About Dramamine
Dramamine traces back to 1949, when G.D. Searle & Co. brought dimenhydrinate to market after a Johns Hopkins clinician noticed that a patient being treated with the compound for allergies also stopped feeling motion sick on her streetcar ride to the hospital. The company followed up with a 1948 shipboard trial on the troop transport General Ballou, testing the drug against placebo in 485 soldiers crossing a rough Atlantic passage, and the results helped establish dimenhydrinate as an effective motion sickness treatment. The brand changed hands several times over the following decades and is sold today by Prestige Consumer Healthcare (NYSE: PBH), which acquired the Dramamine business from Johnson & Johnson's McNeil-PPC unit in 2011.
What sets Dramamine apart is that it is not one drug but a family of formulations sold under a single trusted name: dimenhydrinate in the fast-acting Original line, meclizine in the once-daily Less Drowsy line, and ginger root extract in the drug-free Advanced Herbals line, plus a dedicated dimenhydrinate chewable dosed specifically for children ages 2 to 12. That range lets the brand cover the fastest-onset option, the longest-duration option, and a non-antihistamine option, all under one name shoppers already recognize.
Brand website: dramamine.com
What Dramamine makes
Dramamine's range runs wider than the products we review. The lines we know best from our own testing are marked with a star:
Original Formula
dimenhydrinate 50mg tablets with roughly 30-minute onset, the fastest-acting formulation in the lineup — featured on BestRatedDocs
Less Drowsy
meclizine 25mg tablets providing 24-hour coverage from a single once-daily dose — featured on BestRatedDocs
Less Drowsy Chewable / Powder
the same meclizine formulation in chewable and powder formats for dosing without water
Advanced Herbals Non-Drowsy
a drug-free ginger root extract capsule with no antihistamine or sedating ingredients — featured on BestRatedDocs
For Kids
a dye-free, lactose-free dimenhydrinate 25mg chewable dosed for children ages 2-12 — featured on BestRatedDocs
Why we recognized Dramamine
The BestRatedDocs Top Brand recognition isn't paid for and can't be applied for. We award it to the brands whose products consistently stand out in our category reviews. Dramamine earned it on the strength of the products below, evaluated the same way every product on this site is: assessed against clinical criteria, verified specifications, and real-world user outcomes, and judged on merit.
Dramamine products we rated highly
Dramamine Motion Sickness Less Drowsy, 16 Count
Once-daily meclizine HCl 25mg gives 24-hour vestibular suppression with substantially less sedation than dimenhydrinate, so most users can stay functional through a full day of travel. It carries a 4.8-star average across more than 26,000 verified reviews, the deepest review base of any product in our motion sickness review.
Read the 7 Best Motion Sickness Medicines of 2026 guide →
Dramamine Motion Sickness Original, 36 Count
Dimenhydrinate 50mg reaches therapeutic plasma concentration in roughly 30 minutes, the fastest onset of any oral option in our review, and provides the strongest vestibular suppression in the OTC category. It is approved down to age 6 with a half-dose adjustment and holds a 4.8-star average across more than 17,000 reviews.
Read the 7 Best Motion Sickness Medicines of 2026 guide →
Dramamine Advanced Herbals with Natural Ginger, 18 Capsules
A drug-free ginger root extract with zero antihistamines or sedating ingredients, the only formulation in our review specifically endorsed by ACOG for nausea in pregnancy. It is approved for ages 6 and up and carries a 4.6-star average across more than 16,500 reviews.
Read the 7 Best Motion Sickness Medicines of 2026 guide →
Dramamine Motion Sickness Chewable for Kids, 8 Count
The only FDA-monographed medicated motion sickness formulation designed for children ages 2 to 12 in our review, dosed at half the adult dimenhydrinate strength in a dye-free, lactose-free grape chewable. It carries a 4.9-star average in its early review base.
Read the 7 Best Motion Sickness Medicines of 2026 guide →What earned Dramamine the recognition
- Four separate Dramamine formulations earned a place in our motion sickness review, spanning the fastest-onset option, the longest once-daily option, a drug-free ginger option, and the only medicated formulation dosed specifically for children ages 2-12.
- The Less Drowsy meclizine tablet carries the deepest review base of any product in the category we reviewed, with a 4.8-star average across more than 26,000 verified reviews.
- The Original dimenhydrinate formula delivers the fastest onset of any oral motion sickness medicine we tested, reaching therapeutic effect in roughly 30 minutes.
- The Advanced Herbals ginger capsule is the only product in our review specifically endorsed by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists for nausea in pregnancy.
- The brand's clinical foundation dates to a 1948 shipboard trial in 485 soldiers, making dimenhydrinate one of the longest-studied compounds in the motion sickness category.