Mediterranean Cruises

My family is considering a cruise from Lisbon to Rome in 2019 to celebrate our 40th Wedding Anniversary. My wife, one of my daughters and my son-in-law are prone to seasickness, I was wondering if the cruises, like Oceania, Seabourn and Viking, that seem to hug the coastline in the Mediterranean are less likely to have choppy water. Has anyone had any really rough seas in May or September ?

Welcome to Cruise Critic.

We have sailed the Med many times including the area that you mentioned and while often seas can be calm there can also be times when it get somewhat rough with sea swells.

My advice is to get rooms that are mid ship and just come prepared with some remedies to prevent sea sickness just in case the seas get rough.

I enjoy sailing the Med during the two time frames you mentioned as there are less tourists and it is less humid then in the summer months.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding milestone. I am sure it will be wonderful celebration such a special occasion. We recently celebrated our 40th with family as well on board a cruise.

Keith

Suggest you consult your physician for motion sickness meds appropriate to your medical history, just in case. Some take Meclizine but may not be good for others.

Things can get bumpy if you hit winds. Sirocco/Bora/Mistral are more than just brand names in the Med. Carry some appropriate meds.

Hugging the coast line doesn't assure calmer seas. In fact, smaller ships definitely don't assure calmer seas. I would not assume these cruise lines hug the coast- in most cases they will go the most fuel efficient and shortest route, unless it is not practical.

If you have sea sickness problems, you must be prepared everyday you are on a ship. There is no way to guarantee calm seas.

Hugging the coast line doesn't assure calmer seas. In fact, smaller ships definitely don't assure calmer seas. I would not assume these cruise lines hug the coast- in most cases they will go the most fuel efficient and shortest route, unless it is not practical.

 

If you have sea sickness problems, you must be prepared everyday you are on a ship. There is no way to guarantee calm seas.

CruiserBruce, you nailed the correct answer.

We have cruised four times in the Med as well as Black Sea, North Sea, all the oceans except Arctic and Antarctic.

The worst seas we have encountered were in the North Sea and around the British Isles. We never had rough seas in the Med, although that is still a possibility.

CruiserBruce's advice is good. Prepare yourself for the cruise. We take ginger tablets starting a few days before the cruise and during the cruise. We took patches with us in case we needed them, but never needed them, even with encountering a hurricane in the North Sea.

Life is good, don't let fear get you down.

They don't really hug the coastline. There is often no land to be seen.

As others have posted, all cruise ships tend to take the shortest route. And in heavy seas a good big 'un is far more stable than a good little 'un.

Where little ships score is the number of ports that the ship will fit, so the itineraries are more varied and the ports often closer to the destinations.

Good advice from Keith - if prone to sea-sickness choose a cabin mid-ships (somewhere around halfway between bow & stern). Think of a see-saw, much less movement in the middle.

And choose a deck as low as your ego allows.

Expensive cabins tend to be on higher decks - even though the ship sways a whole lot more up there.

If even reading this makes you feel sea-sick ;), there are various medications.

There's more chance of rough seas between Lisbon and Gib. than in the Med.

Most likely months for rough weather are around Oct / Nov and Feb / March.

Since few ships sail the Med at that time of year the chances are that you'll be sailing on a millpond. :)

JB :)