Our neighbors went on a trip with friends to Greece, followed by Italy. They normally regale us with how fabulous the trips they take are but not this time. Shortly after arriving in Greece, they got sick and went to an MD but could only get herbals and homeopathic medications. They went to Italy and still could only get herbals and homeopathic medications. They were absolutely miserable while their friends were having a wonderful time. When they got home, they finally were able to see their internist at Kaiser (HMO) and finally got the antibiotics they needed to treat their severe bacterial infections. By that time, the wife had lost her hearing and her H was also losing his hearing due to the severe infections. Fortunately, after being properly treated with I believe several antibiotics they were able to get rid of their infections and be healthy again (and recover their hearing), but they really were quite shocked at the inability to get antibiotics or antivirals or anything to combat the infections they acquired while traveling. They were also very surprised at how uncaring and oblivious their friends were to their suffering.
We are thinking of committing to a trip to Morocco in April, 2026. Payment in full in due by June 20, 2025 in order to lock in the price. This makes me nervous and I’ve been thinking about purchasing trip cancellation insurance. The cost of the trip is ~$1800/person without airfare.
I’m looking for something that will reimburse us should something happen before the trip making it impossible for us to go. I will also need health-type insurance since I have Medicare and supplemental coverage with BCBS.
Does anyone have any thoughts and/or recommendations? Does anyone routinely use this type of insurance? Any suggestions on what to look for is most appreciated.
What type of supplemental coverage do you have? Several levels cover international healthcare…I know plan G covers up to 80% with the standard $250 annual deductible from B. It has a $50,000 lifetime cap for foreign travel.
We have found it is best to buy trip insurance within 10-14 days of first payment on a trip to cover any pre-existing conditions ourselves or relatives have. There is also “cancel for any reason” insurance. That used to cover at 100% of trip expenses but at last look it covered 75% if you cancel for a not stated (or not covered) reason. We usually use Allianz or Travelguard. There is a site called Trip Insurance Store where you can compare policies and coverages. You can get prices and terms easily online with any of these.
I always buy travel insurance
I don’t think I have cancel for any reason on my recent trip. I think it was quite expensive to add that provision.
I also buy the travel insurance right after booking so to include pre existing conditions
This is what we did as well. And whatever company we used also insures us for the full duration of the trip. It includes cancellation and medical. And things like lost luggage.
I have used GeoBlue for international heath insurance and Allianz for trip insurance (typically flight).
If it’s only $1800 per person, do you have a credit card that will cover you? We have a Chase Sapphire card (the $99/yr one, not the more expensive one).
If you’re mostly worried about medical, you can get a small-ish amount travel insurance policy that still covers medical. trip insurance store . Com is helpful, and has been recommended on CC many times.
Here’s what we sometimes do (though it won’t work for the tour example posted above). Book our own international hotel, pay a bit more for genreous cancellation policy… best was Premier Inn in London, cancel up to 1pm day of arrival. Book our own flights, either with frequent flier miles or a level of ticket that can be rescheduled (ie not non-refundable). For extra medical/evac coverage during the trip, we’ve used GeoBlue… booked within a few weeks of departure date.
Cancel for any reason insurance tends to be very pricey, close to the cost of the insured amount. Coverage for illness or injury that requires you to cancel your trip is usually included in general trip insurance. I did not find that my credit cards covered this. May be time to look into alternative cards.
Has anyone used USAA international travel insurance? I’m eligible through my father. We purchased Globus’ own insurance for our escorted New Zealand trip, but are then heading to Sydney for a few days. The Globus plan covers us through midnight the last day of that tour and flights for 48 hours; they can’t extend coverage. USAA’s online quote looks promising for our independent few days after; mainly interested in medical/emergency.
@Marilyn I need to check for the name, but the travel insurance we got covers us for our whole trip…so four days prior to a trip around NZ, and then 14 days after this part ends in Sydney…because we are staying there for an extra almost two weeks.
It was more expensive but provided more comprehensive coverage and for the full duration…and that was important to us. It also includes cancellation for things like our illness or inability to go, as well as things like needing to deal with extended family issues (like the death of my MIL, which is what we thought of).
I’m wondering if anyone has any thoughts on our next major vacation, likely in Feb of next year? We have been to Europe so many times, we’ve finally gotten weary of the type of tours that we’ve been going on, however, this last Feb we went on a spectacularly different trip. It was a Scenic cruiselines trip on the Mekong River, that traversed Vietnam and Cambodia. It was an ultra luxurious experience with everything included, and absolutely fascinating tours. We really liked that, so much more than more castles, museums and churches. Only 65 passengers on the ship, and we got to know some of them well. What a wonderful trip! So now we’re spoiled.
I’m thinking of something on the luxury scale (okay, yes, I like that now 
) that is very interesting. I have it narrowed down to a few options:
Antarctica, though I’m souring on that slightly.
African safari, but I’m not terribly enthusiastic on that one.
Amazon River luxury boat cruise (probably combined with Machu Picchu). Maybe National Geographic or Avalon Waterways?
Nile cruise with Uniworld, Viking or AMA.
Costa Rica-haven’t researched this much, but maybe two stays at some of the amazing hotels they have in different areas of the country.
Patagonia?
My BIL is really pushing for Butterfield & Robinson, though I don’t know much about them.
Or? Anyone done any of these trips and loved something in particular?
I have not but an African safari is tops on my bucket list.
I like the idea of a Nile cruise, my husband is less enthusiastic because of the general unrest on that part of the world.
I think it’s uniworld that does a Venice to Venice river cruise that sounds cool.
Another option for us is renting a sailboat in the BVI, with a captain and cook.
It’s really nice to not have to worry about anything on these luxury trips.
Seems like there’s always unrest in that part of the world. I had knocked the Nile off my list last year because of two things that I’d read that bothered me, massive crowds and terrible poverty. That’s really tough to see.
That Uniworld cruise sounds lovely, as Italy is my favorite country. I’m just done with Europe for now (though I have another trip there in Sept that I’ve committed to).
Scenic was so amazing, they even tried to hold our hands when we stopped along the riverbanks to get off the boat. They laid a trail with railings on one side and people grabbing your hand on the other. Not necessary for us, but it was kind. So nice having almost every single thing included.
We did a Jordan private tour the year of the Arab Spring. It was remarkably affordable and because people were extra nervous about the Mideast that year we got upgraded to fancier hotels. It was one of the best trips we’ve done.
My husband, who may be losing his mind, wants to do Antarctica, but really only the Drake Passage, which can be MISERABLE to get through. We have friends going next year, but I really don’t have much interest. I’ve heard B&R have great multi-sport trips. We loved our Dolomites bike trip (with another provided) and I see they have a trip there. Consider Smithsonian trips if you’re looking at Nat Geo. I feel like Costa Rica is a different “level” than the others you’ve mentioned. There are so many great options.
We aren’t huge travelers. But the last big trip we went on was to South Africa, and it was terrific. We went to Capetown where we stayed with a friend (lucky us!). If you go, make sure you go to the Stellenbosch region…which is like Napa on steroids. Fabulous wineries, and gorgeous scenery. Many old Dutch buildings impeccably maintained. Our daughter did a wine and cheese tour and they actually picked you up where you were staying.
So much to see in South Africa…Cape of Good Hope, for example. The tram up Table Mountain in Capetown. Best steak dinner I have ever eaten.
Relatives did a two part trip…part to Capetown and part Safari. They said it was fabulous. Some of the Safaris are very luxurious…think a chef travels with you and prepares your meals every night.
If we return to Africa, it will be to Rwanda and maybe Uganda. Lots to do there too. I can give you more details on those if you are interested. DD has been a lot, and seen the gorillas more than a few times, and says that is worth the trip.
We did an African safari pre Covid. It was amazing. We saw absolutely all the animals you would want to see with a terrific company and guide. We went to 5 different parks, luxury glamping, balloon ride over the great migration. Great memories.
We just paid for our big trip next year. We are doing Viking Ocean cruise around Italy to Spain with pre-cruise in Tuscany and post-cruise in Madrid. 3 weeks. We’re celebrating our 50th anniversary and DH 80th birthday. Crossing fingers that travel will be good next year.