that the lower in the ship you are, the less you feel the motion.

Really, though, these large ships have good stabilizing mechanisms to reduce the motion.

Drammamine and/or ginger tablets have been effective for us when necessary.

[98Charlie]

We definately notice more motion in the forward cabins.

You may want to take along some bonine or generic meclizine just in case.

Reading the side effects of Gravol (drowsiness, dizziness and blurred vision. It can impair your concentration and motor coordination....Dry mouth, excitation and nervousness), I wouldn't take it. The meclizine works just fine for me the few times I have needed it.

IMHO, unless you are extremely prone to motion sickness, I probably would not take anything as a preventative. I would wait (and have waited) until you get on the ship. If you feel that there is a problem start using the medication.

Charlie

[guardami]

Oh, too funny! I have been looking at this question for the last few days and was wondering why on earth you would need to take powdered gravy with you, I thought the food onboard was supposed to be pretty good. Finally curiosity got the better of me and I had to read the reason why - seems I was getting confused with Gravox! LOL

[river_sand_bar2]

My vote is for Ginger Tablets... they are cheap, very effective and wont make you sleepy. The motion of the ship will make you sleepy enough... I miss it when I get home and have to go to bed.

[mommy911]

Hi Everyone,
Thanks so much for your advice. I will certainly look for the ginger tablets and meclazine as you suggested. Happy cruising!

[CanuckCFAN]

Hello Mommy911,

I am going to make the assumption you are Canadian as I don't believe you can purchase Gravol in the USA...

I just wanted to let you know that I too suffer horribly from motion sickness, so much so my friends and family thought I was off my rocker for even considering a cruise...

Anyway, I spoke to our physician about my concerns prior to our last cruise and was told to use Gravol... Well, after I explained that I didn't want to spend my week sleeping (major side effect from Gravol), I was told to purchase the Non-drowsy Ginger formula...

Didn't even know there was such a thing...

Well, sure enough went to Shoppers and there it was... You can get the Gravol Ginger tablets or chewables (I bought both)..

You know what?

They worked AMAZINGLY ...

Had a bit of trouble the first night so I took a regular Gravol (which "knocked me out" but it was needed!)...

However, from the next day thru to the rest of my cruise I would take 2 ginger Gravol every 6 hours and I never had another problem with motion sickness...

Best part of the whole thing is you will have NO side effects what so ever, you can even drink alcohol if you choose (not recommended when taking regular Gravol)...

I noticed many Americans will recommend meclizine or something called Bonine, however, I have yet to find either product in our drugstores (and trust me I looked everywhere )...

Try the Ginger Gravol, it worked well for this family,we ended up enjoying our cruise so much that we went ahead and booked another!

Have a great cruise!

Cheers!

[1stcruiser1]

Thanks for the tip CanuckCFan. I will pick up the ginger gravol when we visit Canada before our cruise. Glad to know it worked for you.

[Water•Baby]

If you have to pick up anything here in the States, here is the translation from a fellow Canuck.

Gravol is the same as Dramamine.

Less Drowsy Dramamine is the same as Bonine - the generic name is meclazine.

As far as I know, Gravol Ginger is just ginger tablets. I buy ginger tablets and candy in the herbal section of the pharmacy. I have heard from people that they were advised against taking ginger if they had certain heart ailments, or were taking medications for their heart. My niece uses ginger all of the time and has zero problems with motion sickness.

Here in the States, we also have the motion sickness patch ~ but someone told me they had taken that off the market in Canada (?). I wear the patch and have no side effects, however gravol and meclazine both knock me out COLD and I am constantly drowsy. Many people seem to dislike the patch, but I love it.

All of that said, many people do well with gravol or meclazine or ginger. With the meds, I have always found it best to try them first before the cruise to see how drowsy they will make me, and take only 1/2 at night if there is drowsiness. They also work best if I start taking them the day BEFORE the cruise, and then continue for about 3 days AFTER the cruise. If I stop taking meds, or rip off the patch as soon as I get off the ship, I am rocking and rolling for days afterwards.

Hope this helps, and I also hope you have calm seas.