Motion sickness and description of guests on board

Susan Stockdale

Hi,

My husband and I are considering this Treasure of the Aegean Sea for June 2016. We would be so grateful for feedback on the following:

1. We are concerned about motion sickness on the sailboat/yacht, though I understand it has stabilizers and we'd be staying midship on the lower dick. Has anyone heard about how rocky or calm the sea is at this time of year?

2. Generally speaking, what are the people like who take this trip? We're guessing (and hoping!) they are well educated, interested and interesting.

Thank you!

joycesw

We took this trip (southbound) in late May/early June. I seem to recall choosing southbound because it was said to be calmer with those winds coming off Turkey (can't recall the name of them) at your back (so to speak). Perhaps, someone with better knowledge or recall will chime in about them. Our cabin was midship, upper deck, and we did not think that travel was particularly rocky. Then again, we do not feel the effects of motion sickness. I did notice a number of people with patches, but, since I never heard any complaining, I assumed they were being proactive rather than reactive. When we first swam in the Aegean off Didym the current was pretty swift and the wind was up. When we swam at Mykonos, it was much calmer. Most of the travel between islands is done at night.
As far as other travelers, that is one of the reasons we travel with Tauck. Tauck travelers (generally speaking) are just as you assumed: well educated, interesting and fun! They are usually well-read and well-traveled. They are respectful of others, and I think it says something when I can claim that in 13 trips, we have NEVER waited for anyone who was late! On one trip, a woman arrived last (on time, mind you) because she had lost her prescription sunglasses in a shop. We left and hadn't gotten ten miles before the TD had phoned, located them and arranged for them to be sent to our hotel the following day! There's another reason to travel with Tauck...efficient, well-educated and extremely personable Tour Directors!
This is a great trip and the Windstar (Windspirit) is a great ship. We are not content cruisers and we loved this ship. We loved the way Tauck handled our tours (always first to depart) with our own TD, buses and local guides. There will be another 80 or so people on the ship who are not part of the Tauck group, and they were all quite envious of our fabulous Tour Director!

British

To answer your second question, well-educated, well traveled and interesting. Not necessarily any of these, but seriously anyone who can afford a Tauck tour is a typical Tauck guest. For this particular tour, the guests are likely to have travelled out of the U.S. before. It seems that Ireland, England and Italy appear to be the first countries that U.S. Citizens travel to. Greece is not likely to be their first choice. The more exotic the location, say Japan, Africa, South America and so on, that's where you will likely find the most well traveled guests. Interested and interesting people are not necessarily well educated, for example, Richard Branson and Princess Diana had little educational qualifications but I wouldn't 't mind hanging out with either of them because they both have/ had a great sense of humor. Oh yes and I have never been on a Tauck tour where anyone was late, but I have spoken to others who have definitely had this problem on their Tauck tours, so maybe like Joyce we have been lucky.

travelingteacher

I never, ever travel without my scopolamine patches.....while they are prescription only and one should not drink while wearing them, again- I get motion sick (on water and land) and as there are never guarantees when it comes to water (or even in a vehicle on widing roads), I don't leave home without them. I was on the Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth the last 2 summers....was told they've never had such smooth sailings. The day I took it off and thought I'd try it on my own was the day I spent in bed. Check with your doctor about getting them.
Your second question asked about the others on your tour...I agree with British that you will find Tauck travelers well traveled and well educated. Lots of interesting things to talk about and share.
Enjoy your trip!

jdurkin

travelingteacher wrote:

I never, ever travel without my scopolamine patches.....while they are prescription only and one should not drink while wearing them, again- I get motion sick (on water and land)

I can suffer in a similar fashion to you, travelingteacher. After my expedition to Macquarie Island last year, I won't travel by sea again without the patches ... thankfully supplied on that occasion by the ship's doctor. Unfortunately these patches are not available at all in Australia. Finding a foreign, legal source (without a script) is taking up my time at the moment. I really want to add a couple of the Tauck/Ponant trips to my things-to-do list. I'm hoping I can find them on my (land based) travel later this year. I'd be grateful for any tips!

As for your second question ... I would say it very much depends. Like British I have often found 2 of your line items but not always 3 (at the same time!) in the one human package while I've been travelling with Tauck. I have often thought that because so many Americans don't travel until they retire they have their travel training wheels on much later in life than would be expected in other demographics. And again, as British says, formal education is quite a different thing to the education of life. Some of the most profound statements I have ever heard have come from simple people leading very simple, possibly even to be considered poor, lives. Conversely, some of the most shockingly uneducated statements have come out of the mouths of "simply rich" people. I'm fairly sure Tauck doesn't have a pre-purchase category for "just like us" on their declaration form. Heck! I'd never have made it to 19 trips! It's all part of life's rich tapestry and what you get in one bunch is really all down to serendipity. Sometimes it would be just plain lovely to be the Queen and have the practice of conversation with a wide variety of different people down to the art form it really is!

Whatever your experience, you will have a fabulous trip and bring home a bundle of stories that will sustain you in laughter for years to come!

Cheers,

Jan

Sealord

Susan Stockdale wrote:

Hi,

My husband and I are considering this Treasure of the Aegean Sea for June 2016. We would be so grateful for feedback on the following:

1. We are concerned about motion sickness on the sailboat/yacht, though I understand it has stabilizers and we'd be staying midship on the lower dick. Has anyone heard about how rocky or calm the sea is at this time of year?

2. Generally speaking, what are the people like who take this trip? We're guessing (and hoping!) they are well educated, interested and interesting.

Thank you!

We have traveled to Africa with Tauck (wonderful) and have booked the Danube and another Africa. We have cruised independently with Windstar six times, and will leave for the Baltic aboard Wind Surf in July. We have met a number of people on Windstar who also travel with Tauck, so there appears to be some common interest there. We have always found interesting and well traveled people on these trips.

The Winstar ships are designed to sail without heeling more than a couple degrees, and they are very stable. That being said, I have been on an aircraft carrier when it took green water over the bow, so if you are sensitive to motion you should always be prepared.

AlanS

Ah, sea stories : )

I was thankful for the mattress on my first ship out of the Academy. It was completely worn out and had a depression several inches deep- like a canoe! While trying to outrun a hurricane our tiny little DER was really getting tossed. I was one of the few JO's who didn't need to tie myself in!

Stringreen

When I crossed the Aegeon, it was pretty calm. Take along Meklezine in case you have a weakness for sea sickness.

garp

We took trip Southbound in June 2015. Sea was calm and the ship was as comfortable as a huge liner but so much better. No one was seasick.
Our group (42 people) was diverse American, Canadian and Australian, all bright, seasoned travelers. No one was ever late for bus departures etc. and aboard ship there was also the added plus of being able to mix with the non-Tauck travelers.