I finally convinced my wife to go on a short cruise (from florida..to mexico..and back). She always has claimed she will get sea sick. On the one large cruise I went on, most of the people I talked to said that sea sickness is actually fairly rare on a large cruise ship in the Caribbean. Any thoughts? Any suggestions that she should do to prevent (even mentally)? I've heard of a wrist band.

I've cruised in the Gulf in Nov/Dec twice and both my son and I got violently ill. Even the crew said the weather and seas we experienced both times was really bad, though. From my experience, nothing stops the seasickness once it sets in (except the boat reaching calmer waters). But there are a few things you can do to prevent/minimize it. If the boat is rocking and you start to feel dizzy or nauseous, get out from the interior of the ship where you can see things moving. Get out into a deck where you can get fresh air and look at the horizon (which isn't moving). The more you focus on things moving back and forth, the worse it gets. I couldn't even keep Dramamine down. For me, the worst thing I did was go to the room to try to "sleep it off". Ginger does relieve nausea, but if you're already really sick, it takes a while to have any effect. I also found relief in the hot tub. Something about the heat and sensation of the water jets distracted me from being dizzy and disoriented.

With that said, the worst part of the cruise was in the Gulf. Once we got to the Caribbean, the waters were much calmer and we had no issues at all.

There are some sweet spots on cruise lines that have less movement. Most modern lines have stabilizers. That said it is fun to watch your plate slide across the table then come back to you. You worry about it you will get sick.

I would say it is not something you should worry about unless you encounter rough seas. As mentioned above, modern cruise ships are larger and have better stabilizing that makes you forget that you are even on a ship most of the time.

I think the time of year can make a difference in the Gulf/Caribbean as well; it seems like most rough seas (not associated with nearby storms or hurricanes) stories I have heard from others occurred around the winter months.

I've taken ~10 cruises and have never gotten seasick. I'm fairly immune to typical car motion sickness, however. that said, my wife has also been on nearly as many as me and never gotten seasick either. the ships are quite good at mitigating rolling.

Some people are more prone to seasickness than others. I recommend a transdermal patch for motion sickness. Your local pharmacy should have them. Put it on a few hours before boarding and you'll be good to go. As far cabins and motion sickness, lower decks are preferable to higher ones and midship cabins are preferable to fore and aft cabins. Having a window or balcony to have a point of visual reference is always nice as well.

Is motion sickness something she suffers from or is this just a fear out of nowhere?

I can experience motion sickness riding in the backseat of a car when I can't see the road, or reading while in a car, etc but I've been on 4 cruises and only felt slightly queasy the very first night - and people that we were with said that it wasn't just me, the seas were rough that night.

Usually the most motion you'll feel on the big ships are going in and out of ports. Once you get out to open waters it's normally pretty hard to even detect motion in my experience.

I'd say get some OTC motion sickness meds and take it if it's an issue. You can also get prescribed a patch that looks like a tiny bandaid behind your ear that many people swear by. Also if you're on the ship and experience it, the medical staff will give out OTC meds.

While sea sickness hasn't been an issue for me, one word of caution that I learned the hard way on that first cruise - know your limit when it comes to drinking because being seriously hungover on a moving ship definitely isn't fun.

Medicinal marihuana FTW

Go go Walgreens and get Bonine for motion sickness. It's a small pill that tastes like a baby aspirin. Take one in the morning with breakfast and skip the patch.

There are basically two drugs. Scopalamine and Meclizine. The patch is scop. All the OTC pills, are meclizine. Bonine, Dramamine, Anti-vert etc are all meclizine.

It really is an individual preference. There are no studies that favor one over the other. Meclizine puts me to sleep and I have never tried Scopalamine. Neither are supposed to be combined with alcohol. A big factor on cruises.

Try both. See which one works the best.

That was my worry. We were on an older ship and you really felt it in the big interior rooms like the dining hall. Took two days and then I never noticed it.

Newer, larger ships definitively produce much less seasickness than the old ships. As stated in multiple responses, stay in the center of the ship, stay low in the ship, and if possible have a view of the horizon. Most people will do quite well with nothing or with taking the OTC bonine as written above. However, some people still get seasick and if your wife doesn't have glaucoma or any significant neurologic diseases, and is willing to put up with a dry mouth, scopolamine patches can work wonders. Put one on behind the ear, change every 72 hours, and it would be really surprising if she still had seasickness. The added security of knowing she has an option should the bonine not work will probably be enough to stave off the symptoms anyway. Enjoy your trip.

Does she get motion sick in a car? Like if she's reading or looking down while moving?

If not, she'll be fine.

I've been on a half dozen cruises over the last 20 years and gotten sick on every single one. But I still enjoy them overall.

I've found that scopolamine patches work well for me. Dramamine and antivert not so much. Just make sure if you use scop patches, you put them on ahead of time and don't take them off until youre off the boat when cruise is over. Beware of potential rebound motion sickness once the patch is off. Had really bad rebound motion sickness for nearly a week after a cruise when I took the scop patch off before I was off the boat the last day. Not sure why that happened but it sucked.

Mal de debarquement. Very difficult to predict. And difficult to treat.

malenurse said:

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There are basically two drugs. Scopalamine and Meclizine. The patch is scop. All the OTC pills, are meclizine. Bonine, Dramamine, Anti-vert etc are all meclizine.

It really is an individual preference. There are no studies that favor one over the other. Meclizine puts me to sleep and I have never tried Scopalamine. Neither are supposed to be combined with alcohol. A big factor on cruises.

Try both. See which one works the best.

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You can also get prescription meclizine as well.

I get motion sick, and I got seasick on the one and only cruise I've been on.

It isn't rare, but it's not an epidemic on a large ship either. The key is if you're feeling it, get out in the open and watch the horizon. Helped me immediately and I was fine the rest of the trip.

I went on a cruise once and it will always and forever be my last.

I was so violently ill I couldn't even walk to puke. I had to crawl to the bathroom in our cabin to puke. I couldn't get off that stupid boat fast enough.

I think cruises as absolutely disgusting and just a flat out waste of time.

I'm glad to say I tried it and it was just as awful as I thought it would be.

There's so much more you can do with your time and money!!!!

I Play With Guns said:

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I went on a cruise once and it will always and forever be my last.

I was so violently ill I couldn't even walk to puke. I had to crawl to the bathroom in our cabin to puke. I couldn't get off that stupid boat fast enough.

I think cruises as absolutely disgusting and just a flat out waste of time.

I'm glad to say I tried it and it was just as awful as I thought it would be.

There's so much more you can do with your time and money!!!!

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than puke? sure there is. I wouldn't say that you went on a cruise, though. more like a sea voyage of nausea.

Thanks for the advice. I've been on one cruise and it was calm and fine. Loved the stops as well. If this goes well, would like to go on a longer one or one to Alaska.

If she is REALLY worried about nausea, get a script for some Zofran as well. But I seriously doubt you would ever need it, unless you are crossing the Bering Sea or the Drake Passage.

hahaha fact!

And I'm still mind blown on why people would waste their time and money on such a tourist nasty trap.

A staycation is sooooo much better than a nasty cruise.

God bless the souls who can actually enjoy them.

You are more likely to get norovirus than motion/sea sickness. Agree that cruises are absolutely nasty.

I Play With Guns said:

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hahaha fact!

And I'm still mind blown on why people would waste their time and money on such a tourist nasty trap.

A staycation is sooooo much better than a nasty cruise.

God bless the souls who can actually enjoy them.

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I can see enjoying say, an Alaskan cruise, especially if older and unable or unwilling to do a more active land-based trip.

But for the most part I agree. I am very anti-cruise and pretty much refuse to ever go on one again.

Cruises seem to be to be a giant eating fest. You are either eating, or getting ready to go eat. The ones with casinos are fun (if you like that). I didn't like stopping for a day and then moving on. I'd rather sit my ass on a beach and watch the time go by. That being said, the Alaska cruise thing might be pretty fun because you see things you don't see anywhere else.

To answer your question, on an older, smaller ship I felt a little seasick the first night, but was fine after sleeping the night and never noticed it again. The ship had a slight bit of motion to it that is almost imperceptible on calm seas.

I like sitting on the deck watching the ocean go by. That's my "sitting on the beach".

I agree...sitting while watching the quiet ocean go by is as nice as sitting on the beach.

I was on a cruise once in very rough waters. Went to the top deck to watch the waves going by and the water in the pool was splashing straight up completely out of the pool on once side, then fall back in and do the same on the other side of the pool. It was awesome.

I'm cheap as hell, which is why I semi lime cruises...keep in mind I don't really drink, so no surprises at the end (I think our end of cruise bill averages out at about $60).

On our honeymoon, we caught the very backside of a hurricane. My wife woke up with a mild case of sea sickness the first morning out. Went to breakfast, and it was literally me and 5 other guys. Headed down to the infirmary to get her some pills. I was #3 in line, by the time I got to the counter, the line went all the way to the elevator. They worked wonders, and she was fine about 3 hours after her first pill.

No, it's not the norm!

Don't have those 'its vacation' extra drinks on the first night, especially not the cheap bon voyage champagne. You will know way more about how the seas affect you after a night's sleep in it. If you do have sea sickness issues combining it with a hangover is one of the depths of hell.

My wife and son are both very prone to motion sickness, in cars and boats alike. We've done a couple cruises and they both wore the acupressure wristbands, similar to (or maybe even exactly) these from Amazon. Neither had any issues and both had a great time. I tend to think it's largely/wholly psychosomatic, but that doesn't matter to me as long as it works.

I don't really understand why those wristbands work? I guess cruises allow you to budget travel, see a variety of places in a planned way and relax, socialize etc. it's definitely different than a land trip but I was surprised on the one I took last year how much I enjoyed it and enjoyed having things taken care of. I even liked the shows and bingo and we made friends at dinner.

I Play With Guns said:

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I went on a cruise once and it will always and forever be my last.

I was so violently ill I couldn't even walk to puke. I had to crawl to the bathroom in our cabin to puke. I couldn't get off that stupid boat fast enough.

I think cruises as absolutely disgusting and just a flat out waste of time.

I'm glad to say I tried it and it was just as awful as I thought it would be.

There's so much more you can do with your time and money!!!!

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Sammie Johnson said that a ship is worse than being in jail - you are enclosed plus you have a chance of drowning !

When I went on the cruise and asked if anyone had experienced sea sickness before, everyone said they had not on a Caribbean cruise--the waters are not rough and the boats are large. I guess it can happen but seems to be more rare.