How To Best Buy The Required Travel Insurance For Cruises 2022

How To Buy The Required Travel Insurance For Cruises

If you’ve booked a cruise, make sure you know if the cruise line will require vaccinations for guests. Disney Cruise Line now follows Royal Caribbean and Carnival as the latest cruise lines to require travel insurance for unvaccinated passengers age 12 and older departing Florida ports.

What travel insurance do I need for a cruise?

Travel insurance without cruise cover – standard travel insurance that excludes cruises
Travel Insurance with Cruise Cover – Standard travel insurance that covers you for things like medical treatment and lost luggage, including during your cruise.
Cruise Travel Insurance – Definitive cover for cruises. As well as standard cover for medical bills etc, this may include additional cover for cruise-specific items such as missed ports or confinement in your cabin.

If you’re taking a cruise, you’ll need to get a policy that falls into one of the other two categories.

Policies that describe themselves as ‘cruise travel insurance’ may fall into the latter two categories, so it’s important to understand exactly what you’re getting.

While specialist cruise travel insurance is good because it covers you for more things, it’s not absolutely necessary – standard travel insurance that includes cruise cover may be enough for what you need.

Carnival essentials

Unvaccinated guests 12 years of age and older departing from Florida (effective July 31) or Texas (effective August 2) ports are required to show proof of a travel insurance policy covering at least $10,000 in medical expenses and $30,000 in coverage per person. For emergency medical evacuation. These policies should be without a Covid-19 exclusion.

If unvaccinated passengers arrive and do not have the required travel insurance policies, they will not be allowed to board and will not receive a refund for their cruise.

Disney Cruise Line Requirements

Unvaccinated passengers, 12 and older, departing from Florida ports (August 1. through December 31, 2021) must present proof of a travel insurance policy that covers at least $10,000 in medical expense coverage and $30,000 in emergency medical evacuation coverage per person. . There should be no Covid-19 exclusions in the policy.

Royal Caribbean Essentials

Unvaccinated guests, 12 years of age and older, departing from Florida ports (effective August 1 through December 31, 2021) must show proof of a travel insurance policy with at least $25,000 in medical expense coverage per person and at least $50,000 in emergency medical coverage. . Evacuation coverage. There should be no Covid-19 exclusions.

How to buy the insurance you need for a cruise

Meghan Walch, spokeswoman for travel insurance comparison provider Insure My Trip, says cruise passengers can buy travel insurance directly from the cruise line or a third-party provider.

Policies available through cruise lines meet travel insurance requirements, but you can get extended coverage by purchasing a policy on your own. A travel insurance agent can help you find the types of coverage you need for a cruise and price-shop for a policy for you.

Also, Walch warns that a cruise line’s travel insurance “can also be written in a way that benefits the cruise line more than the passenger, such as offering cruise credit instead of reimbursing passengers for money they might lose.”

What is the deadline for purchasing the required cruise insurance?

Most cruise lines and travel insurance companies allow you to purchase a policy within 24 hours of your cruise departure.

But when you put down a deposit on your cruise, there are advantages to buying a travel insurance policy from a travel insurance company:

You are covered for more time to cancel the trip if something happens that forces you to cancel your trip (check the policy for the reasons covered).
You can get a pre-existing medical condition waiver for your travel medical coverage, but this must be added immediately after your cruise deposit.
You can purchase a “cancel for any reason” (CFAR) upgrade if your travel insurance company offers it to you. This add-on will give you maximum flexibility in making trip cancellation claims. You can still get a partial refund (usually 50% or 75%) if you cancel for reasons not listed in the base policy.

What happens if you show up without travel insurance?

If you or anyone in your travel party is unvaccinated and over the age of 12, and is unable to show proof of the insurance policy requirements set forth by the cruise line, you may not board the ship.

Other Insurance Considerations for Cruise Passengers

Even if your cruise line doesn’t require proof of travel insurance, it can be a smart purchase for any cruise passenger due to the multi-leg nature of cruises.

Walch at InsureMyTrip says Covid-19 isn’t the only thing cruisers should be worried about. Important things to consider when purchasing a travel insurance plan for a cruise include:

Trip Cancellation Insurance. You can find policies that cover Covid-19-related cancellations.
Coverage for emergency medical care and evacuation. You can find policies that cover the medical expenses of a Covid-19-related trip.
LOST AND/OR DAMAGED LUGGAGE.
Financial default (if the cruise line goes bankrupt).
Bad weather (like a thunderstorm).

Cruisers may have different and unique travel needs compared to traditional travelers. “Passengers should look for a travel insurance policy that offers cruise-specific coverage,” Walch advises. Look for a policy that covers early return home (for example, due to injury), shipboard service interruption, pre-paid excursion reimbursement and missed connections.

Do You Need Cruise Travel Insurance?

When planning a cruise, it’s wise to make sure you’re financially covered if you get sick, miss your flight, lose your luggage, or your cruise is canceled. But do you need special cruise insurance? Or will your normal annual travel insurance policy work?

This guide to cruise travel insurance explains exactly what you need and when.

Do I need travel insurance for a cruise holiday?

Travel insurance is not a legal requirement for any type of travel. However, it is always wise to get one as unexpected expenses due to medical emergencies, cancellations and lost luggage while traveling can be very high.

If you’re taking a cruise, medical bills can be even higher than usual, especially if you need to be taken ashore for medical treatment. A British grandmother has been hit with a £50,000 bill after being rushed to hospital from a cruise ship in Mexico.

How much is cruise insurance?

destination
Length of cruise
your age
Your pre-existing medical conditions

The cheapest cruise insurance policies can cost as little as £9 for a trip.

Those over 80 or with certain pre-existing medical conditions may find that cruise cover is more expensive. In some cases, the cost of insurance can cost more than the cruise itself. It’s always a good idea to spend some time shopping around for the best price.

A good place to start your search for cruise insurance is with a review insurance comparison site. Along with comparing prices and policy details, the site also allows you to compare real customer reviews so that you can choose an insurer that is more likely to provide you with good customer service in the event of a claim.

If you struggle to get affordable cover because of your age or medical history, then you may prefer to look for specialist providers.

How to add cruise cover to holiday insurance

If you already have an annual insurance policy and want to book a cruise, the first thing to do is to check what is covered in your current annual policy. If it does not cover cruise travel, you should contact your insurance provider and ask if they can add on cruise cover.

Adding cruise cover to an existing insurance policy is usually cheaper. If for some reason you cannot do this, you can take out a single trip cruise insurance policy to cover your cruise.

conclusion

Travel insurance is strongly recommended when you book a cruise. You will need to ensure that your policy includes cruise cover, as not all of them do.

In addition to your standard cruise insurance policy, you can purchase additional cruise cover for things like a missed port of call or confinement to your cabin.

Whether you decide to go for standard or specialist cruise cover, or buy a single or annual policy, the most important thing is to read the details carefully to make sure you’re covered for everything you need.

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