Thoughts on travel insurance from a budget traveler who never thought she would need it…until she did.
Travel insurance. What’s the deal? Do you really need it? How much is it? What kind should you get?
I put off answering these questions for years. I’ve been traveling consistently since 2015 and it wasn’t until 2019 that I actually bought my own travel insurance for the first time.
People might be thinking I am crazy or even incredibly stupid for traveling without insurance. Honestly, they’re probably right.
Traveling just kind of popped into my life when I was 18 and I dove in head-first without doing much research or planning.
But now I am older and wiser, and I’ve experienced medical issues abroad with and without having travel insurance. So I’ve gained a bit more insight into the world of insurance and what it actually means for us budget travelers.
In this budget traveler’s guide to travel insurance, I’ll cover some of the basics and weave in my own experience. Hopefully, readers will gain a better understanding of travel insurance and whether or not to buy it.
What Is Travel Insurance?
Actually, let’s start even more basic than that.
What is INSURANCE? Insurance is something we should learn about in school, but instead, we learn trigonometry and read Catcher In The Rye.
Insurance is when you pay money to a company so that when something specific happens, they will pay for the expenses. For example, you buy car insurance so if you crash, the insurance company will pay for the damages.
So TRAVEL INSURANCE is when you pay for a plan that will cover your expenses if something travel-related goes wrong, such as a canceled flight, lost baggage, trip delays, etc.
Most travel insurance plans also come with emergency medical coverage. So if you get sick or injured overseas, they’ll cover your medical bills.
Read my top 50 budget travel tips for more ways to save money!
How Much Is Travel Insurance?
The cost of a travel insurance plan depends on where you are traveling to, how long you are traveling for, and of course, the insurance company you choose.
So generally speaking, the cost of travel insurance will increase if you travel for long periods of time, visit high-risk countries, or pick a more expensive company.
Most travel insurance company websites have a form that you can fill out describing your trip, and they’ll give you an estimate of what the plan will cost.
If you have no idea what company to choose, just Google “travel insurance to (country) for (your nationality)” and scan the results. Some travel insurance companies are only for residents of certain countries, so where you live factors into the price as well.
You can also search for travel insurance that ONLY covers medical expenses, or ONLY covers other things to cut the cost as well.
Just read every policy carefully before you buy it to know exactly what you’re getting.
Squaremouth Insurance is amazing for US citizens. You can filter and compare different plans, and I’ll go into more detail about this company later.
What Are The Pros And Cons Of Buying Travel Insurance?
So you know what travel insurance is, and you’ve done a Google Search for the country you’re visiting to see how much it costs. Should you buy the insurance?
The short answer is YES.
But for most of my traveling career, I still didn’t buy it. So many people are shaking their heads at me right now.
Why didn’t I buy travel insurance? Big surprise…MONEY!
Yes, I can be reluctant to spend money, hence the theme of this entire website. Sometimes this is a great personality trait. It allows me to rack up savings and go traveling whenever I want.
But sometimes it’s a HUGE flaw of mine and I’m trying to work on it.
So for anyone else who can’t help but consider the costs of things and whether they’re worth it or not, here are the pros and cons of buying travel insurance.
Cons of Buying Travel Insurance
- It can be expensive upfront, especially if you’re doing a long trip.
- If everything goes well on your trip and you don’t have any emergency expenses, it can feel like a waste of money.
- Plans usually don’t cover treatment for pre-existing medical conditions, but that’s normal for any insurance company.
Pros of Buying Travel Insurance
- If you pick the right company, it can actually be pretty cheap.
- If you get sick or injured abroad you don’t need to pay out of pocket for your medical expenses.
- You have peace of mind knowing that you’re covered on your trip.
Looking at this logically, the pros of travel insurance greatly outweigh the cons. Better to spend a few hundred dollars before a trip than have to pay thousands out of pocket if you go to the hospital abroad.
Looking at this from the eyes of someone who budgets to the extreme, sometimes travel insurance might seem unnecessary. People are still shaking their heads at me…SORRY! But this is my genuine opinion and I’m trying to be honest. This brings me to my next point…
Should you buy travel insurance?
The biggest benefit of buying travel insurance is having financial coverage and peace of mind should things go wrong.
Before a trip, consider the likelihood of things actually going wrong.
The truth is, you never know. That’s the tricky thing about insurance, you never think you’ll need it until suddenly you do.
So let’s break this down into the two main components of a travel insurance plan.
Travel-Related Coverage
Think of your flights, baggage, and travel schedule and whether or not having insurance would make you feel more comfortable.
Also, be sure to check with your airlines about their delay/cancellations/baggage policies because sometimes they provide coverage even if you don’t have separate insurance.
Trip Cancellation
If something outrageous happens and you have to cancel your trip, travel insurance will refund your expenses. So consider the probability of that happening and how much your trip costs.
If the cost of your trip is pretty cheap, you probably don’t need coverage. I’ve done work exchanges in Central America where I spent $200 on flights and nothing on accommodation, so I wouldn’t care about covering a trip that cheap.
But if you’ve spent a decent amount on your trip, and there is a slight chance that something might come up, it’s a good idea to have insurance.
An example is the COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020! If you had to cancel your trip when borders closed, travel insurance should have covered you. Otherwise you would have just lost all your money, which would suck.
Flight Delays or Cancellations
If you’re on a time crunch or you have a super-short layover and can’t afford to miss a flight connection, travel insurance can come in handy. They’ll cover the expenses if you have to reschedule or buy a new flight.
But if you’re not in a rush, do you really need insurance coverage for a flight delay?
I always try to leave at least 3 hours between flights to account for unexpected delays. I’ve probably taken over 200 flights in my life and I’ve never had to buy a second flight because I missed a layover. So I’ve never needed travel insurance for that.
Lost Baggage
Travel insurance can be a lifesaver if your bags get lost or damaged during travel.
But again, personally, I’ve never needed this so far (hopefully it stays that way).
I always travel with my most valuable possessions in my carry on. If I check a bag, it’s normally just clothes and shoes, none of which are that expensive. You’ll have to use your judgement about whether you want coverage for lost bags.
Upgrade your packing list with these travel essentials.
Medical Coverage
In my opinion, this is the most essential part of travel insurance. Airlines are so sophisticated these days that trip delays and lost bags are actually pretty rare.
But medical emergencies can happen to anyone at any time. Now that I’ve personally had medical bills abroad, I’d say this alone is reason enough to buy travel insurance all the time.
Still consider the following things about your travels.
Risk Of Disease
Some countries have more prominent diseases than others. Malaria, Lyme disease, dengue fever, rabies, yellow fever, and other infectious diseases are still common in many parts of the world, particularly Southeast Asia, Africa, and South or Central America.
Always research the area you’re visiting. Are you visiting rural villages without medical centers? Are you venturing into the jungle or the rainforest? Are there higher risks for disease and infections in the areas you’re traveling to? If yes, definitely buy travel insurance.
Risk Of Injury
Consider what you’ll actually be doing during your travels and whether you might get injured.
Will you be rock climbing, surfing, mountain biking, skiing, snowboarding, or doing literally any sport?
Will you be around animals that could bite you? Will you be building and working on ladders? You might get injured, so definitely get travel insurance.
The Healthcare Systems In The Country You Are Visiting
Also research the local healthcare systems to see what type of support they offer for travelers. Some countries will have super cheap health care for everyone and some won’t.
In Peru, I had a stomach bug and got some medicine from the local doctor for free!
In Australia, a doctor’s visit with no insurance only cost me $30.
Neither of those was expensive so I was fine without insurance.
But I’d hate to think what would happen to a traveler in the USA without insurance. An emergency room visit in the USA for someone without insurance can easily cost between $1,000 and $3,000 or more.
So consider how forgiving the local healthcare system is, and whether you should be insured or not.
Do You Want To Take The Risks?
What it all comes down to, is whether or not you want to take the financial risks.
Any of the issues I just listed are probably not that common, but they definitely could happen. How do you want to spend your money?
Do you want to spend money upfront IN CASE you have an accident? Do you want to save money at the start and risk losing EVEN MORE money if you have an accident?
These are questions you have to ask yourself because only you can make the call.
Which Travel Insurance Company Should I Choose?
Once you’ve made the call and you’re ready to buy travel insurance, you have to choose a provider. The insurance company you choose defines how much money you’ll be paying and what type of coverage you’ll get.
There are SO MANY travel insurance companies out there. Too many. It can be so overwhelming trying to find the right company for you, especially if it’s your first time buying travel insurance.
To save yourself hours of research, I recommend reading Consumer Advocate’s In-Depth Travel Insurance Review. They have compiled a list of the 10 best travel insurance companies based on detailed research, and they clearly know what they’re talking about.
So that’s a great resource if you want a general overview of some great insurance plans for traveling.
My Favorite Travel Insurance Company
My favorite travel insurance company is Squaremouth Insurance, which is a web platform that lets you compare different plans easily.
I found them in 2019, the very first time I decided to buy travel insurance!
I was about to spend two months road-tripping and volunteering in South Africa. Rabies and malaria are common in some parts of the country, I’d be visiting rural and remote areas, and I’d be in close proximity to wild animals on safari. So I pulled the trigger and bought travel insurance for the first time.
My main priority was having medical coverage in South Africa. I didn’t care about all the trip coverage, and I realized I could search for plans that only included medical coverage. Cutting out half of the coverage meant that the prices were also cheaper!
So I did a Google Search: “Travel insurance in South Africa for Americans” and I found Squaremouth Insurance.
Why I Chose Squaremouth Insurance
Squaremouth Insurance is a web platform that compares lots of different plans and allows you to search for exactly what you want.
After I searched through the website, I found a plan that covered me for 2 months in South Africa for only 60 USD. That is super cheap!! It only covered emergency medical expenses, but that’s all I wanted.
I was still a little hesitant before buying, so I made use of the live chat window on the Squaremouth Insurance website. I asked a million questions since I’d never bought travel insurance before and I was confused. A real person was there answering my questions, and I felt very comfortable after.
After my medical emergency in South Africa, Squaremouth reimbursed me for 100% of my expenses.
I was so happy with Squaremouth Insurance that I now mention them in all of my articles! So if you see me promoting them, it’s because I genuinely had a good experience with them.
Now for anyone who is interested, I’ll get into my personal stories about when I did and didn’t buy travel insurance.
Browse the Squaremouth Insurance options for your next trip abroad!
Why I Used To Skip The Travel Insurance
This is the part where I try to justify my previous reluctance to buy travel insurance.
Most of my trips abroad have been relatively tame. I gallivanted around Europe for a year and spent my time walking through cities, lounging on beaches, and doing a few hikes here and there.
I always flew with just carry-on luggage, and most of my flights were direct without any layovers.
My travels were pretty low-risk, and Europe doesn’t have any tropical diseases or rabid animals. I NEVER bought insurance in Europe, and I never needed it.
I also didn’t buy any insurance for Thailand or Cambodia, or anywhere in Latin America, and that was pretty risky. You could say I was lucky that I didn’t have any emergencies, but I’m also a pretty cautious traveler and I rarely put myself in questionable situations.
I did step on a sea urchin in Koh Phi Phi but luckily scraped by without any medical bills. The locals told me the spines couldn’t be removed anyway, I just had to let them dissolve over time. So I walked around with weird foot pains for months. Was that a smart move? Who knows, but I’m fine now!
Why I Was Extremely Thankful To Have Travel Insurance In South Africa
So now the burning question, what transformed me from a penny-pincher into a strong advocate for travel insurance?
I got bit by a dog in the Transkei in South Africa. I actually got bit twice. The dog may or may not have been rabid.
My boyfriend and I were walking through the rural village where we were volunteering on a sunny Friday morning. We had just taken a tour of the local herbalist’s home. Read all about this amazing experience here.
Anyway, two stray dogs ran at us out of nowhere while we were walking home and one of them bit me twice on the leg.
At first, I just brushed off the incident for a day or two, not wanting to draw attention to myself.
But eventually, I researched whether or not rabies was common in the Transkei (a rugged and remote region of the Eastern Cape). Turns out, rabies is super common there. Especially if the animal is acting weird, which those dogs definitely were.
Next, I researched how serious rabies is. Turns out, most people who get rabies die and there is no cure. Cool. So we left our home at Bulungula Lodge and drove to the nearest doctor.
The Rabies Treatments
I needed 4 emergency rabies shots and 2 immunoglobulin shots. Rabies is no joke. The rabies shots even have to be administered on specific days.
The first shot I got on Day 1 at the hospital. My boyfriend injected me with my second shot while we were hiking in the Drakensberg a few days later. The third shot broke so we had to rush to a hospital on a Sunday and get a new one.
The fourth shot I had to get on the day I arrived home in the USA. That one shot alone cost me $300 USD. Home sweet home.
Everything combined, I spent close to $700 USD on my rabies treatment. I am still dumbfounded at how lucky I am that I chose THIS TRIP to buy travel insurance.
Spending $60 upfront was so worth getting $700 back at the end of my trip.
Conclusions About Travel Insurance
Just to recap:
- Travel insurance may seem unnecessary, but it’s a lifesaver when you actually need it.
- The cost of the insurance depends on what type of coverage you’re getting, where you’re going, how long you’re traveling for, and which company you choose.
- Consider the risks of your trip. Do the potential risks outweigh the cost of the plan? If yes, get the insurance.
- Check out the detailed review of the 10 best travel insurance companies on Consumer’s Advocate.
- I highly recommend Squaremouth Insurance because they fully reimbursed me for the 700 USD I spent on rabies treatments in South Africa.
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If you’re looking for any more budget travel tips, check out these articles!
15 Must-Have Travel Essentials
How To Afford Traveling The World In Your 20’s
How To Stay Healthy While Traveling
22 Solo Travel Tips: How To Travel The World Alone
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