First time cruiser... motion sickness?

[robndani]

We are thinking of trying to book the DVC member cruise on the Dream next summer. I get motion sickness VERY easily so I'm wondering what section of the ship to go for. It will be me, husband and 8 year old twins.

I would like plexiglass verandah (unless that makes motion sickness worse somehow). Guessing middle of the ship might be the best.

There is so much info to weed through. I've been researching all night!

Thanks for any advice!

 

[SteveMouse]

Get SeaBands- they use accupressure to help relieve motion sickness. (they're wristbands- no chemical involved).

 

[lizabu]

I get motion sickness sometimes and I found forward to be the worst. Middle and aft are better.

 

[Luvzmy3boys]

Mid ship for sure. You should also ask your doctor about a scopolamine transdermal patch (RX only) to use. My SIL has bad motion sickness and was fine on the dream with it. Stayed mid ship deck 6

 

[tlprice]

I was very worried about getting motion sickness (I get sick on a swing!) so I did a lot of research before our cruise. I read in lots of research that low and center were best on the ship so I booked deck 2 mid ship (I figured it was a good excuse to save money too). I had absolutely no motion issues in these rooms. I also don't like the way motion sickness medication makes me feel so I got sea bands. They worked great! Our 1st night on the Fantasy was pretty rough. We walked into the MDR and everyone was looking pretty green. None of our table mates could eat. My daughter and I were perfectly fine. We have continued to use them on amusement park rides that make us sick and road trips with windy roads and they have worked great in those situations too. I also bring chocolate covered ginger candy from Savory spice shop that tastes great and helps settle upset stomachs.

 

[SteveMP]

I would get the patch from your doctor as mentioned. That said you'll be going all over the ship, unless you plan on being in your room mostly? For example you may go down a few floors for dinner. I find the motion worse the lower you go down.

 

[My_Pooh]

-I couldn't agree more about the patch. I've used them on all cruises and even when I go to the parks. Make sure to read the instructions...I made the mistake of putting a new one on everyday until I noticed it said every 72 hours...oops! I get motion sickness often. I didn't want to shell out $5-9K and be sick on the cruise.
-If sea bands work for you on other things it might work for you but I never noticed a difference when I've used them. Try them out before you go.
- I've read conflicting info about higher floors verses lower. I went higher and I'm glad I did because the lower floors where some of the restaurants are were I feel the motion more!
-last time I booked the customer service lady advised that my bed should face forward and not face aft if you get sickness... I didn't think about that.
-I also go with the veranda for some fresh air.
You'll have a great time...be careful Disney cruises are addicting!

 

[robndani]

thanks for the advice. Mid ship it is. Now high vs low?

It's only a 4 day cruise. Figured I'd start there just in case.

I also use some essential oils for motion sickness and they seeem to help. The good news is that I can use them with all the other products out there.

I'll def try a few things before hand.

 

[Geomom]

Bonine (meclizine) is another motion sickness medicine that is non-drowsy. They have free samples of the generic form, meclizine, in a bin outside of the health center on the ships. I picked some up for DD17 during our Alaskan cruise when she felt seasick. It helped her, and she had no side effects from it. It is a chewable pill. She only took up to 1/day when she wasn't feeling well.

We had seabands with us, they didn't seem to help DD17 much on the ship. I also brought hard ginger candy and Dramamine Naturals Ginger pills. They will give you slices of green apples in the MDR if they notice you don't feel well, it's supposed to help with seasickness.

 

[Cackyschmackers]

This time I'm trying the SeaBands and also I'm going to see an acupuncturist a few times beforehand since all the meds make me drowsy. The acupuncturist apparently gives you little sticky things for the backs of your ears and wherever else those acupressure points are. And we've stocked up on ginger candy. Can't hurt!

 

[tnshsms]

thanks for the advice. Mid ship it is. Now high vs low?

It's only a 4 day cruise. Figured I'd start there just in case.

I also use some essential oils for motion sickness and they seeem to help. The good news is that I can use them with all the other products out there.

I'll def try a few things before hand.

I'm easily motion sick as well....I have a combination of oils that I use along with Bonine (which should be taken the night before you get on the ship). I also start my day with an apple. And if I start to feel it later in the day I eat another one. Something in an apple helps with the nausea. This is my routine 4 cruises in. I think a 4 day cruise is a great way to see if it will effect you or not. I have a few friends that are motion sick in cars and small boats but are ok on the cruise ships so you never know.

 

[Chrysama]

I've only been on one cruise, and I too was worried about the motion sickness so I got the Scopolamine patches from my doctor. I got SO unbelievably sick from the patches that I would have taken the sea sickness (if any were going to happen) any day. I was so sick the entire trip starting a few hours after putting the patch on. I literally told my husband to leave me to die in the airport because that would be better than than trying to fly home with how awful I felt. However, the seasick bands have worked great for me on other occasions.

 

[lklgoodman]

Just wanted to mention that the only place I've seen sea sickness bags are in the lounge bathrooms(by the sinks), not sure why they don't have them in the cabins. I always grab a few when we first get on the ship. I put them by the bed in our cabin and make sure I always carry one with me when I'm walking around the ship, haven't needed them so far, but I like to be prepared just in case. You can also get them from your cabin host.

 

[Fyrefly]

Midship veranda is good. Try to get as middle as you can fore/aft wise. Don't go all the way highest deck you can, just do something middleish vertical too. Think about if you have an orange wedge or something on a table and you tip it. The ends tip up and down but the center stays more stationary. Same thing left to right. You want to get yourself to the ship's center of gravity.

I am very sensitive - I haven't had to use the patch but I take Bonine religiously every day, starting the day before the ship and it keeps me reasonably level unless it's choppy. Veranda is good. Again, bringing back the center of gravity thing, if I start feeling off I go to my room and go out on the veranda and take deep breaths of air while staring hard at the horizon. That helps my brain remember the world isn't moving, it's just the boat. Since the motion is less the further down you go it's nice to have that private access to fresh air and horizon line without having to go up top.

So my tips:
1) Find a medicine that works for you. Bonine doesn't make me sleepy and is OTC. It might be worth taking some at home to see if it makes you tired. Maybe do something else that you know sets you off close to home with your preferred medicine? Bonine is also how I manage roller coasters and Star Tours - I would not be able to do those without it. Sea bands don't do as much for me personally as Bonine does. Every body is different.
2) Try to avoid things that will set you off. I found on the last ship that I was on, if I could keep myself sufficiently distracted and also avoid any visual cues about bobbing up and down in windows or fabric swaying back and forth, I could be fine even if the water was bad.
3) If you do start to feel bad, fresh air and stare at the horizon until you feel better. Avoid super heavy food if you're starting to feel queasy. As soon as you are able, find something fun to do so you aren't psyching yourself out about being sick and make it worse.

 

[Rabb it]

The general consensus on this is mid ship I believe.

 

[TeaBee]

My husband and kids all get motion sickness but haven't really had a problem on cruises. We always stay mid-ship and have done both inside rooms (on NCL) and verandas (on DCL). On DCL we stayed on deck 7 both times. We generally give the kids dramamine the first day (mostly for the car ride to the port) and then don't need it after that. The only time one of them had a problem was in Animator's Palate which is in the aft of the ship when we were going through some choppier water. Here's hoping you'll have the same experience and won't have an issue!

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

Lots of great advice already!

My doctor suggested taking Bonine at home, to see if I had any reactions to it. I didn't have any, so my doctor said to take it the night before cruise & every night of the cruise. We did this & never felt seasick.

She also mentioned sea bands. We brought them with us, but didn't use them very much.

One of the nurses in the practice has been on DCL many times and suggested midship with verandah. She prefers decks 7 - 9, but said that was just her preference and lower decks would be fine. I have always picked deck 9 and my sister has been between decks 7 - 10. Our families have been fine on our cruises.

Other tips the nurse gave:
-Make sure you eat enough, but try not to over eat.
-Drinking alcohol is fine, but again, don't over do it.
-Stay hydrated, lots of water, ginger ale, if you feel "off"
-Eat a green apple, if you feel "off"
-Look at the horizon from outside deck or verandah, if you feel "off"
-Try to get a good night's sleep

I also bring the following essential oils with me:
-Peppermint
-DigestZen
-Ginger
-Lavender

I hope this info helps.
Have a great cruise!

 

[#NotMyName]

Be SURE to apply patch or take meds PRIOR to boarding.

 

[MsOnceUponATime]

See an acupuncturist beforehand for acupressure/acupuncture and they will give you little acupressure stickies to place on your pressure points when you get on the ship! They go behind your ear on your neck and have really kept me from feeling seasick on cruises. We also take ginger chews that we buy from Trader Joes, buy acupressure bands from CVS and take motion sickness pills with us -- just in case. I hope you enjoy your cruise!

 

[mischief32]

I highly recommend Bonine. I took Dramamine(less drowsy) on first Cruise and it helped but I was sleepy. I took Bonine this and great. I started the day before the cruise and took until the end with no problems. My daughter really noticed the motion in the Enchanted garden and I had to give taker her back to room and give her Dramamine. She was fine after that. I know people live Deck 2 but we really notice the motion down their and we have stayed forward both times and were okay so long as we took the meds. On the last night the ship was moving fast and we could notice the hallway going up and down but we were fine. I get bad motion sickness so I admit that I was afraid to cruise but with meds I am going to cruise again(on Disney ) in 2019. Ginger did not help and the seabands were just to tight on my wrist for me.