Is Travel Insurance Worth It? Guide to Mexico Travel Insurance

Travel insurance tends to be one of those things that many people never think about until they need it. We get asked quite a bit if travel insurance is worth the cost, and the truth is that it depends on the individual situation. However, travel insurance is a great thing to have. A trip for two may cost as little as $100 to insure for a week, while a family of five can find themselves fully covered for under $200.

If you’re looking for quality travel insurance, we recommend checking out Allianz Travel Insurance below. We use them ourselves, and recommend them for all friends and family who are traveling. They are easy to deal with, don’t require a huge hassle with claims like many insurance companies do, and offer 24/7 phone support and care.

What is Travel Insurance?

First, what is travel insurance all about? There are many kinds of travel insurance people look for. You can find travel health insurance, trip cancellation insurance, baggage loss coverage, and many more types. In general, the insurance serves to help you cover costs due to difficulties and emergencies while traveling.

With travel insurance, you pay ahead of time for coverage for your trip. The cost depends on what you would like covered, how much money was spent on your flights and lodging, and the age and health of the travelers. General travel insurance plans cover basics such as:

• Trip Cancellation
• Emergency Medical Coverage
• Baggage Loss or Damage
• Missed Connections or Delays

When you buy travel insurance, you mitigate the risks of traveling. If you miss a connection, lose your bag, or have an emergency while in another country, you will find yourself with some coverage. This is especially important with emergency medical or dental care. If you’re in a foreign country, your health insurance at home will not cover medical costs. Spending a little bit of money on travel insurance is worth the cost often for the simple peace of mind offered with medical coverage.

Is Travel Insurance Worth It?

So, on to the big question: Is travel insurance worth it? We know many people who travel regularly and have never once considered or wanted travel insurance. For many, travel insurance is an added cost that just doesn’t make sense. However, our opinion is that it is better to be safe than sorry. Especially when traveling with loved ones or family members, the spend of a couple hundred extra dollars can be worth the cost.

Like car insurance or regular health insurance, the hope is that you won’t even need to use the travel insurance. You spend the money to buy a travel insurance policy, and never need to utilize it. However, in the case that something does pop up, it can be a life saver. Life can be altered greatly by medical bills, your trip can be difficult with changes in flights, and losing a bag is no fun (trust me, I’ve had it happen on a domestic flight and they never found the bag!).

If you are spending a fair amount of money to travel, insurance makes sense. If something happens and you cannot make the trip, the airline will often charge cancellation or change fees, or not refund any money at all. Travel insurance helps with this. Whether it is your flights, the hotel, or something on your trip giving you difficulty, travel insurance can help.

Mexico Travel Insurance

There are a few things to consider when traveling to Mexico. Let’s say you are headed to the Riviera Maya, and want to look at travel insurance for Cancun. The cost may be a hundred or two hundred dollars, but consider the other side of the coin. Medical insurance for Mexico isn’t the same as medical insurance in the United States. Although healthcare is cheaper than you may be accustomed to, if you need a doctor you will be responsible for the bill yourself.

The truth is that you never know what’s going to happen. Many of the people that visit the Yucatan are there to be active and partake in the outdoor excursions. Whether you’re doing things in Cozumel or out on a tour in Playa del Carmen, life can happen. Although this area isn’t as dangerous as you may believe, there’s still the everyday possibility of tripping and hurting yourself, having a dental problem, etc. Even though you may be booked at one of the best hotels around, there can be issues or cancellations.

Again, our experience is that the best Mexico travel insurance is through Allianz. Allianz offers free Mexico travel insurance quotes at www.AllianzTravelInsurance.com, so you can see what your costs and coverage would look like without giving an email or credit card.

Is Travel Insurance Worth it for a Cruise?

We have received a few questions about travel insurance for cruises specifically, which is a bit different. There are many reasons to get travel insurance, but one of the relevant ones here is medical care and medical evacuations. If you are on a cruise and away from port, getting to a hospital can be insanely expensive. Again, your health insurance in the United States may not cover the costs, so this is where travel insurance becomes important!

Another factor that is unfortunate but possible is missing the cruise. Flights arrive late, things change, and you miss the departure of your cruise. Without travel insurance, you are just eating the money and losing it. With travel insurance, you can be reimbursed for the cost of the cruise and help make the situation better.

What about Trip Cancellation Insurance?

The final question we receive quite a bit is: Should I buy trip cancellation insurance? This is a tricky one because we don’t want to pick on any airlines or booking sites. Let’s just say that cancelling a trip is unlikely to leave you with a refund in general. If you cancel for medical reasons, you often need proof from a doctor. If the trip is delayed or interrupted due to storms, some airlines deny refunds because you didn’t accept a different departure day/time.

As this article from Forbes points out, airlines and booking sites won’t always reimburse the total costs when a trip is cancelled. The author of this article writes:

Allianz covered almost all the rest, including the canceled hotel and hostel, car service, etc.

In this example, the person paid about $80 for coverage for a two-month long trip, and travel insurance saved his wallet and bank account when the trip was cancelled. Trip cancellation is one of the most important reasons we say travel insurance is worth it. Whether someone has a medical emergency before the travel, weather conditions where you are going turn sour (like a hurricane coming in), or something personal happens and you need to cancel, trip cancellation insurance can help immensely.

You can check out the coverage and costs from Allianz Travel Insurance or ask your travel agent for their recommendations!