Motion of the ocean Alaska v. Bermuda

[mikeMTL]

I'm thinking of booking my parents a cruise for their 40th wedding anniversary next April. My only major hesitation is my father's proneness to motion sickness. Having a similar proneness myself (can't even go on a swing set), and having gone on my first cruise last year in Feb on Oasis of the Seas without any problems, I was thinking of choosing perhaps a cruise in Alaska or Bermuda where I feel like potential rougher seas are less likely to occur. Would anyone who has experience sailing in these two places be willing to share their thoughts and opinions?

[CynBeth]

Our first ever cruise years ago was Alaska. We did Vancouver to Seward and there was one rough night sometime during that week. We did not actually get sick but my other family members felt it a little in their stomachs. Since then we always wear the patches behind the ear. Sometimes if there is a port where the ship has to anchor and you take a tender to a dock the ocean or sea can be rocky. This can happen anywhere we were on a Mediterranean cruise last summer and experienced it. 

[Ryan79]

I’ve spent 21 nights on Alaskan cruises and only ever had one day that was quasi rough. I’ve had much rougher seas in the Atlantic and Caribbean. Also the bigger the ship, the less you feel any rocking. Oasis class is plenty big to absorb the majority of any roughness

[foxrunner]

My wife suffers motion sickness and I don't. We both enjoy cruising. PREVENTION is the key. Get the prescription patch and wear it before you even embark on the ship. Refresh as recommended but don't let it lapse. (tip if it is too much and you are drowsy cut the patch in half) Ship size and ocean don't matter if it is rough, you're going to feel it. Once you feel seasick it is hard to correct. Be vigilant for your partner it may wash off in the shower or pool, so reapply immediately.  Cruising is super fun if you're not seasick! 

[lkg276]

Reach out to your doctor and get some scopolamine patches. They work great, I always just cut mine in half

[Pattycruise]

I don’t think cruises in Alaska are open in April.  I did a May 3 from Vancouver to Seward on Radiance and then the return on May 10.  On the May 3 leg not all shops/stores were open yet   On the return I noticed more/if not all, stores open. 
I’m not sure if sailings to Bermuda occur in April as I’ve only done this from NY/NJ and those were in June/later. 

[Atlantix2000]

6 hours ago, mikeMTL said:

I'm thinking of booking my parents a cruise for their 40th wedding anniversary next April. My only major hesitation is my father's proneness to motion sickness. Having a similar proneness myself (can't even go on a swing set), and having gone on my first cruise last year in Feb on Oasis of the Seas without any problems, I was thinking of choosing perhaps a cruise in Alaska or Bermuda where I feel like potential rougher seas are less likely to occur. Would anyone who has experience sailing in these two places be willing to share their thoughts and opinions?

As others have said, you'll need to check the schedules to see if April is a possibility for either Alaska or Bermuda.  It's not like cruising in the Caribbean where there are multiple options every week.  Alaskan cruises tend to stay along the Alaskan/Canadian coast because the views of the coast and glaciers are the big draw.  Bermuda is an isolated island well into the Atlantic ocean which means the seas will definitely be rougher when crossing that open water.