How often do people get sea sick?

[JoshF]

I've invited my SO to join me on a Halloween on The High Seas DCL with my DS. She's excited about joining but has never been on a cruise. She'd like to know if people get sea sick often on the ships or if that's not really something to worry about. Any thoughts or advice?

 

[T & R]

I get sea sick easy but have never even remotely felt in on the cruise ship. I do not take any drugs for it or anything, just don't get it on the ship for some reason. I get a little land sick when I get home, especially after a longer cruise (swaying in the shower at home like I'm still at sea). The big sea sick risk is your shore excursions. If you do like the Stingray City or any of the snorkel excursions on other islands, they take these smaller boats out to your snorkel site and those things bob all over the place on their way out there and back, so more likely to be sea sick on those.

 

[klug_bug2010]

I am not affected by motion sickness in vehicles, carnival rides, or out on the boat on the lake. However, I suffered from sea sickness during our cruise - the WHOLE time! I was more worried about my kids, but I was the one affected. I know now to pack GOOD motion sickness meds for both adults and kids, and start taking it a day before we leave.

 

[Marc D]

Seasickness is a reality of cruising, either real or feared. However, it is not as common as threads like this one will make it seem. Around 10-15 % of cruisers suffer from it under the usual sea conditions and at various degrees. Preemptive medication can help in those cases. Some cannot tolerate any ship movement, others have trouble when looking at the horizon.

Add to that group some people that only get seasick when the seas get rough. Most cruiselines will try to circumvent storms but they sometimes cannot do anything about it and they most go through higher waves.

Personally, in hundreds of days onboard a ship, in all types of weather including storms that forced the closing of public venues onboard, I only got queazy once. My wife on the other hand needs a scopolamine patch to enjoy cruising. My 10yo son seems to have inherited my tolerance and never got sick in more than 15 cruises, some days being quite rough.

You can’t say for sure until you try. Bring some over-the-counter meds just to be sure.

 

[dtrain]

Depends how rough the seas are. Stay low and midship for the least amount of movement. There are free meclizine tablets available at the Health Center, in a bin on the outside of the door at all times.

 

[cmrdgrs]

I've invited my SO to join me on a Halloween on The High Seas DCL with my DS. She's excited about joining but has never been on a cruise. She'd like to know if people get sea sick often on the ships or if that's not really something to worry about. Any thoughts or advice?

If a person is susceptible to motion sickness, there is a good chance they will be susceptible to getting sea sick.

My son and I do get motion sickness and I do okay on cruises, but my son is more sensitive. We both use the chewable Bonine tablets and this works well for us. I have never used the patch for preventing sea sickness, but those I know that have used it swear by it.

The ships do have stabilizers to keep the ship fairly smooth, but in rough seas it will rock. If you have a real concern about getting sea sick, I would talk to your doctor about the patch. At the very least I would take Bonine with you. For me, I find it works much better than Dramamine. Bonine and Dramamine have different medicines in them to prevent motion sickness.

Happy sailing!

 

[cmrdgrs]

Depends how rough the seas are. Stay low and midship for the least amount of movement. There are free meclizine tablets available at the Health Center, in a bin on the outside of the door at all times.

I did not know this. Thank you.

 

[DietCokeMommy]

It really depends on a lot of things, as other people have pointed out. I get motion sickness in the car when I try to read, but I pretty much don't get any sea sickness. My husband doesn't really get motion sickness, loves rollercoasters (which I can't do) but he's more prone to sea sickness. On our last cruise we left out of San Juan and the first night was really rough. Half the people left the dining room early. My husband and son were really feeling bad and my son almost threw up. I was fine though. I got my husband some meclizine and some Zofran (anti nausea meds) I brought, which I gave to both of them. They fell asleep early and by the next morning the waters had calmed down and they were both fine. The rest of the cruise the seas were really calm and we didn't have any more issues.

 

[Calantha]

I am fine on airplanes, but I get car sick if I read and train sick from just being on a train. So, I wasn't sure what to expect for the cruise. Overall, I was fine 90% of the time - just one or two nights when we were going long distances in the Caribbean, did I feel it (and it wasn't enough to make me do anything but try to go back to sleep).

 

[Sillyonna]

I took Bonine as a precaution every morning on my cruise and felt nothing. Then after two days at port I forgot to take it when we set sail again. We went to watch a movie that morning and I felt horrible. ( The sea was very rough headed back) Even though I took the bonine right away it took a few hours for me to feel better.

That said, I get car sick and I’ve been sea sick on smaller boats In the past, so I’m particularly sensitive. I figure it’s always better to take something just in case rather than find out the hard way.

 

[lizzyb]

I always feel the motion but I never have actually been sick.

 

[Starwind]

As others have noted it depends on the person and the conditions.

I am susceptible to motion sickness on land [no Tea Cups for me at WDW] and sea and have experienced motion sickness throughout each of our cruises to some extent -- the extent has varied depending on the cruise. I wear Sea Bands and take daily preventative medication while cruising to reduce symptoms to a tolerable level.

My sister OTOH doesn't normally get motion sickness on land [in theory she could do the Tea Cups all day long] or sea and has only experienced motion sickness on one night on one of our cruises [we've sailed 8 times] -- the Fantasy during a storm when it was rough enough that things were falling off the shelves in the onboard shops [which they closed early] and it was VERY difficult for most people to walk the halls.

SW

 

[jrabbit]

and remember, folks can get "sea sick" after they disembark the ship. You can "feel the earth move under your feet" for several days. Happens to some, but by no means everyone. Sometimes the symptoms can be severe.

Cruising out of Florida is good for me because we frequently visit WDW after the cruise. If I feel wobbly on land, Tower of Terror always helps. But like any "medicine" you need to take it at regular intervals. But I'm NOT complaining!!

I will see if I can find the "everything you wanted to know about motion sickness meds" and post the link in this thread. It is quite old by now, but the "old" meds info is probably still accurate, and I am sure that there are newer treatments.

Found it .... click the link below

As far as Sea Sickness meds - here is a post that gives you a LOT of info about the various meds.

 

[JoshF]

and remember, folks can get "sea sick" after they disembark the ship. You can "feel the earth move under your feet" for several days. Happens to some, but by no means everyone. Sometimes the symptoms can be severe.

Cruising out of Florida is good for me because we frequently visit WDW after the cruise. If I feel wobbly on land, Tower of Terror always helps. But like any "medicine" you need to take it at regular intervals. But I'm NOT complaining!!

I will see if I can find the "everything you wanted to know about motion sickness meds" and post the link in this thread. It is quite old by now, but the "old" meds info is probably still accurate, and I am sure that there are newer treatments.

Found it .... click the link below

As far as Sea Sickness meds - here is a post that gives you a LOT of info about the various meds.

1 hurricane??

 

[Geomom]

Our first cruise was an Alaskan one. Everyone said the seas are like glass, you're in the inside passage. So I only brought Dramamine naturals, which is just powdered ginger in capsule form. I felt a little queasy the first night, getting food in my stomach and ginger ale helped, and I had my sea legs by morning. DH and my youngest, then 12, had no issues. My oldest, then 16, felt awful that first day at sea. We had a character breakfast that morning, our server brought her green apple slices when he discovered she felt ill, and we emptied one of the ginger capsules into a bottle of water for her to sip on, but she found it too strong. She gradually felt better when we actually entered calmer waters. During the day I went down to health services, found the free chewable meclizine and brought some back for her. She took it as needed, and it really helped her. For our second cruise, we bought Bonine ahead of time, and she starts taking it the night before we board and then nightly during the cruise. She had no issues after that. Oh, and both our kids wear "seabands", which are acupressure bracelets, so it's a good medicine free thing to try.

I will say that while DD and I felt queasy, we were never physically sick. I think queasiness is more common in normal conditions vs actually getting sick, but plenty of people have no issues. I think Bonine is a great thing to have if your SO can take it. There doesn't seem to be much for side effects, no drowsiness for DD.

 

[TikiThunderPirates]

Don't stress to much about the "what if's." If you are a person who doesn't get sea sick, or doesn't think they will, and it does happen. Don't worry, DCL will have your back.

I have never gotten sea sick at all, ever. In fact I can hardly tell when the ship is even moving. I do get land sick however, but it's not nauseating, more unsettling.

I was on a cruise that was sailing in the Atlantic during Hurricane season, and there was a hurricane. The captain changed coarse to avoid the worst of it, but I suddenly woke up one morning VERY sea sick. One call to health services and they had a bowl set out with free medication for all of us "never been sea sick" people to come grab trick or treat style. Really anyone could have taken it, but people who know they will be sea sick were already prepared. I was not. The down side was for me the medication knocked me out cold.

Now that I know there is a possibility of getting sea sick I'll be packing some ginger chews and a medication I can take that doesn't make me sleep if things get bad enough.

I know getting sea sick is not fun, but if your SO isn't someone who gets motion sick, or sick on a speed boat, or a ferry or whatever kind of water vehicle they've been on before, don't stress over it to much. If it does happen the ship is very prepared for this exact situation. If you want a back up, toss in a bag of Ginger Chews. They are yummy anyway, and they can help settle any nausea. Trader Joe's carries a back for about $3.00. It's an easy item to toss in if your looking for "just in case" security.

 

[Clojel]

When we did our first cruise, DH was really worried about this....he went on a terrible deep sea fishing trip years ago and ever since then he's prone to extreme motion sickness. Someone told us to take the medication the night BEFORE the cruise starts and then an hour before the ship starts to sail...so that's what he did...and he had NO issues whatsoever. FWIW. And, what another poster said about being lower and mid is true...the only time I had that wobbly feeling was the first night we left PC and I was up on the top deck. That motion doesn't upset me..I kind of like it...so it was fine for me...but I definitely could feel the motion of the ocean more from deck 12 than I could at dinner on deck 3!

Also, where and when you are traveling will play a part. Not all seas and seasons are the same

If I was you, I'd just advise your SO to be prepared...take the meds in advance, stay hydrated, etc.... but, even if she gets a little seasick, I'd bet dollars to donuts she'll still love the cruise

 

[JM23457]

I've invited my SO to join me on a Halloween on The High Seas DCL with my DS. She's excited about joining but has never been on a cruise. She'd like to know if people get sea sick often on the ships or if that's not really something to worry about. Any thoughts or advice?

I get awful motion sickness on certain theme park rides (anything with spinning), but have never been significantly sea sick on the six cruises that I've taken on DCL, and I've sailed on every ship.

The only time I even felt at all quesy was for about 30 minutes of the first night of our Wonder Alaska cruise, but that passed quickly. I have never taken seas sickness medication or used any other methods. They just weren't needed for me, even on a very rocky Fantasy sailing that made my young son ill for a few hours (he promptly recovered with no meds & no recurrence).

I recommend taking some Bonine or Dramamine, and ginger candies just in case someone begins to feel ill. But don't take it until it's proven someone needs it. It will likely go unused, but better safe than sorry. The ships are very stable.

 

[Spiffy MacSpiff]

We have a son who is prone to motion sickness on land, but he's never had a problem at sea. Our other son, who usually has a cast-iron stomach, felt really queasy the first night of our second DCL cruise. The seas were a little rough sailing out of Port Canaveral and you could sense the motion of the ship more than usual. I didn't think it was that bad but the poor kid was really feeling it and DH had to take him from the MDR back to our room. Our servers were great, Mr. MacSpiff and son hadn't been back in the room for five minutes when there was a knock at the door; It was a CM with Mr. MacSpiff's dinner and some green apples and ginger ale for the little guy. I was worried that seasickness would be an issue for him the whole cruise, but luckily he was fine again by bedtime.

 

[Barbydoll8]

This is an individual issue. I am the type of person who gets sick in the car if you go to fast. I have to use a patch and I've even gotten sick (vomiting sick) while wearing a patch through very rough seas.
My husband? Nothing. Even with 18-20 foot swells through 2 cruises, he could eat greasy bacon and eggs. LOL
I tried sea bands, pills, ginger etc. Nothing really helps me other than the patch. Which has side effects so be warned. Some people can't deal with them. For me, they are minor inconvienence to cruise.

If you or your family have any pre-existing symptoms in any form from motion sickness, then it probably will be experienced on the ship. Some itineraries and times of the year usually produce calmer seas so there is less chance of it being an issue. But it is Mother Nature and you can't predict or prepare for everything.
Last Jan we did a short 3 day on the Dream w/ my SIL & BIL. My SIL didn't get sick but the seas were slightly rougher than I've experienced at a similar time in the past. She said the motion of the ship was unnerving and it disturbed her. She felt out of control rather than sick. So that's a different issue. I agree with her though. DH and I have sailed that exact itinerary several times and several times on that ship. I've had it like glass and I've had it with 16 foot swells (hurricane near by). So it really is an individual thing.