seasickness during transatlantic cruises

[coleridge]

We are thinking of doing a repositioning cruise in early Sept from London to Boston,12 nights. I have heard that seasickness is more prevalant during transatlantic cruises. Can any one advise. I am prone to seasickness and worried. We will be going to Ireland and England and France and Newfoundland.

 

Thanks for any info. Coleridge

[PennyAgain]

Well, there is a large risk of getting seasick going on the route you describe. Early September is when the seasons change and the seas tend to get more active.

 

12 days is a long time!

 

My husband was absolutely miserable on a transatlantic crossing. He will never, ever do that again.

[montekat]

I would guess you are thinking about doing the Jewel OTS on 9/8/08. We did this same cruise a year ago and found that while the sea can be a little rougher occ., it was never that bad. We enjoyed it so much that we are booked for this cruise again. Yes, 12 days is a long time, but there is only a 3 day stretch at sea after leaving Europe until reaching Newfoundland. The itinerary is great and there is a really active rollcall for this sailing if you decide to join in.

 

Here is a link to the rollcall if you are interested: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=535768

[chasetf]

We are thinking of doing a repositioning cruise in early Sept from London to Boston,12 nights. I have heard that seasickness is more prevalant during transatlantic cruises. Can any one advise. I am prone to seasickness and worried. We will be going to Ireland and England and France and Newfoundland.

 

Thanks for any info. Coleridge

There is a recent thread about the Grand Princess running into some pretty heavy seas and weather. It certainly is possible.

[Vampire Parrot]

I was on P&O's Arcadia last October/November for the Transatlantic from Europe to the Caribbean.

 

The wind was quite high, on the Beaufont scale it was near gale force 7 as we left, two days of gale force 9, then a day of storm force 10. By then the seas were high, with a long Atlantic swell with a height of 20 to 25 feet, occasionally reaching 30 feet. On that day, most of the outside decks were closed as the wind over the deck was between 70 and 80 mph. In other words, it was rough - according to some of the crew, the roughest seas they'd ever been in.

 

The Arcadia rode the waves very well, although due to the loooong swell she was pitching a bit with water occasionally breaking completely over the bow. Our cabin was right on the stern (back of the boat) on the topmost accomodation deck so we got quite a bit of up-and-down motion. Those folks with cabins midships on lower decks had a much smoother ride.

 

Many people were seasick... however, those of us who'd taken precautions by taking our seasickness meds were absolutely fine. Modern seasickness drugs are *extremely* effective.

 

My personal seasickness drug of choice is Meclizine, known as Bonine or Dramamine-II in the US and "Sea legs" (honestly!) in the UK. Both my wife and myself find it 100% effective, we really enjoyed the Transatlantic crossing (even the weather!) and we are already thinking about doing a two-way Transatlantic crossing from Europe in December 2010 or 2011 so as to spend Christmas in the Caribbean.

 

As always, please take advice from a health care professional such as your pharmacist and/or doctor before taking medication.

[coleridge]

Thanks for this honest advice from all of you. I would like to ask those who said it was ok, are you prone to seasickness yourselves? I went on the round trip to Hawaii from Long Beach and many people,including my self, got very sick for a day and a half. This was in Dec. I did use Bonine and even had acupunture on board to help. thanks for any follow up info.

 

coleridge PS What time of year was it when your husband got sick?

 

 

 

Well, there is a large risk of getting seasick going on the route you describe. Early September is when the seasons change and the seas tend to get more active.

 

12 days is a long time!

 

My husband was absolutely miserable on a transatlantic crossing. He will never, ever do that again.

[zxcvbnm]

Are there any effective seasickness medications or other remedies that are NOT antihistamines? I have a prostate condition which means I can't use antihistamines (I see this limitation is specifically mentioned in the side-effects information for Meclizine.)

 

Thanks,

Robin

[lannp]

My advice is to be sure and book a cabin on the lower decks and center. Less movement the lower you go and of course in the middle. I've done several transatlantics and once had a cabin on the upper decks. The difference in movement up there and lower down was quite noticeable. I love sea days and although I don't usually have a problem I know it could happen. Some crossings have been rough and others like a millpond. There's no way of predicting what will happen.

[wieslaw]

Are there any effective seasickness medications or other remedies that are NOT antihistamines? I have a prostate condition which means I can't use antihistamines (I see this limitation is specifically mentioned in the side-effects information for Meclizine.)

 

Thanks,

Robin

 

Hello Robin,

 

there is an electronic device ReliefBand that many people claim is the best remedy for them.

It looks like a watch and has two electrodes on the underside of the device. Works on two 3 volt battries. There is a dial / switch that one will use to choose the proper level (5 levels) of electrical signal that gets delivered to 'your pressure point' on the wrist. It is FDA 'cleared' ( not the same as "approved"). There is also a model that they sell for medical usage ( slightly higher output) other than motion sickness.

 

I have read on this board over the last few years that many people have very good results using that. Some pilots claim that it works for them as well.

From my own experience - I am a little skeptical. I do have two of them - and wife and I tried them when we got motion sick during our first night cruise to Hawaii - and nothing happened , .......wife ended up in the medical dept. to get an injection. I took some meclizine and had some hard time for few hours. So I can not tell if the device works or not but it did seem to help. Wife used that device during our trip to Hanna in Hawaii ( about 600 sharp turns) and did not get motion sick - that I am pretty sure she would have otherwise.

If that thing would work for you that would be worth every penny of the overpriced sticker price , ...... if not ?

 

Wes

[PennyAgain]

Personally I have only been seasick once and that was transatlantic. As I get older my greater concern is the risk of falling and injury. I pick my ship travels with that in mind.

 

When I got seasick it was in a rolling sea on the QE2. I think I was more dizzy than sick to my stomach.

 

These days I need to stay steady on my feet.

[Vampire Parrot]

PennyAgain, your point about falling over is well made!

 

A few folks on the very rough Transatlantic crossing I was on last October did fall and get hurt.... however, most of the time that was because they didn't follow an old sailor's saying. Which is :

 

"One hand for yourself, one for the ship".

[zxcvbnm]

Thanks, Wes, for the thoughtful report on the ReliefBand and whether or not it works.

 

I had a very rough crossing on the QE2 in October back in the 1970s. My wife was quite sick for a couple of days, but I didn't miss any meals. We lost so much time the trip terminated at Boston instead of New York. The only time I was actually seasick was on the Apollonia, from Venice to Haifa back in the late sixties or early seventies... I didn't have a bed or a cabin, so feeling like death warmed up for several days in a row was no fun.

 

Robin

[WELSH WIZARDS]

Some Transatlantic crossings are fine, some are not. I loved the one I went on, and I am going on another in a few months, and I have also booked one for 2008.

Do I get sea sick..? .Yes do...am I sick for the WHOLE trip.. ? .No I am not, and I always feel that the days I am not sick and sailing the wonderful seas more than make up for the days I am sick.

I am not prepared to stay at home and experience ....nothing.

[RMVET]

On our last crossing, I took ginger capsules, which were great and don't make you drowsy. Some ships keep bowls of candied ginger near the doors of the dining room. After dinner, take a piece and chew it. It is sweet and spicy and its amazing how it calms the stomach.

 

If you do start to feel queasy, make sure you eat!!! Have a dry bread roll or crackers. Do not go around with an empty stomach. It will make you feel worse. Get fresh air, and stare at the horizon, which will help to adjust your equilibrium. In no time, you'll start feeling better. But eat!!!

[coleridge]

:) I want to thank everyone who responded to my request as the transantlantic seasickness. i thought about what every one said and decided to hold my nose and jump in ! We did go ahead and book this cruise on the Jewel and I know I will be hangin with you all over the next year as we think about our trip!Thanks again. Coleridge

[montekat]

:) I want to thank everyone who responded to my request as the transantlantic seasickness. i thought about what every one said and decided to hold my nose and jump in ! We did go ahead and book this cruise on the Jewel and I know I will be hangin with you all over the next year as we think about our trip!Thanks again. Coleridge

 

Welcome aboard, the more the merrier!! And pray for calm seas!

[coleridge]

I hope to meet you on the Jewel next year. I just love,love,love your bopping gray kitty cat,having one of my own plus a couple more now gone. And have always wanted tovisit Wales,so would love to chat for you.

 

coleridge

 

 

 

Some Transatlantic crossings are fine, some are not. I loved the one I went on, and I am going on another in a few months, and I have also booked one for 2008.

Do I get sea sick..? .Yes do...am I sick for the WHOLE trip.. ? .No I am not, and I always feel that the days I am not sick and sailing the wonderful seas more than make up for the days I am sick.

I am not prepared to stay at home and experience ....nothing.

[barante]

A nearby Safeway has been having a sale on Sea Band accupressure wrist bands. They work like charm for me. So when you could get them for less than $5, I scooped some.

I am prone to seasickness but in a strange way. The first day on the Atlantic always does it to me. But after that I am fine, even in a hurricane once. In any event, I have used Sea Bands with good results.

[SheilaNC]

Hi,I'm sailing on the 9/9/08 TA as well. It will be our first and I'm coming prepared....lots of ginger flavored snacks, drinking ginger ale and taking my trusty Bonine every night. Hope to meet some of you onboard ( seasickness-free) :)

[flag fan]

My first cruise was a transatlantic on the Queen Mary 2 and, although I was worried about seasickness (I tend to get car sick) and took every known remedy with me, it was no problem at all. The QM2 is an oceanliner so it is made for transatlantic crossings and is supposed to be more stable than ships made for cruising, so if you want to experience a transatlantic, the QM2 is probably the best bet. However, I think it is more likely than not you will not have a problem, regardless of which ship you take. Most people do not get seasick (otherwise there would be a lot fewer people taking cruises) and there are remedies. If I were you I would not worry about it.