Photo credit: jamesjetsam.blogspot.com

Besides deriving maximum fun from your travels, you should also be travelling with peace of mind with the help of a travel insurance policy. Getting travel insurance that provides adequate coverage will ensure that you are protected against all uncertainties and any adverse events during the course of your trip.

There are many options available when it comes to travel insurance, but most basic or cheap travel insurance policies will provide the minimum coverage for things such as the sudden cancellation of your trip or flight. Most travellers’ pre-travel bookings are already paid for and are non-refundable.

If you are affected by unforeseen problems that prevent you from travelling, you can be compensated for the cancellation fees and travel-related expenses for which you have paid. The travel insurance policy would cover certain unexpected developments such as accidents, illness, or natural disasters, which may cause you to cancel your trip at the last minute.

Medical treatment in other countries can be very costly for foreigners, i.e., you; therefore, it is advisable to get a travel insurance policy that covers emergency medical assistance to prevent nasty surprises. Most policy providers will provide travellers with round-the-clock phone assistance should they need any help when travelling. The insurance provider will arrange for treatment to be provided at the nearest medical facility if travellers require quick medical treatment. Medical expenses that range from surgical, dental, and hospital treatment will be covered, ensuring that the traveller will receive the appropriate treatment when travelling without having to worry about the cost.

In addition, travel insurance also provides cover for personal belongings that are lost or stolen. It can be easy to lose your personal possessions to thieves when you are travelling to a different country. A travel insurance policy ensures that you will receive compensation if your belongings are stolen, lost, or accidentally damaged. Travel insurance providers usually provide compensation for a list of items that includes laptops, luggage, cameras, and suchlike. The reimbursement helps you to continue with your travel plans without too many problems or disruptions.

When travelling, you may accidentally injure people or damage property, incurring hefty legal expenses, if not criminal charges. Most travel insurance products provide some degree of personal liability cover for a traveller. This protects you against having to make huge compensation payments and legal fees, which you may have to pay if any claim is made against you or if you are sued.

Some of the things you will need include your passport, travel insurance, luggage and travel guides. It is also important to change the currency of any cash you will be taking with you, get all the right vaccinations, organise car hire and children’s activities if needed and buy new clothes if the weather or environment is different from home. Whether you are simply going on a short trip to a neighbouring country or halfway across the world, being prepared can make the experience smoother and more enjoyable.

Travel insurance is one of the most important things to get before travelling overseas. Whether you want cheap travel insurance or the best money can buy, it’s vital to find a company that covers you for important things like injury and hospital fees, lost luggage, lost valuables or cash and flight cancellation. The easiest way to do this is by looking online for travel insurance. A good travel insurance company will inform you of all the terms and conditions before purchasing, so shop around before deciding on a plan.

Another vital item is your passport. Many people take it for granted and leave it behind, creating problems before you even board the plane. A passport is necessary for both leaving and entering a country, and is the best form of identification you can have on you. Make sure your passport is up to date and if not, get it fixed in advance. Check your whole family’s passports so no one gets left behind.

So, don’t take a holiday overseas on a whim, be prepared. Make sure you have everything you and your family needs before the flight, while on the plane and while in another country. It will make you feel safe and secure knowing you are protected and ready for anything so you can get on with enjoying your holiday.

Below is a glimpse of what I did to prepare for my 2011 PERU adventure!

First stage of the trip was to find the cheapest, yet quickest way to get from Toronto to Cuzco. The flight was booked about a month ago, but looking for good flights took me about two weeks to find. I scanned through so many different travel sites and I even compared the prices and times with travel agents. I finally found a great flight after lots of research.

Flight

Leaving Toronto with American Airlines on Oct 5 and arrive in JFK in the evening. We leave from JFK with Lan Chile airlines for Lima. Arriving in Lima in the early morning to catch our final flight to Cuzco at 8am. Arriving in Cuzco, October 6 at 9am. (No time change). This flight was one of the best connection flights I found, that also included a reasonable price too. Costing me only $1,100 return.

The second step was to book the train to Machu Picchu.  I knew we wouldn’t have time to hike to the peak, since our trip isn’t overly long. So booking the train and entrance fee for the park was the second most important thing to organize. The train was booked online on Perurail. With only a few spots left (surprising since I booked a month ahead of time), we booked the train that goes from the sacred valley to Cuzco. One way cost us $34USD and the return train ride was $60USD, since we decided to return in “style”. Booking the entrance fee to the park was a bit confusing considering how many different options there were to choose from. I read through many reviews online and recommendations. Many people had different ideas in how to book the entrance fee for the park, however I decided to book where many people opinions were similar. I booked online on the government of Peru website for national parks. It was extremely difficult since the website was all in Spanish (my Spanish isn’t very good). The entrance fee cost me $50USD. Pretty expensive I thought, but totally worth it. We paid a little extra to get the time slot of the sunrise. I really wanted to get on the first bus ride to the park in order to experience the sunrise over the village.

The third step was to organize the hostels and where we would be staying for each night. I booked the reservations on hostel world. I picked the most convenient and reasonably priced hostels that also included many services like Internet access, lockers, and breakfast. The hostel bookings didn’t take me too long, since I have booked many hostels in previous backpacking trips.

After all this booking and scheduling for a 10 days trip, the small elements started to approach. The small things included, getting travel insurance, travel medication, Peruvian money, clothing (for mild, wet, and hot weather), shoes, and carry on elements.

The travel medication was one of the biggest challenges, since we had to schedule an appointment with a travel doctor, figure out how much the meds would cost or if our work insurance will cover it, and when to take the meds during the trip. The first medication was getting the yellow fever vaccine. We found out, that you can’t enter the country without showing proof that you have the vaccine. The yellow fever shot cost us $150CAD each. It was a little steep. The next medication was the malaria pills and travel diarrhea pills. I was thankfully lucky that my work insurance covered it, since it was total of $175CAD, but my boyfriend wasn’t so lucky. We couldn’t believe how expensive it cost to have these meds, in order to travel sick free. After all this med stuff we had to find waterproof, windproof and bug-proof wear for the Amazon. I usually go to Mountain Equipment Co-op to purchase most of my gear. I did purchase a few pants for the trip that are bug proof. But we also went to the Buffalo to find waterproof – Gore-Tex wear for jackets. Our clothing gear cost about $250 for everything. It wasn’t as expensive as what most outdoor gear could cost.

Once all the small things were done, I decided to layout everything that I am bringing. I was overly surprised in how little I packed. I prefer it this way, since my backpack won’t be overly heavy. So now I only have two more days for any last minute planning and I believe I have nothing left to plan! YAY. It’s just time to get more excited!!!

Image courtesy of Ben Beiske

After a few harshly-learnt lessons myself, I know the sheer importance of travel insurance. After being stranded in Paris over Christmas when the Eurostar broke down (worse than it sounds!), and getting stuck in the Algarve with no money when my purse was stolen; the few dollars I now shell out for insuring my travels is the most important purchase I make. Make sure you know what you’re covered for, and most importantly, what you’re not! Below are the 5 most commonly-thought insured scenarios which in-fact, aren’t.

1. Risky activities: So, you can’t wait for your trip to the south of France where you’ll be taking full advantage of the exhilarating water sports and thrilling once-in-a-lifetime adventure sports, and because you’ve got your trip insured, you think you’ll be covered for any injuries, right? Wrong.

Most insurance policies won’t cover stuff like bungee-jumping, paragliding, or even the tame stuff like rafting and banana boat rides; unless you specify before-hand that this is what you intend to do. Pay the extra dosh and get covered, it’s so not worth paying out thousands in medical expenses when you’ve hurt yourself rock-climbing or jet-skiing.

2. Mental illness: Ok, this is a rare one, but if you’ve been diagnosed with anything that might come under a ‘mental illness’ before travelling, such as depression or bipolar disorder; you’re not covered for anything that might happen whilst away.

Most people think mental illness would be covered by medical expenses; but it’s not. Also not covered is cancellation of the trip due to any sort of emotional or psychological crisis, so check out some specialist cover.

3. Death or illness of a pet: Yep, you read right; apparently insurance companies don’t see pets as a part of your family, so if you have to cut your trip short or cancel it because of a pet’s illness or death, you’re not covered.

4. War or local protests: Whilst terrorism has been added to the list of ‘covered scenarios’ in recent years, acts of civil war or political unrest generally aren’t covered. Not being covered for this could be an upsetting blow to an already scary situation. If you encounter any damages or injuries as a result of this, your medical expenses will come from your own pocket.

5. Pregnancy: Basically, if you are pregnant, then don’t try and hide it! If you have any issues whilst you’re away, you’ll be accountable for all medical expenses, which could get costly. Pregnancy is classed as a medical condition, and there are plenty of specialist insurance companies which will cover you.

Believe me, worldwide travel insurance will be the single most important travel purchase you make; and it can be the cheapest. With loads of insurance compare websites, such as moneysupermarket (which I used) you can be entirely covered for any trip without breaking into your spending money.

Travel Insurance providers are very crafty and if you have to make a travel insurance claim providers make you jump through many a hoop before they will accept a claim and give you your money back to cover the claim.

The main reasons providers decline travel insurance claims are as follows:

• Lost or stolen items were not reported to the local authorities,

• Or no evidence was produced to suggest the local authorities were informed.

• Customers fail to contact their insurance provider to make the claim within the time period stated on their insurance policy (often this is only a few days).

• Injuries occurred while the backpacker was taking part in an activity not covered by the travel insurance provider.

The best way to avoid a travel insurance provider from declining your claim is to be as prepared as possible before you go away and have a small knowledge about what to do if you have to make a claim. 

Before you go away

• Shop around for a decent policy before you go.  Do not do what a lot of backpackers do and take out the cheapest travel insurance policy available.  Cheap policies often have a huge excess which you have to pay if you need to make a claim and they also do not cover you for important items like personal possessions or emergency evacuation.

• Buy a policy that covers all of the activities you are planning on doing while you are away.  Most providers offer you the opportunity to customise your policy to cover various activities at a slightly higher cost so consider what activities you want to do before you go and add them to your policy if they are not already included in the policy.

• Make a copy of your travel insurance documents and take one copy and leave another copy with a friend or relative at home.  If you have a secure email account email a copy to yourself along with a copy of your passport and any other important documents.

While you are away

• Do not take part in any risky activities unless you know your policy covers you for such activities.

• Do not take part in any illegal activities.  If you have an accident or lose your belongings while doing something illegal your insurance will not cover you for any assistance you may need.

If you need to make a claim

• If something has been lost or stolen contact the local authorities as soon as you are aware the item is missing.

• Contact your insurance provider immediately and inform them of the situation.

• Collect up as much evidence of the incident as possible to present to your insurance provider.  This includes photos, Doctor reports and signed police reports.  The more evidence you have the easier it is to make a claim on your insurance.

• When you are home send your insurance provider a copy of all of the evidence you collected.

• Keep a record of every time you have contacted the travel insurance provider.

• Try and contact your travel insurance provider by email so you have written evidence of your communications with them.  If you spoke on the phone drop them an email confirming what was said on the phone.

• Get the name of the person you correspond with regarding your claim and try and speak to them every time.

• Be persistent, keep contacting your travel insurance provider until the money for your claim is securely in your account. 

For further information and advice on travel insurance visit the travel insurance guide http://www.travelinsuranceguide.org.uk/know-before-you-go.html

I traveled Europe with no insurance at all, well the only thing I did have was an open-ended plane ticket incase of any emergency. However, with my luck I came into contact with an unexpected circumstance. When I was in Barcelona I got an incredible bad case of bed bugs. Yes yuck!!! I was taking a train from Barcelona to Madrid at which I first noticed these red bits on my arm. I didn’t really consider anything of it, until I reached the hostel in Madrid. This guy came up to me and mentioned that my face was covered in little red bumps and that I should see a doctor. I was little freaked out, so I went over to a pharmacy to see if they had an idea how to correct this. With my luck no one spoke English, so I headed over to the hospital. Once I was at the hospital I received some medication to reduce the look and the doctor mention I was lucky. Well in the end, the only reason why I was allowed to see a doctor and get the drugs I needed was due to my British passport. Since I am European Citizen I was covered for health insurance. If I used my Canadian passport and mentioned that I had no travel Insurance I would have been out of luck. Overall I learned my lesson in not getting travel insurance because if I was in another country I would have been completely out of luck. So oftentimes in backpacking you may never use travel insurance, but when something like this happens it is a great way to cover all your problems. There are many ways that travel insurance can cover you; Cancellations (flights), Medical Expenses, Stolen or damaged luggage, thefts, or even loss of traveler’s checks/documents. Now, yes you may have to pay a little more to cover your steps, but in the long run I believe it’s worthwhile. What do you think?