First time cruise?

[SouthCoastShell]

Hi we are thinking about trying a cruise.
I'm worried about motion sickness and not being able to sleep.
Everyone says its fine but I have never been able to sleep on a plane even long haul so I'm concerned.
Should I just go for a two week cruise and hope for the best or try a 3 night cruise to France and back? 🤔 what's other people's experience?

I actually sleep better when on a cruise ship than on land - I assume it’s the movement!

I'm on a cruise at the moment, it's as smooth as anything. Cruise ships are so high tech they are really well balanced.

Don't go on a 3 day cruise they are very booze cruise with lots of stag and hen parties. Do a 7 day cruise to see if you like it. I get sea sickness and just take medication. It isn't too bad for me unless the sea is really rough. You will love it I'm sure.

Also a plane is very different to sleeping in a king size bed on a cruise!

If you're liable to motion sickness don't go on a cruise.

People will tell you there is no movement but in actual fact to anyone prone to sickness, just a slight roll will start you off.

We recently did our first cruise and as someone who suffers from motion sickness I was a bit worried. Sleeping was fine but it took me a day or so to find my ‘sealegs’. I took some medication on the first day and one night when it felt a bit wobbly and that was fine. Sturgeron 15 were the tablets I took and they are readily available from chemists etc.

Not sure about motion sickness (I've never had it).

But make sure you get a cabin on a lower deck, near the center of the ship, not at the front or the back.

Lower deck to be away from walkways, restaurants, discos, gym, etc., and center to be away from the water hitting the ship.

Just back from a weeks cruise - felt the ship move occasionally once or twice.
Don’t do 2 weeks - try a week.
There are plenty of other things to worry about!
We only just made the embarkation due to a huge delay at Barcelona airport.
We had a group of noisy Spanish teenagers next door cabin who liked to party all night. I ended up calling security one night.
it was very hard to get a sunbed.
Food was average.

However, it was great to be somewhere new every day , the drinks package was good, we did a combination of excursions and looking around ourselves.

Would do another one, but definitely one week and probably adults only.

The top-end cruise lines are super luxurious and the beds are like heaven. Plus the slight motion is like being gently rocked in a cradle. I've never slept better.

I can never sleep on planes either and was worried about motion sickness before my first cruise. Have now been on a LOT and only felt queasy a couple of times, easily remedied by taking eg Sturgeron tablets.

Decide if you want to cruise from the U.K. or fly and then board the ship. Depending on your destination, cruising from the U.K. can add several days so I prefer fly cruise.

Book a cabin mid ship and as low as possible for the most stability. Occasionally you can feel movement but I actually like lying in bed being rocked, sends me right to sleep.

I don’t recommend doing a short French booze cruise as a taster, just go for it!

@Jellifer Book a cabin mid ship and as low as possible for the most stability.

Exactly this.

Thanks all that's really reassuring.
The sturgeon tablets sound a good idea and I will try and book a room in the middle of the bottom of the ship.

Watch some blogs from Emmacruises, she cruises regularly and suffers from seasickness. Her videos are fab and really informative.

I don’t generally suffer seasickness but you do experience motion on a ship. I was told you wouldn’t feel a thing but you definitely do!

it’s generally very gentle though and I love it. I sleep really well generally on a cruise, I definitely like the gentle motion.

Cruises round the med in the summer are likely to not be too choppy. We did Croatia and Italy for our last cruise and it was like a millpond.

We always take seasickness pills but have never needed them.

One thing I would say, a friend tried a cruise, expected to love it but really struggled with being at sea, felt horribly anxious and couldn’t sleep or relax. Me, I love being at sea, it’s probably the most relaxing thing ever for me!

Stick with the Med, fly to a Med port, don’t go from Southampton, bigger ship the better.

I get sea sick and I felt it, as much as people tried to make out I was being a drama queen and “you can’t feel anything on a cruise ship” I was happy when I was off the boat and the first sea day was shite for me. I’m pretty sensitive though, can’t face backwards on a train etc. it was a trip paid for by IL’s and I was reluctant to go, but didn’t want to be a mardy bugger 😂. I had one bad night sleeping where I was clutching the bed and felt like I was rolling (coincided with the bad sea day) it wasn’t rough as such but more than a calm sea, but like I said I’m pretty sensitive. My partner was just like wtf you on about when I was on about it the next day and he slept fine. We had a balcony and I refused to have anything other than one. Took motion sickness pills everyday to try and keep it at bay

It usually settles down quite quickly. I've been sick as a dog on a ferry but managed several cruises and been fine.

Please don’t let the motion sickness put you off. Myself, my husband and children are all TERRIBLE travellers and my kids can throw up on a 5 min drive. And I get sick on a pedalo! But we did a cruise last year and not one of us felt sick once, not even on the “rough” days. We went armed with mediation, sickness bands, the lot. You can’t feel it move.

Can I ask why don't sail from Southampton?

Because the Bay of Biscay can be choppy. Sometimes known as the Bay of Dismay 🤢

I suffer badly with motion sickness, but in 9 cruises, all from Southampton, I’ve only taken one Sturgeon tablet during the night, when I felt a bit sick. Ships have stabilisers that kick in to stop it rolling too far. I agree with others, the 3 night cruises tend to just go over the Channel and you don’t really get time to experience the whole cruising thing, plus you will get lost onboard first couple of days, try a weeks cruise, we’ve done the med and Norwegian fjords which are lovely and usually 7 days cruises from Southampton.

I always feel sick on day 2 when cruising from Southampton and up to Norway or Sweden for a Baltic cruise

And on final day on wY back.

Not felt it at all when doing a cruise in the Mediterranean or Alaska.

Thanks all. That's all really good advice 👍

Sleeping is fine and never felt sick either (unlike ferries). Choose a cabin lower in the ship and in the middle for maximum stability. The best ship for rough seas is the Queen Mary 2 (Cunard) as it's a liner rather than cruise ship design wise, didn't feel a force 9 gale in the Atlantic! (I recommend midship deck 4)

I'm going on the QM2 shortly to the Norwegian Fjords. First time cruiser. 🚢