First, consider seasickness. Individuals who are prone to motion sickness might want to consider cabins as close to the center of the ship as possible. The farther the cabin is from the center of ship, the more it will be affected as the ship rolls or pitches. Modern Great Lakes cruise liners are designed to minimize this movement and provide smooth sailing experiences, and the Lakes generally have much smaller waves than those found on the ocean, but many people still experience at least some motion sickness.

Light sleepers and late risers might want to consider the location of their cabins based on a diagram of the ship they intend to travel on. Locate the main hallways, stairwells, elevators, galley and anything else that might be noisy, and try to book a cabin away from these irritations. High traffic areas and areas where the crew concentrate and work may be busy early in the morning and late into the night. When finding the locations of these places, try to think in 3D. Is there something above or below your cabin that might make a difference?

Those who are a little claustrophobic might want a veranda cabin. There are now cruise liners on the Great Lakes that offer private verandas for all or most of their cabins. A veranda gives you a chance to step out of your room quickly if it begins to feel a bit tight, and it also gives the feeling that the cabin is much larger that it actually is.

This brings up the matter of cabin size. As a rule of thumb, Great Lakes tall ships tend to have smaller cabins than Great Lakes cruise liners, but when you read in a brochure that a cabin is 120 or 300 square feet it is difficult to picture in your mind exactly how big that is. How can you decide which size is best? Try matching something of known size against the size noted in the brochure. Almost anything of the right size can be used to help visualize the size of a cabin. A 1 car garage may be about 300 square feet. Many backyard decks are about 120 square feet. Look around and find something to help visualize the size of the room, it will help keep expectations in line and that will make a significant impact on cruise vacation fun.

Those who suffer from nausea and motions sickness know how fast it can ruin any trip. While Great Lakes cruises are generally smoother than their ocean cousins, some passengers still report suffering varying levels of nausea until they adjust to shipboard life. There are a number of remedies for seasickness both conventional ones like Dramamine and unconventional ones like ginger ale and bitters. One intriguing possible cure is called a “Sea Band.”

Sea Bands are available by mail order and at many pharmacies. They nothing more than wrists bands that are sold over the counter in packages of two and are designed to press on the acupressure points to relive nausea. Proponents say Sea Bands will relieve many kinds of nausea from morning sickness to the nausea associated with chemotherapy, anesthesia and other drug therapies.

Whether the bands work for the broad array of ailments that some of the providers would claim, there is enough anecdotal evidence from users to indicate that the bands do, in fact, have some beneficial effect for seasickness. Some users have claimed that the bands have no effect at all, but many others have claimed that the bands have completely cured their motion sickness.

One thing that users often report is the necessity of donning the bands before the cruise. It is best to board the ship wearing them and have them on before the advent of any motion sickness. Apparently, the bands will not cure you if you are already having problems, they will only prevent sickness in the first place.

Sea Bands come in two basic flavors. Regular ones and magnetic ones. The difference is that the latter has magnets in place of the plastic pads that are supposed to press on the inside of your wrist. Some passengers claim that the magnetic ones help them more.

A different, but similar product is an electric ReliefBand. This looks like a good old fashioned wristwatch, but is worn on the inside of the wrist. There are two small electrodes on the backside of the unit which contact the skin and through these a tiny electric charge is passed. Many passengers claim these bands have completely eliminated their seasickness and others have reported that they were able to start using the electric bands even after the advent of illness. The electric charge can also be adjusted up and down to accommodate changing weather and sea conditions. These electric ReliefBands aren’t as common as Sea Bands and as expected, are much more pricey. But, if you are a gadget freak they may be something you will want in your arsenal before you take any Great Lakes cruise.

Like everything else about Great Lakes cruise vacations, the amount a passenger gets out of these sea sickness cures varies based upon the passenger. The best advice is to start with one remedy and have a backup plan.

The good news is that Great Lakes cruises are usually stable and reasonably smooth when compared with ocean cruises. The reason is that the Great Lakes are smaller than the ocean and generally have smaller waves, and therefore less chance to rock-the-boat so to speak. Still, some people do become seasick even on Great Lakes cruises and there are some things that you can do to help yourself avoid illness or to overcome it in the event you can’t totally escape it.

First, consider eating some ginger. People have been taking ginger as a supplement for many years and experts agree that this simple homeopathic cure can have a positive effect on seasickness for many people. Ginger can be found in a number of forms from pills to candy, gum, candied ginger pieces and cookies.

Second, starting out with stomach distress won’t make it any easier to adjust to being aboard ship. So, avoid foods that may be hard on your stomach for several hours before you board. This includes anything acidic like coffee or spicy food. You may also want to avoid greasy foods or anything that you know gives you the slightest bit of stomach trouble.

Third, mention to your Great Lakes cruise line that you have a problem with motion sickness. Sometimes they can help by arranging to give you a cabin in a part of the ship that has less movement.

Fourth, some people claim that walking around the ship helps them to adjust to the movement. This may be correct since the sickness seems to be related to the brain trying to adjust to an unaccustomed movement. Walking around on deck while you learn the layout of the ship may give your brain a chance to adjust to the new movement while keeping your mind occupied elsewhere, thereby helping to ease your symptoms.

Fifth, there are now several over the counter medications available such as Dramamine that can help alleviate your symptoms. If you think you might need them, the time to buy these tablets is before you board ship, as the price may be much higher from the ship’s store.

Sixth, there are a number of wrist bands (some are even eletric) now available that many people claim gives them great relief from seasickness, but the catch is you much start wearing the bands before you board the ship and you cannot remove them until after the trip is over.