Last Updated: 5/8/21 | May 8th, 2021
Travel insurance is one of the most important things you need when you travel — yet it’s often overlooked.
You wouldn’t drive a car without car insurance or own a home without home insurance. Why would you risk traveling the world without travel insurance?
While it may seem like an unnecessary expense, travel insurance provides a vital safety net when you’re abroad.
Illness and injury, canceled flights, damaged electronics, lost luggage, the death of a family member back home — these are all covered by travel insurance.
In a nutshell, travel insurance is an all-purpose emergency coverage plan. It’s the single most important thing you should get for your trip and something I strongly, strongly advise travelers to never leave home without. I’ve seen it help so many people over the years – people who would have been out thousands of dollars otherwise.
Myself included.
I used it for a doctor in Argentina, when my camera broke in Italy, when my eardrum popped in Thailand, and when my luggage was stolen in South Africa.
Each time I was reimbursed for my expenses and was made whole again.
Travel insurance was there when my friend had to be helicoptered out of the Amazon after he fell off a boat, when another friend’s father died and she had to fly home, and when another friend got her bag stolen.
Travel insurance is designed to make sure you don’t lose a ton of money if an emergency happens abroad. Since most health insurance programs don’t cover you overseas and travel credit cards offer limited protection, buying travel insurance is something you definitely need to protect you against the unknown.
Since travel insurance is one of the most complex, important, and confusing aspects of trip planning, I want to break it down for you, help you understand what it is about, and show you how to pick the best travel insurance plans in just a few steps!
Quick Overview: The Best Insurance Companies
Table of Contents
What to Look For in a Great Travel Insurance Plan
Insurance is a billion-dollar business and everyone wants their hand in the cookie jar. Consequently, you face a mind-numbing number of companies, policies, and terminology that can be confusing and overwhelming.
And, in the fine print, you’ll often discover that plans aren’t as good as they initially appear.
So, what should you do?
First, make sure your travel insurance offers a high coverage limit on your medical expenses. A good company will provide up to $100,000 USD in coverage care, though more expensive policies will cover you for higher amounts. The maximum coverage limit you can find is around $2,000,000 USD, though I’m not sure why you would ever need a limit that large.
High coverage limits are important because if you get sick, injured, or need serious attention and have to seek professional care, you want to make sure your high hospital bills are covered. The worst thing you can do is go cheap and get a policy with a $20,000 USD coverage limit, break a leg, and reach that limit before they are done taking care of you. Don’t be cheap with your health. Ensure you have coverage for at least $100,000 USD.
Second, you want to make sure your travel insurance policy also covers emergency evacuation and care that is separate from your medical coverage. If you are hiking in the woods and you break your leg, your policy should cover your evacuation to the nearest acceptable medical facility.
If a natural disaster occurs and you need to be evacuated to somewhere else, your plan should cover that as well. This protection should cover an expense of up to $300,000 USD.
Additionally, make sure you understand if your evacuation coverage will pay for you to get home or if it will just send you to the nearest acceptable facility.
For example, if you break your leg abroad, most insurance policies will pay for your hospital bills. However, they won’t pay for you to get home since it’s not a life-threatening injury requiring advanced care.
Standard emergency evacuation coverage frequently only moves you if your current facility is inadequate or if it’s “medically necessary.” Only then will they pay for a flight home.
In short, double-check if your company will cover the cost of your flight back home if you need it.
If you’d prefer not to stay in a foreign hospital for treatment and recovery, you should look into a medical transport membership program like Medjet. They ensure that, should you be hospitalized abroad, you’ll be able to be repatriated — something many travel insurance policies can’t guarantee.
Third, great travel insurance plans always include the following provisions:
- Coverage for most countries in the world (including the places you plan on visiting).
- Some coverage for your electronics (and have the option for a higher coverage limit).
- Coverage for injury and sudden illnesses.
- Offer 24/7 assistance (you don’t want to call to be told to call back later).
- Coverage for lost, damaged, or stolen possessions like jewelry, baggage, documents, etc.
- Coverage for cancellations for hotels, flights, and other transportation bookings if you have a sudden illness, death in the family, or some other emergency.
- Coverage for political emergencies, natural disasters, or strife in the country that cause you to head home early.
- Financial protection if any company you are using goes bankrupt and you are stuck in another country.
A quick note on electronics: Most companies only have a small limit (
Moreover, many regular and home insurance companies (such as State Farm) offer insurance plans that can help you cover your electronics.
If you’re traveling with a camera, laptop, phone, and other electronics, make sure you have suitable coverage. They’re usually the things most likely to be lost, get stolen, or break.
What’s Not Covered By Your Travel Insurance
Just as important as knowing what your plan covers is knowing what it doesn’t cover. Generally speaking, most plans don’t cover:
- Accidents sustained while participating in extreme adventure activities such as hang gliding, paragliding, or bungee jumping (unless you pay for extra coverage).
- Alcohol- or drug-related incidents.
- Carelessness in handling your possessions and baggage.
- Recklessness (how “reckless” is defined is a matter up to each company).
- Pre-existing conditions or general check-ups. For example, if you have diabetes and need to buy more insulin, you won’t be covered. If you want to go see a doctor for a general check-up, you aren’t covered either.
- Lost or stolen cash.
- Your theft coverage won’t cover you if you left something in plain sight or unattended.
- If civil unrest makes your destination unsafe but your government hasn’t called for an evacuation, you’re probably out of luck too.
Travel Insurance Loopholes: What To Look For
Even the best travel insurance have their limits. Often, in the fine print, you’ll find that plans aren’t as good as you thought.
The medical portion of travel insurance is more about emergency care than being a replacement for your normal healthcare. A lot of people purchase travel insurance get disappointed when they find out they can’t go get an annual physical with it.
Remember, you get what you pay for. Maybe you see two companies offer similar plans but one is really cheap?
Why?
Usually, it’s because the devil is in the details and they have smaller payouts, take longer to process claims, deny more people, or have so many rules in the fine print that it turns out you aren’t going to get paid when you think you are!
Travel insurance is accident insurance. It is there to protect you in case of emergency and, if need be, get you home in a hurry. If you want a global health plan (because you’re now an expat living abroad), you need a completely different type of plan.
Here’s a helpful chart that summarizes common concerns and the corresponding coverage you’ll need. Use it to help you find a suitable travel insurance plan:
The 5 Best Travel Insurance Companies
The world is FILLED with insurance companies. You’re going to come across hundreds ofs them in your search for a reliable and affordable provider. To help you separate the wheat from the chaff, I’m going to list my favorites.
Below are the companies I would be OK with my mother using. If you’ve found a company and it’s not listed here, it’s because I wouldn’t use them. I’ve researched hundreds of policies over the last ten years and have found the following companies to be reliable:
The #1 Travel Insurance Company for Travelers!
My favorite company is World Nomads. I’ve been using them since I started traveling in 2003. They are very reputable and claims are processed quickly and fairly. This is a company built by an ex-nomad so he understands the traveler mindset.
I use World Nomads because I can purchase and renew my insurance policy online in a matter of minutes, they have a very friendly and responsive staff who answer questions and help solve problems via social media, they have great customer feedback, and most importantly, they provide a lot of coverage at a fair price.
Are they the cheapest company out there? Nope. But remember, you get what you pay for. I’d rather pay for quality when my health and safety is at stake.
If there’s one company I would recommend, I would say go with them. They are also endorsed by Lonely Planet and National Geographic, which tells you how good they are!
Other good travel insurance companies to consider
- Best for people living overseas
- The closest thing to normal health insurance
- Available for non-US residents
- Dozens of policies to choose from
- Short-term and annual plans
- Extensive medical transport coverage
- Available for residents of USA, Canada, and Mexico
- Limited time spent in foreign medical facilities
- Super affordable plans (with a deductible)
- Can purchase plans while abroad
- Claims can be filed online
- Coverage for COVID-19
- Compare plans from 23 providers
- Best option for travelers over 65
- “Anytime Advocates” ask insurer to give your claim a second look if you think it was unfairly denied
- Guaranteed low prices
Buy Your Travel Insurance As Soon As Possible
You can buy travel insurance up until the day you leave for a trip (since it usually takes 24-48 hours to kick). Some companies, like Safety Wing, allow you to buy plans abroad. You can buy travel insurance even after you’ve booked your flight, so long as the policy is activated before you depart.
Even though you can wait until you leave, it’s best to get your travel insurance as soon as possible. Every day you wait, there’s a chance something could happen and you can’t get a travel insurance after something goes wrong.
If a hurricane ruins your trip, your travel insurance would only cover you if you bought it before the hurricane formed. Buy a plan the day after you go to the doctor but before he tells you you’re sick? Your plan won’t cover you since your original visit happened BEFORE the plan.
Don’t wait to get insurance. I’ve seen it happen too often. The second you know you are going somewhere and have the dates, buy travel insurance!
You don’t want to end up like my friend in Peru, who decided against coverage, only to break her arm and have to spend lots of money to get it fixed in Lima.
A Note on COVID-19 (and Other Pandemics)
As many travelers learned the hard way, most travel insurance policies do not cover pandemics. Until now, that really hasn’t been a concern for most travelers. Heck, prior to this year I never really gave the “pandemic clause” much thought when reading my insurance policies.
However, these days pandemic coverage is at the forefront of every traveler’s mind (and rightly so).
Fortunately, as insurance companies adapt to our new reality, some companies now provide limited coverage for COVID-19 (or other pandemics). This limited coverage usually includes trip cancelation or delay (as is the case with World Nomads, though they also have some medical coverage for COVID) or transportation home (as is the case with Medjet). SafetyWing also provides coverage for COVID-19.
Before you buy a plan anywhere, be sure to read the fine print regarding pandemics and COVID-19. Make sure you fully understand what is and is not included so you can take appropriate action should a situation arise. When in doubt, call them and speak to a representative. Don’t risk your health on assumptions!
Final Thoughts: Why Buying Travel Insurance is a Must
I know you’re thinking right now, “Ok, I know what travel insurance is now…but do I reallyneed it?”
The answer is yes.
For one simple reason: you aren’t Superman or Wonder Woman. Over a decade of traveling the world has taught me that accidents happen. You may be in perfect health right now but can you say 100% you won’t get sick in the jungle of Asia or hurt climbing a mountain in Africa?
Can you say no one will steal your stuff in Spain or Italy or that you won’t pop an eardrum diving in Tahiti?
Can you say your flights won’t ever get delayed or canceled?
No, you can’t.
And that’s why smart travelers get insurance. Because, for just a couple of dollars a day (depending on how long your policy is for), you’re going to get all those things covered — and more.
I hope nothing bad happens to you on the road but, if it does, insurance will cover it all. It’s more than just health coverage. It’s “something bad happened to me” coverage. It’s all-inclusive and there for you.
So be smart and get travel insurance.
You can use the widget below to find an insurance plan for your trip:
STILL CONFUSED? Here are 10 common questions (and answers) about your travel insurance.
P.S. – If you’ve found this article helpful, please consider booking via the links here as it helps keep the website community supported and advertiser free. All the companies are ones I use myself in my own travels. If you have any questions, email me!
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Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my two favorite search engines because they search websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as they consistently return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and cheap hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. I’ve been using World Nomads for ten years. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
- World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
- Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
- Medjet (for additional repatriation coverage)
Ready to Book Your Trip?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. They are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.
Shaun
I’ve gone to a couple of places without travel insurance then wished I had got some. In both situations it turned out lucky I didn’t but still. Never hurts to have some.
The other way to hedge you bets is a proper emergency fund. You essentially can insure yourself to some extent (not serious injury or illness) but atleast it’s your money there if you need it.
Megan
I’m also with World Nomads. They allow me to renew or purchase a new policy when not in Australia (this is a rare thing to find there). Made a claim with them last year and it all went smoothly. Although a tip to new travellers: keep ALL receipts of items you may want to claim such as camera, phone, laptop etc. If it’s worth more than $100 and you don’t have proof of purchase, they won’t cover it!
Steve
Thanks for this!!
I completely forgot about Travel Insurance until after I left Australia and didn’t think I could buy it now that I had already left
NomadicMatt
You can purchase World Nomads no matter where you are in the world.
Jacqueline
That’s very good to know–thanks for posting!
Wil
Can you get travel insurance without medical? My medical insurance covers me internationally but I would like theft protection without paying for medical again.
NomadicMatt
Yeah, there are a number of companies that will just insurance your goods.
Brian
Our basic approach to insurance is to only cover expenses that could be potentially catastrophic. Health coverage (especially in the U.S.) fits that category, as does automobile liability (again in the U.S.), emergency evacuation services, and possibly some others. Everything else we self insure. Why?
As Matt said, insurance companies are in business to make money. For them to do that they have to charge you more in premiums than the extremely talented actuaries at the insurance company calculate they’ll likely pay you in claims. If a policy cost $4 per day, the value to you is likely to be less than that. Instead, we’ll save that ~$1,500 per year and put that toward a self insurance fund.
Karen Dawkins
I just wrote a post on travel insurance and most of my readers don’t think it’s useful. To be honest, I haven’t purchased it before. Since doing that research, though, I will always purchase travel insurance for foreign travel. Thanks for the detailed info — passing it on to my readers.
Zaid
On a recent trip to Morocco my iPad got stolen from my backpack while I was exiting a train. I am glad my insurance paid me out a little for it (+-$210 for a 2.5yr old iPad 1)
shane
Some credit cards include travel insurance when you pay for all or part of your trip with that credit card. Check your credit card company or bank and see if you’re covered.
NomadicMatt
The medical coverage not substantial though but they do offer gear and trip cancellation protection though. AMEX cards are very good for that.
Erick
Are there any policies that allow you to pick and choose what you want covered and not. Looks like STA and World Nomads only have packages. I already have insurance on all my gear and clothing. Would only need medical and automobile.
shane
Erik, if you’re Aussie I just happened to be looking at QBE and they have comprehensive and what they call Elements. I think elements is just medical but you may be able to pick and choose what coverage you get.
Erick
Nope. I’m a Texan. lol. Thanks though.
Stephen S.
Hey Matt
Quick question, so If you are doing a holiday abroad what type of insurance plan should you get? I thought world nomads covered hoildays abroad but when you said “say you now live in Beijing you need a completely different type of plan.” it got me wondering. Thanks
NomadicMatt
If you are living somewhere, you want expat insurance so you can get regular doctor visits, go to the dentist for a routine check up, etc. Holiday/travel insurance is meant to cover you if you get hurt or sick on the road and need emergency care.
Kristin Addis
I have world nomads as well. Have a few claims to make (yay ear infections from crazy Thai bacterium!) and hope it goes smoothly!
Jeremy
I have World Nomads as well, thank god I didn’t have to use it while I was just in South East Asia (in which I actually met up with Kristin above!), but it’s definitely peace of mind when you’re going to remote countries that you have some protection.
Ellen Keith
I got a year’s worth of travel insurance before I left on my trip, and I had to file a claim more than once (medical and theft). What a good (although annoying) investment. For Canadians, travel cuts is a very affordable option, the best that I’ve come across.
AnitaMac
As someone who travels frequently, I like the one year plans….that way if an opportunity presents at last minute, I don’t have to worry about it – I already have the insurance. Proved to be a huge advantage recently. Spent 3 months in Europe, came home and was invited to go to Barbados with a friend. I bought the plane tick Friday and flew out Wednesday. I didn’t even have to think about it! Insurance is good for one year with as many trips as I want – I don’t even have to notify them!
Be sure to know the plan first though – while I can travel repeatedly in that year, I believe that each trip must be 30 days or less! (I would need to double check if I went on another big trip but a week here, 2 weeks there…no problem!)
Peter Hobbs
World Nomads sounded great, but (at least for me as a Canadian resident) the age limit is 60. Any suggestions for good companies that will cover a 78 year old at reasonable cost?
shane
Banks and Insurance companies all carry travel insurance. Most have on-line calculators. I just checked bank here in Oz and they will insure over 75s. I’m guessing Canadian banks would have similar policies. Not cheap though.
NomadicMatt
Unfortunately, I don’t know! Maybe someone else here can help.
colin
Me too. We are 64 and will be travelling to lands afar again next year. What’s out there for us “grey nomads”. Don’t really need coverage for risky adventures as skydiving,scuba and bungee jumping, not our thing. However the missus wants to go zip-lining. Any suggestions on where to look for grey haired,no teeth people ?
lori
I used World Nomads for the first time during an eight week trip to South America last year. On my trip, I had some medical mishaps and while the out of pocket costs weren’t high separately, they added up. An eye doctor here, an allergic reaction there, an elbow that was gushing blood and more! Beore I knew it, I had seen doctors in four of the six countries. I saved all my receipts and World Nomads paid me back down to the last penny making my investment well worth it. Thankfully none of my medical visits were life-threatening, but it’s great to know that they have great customer service and they paid me back super fast.
NomadicMatt
Amazing!
Adam
I have a couple of credit cards these days where I get travel insurance. World Nomads are pretty good, but my philosophy on travel insurance is get as many online quotes from as many different companies that you can. Then choose the best option that suits you. I use to find, particularly travelling from Australia overseas, is that there was a big disparity in price from travel insurance providers. Everytime I would look for travel insurance and get some quotes there would always be a different company that provided a better deal than the others. I guess travel insurance is one of those products where it pays to shop around.
NomadicMatt
Like I said in the post! Shop around but since people ask who my favorite is, I wrote about that too.
Monique
I have a Mastercard that includes 31 days of travel medical coverage and as we are travelling for 4 months have bought a top up insurance with them for the remainder of our stay in Mexico.
i had a bad shoulder injury upon arrival here and saw a Dr had an xray called the insurance company and they approved what I had done and also approved an apt that Dr made for me to see an orthapdic surgeon, as they thought I had a broken colar bone. As it turned out I had torn ligaments and mussels needless to say extremly painful. Dr said he would see me again in a few weeks, and prescribed pills. I called my m astercard insured company and they told me that I would not be covered any longer with them,as I only had a week of coverage left with them. They told me to call other company they set me up with for the top up portion. They completely washed their hands of it, as it happened with my 1st 31 day coverage, as a result my injury now was a pre existing so would not be covered with them for further xrays or Dr visits.
I then proceded to call my Mastercard plan and they said that I was not covered ater the 31 days and that was that.
They said that they were prepared to fly me back home, however would not be responsible to zpay for all of our prepaid accomodation for the next 3 months.
All I can see in this, is do not get a credit card that offers travel insurance if you need to top up even if you do as I did, use their insurance for the top up…..How disapointing. What do you make of this. I will be 65 in April and my spouse is now 69 and we are both Canadians..any ideas anyone, our future travel plans will be long term..
Amy
My bf and I considered using World Nomads, but they’re just so expensive. In the end we found insurance for half the price through Globelink International, who also provide more medical cover and lower excess costs than World Nomads. I’ve also heard that True Traveller do good policies for long term trips.
NomadicMatt
I looked up the company and while they are cheaper for a year policy, they offer less coverage. You get more medical (5 million GBP is excessive though) but there’s no emergency evacuation coverage listed, property coverage, and a very limited trip cancellation policy. Additionally, cheap insurance is not really good insurance. I looked over their site and it’s super shady. Their underwriter is some other company I couldn’t even find a website for. That’s probably not a good sign. While World Nomads is not the only game in town, don’t get insurance just because it is cheap. Do your research.
JC
I use World Nomads as well. Main reason is being able to do everything online. I found that buying the 6-month policy is the most cost-effective. Just renewed mine for the second time a few weeks ago.
I haven’t had to submit any claim yet (fortunately), but it’s good to know they get processed pretty quickly!
shane
I contacted World Nomads about pre-existing medical conditions, specifically pregnancy, and at the moment pregnancy is not covered. Apparently that will be changing in a few weeks though, and some pregnancy related coverage will be available as a pre-existing medical condition. Conditions will apply.
greg prohl
A timely and info-laden article on the type of nuts and bolts advice travelers need. We are planning an Eastern Europe trip this spring and I plan to be shopping around for insurance, thanks for all the good advice.
NomadicMatt
Welcome! Shop here 🙂
Jacqueline
This article was incredibly helpful, Matt! I’ve traveled extensively internationally but usually am covered through work or local insurance while living abroad, so I’ve never even thought about it. This is my first time to set out on an extended RTW journey, so travel insurance seems like a good idea–thanks again!
Neil
Keep in mind that even if you have your own health insurance that will cover medical issues, almost none include evacuation insurance, which could easily be the most expensive part of an accident.
If nothing else just find the cheapest plan that would offer you that.
Aimee
You said you need to have all your reciepts but I have lost mine to my 700$ camera! Would my insurance cover this if something happened to it! How would I show them I lost it?
shane
This is from World Nomads…
I don’t have receipts for my personal items. Can I still make a claim?
Yes. Please be aware though that you will still be asked to provide proof of ownership for the lost or stolen items. We understand that you might not be able to produce such receipts for each and every item, but you still have to ‘tip the balance’ and should be able to provide evidence of ownership where you could be reasonably expected to have such evidence.
Proof of ownership can include photographic evidence in conjunction with warranty cards, manuals, receipts, bank or credit card statements. In the end, common sense prevails and you should ask yourself, “Does this conclusively prove that I owned this item?”
Robert J Hardy
Well done, your article is pretty good and helpful. Why Buy Travel Insurance? There are a number of reasons why you may want to purchase travel insurance. If you injured in abroad this insurance policy will cover medical and health related expensive. This plan will help to provide you 24 hours emergency service. In this insurance plan they provide travel coverage for cancellation & interruption, baggage coverage and many more. Thanks
Linda
Try http://www.insuremytrip.com. You can buy all-inclusive or a-la-carte type polices. They give you quotes from many different insurance companies. If you insure shortly after booking your trip, the cost is less than if you wait. There are different limitations depending on the company you go with. I bought insurance through World Nomads for my trip to Africa, and I’m glad I didn’t have to file a claim. I paid a lot less for that policy than one I bought through Insure My Trip. In two years I will too old to be insured by World Nomads. Wish I’d heard of them before!
Mark
I’ve been on the road for 2.5 years now, and have neither a country of residence nor any travel insurance. I would happily get something that covers financially catastrophic events, but don’t have any need for smaller things like stolen items or dentist appointments.
Any tips?
Jaryd Krause
Matt – I am a strong believer of health, especially whilst traveling just like yourself and its certainly not worth the risk. On my travels I have witnessed some bad incidents (as you have) and the tipping point for myself to persist on making sure fellow travelers have insurance was from a shocking incident in Egypt, where my mate had been completely taken advantage of. Another way to be covered is by some banks/credit card companies who provide insurance under certain conditions (return tickets and ect.), but for other readers this is just another option. I use this method and have made claims finding it very easy (the credit card companies usually use sister companies as insurers), but of course everyone should look into the policy beforehand.
Cheers for the blog Matt, really good
Anna
Thanks for your post! I would not recommend World Nomads at all. I had their most expensive plan, I had to stop my trip because my mom had urgent surgery and they did not want to pay my trip back home, the reason? According to the dr my mom’s injury happened when she was a kid, eventhough she had never had a problem or noticed she had an injury before. For this reason they didn’t pay for my trip back home eventhough my mom was rushed into the emergency room… I have not worked with other companies but I would not recommend WorldNomads at all.
Sheralyn
Great article… I’ve been devouring everything on this site – love it!
We’re planning to leave in about 18 months for an open-ended trip (ie. 2 years minimum, and hopefully forever), starting off in Malaysia. From what I can tell, travel insurance won’t be suitable for us due to the prolonged nature of our trip, so we’ll need to get some kind of expat health insurance coverage… there are so many companies to choose from, and so much to read (in terms of exclusions etc)… if anyone has a short list of good companies to look at, I’d love to hear your suggestions! 🙂
Duncan
I’m planning on heading to Canada in July for 9-12 months.
If I want to go snowboarding etc during winter, is it better the upgrade the adventure sports option when i’m actually going to be partaking in those activities, or just get it to cover the entire time i’m there?
Am I able to make those kinds of changes with World Nomads while i’m already overseas?
Jag
I find they never pay out. I don’t have reciepts for my items anyway. I’d rather just get health insurance – where can the global nomad get cover for that?
NomadicMatt
clements.com
Jacqueline
Hey Matt! Just wanted to take a quick opportunity to thank you for this post. Because of it, I bought travel insurance that night before my trip to Panama.
2 weeks later, I had to receive an emergency appendectomy while still in Panama and luckily had insurance. Also, I thought your readers would like to know that Panama offers up to $7,000 for 30 days to tourists visiting Panama if anything happens while there (no preexisting medical conditions are covered). So with that and travel insurance, I was completely covered.
NomadicMatt
Thanks for the story!
Andario
Hey Matt! Thanks for the useful post (and comments!).
My “little” problem is that I´m preparing a RTW on my motorbike, and I haven´t been able to find a single company that will cover me if the bike gets stolen (Including Worldnomads et al), which is a HUGE problem as you can imagine.
I guess you must have met lots of travellers using their own vehicles, do you happen to know how did they deal with the possibility of waking up one day not having their vehicle any more? (And no, praying is not an option… 😉
THANKS!
Jen Rai
I’m an American, already abroad (with student health insurance in my current country).
When I leave this country I plan to travel to 3 or 4 other countries for at least 6 months.
I looked at World Nomads, and they said no “multi-trips” — what does this mean? Does it mean it only covers people for one country per trip? I am so confused?
NomadicMatt
They cover you for a set time period. So you buy insurance for say 6 months at a time.
Keith
I’m not convinced comprehensive travel insurance is a necessarily a good deal – with one exception: medical/evacuation insurance. You buy any type of insurance because you have a risk that you cannot afford to take. This is true for all types of insurance: life, health, travel, etc. I personally don’t find trip cancelation insurance to be a good deal in most situations since it’s simply very unlikely you will have to cancel for a reason covered by the insurance and the insurance is relatively expensive. Of course, you have to determine your own risks and make informed decisions. If your travel company has a poor performance record, if it’s tropical storm season, etc. that could make it worthwhile. For me, the cost of trip cancelation insurance is usually higher than the risk justifies. On the other hand, when I’m traveling in a part of the world where medical care is sketchy I always purchase medical/evacuation insurance. The risk of illness or injury (and the consequences of illness or injury) is much greater, in my judgment, than any other possible circumstance. This insurance is relatively cheap and often comes bundled with lost baggage and trip delay coverage. My favorite company is Travelex. The coverage and cost are very good and I know firsthand they pay without hassle.
steff
ok my hubby and I have always got insurance with each trip when we leave Canada which is about $200 or more for EACH part of our cruise,flights and hotels. Found this site we are 52 and 51yrs old prebooked our cruise for Jan/14 but didn’t buy insurance because we still need to book airfare and hotels and we maybe also taking another vacation in the us before then. We figured what we pay for each leg of our trip why not buy by the year. So my question is this insurance primary or secondary to our work plans for medical(no pre-existing problems thankful). And if we buy for the year it covers us on all our trips and flights. Insurance is important to us because in jan up here snowstorms are the hazard.
Julie
I travel frequently and don’t always know how long I’m going to be staying in any particular location. I may go from there to another country rather than back here to the US, before eventually returning home, then leaving again. I like the annual trip policies, but don’t like the restriction of 60 days (I found only one for longer – 90 days) in any given destination (“trip”). What’s a person to do who is traveling around, wandering if you will, and doesn’t want to be restricted to time frame within a particular location? I imagine students who take a “gap year” and travel around the world would want insurance, what do they do? I feel like I’m in the same boat as them. Any advice would be appreciated.