will I get sick

[new2cruising2006]

I have been told the bigger the ship the less motion (sickness). Is this true? I have been on the Explorer and I am thinking about the Serenade. Would this ship rock more because it is smaller? Or should I stay with the Voyager class? Thanks

[Isaac]

You will definitely get sick so you should probably stay home. Not what you wanted to hear?

 

The biggest variables affecting your liklelihood of seasickness: the motion of the ocean, the presence and use of stabilizers on your ship (you're covered on the modern cruise ships), and your propensity for seasickness. Everyone's a little bit different...

[CRUSINGFAMILY]

If you got sick on Voyager then you are prone to seasickness.

 

Serenade is not a small ship. You shouldn't notice a significant difference in the motion unless the seas are really bad or you are prone to seasickness.

 

If you're prone, take Dramamine or some other type of meds to help and enjoy yourself.

 

Serenade was our favourite RCCL ship and cruise ever!!!

[ssolomon56]

Your friend is right - the bigger the ship generally, the less rocking and you're less likely to get sick.

 

But, I've been on ships small and large, and only felt sick once - when the ship's stablizer was broken. And...it was a pretty big ship.

 

So, just come prepared with Dramamine (or whatever). Suggestion - bring some non-drowsy type. Our DD cruised with us once and took Dramamine before dinner every night - she was falling asleep during dinner. It wasn't until the 3rd or 4th night when we figured out the trouble....;)

[realtorron]

We only have sailed on small ships. My wife gets motion sick easy. The ship supplies generic Bonnie at the purser’s desk. My wife takes every morning and in the evening if needed with no side effects. :)

[crusinmama06]

I always pack dramamine, some others here recommend bonine or ginger tabs. I've been on older ships, newer ships, I take the anti nausea drugs the first 2 days regardless, just untill I get my sea legs.

[teddie]

If you are prone to motion sickness, it doesn't matter how big the ship is, cause the ocean's a lot bigger!

 

Be prepared with whatever works for you, and have a great cruise.

[heartofamerica]

I have been told the bigger the ship the less motion (sickness). Is this true? I have been on the Explorer and I am thinking about the Serenade. Would this ship rock more because it is smaller? Or should I stay with the Voyager class? Thanks

Did you get sick on the Explorer? I have always been susceptible to motion sickness, but I take ginger and had no problem in "rough" (for the Caribbean) seas on the Celebrity Horizon (much small ship than Serenade) or the HAL Zuiderdam (slightly bigger than Serenade) with 20 foot seas. Never had problem one on the Serenade...and only took ginger once during the week.

[wework2play]

I don't see anyone suggesting the patch. It's my favorite. I just picked mine up yesterday. Cruise is a few weeks away but I'm getting prepared. It was $40 for a box of 4 patches. Each patch lasts for 72 hours. I get motion sickness pretty bad. Heck I get sick driving myself to the store. (Seriously.) I have used the patch the last couple times I have flown and it works great. I don't have to remember to take more, and the side effects aren't bad. Maybe a little drowsy at times but not as bad as dramamine.

[sandbag7]

I've done more than 15 cruises on ships ranging from 170 passengers to 1800 (Don't like the bigger ships). All of these ships had stabilizers, and I never had a day of illness. And I'm not immune to sea sickness; I've gotten sick on fishing boats on Lake Michigan and off Miami. The major rules that apply are that the cabins in the middle of the ship and those on the lowest levels have the least movement. Cruises starting in the lower Carribbean (Puerto Rico) generally have smoother sailing than those starting from Miami.

You may hear from people who have gotten ill, and I've seen a few on my various cruises, but in general it's not something to fear.

[Treven]

I've seen a good number of people wearing The Patch!! No, not the Nicorette patch but a small patch for sea sickness that you wear behind one of your ears. None of them got sick.

 

I don't do anything or take anything & I've never gotten sick, even through some pretty rough seas on the way back to Hawaii from Fanning Isl; about 1k miles south of Hawaii.

[FitzLA]

My crystal ball tells me yes!;)

[Hypo]

I can sympathize with you. I am very susceptible to motion sickness, unless I am driving (car, boat, plane, etc). I believe that a lot of it is psychosomatic, so if you can take your mind off being sick and concentrate on something else it will help. For me, I have found that the best cure is prevention. I have tried Dramamine (made me dry mouth), the patch (drowsy, and dry mouth) and Bonine (generic form meclizine).

 

The meclizine works the best for me, I start about two days prior to the Cruise taking one in the morning and one before bed, and continue that regimen throughout the Cruise. I have never experienced any noticeable side effects while taking meclizine, and it works great for me.

 

We have been in 30-40 ft seas, with people everywhere on the ship being sick, and it didn't bother us. We even went to dinner that evening and had a great meal.

 

As a side note, I found it interesting that when the Crew had to clean up the mess' left by the sick passengers, they wiped it up, and then sprinkled corn meal on the damp area. There were little piles of corn meal everywhere!! The next day they were all vacuumed up and there was no evidence of the dirty deeds. :rolleyes:

 

Good luck on finding whatever works for you.

 

Hypo

[Nliedel]

I got sick on small ships, big ships, in between ships. I get seasick. Bonine is my friend.

[RanDe]

I got sick on small ships, big ships, in between ships. I get seasick. Bonine is my friend.

 

I have not tried Bonine, but I'm glad to hear that it works. We've used the patch on the last two cruises and we were fine. However, on the this last cruise I experienced a terrible case of dry mouth. That was the only symptom, but one that was very irritating to me. In fact, I had a bloody mary one morning and it burned going down. Now you can't have that happening on a cruise! :D I am going to try the Bonine for the next one.

 

De

[Nliedel]

I am not saying Bonine is without side effects but I take it at night (good for 24 hours) and sleep through the sleepiness.

[love2vacation]

I went to pick up my Bonine for our upcoming cruise and couldn't find it anywhere. The pharmicist explained that meclizine was the ingrediant in Bonine so I purchases it instead. For some reason I do feel the motion when the sea gets a little rough. I think probably because I have ear problems anyway.:confused: I start taking it the day before we drive to the airport, and take it everyday till we return.

 

Bonine works great for me, no drowsiness at all and I am prone to drowsiness with even anti-drowsy meds.

 

Take your Bonine/meclizine, patch or whatever you choose, and you will have a great trip

[heartofamerica]

I don't see anyone suggesting the patch. It's my favorite. I just picked mine up yesterday. Cruise is a few weeks away but I'm getting prepared. It was $40 for a box of 4 patches. Each patch lasts for 72 hours. I get motion sickness pretty bad. Heck I get sick driving myself to the store. (Seriously.) I have used the patch the last couple times I have flown and it works great. I don't have to remember to take more, and the side effects aren't bad. Maybe a little drowsy at times but not as bad as dramamine.

A family from our Serenade cruise wore the patch the entire week...they never got sick on the ship, but from posts here, it seems they had a difficult time getting rid of the dry land "ocean motion" after the cruise. Some posters suggested it was because they wore the patch too much.

[cb at sea]

I've never taken a seasickness medicine and I suffer from return to land motion. Doesn't make me sick, but I do feel it, especially in enclosed spaces! So it doesn't have anything to do with the patch!!!!

[surfklutz]

I have cruise on all sizes of ships - and I actually fair much better on the smaller ones - the 100-200 pax ships. If the ocean is rough, they are closer to the water and have less "sway". Bigger ships faced with rough seas tend to sway a great deal - especially at the top of the ship.

 

I take Meclazine every morning, just to be safe - and never have any trouble. Don't wait until it is rough to take it - it will be too late. And for those that have trouble on land, keep taking the meclazine for a couple days.