Anyone who’s been following HoneyTrek knows we have our share of crazy adventures…gorge swinging over the Zambezi, rock climbing sea cliffs in Thailand, self-driving safaris in Africa, and plenty more adrenaline kicks. And while travel insurance isn’t all that sexy…having it gives you peace of mind and lets you focus on the fun stuff. Our travel style has changed over the last five years on the road, and so has our insurance. See our travel insurance reviews to find out which type is best for your lifestyle. To begin, ask yourself these questions…
What type of traveler am I?
(click your travel style to jump to the relevant section)
“Mom’s Speech”
Regardless of your age, current health coverage, or lucky rabbit’s foot…you need travel insurance. It’s there to protect you, physically and financially, in a variety of “what if” situations: illness, injury, medical evacuation, theft, trip cancellation, flight delays, lost luggage, fender benders, busted cameras, and getting you home if disaster strikes…and it’s way cheaper than you might think. Make sure the provider you choose is backed by the US Travel Insurance Association, (full list here)
(Caveat: Even though we’ve stayed at a Holiday Inn Express…we’re not doctors or professional insurance representatives, so please use our research to inform the conversations you have with you potential insurer. Also, everyone’s situation is a little different, as are the insurance rules in your home country, so find the plan that suits you best)
A)I travel once per year for my big vacation, and I’d like insurance for my flights, hotels, and/or tour
If you save up for one big vacation per year, you don’t want anything to throw a wrench in those plans. Something might come up…i.e. you or one of your travel companions gets sick, your tour operator stops picking up their phone, your plane has mechanical issues and the cruise leaves without you, weather derails your itinerary, the airline loses your luggage, you ding your rental car…and a slew of other things that could ruin your vacation. Trip insurance can cover all of those scenarios. Head over to InsureMyTrip or SquareMouth to find the right plan for your needs. Plans range between $30-$300 depending on a variety of factors (your age, destination, cost of trip, etc). Go with a reputable company but know that higher price doesn’t always mean higher quality.
B) I travel multiple times per year for business & pleasure; I want the benefits of insurance without having to buy it each trip
You should get an annual plan. This will provide coverage for all your flights (cancellations, delays, overnights, etc), luggage (lost/damaged/delayed), electronics (broken/lost/stolen), car insurance, emergency medical care, evacuation, and a plethora of other incidents. Plus, since it’s a year-long plan, you’ll never have to debate, “Is it worth buying insurance this time?” For a frequent traveler, it’s always worth it, especially when you’re automatically covered everywhere you go, for less than one-off insurance. We originally looked into Allianz to cover our trip to Antarctica but when we realized how inexpensive it was for an entire year of coverage, we decided to go with their annual plan. The Allianz All Trips Plans cover everything mentioned above, on unlimited trips and unlimited flights, domestic and abroad. If you take 6+ business/pleasure trips per year check out the All Trips Prime Plan (~$250/year), if you take 3+ trips per year the All Trips Basic Plan is a no-brainer at only around $135/year (prices vary depending on your age and state of residence). Annual plans that came in 2nd & 3rd place were; Travel Guard TravelRite Annual & Travelex Annual Flight Insure Package.
C) I am planning for a multi-month RTW and want to be insured for any emergencies or mishaps that happen on the road
As fellow round-the-world travelers, we are so proud of you for taking the leap to travel long-term, you won’t regret it! Now, to get you insured! We polled over 100 long-term travelers for their RTW insurance of choice, and the overwhelming winner was WorldNomads. We went with their Explorer Package (it was $1,300 for us) which covers more adventure activities, like scuba diving, mountaineering, even bungee jumping. We didn’t need to make a single claim during our 675-day RTW, but one friend used it for emergency dental surgery in Thailand and another to take a last-minute flight home for a family funeral, both said WN made reimbursement a breeze. We also loved that World Nomads let’s you extend your plan with a few clicks. p.s. If you want more tips, check out a few of our RTW resources.
D) I live abroad most of the year (or) I will have regular medical needs while on my RTW
You should consider global health insurance. This serves more regular medical needs and wellness visits, in addition to emergencies. GeoBlue is a network of English-speaking doctors in 180 countries (including the USA) and their Xplorer plan covers checkups, prescription drugs, hospital care, surgery, and medical evacuation–with no cap on coverage.
BONUS: Personal Articles Insurance. If you are traveling with a lot of valuable camera/computer gear, you might benefit from “Personal Articles Coverage.” State Farm offers incredible value for the money. We got a quote of $75 to cover up to $8,000 of electronics…for an entire year (note: premiums vary by state)
Whether you are an A, B, C, or D Traveler, get yourself some travel insurance, kick back, and enjoy the ride!!!
Note: We are brand ambassadors for Allianz Travel, and we continue to work with them because of the quality of their insurance and customer care.
As someone who is on the road 175+ days a year, I absolutely agree. Insurance is of utmost importance – you never know when you’ll need it and it is such a money-saver, too. I am very grateful my employer covers it for me!
Wow more than 175 days a year…your a girl after our own heart! That’ great your employer covers it for you…very smart on their part. Happy travels!
I agree with getting travelers insurance. It has helped me out when we had to cancel our trip. Instead of footing the bill for canceling, I was reimbursed.
Getting reimbursed a large sum when you only put in a little bit, that’s when you know they have your back!
Oh that’s awesome it saved you! We have heard so so many stories like that (or even more serious), and we will never travel without it again. It’s so cheap compared to the alternative!
We travel a lot and have never gotten travel insurance. Sometimes we think we should, then say maybe on our next trip! Our friend had a bad experience with hers, so we have been timid about paying for it.
Insuring per trip never seemed worth the hassle to us either, especially through those booking sites, it just felt like a scammy upsell. That’s why did our research to find reputable companies like the ones above. Especially if you travel a lot, the Allianz annual plan could be good for you (it is for us 🙂
I think I’m traveler type A. I will have to check into insurance on our big trip this Summer.
Definitely…especially as a family of seven!
Yeah totally check it out @wemake7:disqus, for one off trips it can be super affordable and just gives you a good piece of mind, especially if you prepay for any hotels or excursions before you leave.
I never thought of traveler’s insurance before, but then again I don’t travel far or often. Glad to read this as it helped me understand a bit more of what can go into traveling!
It doesn’t have to be just for huge trips abroad, it’s really for any type of travel, even little weekend trips. Glad it helped!
Glad you enjoyed it and learned a few things @brandyellen:disqus, there are so many different types of travel insurance, but most people think it’s just one type. Hope we shed a little light 🙂
I’ve never thought of getting travel insurance before… can you tell I haven’t traveled in a while?! I’ll think about this my next travel experience
Yea when think about all the variables (lost luggage, denting a car, delayed flights, cancelations), it’s great peace of mind especially for a little extra money.
I heard of stories of people who didn’t have travel insurance and the money they had to pay when injurys happened.
Us too. It’s very scary prospect, so not worth that risk.
You are so right @ohnikka:disqus. A good friend of mine slipped on a wet step while getting onto a boat in the Amazon and broke his back, and he had to get airlifted to the USA…would have cost him over $130,000 for the air ambulance out of the Amazon…man he is glad he had insurance I can tell you that.
I buy travel insurance for international trips. I think it’s very important to have a coverage while we’re in another country
Very cool. I think people only think about travel insurance for big flights and super expensive trips/tours abroad, but when you start adding up road trips and weekend getaways domestically..most of us travel a lot more than we think and aren’t covered for them…that’s we just get it in one lump for the yea and never have to worry about it.
My mom travels a lot and she never books a trip without travel insurance. It has saved her a lot of money a couple of times when she had to cancel the trip. Its worth buying
When it pays off, it pays off tenfold. That’s awesome it’ helped your mom out in the past.
I feel like travel insurance is one of those things that most people don’t even think about. This was a great post! You never know what will happen; travel insurance is peace of mind!
We couldn’t agree more Ashley, it either isn’t talked about, or it’s just plain confusing so people avoid it. But man, when something serious happens (like my good friend, who’s only 38, broke his back just walking onto a boat in the Amazon and had to get airlifted to the USA), you are ssssooooooooooooo glad you have it!
We know what you mean, people sometimes just think about travel insurance for the extreme scenarios but in this day and age, we all travel so much more for–business, vacation, to see our families spread across the country–it makes sense even if you aren’t a “big” traveler…the peace of mind is worth it!
I think travel insurance sounds nice if you travel a lot, we do maybe 2 trips a year and I wonder if it’s worth it for that, and the only places we go are a state or two away.
When you start involving flights, reservations, gear, adventures, that’s when its definitely worth the little spend for a lot of protection.
i have to be honest i dont ever think about purchasing travel insurance. and i am sure no one that i know has either. thank you for sharing this is valuable information
Pinned! As a travel blogger, this is such an informative post. Thanks for sharing.
Interesting read!! Thanks for breaking down this confusing topic guys
Thanks for checking in our Nour. We never travel ANYWHERE without out travel insurance any more. You just never know when something bad might happen, or an accident, or lost luggage, missed flight, whatever.