I’m booked an trip to Greece which involves multiple days on a 50-meter boat with sails (25 cabins). Me:
I get very sick in cars if I am not the driver
I get very sick on spinny rides
I get sick on swings
I get mildly sick in a hammock
I do not get sick in bigger sight-seeing boats
I do not get sick in ferries
I do not get sick on big cruise ships (Carnival)
I don’t get sick on trains and buses
I don’t get sick on airplanes (except for anxiety)
I don’t get sick in cars if I medicate with Bonine (meclizine) as instructed.
What are the chances I will get sick on the boat? Any experiences, and did your normal meds help? I am thinking I should get a prescription before I go?
You are less likely to be sick on a boat with sails, so since you are fine on ferries and sight-seeing boats I wouldn’t worry too much. Bring along your normal motion-sickness medication (or even better start taking it 24 hours before your trip).
I have almost the exact kind of motion sickness that you have. I can’t swing in a hammock unless one of my feet is touching the ground at all times. Smooth cars (e.g. Cadillacs) make me barfy. I’m usually fine on planes, stable boats and open air boats such as zodiaks and jet skis. But the biggest indicator is not the vehicle as much as it’s the conditions. If the roads are extremely winding, I’ll get sick even if I’m driving. I can handle bumpy turbulence, but not altitude change turbulence. A few years ago I had a really rough trip on a zodiac boat during a night manta ray snorkel off of Big Island. The ocean was extremely rough and I ended up vomiting off the side twice. I’d ridden in zodiaks a dozen times before with no problem.
So my advice from years of travel is to research what kind of weather/seas to expect in the Mediterranean Sea around the time you are traveling. Generally speaking, winter seas are rougher than winter seas. And then ask before you board what weather they’re expecting for the next 24 hours so that you know whether to pre-medicate, because as I’m sure you’ve learned, once you’re sick, it’s difficult to stop motion sickness in its tracks. Maybe even ask your cabin steward to keep you apprised if you’ll be traveling through a storm/rough seas so that you’ll be able to best prepare. By all means, bring along a prescription. Patches may be best because they don’t require you to swallow them.
It sounds like woo, but my sister who makes jewellery while travelling by truck swears by her accupressure bracelets to keep her from getting motion sickness while travelling. You could try them (with your medication as a backup).
My dive instructor told us that you should start taking dramamine the day before your trip. On a later trip with my family I took her advice and was just fine while my family who had taken it just in the morning of the trip were sick to the gills, and I’m usually the one with the weak stomach.