Forget those expensive carry-on bags. Global travel assistance, helicopter evacuations, and $500,000 in coverage are the real essentials for international travel in 2026.
I have always purchased a comprehensive travel plan and buy it the same day I make my initial payment for the trip to cover pre-existing medical cobditions. I have had to cancel 2 trips, both shortly before traveling and was reimbursed for all nonrefundable purchases within 30 days of filing the claims.
I gather all our medical records as we have appointments, tests, hospitalizations, etc and submit them directly to the carrier. I also have our ability to travel be documented on our records as we have evaluations. That expedites the claims process as the carrier has their “look back” period for medical conditions.
I also have a MedJet Assist policy for evacuation coverage.
I research plans on InsureMyTrip.com and also compare with Allianz.
First time I've commented. Although I always read with interest your many good articles.
My experiences with travel insurance have not been good ones. It seems to me that unless you are a lawyer they will always catch you with something in order to refuse payment. When my wife and I were in India a few years back for a long expensive trip (in excess of 10K), that I fully insured, we got very sick with just common colds (not covid) near the end of the trip. I was able to cancel and get refunds for everything except for a $200 hotel stay for a couple of nights. There was no possible way for us to get a "doctor's note." And so the insurance company -one with a good reputation said no because of that.
After being turned down on 2 previous claims for similar -to me at least - small reasons in the contract, out of many trips over the years, I've decided it's just cheaper to eat the cost if/when it does happen rather than pay for insurance that never delivers. Cancel for any reasons too is filled with "loopholes." I've also not had any luck with making claims with the insurance from credit cards.
Fortunately, I plan trips carefully in order to have as much as possible cancelable and we don't do cruises or anything like that.
But the question not addressed in this article is about countries that are now insisting on medical trip insurance as a requirement of entry. I haven't had to deal with this yet, but expect I will soon.
I'm sorry about your experiences with insurance. It's true, some countries now require insurance, but it's largely medical insurance, so you don't have to buy a full-featured policy. You would only get that for peace of mind. (And after your experiences, probably not.)
Thank you for this important article and the considerations to keep in mind when traveling and purchasing insurance.
I second Christopher's comment about Medjet. We have not left the country in 20 years without Medjet membership. They have always been there, doing the right things in stressful situations. Several years ago they evacuated my niece from London (via private medical jet) to home and also handled my brother's unexpected death in China this year -- all costs included in our membership. Very professional, compassionate, responsive, and reasonably priced. We travel much more comfortably and confidently knowing we have them.
I don't recommend travel guard! To my knowledge they didn't pay my hospital bill! The other problem with some insurance is putting it on your credit card and good luck getting it back or even if there's enough credit on it!
I have been thwarted twice from getting to Petra. Once when Covid Pandemic occurred, and then when the Hamas debacle happened. I still would like to go, but am wondering how safe it ism and what precautions are necessary.
Cruising newbies often think they don’t need travel insurance because if they get sick in the ship, the on-board medical center will take care of them. (See “Dr. Odyssey” TV show). They don’t realize that the med center is a profit center like the spa or gift shop and you’ll be charged accordingly.
A simple sprained ankle on a cruise in 2023 resulted in a bill of over $2,000 which was taken care of by my travel insurance. And I’ve witnessed two helicopter evacuations mid-ocean of sick cruise passengers. Estimated cost of the one evacuation, 350 miles south of Hawaii, was a cool $250K, plus whatever the hospital in Hilo charged. Not to mention the cost of getting back to the mainland.
If you belong to Costco, check out the insurance offered through Costco Travel. Cover-More, a Zurich Insurance subsidiary is the carrier. Good prices and great coverage, but fortunately I have no experience with their claims process.
If I were going somewhere dangerous, I might think about travel insurance. But looking at premium costs (almost $2K for us over 70yo), and the fact that I get only a percentage of non refundables reimbursed, it doesn't wash. I self insure by buying fully refundable airfare and accommodations. The higher price is less than an insurance premium. We have had to cancel a few trips due to medical, and got 100% of my money back.
We do purchase MedJet, however. So far, has worked out fine
My trips abroad are briefer and less frequent and also less expensive than they used to be when I was younger. My reason for buying trip insurance is not so much for cancel/ interrupt, but for the medical coverage. I’m in pretty good shape and my pre-existings are stable. I haven’t had to file a claim in a very long time, but it has happened. One can’t predict an injury or illness ( obviously)
Hello Chris. We have been trying to purchase an annual policy. Mainly to cover car accident (out of the country) slip/fall, heart attack, any type of unforeseen accident. First restriction we could see was: trip shorter than 45 days. Another, no snow skiing, not scuba diving. Are there ANY policies that would cover accidents, medical that allow longer than 45 days??? Anyone who knows, please send a message;-)
Hi Sabina, offhand, I don't know the answer. Let me see if I can find out. You might try Squaremouth, Travelinsurance.com, or one of the other insurance sites, to see if you can find a specific policy, or call them. If that doesn't work, let me know.
It seems you can run into this problem with length of trip, as Sabina did, or the amount being covered. $80,000 for non medical costs seems to be a limit on some policies, like Faye, which can be hit if you have some expensive tours such as an Antarctica cruise and some more non refundable tours in a row. One strategy we are trying is to buy one policy for the first part of a trip, ending on a certain day, and another policy from a different company for the second part starting the day after the first policy ends. We've never had to actually make a travel insurance claim of any kind, so we don't know if this is a good strategy or not. Any thoughts Christopher?
I have always purchased a comprehensive travel plan and buy it the same day I make my initial payment for the trip to cover pre-existing medical cobditions. I have had to cancel 2 trips, both shortly before traveling and was reimbursed for all nonrefundable purchases within 30 days of filing the claims.
I gather all our medical records as we have appointments, tests, hospitalizations, etc and submit them directly to the carrier. I also have our ability to travel be documented on our records as we have evaluations. That expedites the claims process as the carrier has their “look back” period for medical conditions.
I also have a MedJet Assist policy for evacuation coverage.
I research plans on InsureMyTrip.com and also compare with Allianz.
That's a smart plan!
First time I've commented. Although I always read with interest your many good articles.
My experiences with travel insurance have not been good ones. It seems to me that unless you are a lawyer they will always catch you with something in order to refuse payment. When my wife and I were in India a few years back for a long expensive trip (in excess of 10K), that I fully insured, we got very sick with just common colds (not covid) near the end of the trip. I was able to cancel and get refunds for everything except for a $200 hotel stay for a couple of nights. There was no possible way for us to get a "doctor's note." And so the insurance company -one with a good reputation said no because of that.
After being turned down on 2 previous claims for similar -to me at least - small reasons in the contract, out of many trips over the years, I've decided it's just cheaper to eat the cost if/when it does happen rather than pay for insurance that never delivers. Cancel for any reasons too is filled with "loopholes." I've also not had any luck with making claims with the insurance from credit cards.
Fortunately, I plan trips carefully in order to have as much as possible cancelable and we don't do cruises or anything like that.
But the question not addressed in this article is about countries that are now insisting on medical trip insurance as a requirement of entry. I haven't had to deal with this yet, but expect I will soon.
I'm sorry about your experiences with insurance. It's true, some countries now require insurance, but it's largely medical insurance, so you don't have to buy a full-featured policy. You would only get that for peace of mind. (And after your experiences, probably not.)
Thank you for this important article and the considerations to keep in mind when traveling and purchasing insurance.
I second Christopher's comment about Medjet. We have not left the country in 20 years without Medjet membership. They have always been there, doing the right things in stressful situations. Several years ago they evacuated my niece from London (via private medical jet) to home and also handled my brother's unexpected death in China this year -- all costs included in our membership. Very professional, compassionate, responsive, and reasonably priced. We travel much more comfortably and confidently knowing we have them.
Yes, I should have mentioned how fast and efficient Medjet was when we had a problem during the pandemic.
I don't recommend travel guard! To my knowledge they didn't pay my hospital bill! The other problem with some insurance is putting it on your credit card and good luck getting it back or even if there's enough credit on it!
Are you still trying to get your hospital bill taken care of? My team might be able to help you.
I have been thwarted twice from getting to Petra. Once when Covid Pandemic occurred, and then when the Hamas debacle happened. I still would like to go, but am wondering how safe it ism and what precautions are necessary.
Thank you.
Good question. Anyone here been to Petra lately?
No but insurance is a good idea and probably expensive.
Rates for Cambodia and Laos, Vietnam…. All went through the roof lately.
Make sure you have medical and emergency evacuation coverage.
Cruising newbies often think they don’t need travel insurance because if they get sick in the ship, the on-board medical center will take care of them. (See “Dr. Odyssey” TV show). They don’t realize that the med center is a profit center like the spa or gift shop and you’ll be charged accordingly.
A simple sprained ankle on a cruise in 2023 resulted in a bill of over $2,000 which was taken care of by my travel insurance. And I’ve witnessed two helicopter evacuations mid-ocean of sick cruise passengers. Estimated cost of the one evacuation, 350 miles south of Hawaii, was a cool $250K, plus whatever the hospital in Hilo charged. Not to mention the cost of getting back to the mainland.
If you belong to Costco, check out the insurance offered through Costco Travel. Cover-More, a Zurich Insurance subsidiary is the carrier. Good prices and great coverage, but fortunately I have no experience with their claims process.
If I were going somewhere dangerous, I might think about travel insurance. But looking at premium costs (almost $2K for us over 70yo), and the fact that I get only a percentage of non refundables reimbursed, it doesn't wash. I self insure by buying fully refundable airfare and accommodations. The higher price is less than an insurance premium. We have had to cancel a few trips due to medical, and got 100% of my money back.
We do purchase MedJet, however. So far, has worked out fine
My trips abroad are briefer and less frequent and also less expensive than they used to be when I was younger. My reason for buying trip insurance is not so much for cancel/ interrupt, but for the medical coverage. I’m in pretty good shape and my pre-existings are stable. I haven’t had to file a claim in a very long time, but it has happened. One can’t predict an injury or illness ( obviously)
Hello Chris. We have been trying to purchase an annual policy. Mainly to cover car accident (out of the country) slip/fall, heart attack, any type of unforeseen accident. First restriction we could see was: trip shorter than 45 days. Another, no snow skiing, not scuba diving. Are there ANY policies that would cover accidents, medical that allow longer than 45 days??? Anyone who knows, please send a message;-)
Hi Sabina, offhand, I don't know the answer. Let me see if I can find out. You might try Squaremouth, Travelinsurance.com, or one of the other insurance sites, to see if you can find a specific policy, or call them. If that doesn't work, let me know.
It seems you can run into this problem with length of trip, as Sabina did, or the amount being covered. $80,000 for non medical costs seems to be a limit on some policies, like Faye, which can be hit if you have some expensive tours such as an Antarctica cruise and some more non refundable tours in a row. One strategy we are trying is to buy one policy for the first part of a trip, ending on a certain day, and another policy from a different company for the second part starting the day after the first policy ends. We've never had to actually make a travel insurance claim of any kind, so we don't know if this is a good strategy or not. Any thoughts Christopher?