Taking a late Oct Cruise

RickSt · Post by **RickSt** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 6:47 pm

My wife and I are taking a 7 night cruise to the Virgin Islands departing on October 29 on the Carribean Princess. I was just wondering if anyone else here on the board is booked on that same cruise? I have checked out many threads on cruise boards concerning taking cpap machines.

Rick

-SWS · Post by **-SWS** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 7:16 pm

Not taking that cruise, but we cruised on that ship in February. It accommodated my CPAP with no problems whatsoever. Enjoy!

ladytonya · Post by **ladytonya** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 9:34 pm

We've been on three cruises with my husband's bi-pap. We travel with a power strip in his bag because his humidifier and bi-pap need two outlets and sometimes they are not available. I'm wondering how we're going to handle two machines next time we cruise. So far, it's not been a problem in any hotel because I only need one plug, but on a cruise ship I'm not sure. Anyway, I can tell you that you should have no problem with one machine. Have a great time!

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 9:56 pm

The current draw on a powerstrip should handle 2 XPAP easily. Jim

mousetater · Post by **mousetater** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 9:37 am

I took my APAP with me on a cruise this past June. I brought a power strip with me, which was a good thing because the only available outlet was not next to the beds - it was above the desk.

Before the cruise, I asked my travel agent if the ship could provide me with distilled water for the machine. She contacted the "special services" department of the cruise line, and there was a gallon of distilled water waiting for me in my cabin. No charge. It was nice not to have to buy some before boarding the ship, and taking it through all the security stations, and check-in lines.

Barnaby · Post by **Barnaby** » Sun Aug 13, 2006 12:55 pm

I take about 2 or 3 cruises a year but I always try to be independent of any assistance from outsiders. I have learned to bring a 3 way plug that allows me to plug into their outlet and leave enough inserts to handle a nite light an the apap . As part of my travel kit I include a 25ft extension cord since the outlet may be at the far end of the stateroom and/or on the opposite side of the cabin from where I am sleeping. As far as distilled water I tote in my carryon bag several plastic bottles as well as a few in my suitcases. I fill them with distilled water from my big gallon jug and approximate how many pint bottles I will need for the amount of nights away from home. Some ships may or may not supply water and it may not always be free. Better to have your own supplies.
Last year I was taken to the infirmary on the awn Princess and the next day by ambulance to the hospital in St. Thomas. My apap was always available to me.

-SWS · Post by **-SWS** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 7:30 am

Rick, this is in response to your PM. I'm posting your answer here because I couldn't get an embedded image to come through via PM. We stayed exactly two doors down from where you'll be staying, and we had an identical floor plan. You can see two AC outlets right behind the telephone in the picture below. That dark wad behind the lamp's base is the long extension cord that I did not need. However, a very short multi-tap extension cord, or even a triple-tap adapter plug, would come in handy if you plan to also plug laptops, mobile phones, etc. into that dual AC outlet above the desk.

If you look close you can also see my APAP neatly stashed away in a cubby hole in the nightstand right next to the bed. Since there was plenty of air circulation I just pulled the APAP out slightly and ran it from that cubby hole at night. In the day time I just stashed the hose and mask in that same cubby hole. With a heated humidifier you'll probably need to set your CPAP rig up on the the top of the nightstand or desk.

Don't know the scoop on the Caribbean Princess regarding bottled distilled water since I can't stand humidification. If you call the passenger services director before you embark, I'm sure they'll see to it that you have plenty of bottled distilled water for your entire cruise, if that's what you prefer. The Caribbean Princess staff will literally bend over backwards to please you. However, that ship's tap water is ocean water that has been desalinated via reverse osmosis. I personally would have absolutely no problem whatsoever using that water if I used CPAP humidification. Hope this helps!

ladytonya · Post by **ladytonya** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 9:26 am

A nightstand on a cruise ship? *laughing hysterically* Not in any stateroom that most of us normal folks can afford!

For the distilled water, my hubby and I always just carried the gallon jug through the lines in the terminal. It was kind of a pain, but we made it with no problems.

Goofproof, I know the powerstrip could handle both, the problem would be the face that the two machines are on opposite sides of the bed. We take a cruise every other year. Since we took one last year, probably will do another next year. Our vacation this year is going to be my husband's class reunion in Connecticut. Fun, fun. Anyway, we'll have to figure something out next time we cruise. We will make something work because I DEFINITELY want to cruise again! They are the best vacations!

mikemoran · Post by **mikemoran** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 10:10 am

I know there has been talk of this before on previous threads. It is my understanding that the tap water onboard most ships is actually or the same as, distilled water due to the purification system used. Even if not, a week of non-distilled water won't kill your humidifier. Just clean it thoroughly at the end of the trip to remove any possible deposits.

-SWS · Post by **-SWS** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 11:23 am

ladytonya wrote:A nightstand on a cruise ship? *laughing hysterically* Not in any stateroom that most of us normal folks can afford!

I'm glad you mentioned that, ladytonya. I erroneously assumed that all staterooms came with nightstands. That's definitely a point worth noting for any hosehead who happens to be looking for a future cruise. Indeed, almost all staterooms on cruise ships are significantly smaller than their hotel counterparts on dry land, because space on any ship is so limited. The stateroom pictured below is a balcony mini-suite on the Caribbean Princess. You can see just how narrow it is by looking at the couch on one side of the room and the corner chair directly opposite. Very narrow by even Red Roof Inn standards!

Where exactly does a hosehead place their CPAP machine for lack of a nightstand, then? Can you request a small occasional table or place a chair next to the bed? Or does one rather carefully place their CPAP on the floor next to the bed? Thanks.

cpapjack · Post by **cpapjack** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 11:59 am

ladytonya wrote:For the distilled water, my hubby and I always just carried the gallon jug through the lines in the terminal. It was kind of a pain, but we made it with no problems.

According to my airport, any liquids are not allowed, including distilled water. This is due to the UK Terrorist thing last week.

-SWS · Post by **-SWS** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 12:40 pm

mikemoran wrote: It is my understanding that the tap water onboard most ships is actually or the same as, distilled water due to the purification system used. Even if not, a week of non-distilled water won't kill your humidifier. Just clean it thoroughly at the end of the trip to remove any possible deposits.

I agree with Mike. Most modern cruise ships, including Rick's ship in October, desalinate sea water using state-of-the-art reverse osmosis. The resulting level of water purity from those on-board treatment facilities very closely approaches that of distilled water. I personally wouldn't even bother with bottled water for CPAP humidification on a modern cruise ship.

ladytonya · Post by **ladytonya** » Mon Aug 14, 2006 1:36 pm

We have driven to the terminal every time we've cruised so airport regulations haven't been an issue. I do think the above poster is right about the tap water on ships. It would probably be just as good as distilled, but I could never convince my hubby of that. Every so often he'll run out of distilled and he swears that using regular tap water makes his nose feel weird.

With the lack of a nightstand, he just places it on the floor. We're usually in the smallest stateroom but always in an oceanview. The bed has been either up against the wall under the window or the wall next to the window. Either way, where he puts his bi-pap machine isn't in the way of walking around the room. Not that you can do much walking around in those staterooms, but who ever stays in their stateroom for anything other than sleeping on a cruise anyway? We've always found a way to work it out no matter the layout.