Motion Sickness

[travlinbug]

I have only cruised on large Princess ships. I took less drowsy formula Dramamine daily as I am a motion sickness queen. Never had a problem even on my first cruise with very rough seas where veteran cruisers were heaving and having to leave the dinner table,etc.. Does anyone have any clue if motion sickness meds are effective enough for one of these Windstar ships? I am mainly interested in Caribbean on their largest ship,the Wind Surf.:confused:

[dandee2]

We did our first cruise ever on Wind Surf last Dec. After the second day I had my sealeg. I took nothing. My wife took some non-drowsy tablet the first 3 days and forgot about them the other nights. We spent the first 36 hours sailing (Saturday 7PM to Monday 7AM). I only noticed that the ship was rocking abit the second night because we forgot to close properly the bathroom door. It kept opening and closing:D Never did the big ship so my comments might not apply.

 

Cheers

[ducklite]

I was on the Surf in the Med and there was only one night that I really felt the motion, the point where the Med, Ionian, and Aegean all merge.

 

It was as stable as the three big ships I've been on. You'll be able to tell that there is motion while you're in the shower and the water is moving side to side on the floor slightly, but you won't feel it.

[themutis]

I guess it depends on where you are sailing and if you are sailing :) On our Barbados-Barbados cruise last Jan, we were literally rolling in our bed the first night. There was a lot of motion.

 

We take ginger pills and I bring crystalized ginger - and try to stay on deck as much as possible and this seems to work for us.

 

On the last day of that cruise, a sea day, we were sailing again, and there was quite a bit of rocking. We stayed on deck all day (as opposed to staying in the cabin) and again, that worked for us... plus the yummy grilled cheese sandwiches and ginger ale!

 

In the Med, the seas were quieter and we had no problems at all - even stopped taking our ginger.

[travlinbug]

Thanks for the replies. Helpful ,but I'm not asking if there is a lot of motion. I know there must be more than on the huge behemoths,detectable or not. I guess I need to clarify. Are any of you particularly prone to motion sickness in general? If so,did meds work on this type of ship. I would guess excessive motion will make even a good sailor sick sometimes. I saw that on the big ships. Like I said,I'm a motion sickness queen. Thanks again. Sounds like it does help ,at least for the average sailor. Hope it would hold me too. :)

[stcruise]

If you have taken medications that have worked on the large cruise ships, they should be just fine.

 

 

The only time I have experienced sea sickness was on an upper deck of a large cruise ship. In some respects (depending on the swells), you may actually feel less movement on a small ship - think in terms of a pendulum or crack the whip. The closer you are to the "pivot point" (in this case the water), the less you will feel the movement. The further away you are from the pivot point, the movement is greater. On the Wind Surf even at its highest point, you are only six decks up.

 

I've only taken two Windstar cruises in the Caribbean, so I can only speak from my experiences. If you would like to try Windstar, I would recommend taking the Yachtsman itinerary out of St. Martin. This itinerary involves the least amount of cruising over large, open expanses of water. The islands are fairly close and it would give you a good feel for a small ship experience. On our cruise out of Barbados, we experienced more ship movement just as themutis mentioned, but it occurred when we were travelling a distance over open water.

 

Hope this helps!

[travlinbug]

If you have taken medications that have worked on the large cruise ships, they should be just fine.

 

 

The only time I have experienced sea sickness was on an upper deck of a large cruise ship. In some respects (depending on the swells), you may actually feel less movement on a small ship - think in terms of a pendulum or crack the whip. The closer you are to the "pivot point" (in this case the water), the less you will feel the movement. The further away you are from the pivot point, the movement is greater. On the Wind Surf even at its highest point, you are only six decks up.

 

I've only taken two Windstar cruises in the Caribbean, so I can only speak from my experiences. If you would like to try Windstar, I would recommend taking the Yachtsman itinerary out of St. Martin. This itinerary involves the least amount of cruising over large, open expanses of water. The islands are fairly close and it would give you a good feel for a small ship experience. On our cruise out of Barbados, we experienced more ship movement just as themutis mentioned, but it occurred when we were travelling a distance over open water.

 

Hope this helps!

Yes,thank you! Very helpful. From your description,likely I would be fine. The rough seas on Caribbean Princess in the portion on some of the Atlantic Ocean leaving FLL were very bumpy and,as I said,I was fine. It was difficult to walk without handrails,lots of people were very sick,the pools were splashing over the decks,etc...and veteran cruisers told me those were exceptionally rough conditions in their experience(I had no frame of reference as it was my first cruise ever).

[travel_please]

I agree wholeheartedly with STCruise

 

"In some respects (depending on the swells), you may actually feel less movement on a small ship - think in terms of a pendulum or crack the whip. The closer you are to the "pivot point" (in this case the water), the less you will feel the movement. The further away you are from the pivot point, the movement is greater. On the Wind Surf even at its highest point, you are only six decks up."

 

 

I am extremely prone to motion sickness. I've actually experienced it less on the Windstar ships than on larger ships. I always start my trips with a patch (helps me get my sea legs) and if over time it looks like an extremely smooth voyage and I have limited auto excursions on shore, I might remove the patch and go to Dramamine. I find that the patch (worn behind the ear) makes me less sleepy than Dramamine and ensures I have total freedom from motion sickness. With Dramamine, I don’t take it at night so I get some drug free hours, which I like.

[hedy7813]

I do get seasick and at times I did feel queasy on the return to Barbados. The water around the islands was quite calm...thankfully. I discovered MotionEze....a natural oil one puts behind the ear. Also ginger gum has been helpful. I also wear the seabands and take Bonine. And I have ginger crackers called "tranquil tummy". I also drink gingerale. Overkill???? Maybe....and I don't know what part of my "don't get seasick" cocktail works....but who cares! I buy the ginger gum and the MotionEze in a large marine store here in Florida. I had to buy the "tranquil tummy" crackers online. Getting a room between center and the back of the boat also helps....one doesn't get as much motion. And the best....the fresh air on the decks of the Windsurf....can't beat that!

[Lvwindstar007]

My wife is susceptible. She finds the generic form of Bonine works well for her. You can take well before departure if you wish. It is non-drousy. Getting a stateroom on the lowest deck and mid ship will help slightly. I usually take some the first day at sea. We were on the Athens to Rome late season trip a few years ago and we had to miss a port because the wind (and seas) were so rough. Generally, the stabilizers work well and in most seas the WS ships ride fine. Unless things have changed with the new owners, you can pick up free tabs of the Bonine generic outside the Doctor's office (sickbay). Regards from sunny Reno, Jack

[Redtravel]

The ships move and so does the ocean. Our 2 port holes were like a washing machine. The waves splashed into them. It was rough on a few nights. A lot more motion than on a large ship. Ship does have complimentary pills for those people who get seasick.

[hedy7813]

I use Bonine and I use "Motion-Eze" and ginger gum if needed. I also had a problem on the 1st night out of Barbados but the St Maarten trip was not a problem at all. There was very slight motion the 1st night. Motion-Eze is a natural oil you put behind your ears. I bought both the oil and the gum at a marine supply store here in Florida. I also use the sea-bands. Whatever works!

[Kathy816]

I just did the Yachtsman's Caribbean (3/16-23) and we only had one night with rough seas. Everyone on board was weaving around when trying to walk. I felt pretty queasy and was pretty sure I was going to toss the cookies any minute, but my husband went into the gift shop and got me the motion sickness bands to put on my wrists (I don't like to take medicine if I can avoid it). I put them on and within 5 minutes felt fine and was ready to go into dinner! It was truly amazing. I haven't had any experience with medication to combat sea sickness, but the bands worked for me.