- Best first response
- Tell the instructor early
- Helpful position
- Fresh air with a view of the horizon
- Helpful choice
- Sheltered water for lesson one
- Medical advice
- Ask a pharmacist or doctor
Before leaving the dock
Sleep properly, eat a light familiar meal and stay hydrated. Avoid arriving hungry, exhausted or after heavy alcohol. If you are considering medication, get individual advice from a pharmacist or doctor because some options cause drowsiness and must be taken before symptoms begin.
Act at the first signs
Yawning, unusual quietness, headache and cold sweating can arrive before nausea. Tell the instructor then, not later. Move into fresh air, look toward the horizon and take an active job such as steering if it is safe to do so.
- avoid reading below deck while underway
- keep water and a simple snack accessible
- choose an outer-harbour lesson only after testing your response
- never hide symptoms to avoid inconveniencing the group
Choose the training water deliberately
A sheltered dinghy basin, river or harbour can be a better first experience than ocean swell. Once you know how your body responds, increase exposure gradually. Many experienced sailors still manage motion sickness rather than becoming completely immune to it.
Independently researched and reviewed
This guide is maintained by the SailingSchools.com.au editorial team. Training-body and regulatory claims are checked against primary sources where available; schools cannot pay to change the conclusion or their position in the directory.
Found something that has changed? Send a correction.
People also ask
Does seasickness mean sailing is not for me?
No. Susceptibility varies with sleep, conditions, vessel motion and exposure, and many capable sailors actively manage it.
Should I take medication?
That is a medical decision. Ask a pharmacist or doctor about suitability, timing and possible drowsiness.
Where should I sit?
Usually in fresh air where you can see the horizon, near the middle of the boat where motion may be gentler.
Still working out where to start?
Three questions — your experience, the boat you want to sail, and your goal — give you a starting course and the schools that teach it near you.