Will I Get Seasick While Taking a Cruise?

If you are going on a cruise, you might be wondering whether or not you will suffer from seasickness during your voyage. Motion sickness is a common problem, especially on boats- and it can make you pretty miserable when you are afflicted.

Seasickness is caused by conflicting signals in your brain from the motion of the waves. Your eyes are telling you that things are relatively still, but your body’s balance centers can sense motion. This causes the fine mechanisms of balance within your body to become very confused and results in an upset stomach, vomiting, headache and sweating.

Cruise Ships Designed to Reduce Movement

So will you suffer from seasickness on a cruise? The answer will depend on your own personal susceptibility – but it is important to remember that you will be on an enormous cruise ship rather than a small boat being tossed around by the ocean waves. Cruise ships are crafted in a way that helps to reduce the chances of seasickness as much as possible.

The larger the boat, the more stable it is and a cruise ship is like a floating hotel and entertainment complex. Also, large cruise ships have huge stabilizers beneath the water levels, which help to eliminate most of the pitching and rolling motion of the ship. It is very rare for the mild vibrations of a cruise ship to cause seasickness. You can find ship information on sites like Cruise Sale Finder AU to help you prepare.

Thanks to the design of the ship and the stabilization, it’s unlikely that you will experience serious seasickness on your trip. However, if the sea is extremely rough you might experience a little bit of the pitching and rolling sensation. So if you do, how can you reduce your risk of suffering from seasickness?

Helpful Tips for Avoiding Seasickness

Here are some tips to keep in mind that will help you to avoid seasickness:

• During rough seas, avoid activities such as reading or looking at photographs or paintings – as they tend to make you feel even more ill. This is because you are looking at something that your brain interprets as stable while your body is moving.
• Sit somewhere outside on the deck and let the wind hit your face. Feeling the wind on your face can help to reduce the feeling of seasickness.
• Consult your doctor about taking a seasickness relief medicine, such as Dramamine, during your cruise. The key to taking this remedy is to ingest it in advance of any possibility of being seasick.
• It is also possible to find motion sickness patches that you can wear during your cruise, which will have the same effect.
• Eat some dry toast. It’s plain and easy to stomach when you are feeling nauseous and it will help to soak up your stomach acid and keep you from feeling terrible.
• Taking ginger can also be a great remedy for seasickness. Ginger is available in capsule form at most health food stores.
• Avoid staying below the deck of the ship for extended periods of time. If you can find a porthole or a window to look through so that you can gaze on the horizon, this can really help.
• If you know that you are prone to motion sickness, it will help to get a cabin on the outside of the ship with a window and in the lower, mid ship where it will be more stable.
• It’s also a good idea to book a cruise that stops at several ports and has fewer days on the open sea, which will help you to avoid situations where the ocean is rough.
• You should also avoid overindulging in alcohol, which can amplify the effects of seasickness.
• Some of seasickness is psychological. If you are worried about getting sick and thinking about it a lot, you will actually make it more likely. Try not to think about seasickness and enjoy yourself on the cruise instead.

These are just a few of the ways that you can reduce your chances of getting seasick while you are on a cruise. Remember, if you start to feel really bad you can always head to the infirmary on the ship and let the medical professionals help you.

Ryan Posa’s globetrotting adventures are full of the beautiful and exotic. Through his writing, he loves inspiring fellow travelers to see the world with interesting destinations and exciting ideas of local experiences. He is the General Manager of Cruise Republic and you can follow Ryan’s Tweets here.