Princess Diamond cruiseship - CPAP usage

[Aldy]

We will be sailing on the Diamond Princess cruise in February. I use a CPAP machine at night and need to know -

 

- do I need to bring an extension cord or are there electric plugs near the night tables

- does the ship offer DISTILLED water or do I have to purchase this onboard OR in the various ports

 

I tried to search this topic, but didn't manage to get anything specific to Princess ships.

Thanks

Sylvie (Aldy)

[Nan_Sea]

I don't know about the water, but you will need the extension cord.

[JF - retired RRT]

I used to work in home care (before I retired). Some of the things I told my patients...

1) it is OK to use tap water for a short period of time. Distilled is used only to keep the humidifier from getting "scale". A good vinegar soak will help with any scale that you might get after one week of tap water.

2) bring at least one extra cushion/pillows for your mask. You won't be able to get replacement parts on the ship

3) change your filter before you go

4) bring some duct tape, in case the hose springs a leak

 

And yes, you will need an extension cord.

I have seen postings in other threads that distilled water can be ordered from the ship (I think you can request it in your Personalizer - but not sure) and I don't know if there is a charge.

 

Have a great trip!!

[DonnasMom&Dad]

We will be sailing on the Diamond Princess cruise in February. I use a CPAP machine at night and need to know -

 

- do I need to bring an extension cord or are there electric plugs near the night tables

- does the ship offer DISTILLED water or do I have to purchase this onboard OR in the various ports

 

I tried to search this topic, but didn't manage to get anything specific to Princess ships.

Thanks

Sylvie (Aldy)

 

You will certainly need an extension cord, as the nearest plug is on the opposite wall to the bed, mine is 18', mind you I also have a power bar with a 10' cord. ;)

 

As for water, the ships tap water is as pure as you'll find anywhere, but if you feel that you need distilled water the ship will supply it, just ask the cabin steward. :confused::rolleyes:

 

Cato :)

 

 

Completed Cruises !

Pre-cruise Days - The Big Red Boat, 1993 ??

 

1st cruise - Coral Princess, 19 November 2008, 10 day Panama Canal, FLL to ACA

2nd cruise - Coral Princess, 15 May 2009, 3 day Repositioning, Los Angeles to Vancouver.

3rd cruise - Sapphire Princess, 25 November 2009? 7 day Mexican Riviera.

4th cruise - Golden Princes, 12 June 2010, 7 day Alaska. (Golden Anniversary Cruise)

5th Cruise - Island Princess, 04 October 2010, Vancouver - Los Angeles, Repositioning

6th cruise - Sapphire Princess, 05 January 2011, 10 day Mexican Riviera. LA to LA.

7th cruise - Golden Princess, 11 May 2011, 3 day, LA to Vancouver, Repositioning

8th cruise - Sapphire Princess, 14 May 2011, 1 day, Vancouver to Seattle, Repositioning

9th cruise - Coral Princess 19 May 2011 2 day, San Francisco to Vancouver, Repositioning

10th & 11th cruises - Coral Princess 02 July to 16 July 2011, round trip Vancouver - Whittier Alaska, B2B

12th & 13th cruises - Sapphire Princess, x2, Cabins, 18 Sep. 2011, 1 day, Seattle to Vancouver, Repositioning

14th & 15th cruises - Golden Princess, x2, Cabins, 24 Sep. 2011, 1 day, Seattle to Vancouver, Repositioning.

16th cruise - Oasis of the Seas, 26 Nov. 2011, 7 day, Western Caribbean, Ft. Lauderdale, Ret.

17th & 18th cruises - Crown Princess B2B, 03 - 10 Dec & 10 - 17 Dec 2011, 14 Days, South & western Caribbean

19th cruise - Grand Princess, 31 Mar. - 07 April 2012, 7 Days, Eastern Caribbean, FLL - FLL

20th cruise - Island Princess, 06-16 June 2012, 10 day cruisetour Vancouver - Wittier

21th cruise - Emerald Princess, 16 day, 10 - 26 Sep. 2012, TA, Copenhagen - New York

22nd cruise - Carnival Ecstasy 10 - 14 January, 2013, 4 Day Bahamas, Port Canaveral Ret.

23rd cruise - Sapphire Princess 30 March - 06 April, 2013, 7 Day Coastal LA - LA

24th cruise - Coral Princess, 19 May - 22 May, 2013, 3 Day Repositioning Cruise, LA - Vancouver

25th cruise - Royal Princess 16 June - 05 July, 2013, 19 Day Inaugural cruise, Southampton - Venice.

26th cruise - Emerald Princess, 06 - 16 October, 2013, 10 Day Canada - New England, Quebexc city to New York

27th cruise - Royal Princess, 24 November - 01 December, 2013, 7 Day,Eastern Caribbean, Fort Lauderdale Ret.

 

Future & Hopeful Cruises !

( Already booked )

 

28th cruise - Sapphire Princess, 20 - 24 Jan, 2014, 4 Days, California Coastal

29th cruise - Caribbean Princess, 29 Mar. - 05 Apr. 2014, 7 Day, Western Caribbean, Houston Ret.

30th cruise - Royal Princess 19 - 29 Dec, 2014, 10 Day, Christmas, Fort Lauderdale Ret.

 

 

[New York Nana]

We will be sailing on the Diamond Princess cruise in February. I use a CPAP machine at night and need to know -

 

- do I need to bring an extension cord or are there electric plugs near the night tables

- does the ship offer DISTILLED water or do I have to purchase this onboard OR in the various ports

 

I tried to search this topic, but didn't manage to get anything specific to Princess ships.

Thanks

Sylvie (Aldy)

My husband and both use Cpaps (yup, we look like a couple of muzzled dogs!) i always bring an extention cord and have used it each time. Your room steward can also supply one. You should call Princess or look on your personalizer under special requests. They will provide your distilled water.

[5:00_Somewhere]

My father uses a CPAP and has no problem. He has told me that the cabin steward will usually supply both an extension cord and distilled water upon request (or sometimes simply when he/she sees the CPAP). You can actually have your Travel Agent request the water and cord in advance of your cruise (or your Princess Cruise Rep if you booked direct with Princess). In their 6 cruises with Princess, my dad says only once has the cabin steward told him they did not have an extension cord long enough, but he still brings one just in case. Hope that helps. Happy sailing.

[1st Cruisers]

We will be sailing on the Diamond Princess cruise in February. I use a CPAP machine at night and need to know -

 

- do I need to bring an extension cord or are there electric plugs near the night tables

- does the ship offer DISTILLED water or do I have to purchase this onboard OR in the various ports

 

I tried to search this topic, but didn't manage to get anything specific to Princess ships.

Thanks

Sylvie (Aldy)

 

Under the Cruise Personalizer, Special Requests, go to the Dietary Special Requests. You should see "Distilled Water" as one of the options to check. If not, check "Other" and write your requests in the "Provide Information Here" box. We requested distilled water and an extension cord stating it was needed for the CPAP. We received an email back from Princess confirming this request. We did not go through our TA to handle this. Hope this helps.

[martij6]

Under the Cruise Personalizer, Special Requests, go to the Dietary Special Requests. You should see "Distilled Water" as one of the options to check. If not, check "Other" and write your requests in the "Provide Information Here" box. We requested distilled water and an extension cord stating it was needed for the CPAP. We received an email back from Princess confirming this request. We did not go through our TA to handle this. Hope this helps.

 

1st Cruisers are spot on with their instructions. As they indicated, be sure to include the need is for a CPAP. I didn't once and received a reply back from Princess that they only supply when used in situations such as a CPAP. Putting the comment in up front just saves some back and forth emails.

 

Joel

[teacherman]

I use a C-PAP and have taken it on many cruises and international trips. I just keep a 12 foot extension chord in the C-PAP case. I once asked for a chord on a cruise ship and they gave me a 6 foot long chord that would not reach any plug. On Princess, I usually curl up the chord and put it in the nightstand during the day. Go to cruise personalizer and request enough distilled water for your cruise, if you wish. You should receive a response that it will be waiting for you in the room, although ship tap water is fine.

[montu6]

As mentioned distilled water is free. Just request it on personalizor. Extension cord supplied by ship may be huge orange industrial quality. I always bring my own. Bring a large ziplock bag to put over cpap to avoid any overspray when steward is cleaning room. I always toss in an extra mask and hose. Better safe than sorry and they really don't weigh much.

 

Travelling with a CPAP is really no big deal as long as you plan for the unsuspected. Have a great trip!

[Guest USC Traveler]

it was very timely for me to see this thread this morning. i just became a cpap user two days ago. my particular machine's instructions say not to use an extension cord with it but evidently other machines are not that particular. i don't need one anyway as the cpap fits nicely on my nightstand next to the bed.

i always have a mini-suite when i cruise and there are outlets right above the nightstand in those rooms. i know that because i plug in my ipod charger and my mobile phone charger there. maybe other rooms don't have outlets so convenient. i'm really glad to know about the distilled water. i will update the cruise personalizer about the water.

 

my next cruise isn't until november and i'm not worrying about the cpap for that cruise. my big concern is getting used to using it. my first night was awful and i was ready to return it the next day. but the second night was better than the first. i was lucky because the company i'm using, apria, has weekend service even though their office closed. i was called back by a wonderful technician who was very understanding of my first night's concerns and made me feel better about using the machine. i also have an option within the first 30 days to change the type of mask i use. right now i use the nasal pillows which seem ok but i might like to see what a nasal mask might be like.

 

in any event, i'm so grateful for this thread. i wonder if half the passengers on every cruise is using a cpap? probably more than i would think. thanks again for all the people who posted on this thread.

[montu6]

David, Good luck with your CPAP. I can't sleep without it now! There is a great forum devoted to CPAP use. I can't remember the name but you can google it. Really helped with all of my questions when I first started. I have the Quest nasal mask and it works very well for me. Happy cruising!

[JF - retired RRT]

Right now i use the nasal pillows which seem ok but i might like to see what a nasal mask might be like.

 

Some of the masks are extremely comfortable. But it is a personal preference. There is one that is not carried by most dealers (it is called SleepWeaver). You literally cannot feel it on your face. If Apria can provide it, it would be an option. Another one that is VERY comfortable (Activa by Respironics). Apria will definitely have that one.

 

Keep trying - it will make a world of difference in how you feel and your health (heart disease, BP, falling asleep while driving).

 

Good Luck!!

[Guest USC Traveler]

montu6 and jf....thank you for your advice.

i'm using the auto cpap by fisher & paykel. the nasal pillows are by resperonics and are relatively new...maybe two or three months.

 

thanks for the names of those two masks. i know there are lot out there so having one recommended is terrific of you.

 

i'll try to find the cpap forum you mentioned. here's what i found. http://www.cpaptalk.com, http://www.apneaboard.com http://www.apneasupport.org

http://www.apneasupport.org http://www.freecpapadvice.com/forum

Edited January 5, 2014 by USC Traveler

[Go-Bucks!]

I always take my own extension cord - not going to trust that the ship will have one.

 

As far as water, on my last cruise I just asked my steward for the distilled water and he brought a gallon right away. When I'm traveling by land I use bottled water. My medical equipment company said it's better to use bottled water than tap water, but even the bottled water shouldn't be used for very long.

 

USC Traveler: Hang in there! I had a very hard time getting used to it too. Sometimes I just had to take it off - felt very claustrophobic. But I was determined to use it every night for at least 30 days and after a few weeks it got easier. I've had it now for almost 2 years and it doesn't bother me at all. Just takes some getting used to. I feel so much better now and I'm sure you will too.

Edited January 6, 2014 by Go-Bucks!

[Guest USC Traveler]

jf...

i checked out sleepweaver masks as you suggested. there are lots of different models. do you know the name of the model you were telling me about.

 

go bucks...thank you for your advice and support. i am sure that everyone must feel the same i do now when they start to use the cpap but it sure seems doable and i'll hang in there. i'm sure the nights will get better for me and i'll just take one day at a time and i hope i end up as happy as you. do you sleep all night now without waking up? that's what i really want to happen for me.

[montu6]

David that is the site. It helped answer a lot of questions I had when I first started using my CPAP. Good Luck!

Carol

[Go-Bucks!]

do you sleep all night now without waking up?

 

 

Yes!! :D