Does anyone else NOT fly?

[cruiseapril]

We take Amtrak from Boston to Florida often (to a cruise port) and have been on many cross-country Amtrak trips.

 

The train trip provides extra vacation for us as we get sleepers. We have been able to see much of the U.S. - many areas we would not see from a car.

 

Enjoy planning your trip and let us know what you decided.

[zoncom]

Be aware that NCL Dawn is a marginal ship at best. Princess is running RT 15Ners to Hawaiian Islands out of San Francisco.Also LA. Nice ships too. Take the train Den-SanFrancisco A nice ride..Ask your Dr. about patches for sea sickness.

[SuiteTraveler]

Grandmaneedsacruise16: I'm a bit concerned for you. There is something called mal debarkment syndrome. The thing is, since you already have vertigo, cruising might make it much, much worse - not a week in bed, but possibly months or even years. You can read about it here:

http://www.dizziness-and-balance.com/disorders/central/mdd.html

http://vestibular.org/mal-de-debarquement

 

I hope before you take a cruise you discuss mal debarkment syndrome with your doctor. One of my best friends got it and she was terribly ill for over 6 months where she could barely get out of bed. Just walking from the bed to the bathroom was a nightmare for her because as soon as she sat up, the room would start spinning. The other concern with this is that there have been people who NEVER get over mal debarkment. You need to weigh out the pros and cons of you going on a cruise and risking this as opposed to avoiding the possibility of this problem altogether.

 

There have been people who posted here who got mal debarkment and said that it ruined their lives and had they known such a thing was possible they would not have cruised in the first place.

 

At any rate, I wish you all the best, whatever you decide to do.

[SuiteTraveler]

My husband and I prefer not to fly but still do when necessary. For our repo crusie coming up - Boston through Caribbean to New Orleans, we are driving to Boston (just a couple hours) and then taking Amtrak from New Orleans to Chicago and then Chicago to Boston over three days with 2 sleeper cars. We have always wanted to take a long train trip so we will be able to cross that off our bucket list.

 

Now as to you, OP, here is my one concern for someone who can't fly, as opposed to someone afraid of flying. What happens if there is an emergency with the ship. With the Carnival "poop cruise" didn't people have to fly back from Mexico? If your ship breaks down somewhere, would they find a way to get you back without a plane?

 

I don't know. It is something to ask the cruise line before booking.

 

With that Carnival cruise, they got towed to Alabama and were flown home from there - the other Carnival dead in the water Splendour cruise got towed to California since there were so many without passports. However, there have been incidents where the ship caught fire or something happened at an island port - you can't drive home or take a train from there. For example, the Star Princess fire of March 2006 stranded passengers on Jamaica and the only option was to fly home. That would be a problem for the OP.

[burm]

I have a condition that causes vertigo and everything that goes with it. .......And you want to take a cruise/ with vertigo?........Yes I do and my Dr recommends that I "try it" I will either be fine with the aid of motion sickness meds

 

Fortunately, the meds you take for vertigo are the same you take for sea sickness. If I take one Bonine a day, I can face the roughest seas.

[TomAceEsq]

I also live in Colorado and have taken Amtrak from Den-Chi-DC-Jax before driving to Canaveral for a week long cruise. The train trip took absolutely forever (about 84 hours with delays) and was exponentially rougher and more anxiety laden than any plane I've been on. In fact, I refused to fly for over 10 years because of some severe turbulence I encountered on a flight from LaGuardia to Jax that put the fear of God in me. Nothing convinced me to fly more than the anxiety I felt on the train. There are some incredibly rough stretches of track between Den-Chi and Chi-DC that almost threw me out of my sleeper. There are very good reasons why you have to put up a safety net to keep you in your upper berths on Amtrak.

 

The last day of the cruise I eagerly cancelled my return trip on Amtrak in favor of a three and a half hour plane ride. Was it bumpy coming back into Denver? No doubt, but it pales in comparison to sitting on a train for almost four days and being damn near thrown from your bed multiple times. Honestly, I'm a little frightened of Amtrak now and have no issues flying any longer. Thanks Amtrak!

[EGG]

Although I like cruising, with your facts, it would not be worth the hassle for me if I could not get to the port with a leisurely drive. Cruises are not for everyone and you are still taking a chance that you will not enjoy your cruise if you get seasick. Also, part of the enjoyment of a cruise is looking out at the ocean. Will this give you vertigo from an upper deck where many of the great viewing areas are?

 

I would speak to a travel agent or do some research on Trip Advisor and combine a driving vacation or bus trip with some days at a resort. We took a wonderful bus trip of the southwest where the bus driver did all the work and we just sat back and were amazed by the magnificent views. Every day we stayed in a different national park. This was a lot more interesting than the countries in the Caribbean.

 

I would save the cruise for a time when I had more vacation.

[zoncom]

On Cruise Line News, lower here on home page; NCL and Princess dropping Galveston as a port starting in 2016. So its FL or CA. Remember you have 25 yrs. m/l to cruise, think Southwest. My parents, also Coloradans, cruised into their 80s. Nice to see many Colorado cruisers here.

Edited August 9, 2015 by zoncom

[navybankerteacher]

On Cruise Line News, lower here on home page; NCL and Princess dropping Galveston as a port starting in 2016. So its FL or CA. Remember you have 25 yrs. m/l to cruise, think Southwest. My parents, also Coloradans, cruised into their 80s. Nice to see many Colorado cruisers here.

 

"Think Southwest" ???? Are you suggesting that OP move towards the southwest to be closer to Southern California ports - or overcome fear of flying so as to be able to fly to ports via Southwest Airline?

[GrandmaneedsAcruise16]

Wow this question certainly generated a lot of opinions. I have checked into Amtrak into Miami......at this point.......thinking of taking the drugs and just flying........no need to get over PHOBIA as it is not one. I do not work so the length is no a problem or the time.....at some point I will tackle my bucket list. thanks all.