Before You Sail · Antarctica, December 21, 2027 – January 7, 2028
You cross the Drake Passage twice, on December 28 and again on January 2. Each crossing takes about a day and a half.
Why the Drake Passage is rough
At the latitude of the Drake there is no land anywhere around the globe to slow the wind or break the swell.
The Antarctic Circumpolar Current, the largest ocean current on earth, funnels through the gap between Cape Horn and the South Shetland Islands. That gap is about 600 miles wide.
Waves of roughly thirteen to twenty feet are ordinary. In a storm they run considerably higher. Crews call a calm crossing a Drake Lake and a rough one a Drake Shake. You get whichever the weather gives you.
How the ship handles the swell
The Majestic Princess is a stabilized vessel of about 143,700 gross tons and 1,083 feet. Stabilizers reduce roll considerably. They do not eliminate it.
A large ship handles this water far better than a small one.
Where to be if the sea is up
Motion is least in the middle of the ship, low down. It is greatest at the front and back, and on the highest decks.
If your cabin is forward or aft and the crossing turns rough, spend the day in a midship public room.
Look at the horizon. Stay out of enclosed interior spaces without a window.
Seasickness medication
Talk to your doctor before you sail, and do it early enough to fill a prescription if you need one.
Several options exist, including tablets, patches, and wristbands. Which one suits you depends on your health and on what else you take. That is a conversation for your physician, not for a blog post.
Whatever you bring, most motion-sickness medication works better taken before the motion starts than after.
Other things that help
Eat something. An empty stomach makes it worse.
Keep water nearby.
The ship’s medical center is staffed and can help if the crossing is hard on you.
And then the ice appears
On the morning of December 29 the swell eases as the ship comes in behind the islands. Then the first ice appears.
