How to Avoid Motion Sickness on a Cruise

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So you’ve decided to go on a cruise!  Like most first time cruisers and people like me (prone to motion sickness), you’re probably nervous about getting sick on your big vacay.  Don’t worry! I”m going to tell you about all of the things that I have tried and what has worked best for me.

Trans-derm Scope Patch

This was the very first thing that I tried on my first cruise and it was helpful but made me pretty sleepy.  This patch is super easy, you just place it behind your ear and it gives you a continuous low dose of the medication and keeps you from getting motion sick.  I like the patch because you don’t have to remember to take anything and it stays on really well, but like I said, it made me really drowsy.  You will need a prescription from your doctor to get the patch and it sometimes can be expensive.  The patch is good for three days and then you will need to replace it so you will need a few per cruise depending on how long your cruise is.

Dramamine

I use Dramamine pretty often when I fly or go on road trips and it helps immensely.  You can find the original formula here or you can buy the all natural form of Dramamine that is just ginger here.  I have tried both and I do think the original formula helped my more than the ginger version.

Meclizine

This is my go-to for all of my cruises now! I typically get a prescription for this if I know I am going to be going on back to back vacations and will go through a lot but Dramamine does make a Meclizine version.  You can find that here.  FYI the original formula for Dramamine is NOT meclizine, the original formula uses dimenhydrinate which has worked for me but meclizine has worked the best.  I will start taking it at night before bed three days before I leave for the cruise and I will just take one tablet at night before bed every night on the cruise because they make me just a little sleepy but not nearly as bad as the patch.

Sea-Band

These have been a lifesaver a few times while I’ve been cruising.  The meclizine works wonders but if we hit a storm or aren’t docking in port and just going in circles (has happened to me twice) then I wear the Sea-Band.  These are pressure point bands so they are drug-free and cause no drowsiness and are great if you’re pregnant and don’t want to take medication.  I could always take more meclizine during the day but it does make me a little drowsy and these have been perfect to hold me over until my next dose before bed.

Room Placement

If you know that you are prone to motion sickness then you MUST get a room in the middle of the ship on the lowest deck.  I have been on 5 cruises now and I have never had a balcony room because of the room placement.  You are less likely to feel the movement of the ship in the middle of the ship and on the lower decks.  If I get too motion sick, then I will head to my room and take a nap but my meclizine and Sea-Band usually keep me going!