Travel insurance

By Ellie Burns-Brookens, Owner, European Discovery

In the past two years European Discovery used to offer Tour Cancellation/Interruption insurance included with all of the tours.  With 2008 we have changed our cancellation policy and no longer offer this coverage default with every tour and instead we can offer for purchase, complete and comprehensive insurance through our travel agent partner - Uniglobe Travel.  With this service we feel that for a very affordable price, you can get complete coverage for all circumstances and the entire cost of your tour including the airfare.  We do not require this insurance, or in any way pressure our travelers to accept it. but offer it as a convenience and for peace of mind for our customers.

This page is to give you information about this general travel insurance.  Basically, travel insurance comes in 4 flavors:
  * Trip cancellation/interruption insurance
  * Flight insurance
  * Baggage insurance
  * Medical insurance
Which type of insurance you need is really dependent on your and your situation.  Travel agents will often recommend this insurance because they make a commission on it.  You should evaluate which you need because you may not always need what they recommend.  Many of the companies I have suggested below put together basic packages that cover combinations of these options.

Trip cancellation/interruption insurance is to cover the expenses incurred if you were to cancel a planned trip where the costs have been paid and are not refundable. With our tour, you make a final payment 60 days prior to departure and this is where portions of the tour become non-refundable.  Most policies have strict conditions such as medical emergencies, accidents and death in the family and many do not cover pre-existing conditions. Please read the conditions carefully on each policy before you decide. You should include both your airfare and the cost of the tour when you calculate the amount of the insurance that you will need.

As with all insurance, you decide what your risk is.  If you are healthy, your immediate family is healthy and you do not see any immediate risk that your tour will be cancelled, it is probably not needed.  I have made over 100 international trips and have never purchased such insurance.  But...that is my choice.  If you feel you are at higher risk, such as older, have someone at home that is sick, or if it would just make you feel more at ease, you should consider it.

Flight insurance is basically life insurance for if the plane crashes.  This is so statistically unlikely, I think it is a waste of good money and it not needed.

Baggage insurance is usually included in most comprehensive policies. It covers the cost for lost of damaged luggage.  It usually carries a cap so you should read the fine print.  Usually that means that you should not pack your 30,000 diamond necklace in your bag but we all know you would not even bring such a thing on a European Discovery trip anyway so not to worry.  Best to just have a basic inclusion in a policy or not to pack anything you would cry over if it would be lost.