We sailed out of NYC on June 29th on the Nordic Empress, which is relatively speaking a SMALL ship, and you really couldn't feel the ship move much at all. We spent time at the very back of the ship while we were leaving NYC, having our own private party. We were with a group of 6 people and we had a blast. We missed the "official" Sail Away party though, and when we do the
Disney cruise next summer, we plan on being right in the middle of the action!
The next day was a full day at sea and while the ship still wasn't moving much (not that you could really feel), there were waves in the pool on the top deck! LOL It was fun, actually. Not huge waves, but they were caused by the movement of the ship.
When we left Bermuda that following Friday afternoon the seas were a bit choppy. That night my sisters in law and I were dancing in the lounge that is at the far end of the ship, top deck, and boy we could feel the dancefloor moving beneath our feet. We'd all sway and move in unison, as if we were choreographed. lol But it wasn't an unpleasant thing, it really added to the fun of the night. lol
However....later that night, around midnight, I was tired and told my DH and 2 brothers and 2 SILs that I was going to bed and I'd see them in the morning. I went down to my cabin, got undressed, started watching a good movie but within about 15 minutes I threw some clothes back on and went back up to the lounge to be with them! It was just too creepy being alone at that point, feeling the ship go up the air, sort of, as we'd hit the waves. Our cabin was near the front of the ship so I think this is why I felt the movement so much when I was in bed. So the 6 of us stayed up till about 2am, then we were all so tired we just went to bed. My SILs said they woke at 5am Saturday morning due to the movement of the ship, but I slept right through it. The captain said we had hit 15' waves, which I guess is not uncommon. I didn't notice any passengers on the ship who were sick from the waves. DH and I took 1 Bonine tablet each morning of the cruise, even the days we were docked in Bermuda, because I had read that you should take it as a preventative every day, starting with the day BEFORE your cruise, because it's easier to avoid seasickness than it is it treat it once you feel sick.
I hope this answered some of your questions about sailing out of NYC. I wouldn't hesitate to sail out of NYC again, it was great, and we're planning on taking the 9-night Voyager cruise out of NYC to the Caribbean, in summer of 2005. Of course this is a MUCH larger ship than we were on going to Bermuda, so I doubt you'd feel much motion on that one.
i am ready to leave now!! 
