Alaska or the Med-prone to sea sickness?

[1inamillion]

We have just completed our first cruise on Crown Princess in the caribbean.We thought of trying Celebrity next and wondered if the seas would be calmer in Alaska or in Europe in August of this year as i have a tendancy to suffer from sea sickness.

Any advice on the seas would be great, thanks

[Druke I]

Gross generalization of course, but Inside Passage to Alaska usually calm.

 

Europe - North Sea often rough, Baltic and Med usually fairly calm, Bay of Biscay sometimes very rough, as is the Irish Sea.

[Rev22:17]

1inamillion,

 

We have just completed our first cruise on Crown Princess in the caribbean.We thought of trying Celebrity next and wondered if the seas would be calmer in Alaska or in Europe in August of this year as i have a tendancy to suffer from sea sickness.

 

I think that either destination would be fine. All of the modern cruise ships are big enough so they don't get tossed around to any great extent, and they have stabilizers that neutralize about 99% of the ocean's torques. As a result, you'll feel about as much motion as in most buildings on land on most cruises to either destination.

 

BTW, I was aboard the original MV Royal Princess (45,000 tons, 1200 passengers, entered service in 1984)), which is rather small by today's standards, in a gale on the North Sea a few years ago. Even on that ship under those conditions, the ride was quite smooth.

 

Norm.

[1inamillion]

Thanks for the replies- think i will be booking the med itinery from Venice to Rome, hopefully the seas will be ok!

[Druke I]

I don't really think it is fair to advise that large ships ride well, due to stabilizers.

 

Stabilizers only work to reduce roll, and are not effective in reducing pitch. Most Chief Engineers will advise the Captain to retract them in pitching seas, as they can act like diving planes on a submarine, and pull the ship down by the bow. That is not a good thing for a surface ship.

 

They (stabilizers) also have a negative effect on fuel consumption and speed.

 

I do agree that the late great Royal Princess rode well. We've been through a couple of Atlantic storms on her, and she barely shuddered.

 

The much larger Golden Princess, on the other hand, does not do well in heavy pitching seas. We had bow slap spray raining down on our balcony, Caribe Deck 8-02, several windows along Prom Deck shattered while the ship was flexing and fighting for seaway, and there was a lot of breakage in the ship's shops and bars. She was riding hard, and shuddered throughout the ship every time her bow slammed down.

 

The Grand class, relatively flat bottomed, also tend to catch the wind, and are not good riders in heavy seas.

[rebeccalouise]

I did the Millenium TA in May of 2005. It was great. It rode really well and I don't think you will get seasick.

 

I have sailed to Alaska 4 times and it was only rough once. That is an excellent place to cruise. Obviously I loved it enought to do it over and over.

 

I do think you should have "Bonine" handy. It is non- drowsy and you only need to take it if and when you feel ill. It kicks in in about 10 minutes and you'll be good to go. My 6 year old son has taken it too and was fine within minutes. We used it on the Constellation. The North Atlantic out of New York can be rough.

[jaxon41]

While I do not think I am prone to sea sickness, I did find the Alaskan cruise on RCl, big ship, to be the only time I was affected. I was fairly low and mid-ship, too. Sea didn't look that bad, but it got to me -- took some pills and was fine within an hour or so. I have done the med twice -- no problems. I think you are making a good choice.

[e150club]

go on a 65' fishing boat for a couple of days in the north atlantic in november. when you get on a 800 or 900' ship you wont feel a thing.its all in the mind.

[e150club]

dont worry these ships are so big you wont feel a thing

[the2006Junket]

Hi,We sailed on the Millie last August from Venice to Barcelona. I don't ever get seasick, but one of my friends does occasionally. She was fine for 11 nights, but the one night when we were coming around the "boot" of Italy was a little rough and she sought medication from the ship's doctor and felt fine the next day. She raved about whatever drug they gave her and said it was far more effective than anything she had ever tried.Other than that evening the Medit. was calmer than Boston Harbor is today!Good luck,Lynne

[OkieFive]

While I do not think I am prone to sea sickness, I did find the Alaskan cruise on RCl, big ship, to be the only time I was affected. I was fairly low and mid-ship, too. Sea didn't look that bad, but it got to me -- took some pills and was fine within an hour or so. I have done the med twice -- no problems. I think you are making a good choice.

 

Do you mind if I ask what medicine you took? I have never been sea sick, but have never been on a big ship, just on a WindJammer Cruise. But, I would like to have something just "in case". Cathie

[tally10]

I have done, in recent years, Alaska (Princess), the Baltic twice (RCCL and Celebrity), and a transatlantic (Celebrity) and the one time I was seasick was Alaska. The ship was traveling slowly and I think that made it worse. We are on a transatlantic leaving friday (Celebrity), and I am praying for calm seas. Even though I had a good time on Princess, I have stayed away from Princess because of Alaska. I'd vote for the Med.

Joyce:o

[Rev22:17]

Cathie,

 

Do you mind if I ask what medicine you took? I have never been sea sick, but have never been on a big ship, just on a WindJammer Cruise. But, I would like to have something just "in case".

 

Don't worry about it.

 

>> 1. The motion is much worse on a small vessel, such as you took on your WindJammer cruise, than on a big ship. Thus, it's not likely that you will need anything.

 

>> 2. On Celebrity's ships, the purser's ("guest relations") desk has complementary medicine for motion sickness that you can get at any time if you find that you need it.

 

There's not much point in spending money on something that you probably won't need, especially when you can get for free if you do need it.

 

Norm.