Cruise to nowhere recommendations?

[MarBee]

So I desperately want to take a Disney Cruise to Alaska and so do my kids. The one thing holding us back is that the only time I’ve ever been out to sea (a 5 hour casino cruise almost 20 years ago), I got majorly seasick. My husband tends to get seasick as well.

We were thinking of testing out a 1-2 night “cruise to nowhere” to see if we can tolerate being on a ship before we book a long Disney Cruise to Alaska. (I plan on testing out the effectiveness of Dramamine, sea bands, etc.)

I’m looking for any recommendations, specifically for ones that leave from New York. (We live nearby and didn’t want to put out extra money for airfare for a trial cruise.) I know Disney doesn’t offer this, so any one that will give me a taste of cruising will work for us.

Thanks in advance for your recommendations and help!

 

[Dug720]

Regulations have prevented cruises to nowhere from happening any longer.

The closest thing to a starter is the 3-night Dream cruise. (Until the Wonder is back on the West Coast and does some 2-night Ensenada cruises.)

 

[SteveMP]

I've never been on an actual cruise ship that moved enough to make me seasick. These things are floating cities. I have gotten actual seasick on fishing boats and the boat to catalina island before. But there is a massive difference in size.

 

[FSU Girl]

If you get sea sick on little boats that doesn't mean you will on a cruise ship. Unless there's really rough seas you barely notice you are moving at all. You could take sea sick pills or get the patch. Ginger helps too. I know people who get sea sick easily who still cruise, they just take precautions. Getting a cabin in the middle of the ship will help too. Alaska is such a beautiful place.

 

[mevelandry]

Ginger pills, dramamine, bonine... So many things you can do to avoid sea sickness.

Just make sure you take them BEFORE you leave the port.

 

[FigmentSpark]

One thing to consider is that the casino ship was probably smaller than most cruise ships. I haven't been on the Wonder, but I found that on the Fantasy (in the Caribbean and normal waters) walking on the ship was rather like walking on an airplane mid-flight. There were little ups and downs, but nothing more than that.

Definitely testing the waters and the meds is a good idea, if you're putting out a lot of money, though.

 

[rhinodadz]

Also, Alaskan cruises generally travel along the Inside Passage which is much calmer water than open ocean.

 

[rhinodadz]

Duplicate post deleted.

 

[mhconley]

Oops.

Martin

 

[Minnie & Daisy]

The inside passage in Alaska has pretty smooth waters. If motion bothers you, don't book an aft cabin, where you will feel the vibrations more.

 

[JWG]

Further support the 3-day out of Canaveral (for Disney, certainly could do a non-Disney trial). The large cruise ships have stabilizer bars that help prevent motion form getting too bad. Just don't go during hurricane season.

 

[ForMyBoys]

Our experience was the same as the above, very calm waters in Alaska. Very little boat movement. We also started with a short cruise to ensure we'd like the longer ones, its not a bad way to start to make sure its for you before laying out a bunch of cash on an experience you may not enjoy.

 

[MarBee]

Thank you all for the tips! I’ve heard great things about the stabilizers and how smooth Alaska is, but I’m still so nervous because I was so sick previously. (I was literally laying on the public floor at one point and holding onto it because I felt like I was going to fall off. I know- so gross!) I may look into a non-Disney cruise just as a trial. Maybe just my DH and I could go for a weekend cruise to try it out. Hopefully that goes well and it will be smooth sailing to Alaska! (Pun intended )

 

[truck1]

Something else to consider is this. There could be a medical reason that you get so motion sick. You might want you pay a visit to your doctor for a once over and let them suggest or prescribe something. Motion or sea sickness can be caused by any number of things, or a combination of things. If you have a physical issue, such as sinus issues or a nerve issue ( my dad has this) that can cause motion sickness, Dramamine etc may not work. Even is the waters are dead calm.

 

[SteveMP]

Something else to consider is this. There could be a medical reason that you get so motion sick. You might want you pay a visit to your doctor for a once over and let them suggest or prescribe something. Motion or sea sickness can be caused by any number of things, or a combination of things. If you have a physical issue, such as sinus issues or a nerve issue ( my dad has this) that can cause motion sickness, Dramamine etc may not work. Even is the waters are dead calm.

Another reason to see the doctor is they can prescribe the patches that really do work better than OTC stuff. My friend gets these before going on fishing boats which have severe motion.

 

[mmmears]

I'm super sensitive to motion, so I get where you are coming from. For a trial we booked the 3-night DCL cruise, partly because it's not really moving during the day (just in case I really couldn't take the motion). I used the patch, and it was a big tough at first (that FL current) but the patch kicked in and for the first time EVER I was ok. Dramamine and Bonine really don't help me, sadly. Alaska was very different - it was so smooth that part of it was like sailing in a pond. I wore the patch, but I don't think I really needed it for that trip, and didn't replace it after day 6 (each one works for 3 days). I would say, though, that sailing from Vancouver makes all the difference. It can be rougher sailing there from Seattle (and much rougher out of San Francisco). Hope this helps.

 

[bumbershoot]

Further support the 3-day out of Canaveral

But that’s going to show her something worse than the inside passage. The Florida straits are a nasty few hours for those who get seasick in big ships.


Op you just can’t compare a no-doubt small gambling ship to a proper cruise ship.

 

[missyp]

I am extremely prone to motion sickness. I hadn’t cruised in 25 years because of it. I tried again in 2013 on the Dream. I wore sea bands the entire cruise and I didn’t have any issues. I have done 1-2 cruises a year on Disney since 2013 and I have not gotten sea sick yet. I keep the seabands on 24/7 and when they tell us waters are going to be rough I take a Bonnie as a precaution. Alaska was the smoothest cruise we went on, barely felt the movement.