If going on a tour or cruise, will the tour company provide adequate insurance? Most "travel suppliers" including cruise lines, airlines and tour companies will provide adequate and comprehensive travel...
Most "travel suppliers" including cruise lines, airlines and tour companies will provide adequate and comprehensive travel insurance, although you are not obliged to purchase travel insurance from them. If you purchase your own travel insurance rather than purchase it through them, the tour company or cruise line may want to see evidence of your coverage, such as a copy of the policy.
However the travel insurance the cruise line offers you may be significantly less expensive than arranging it yourself; the cruise company probably receives a discount for bulk orders, which they are then able to pass onto their passengers. Make sure it is comprehensive and covers your particular needs. If you book through a travel agency, the agency may encourage you to take out travel insurance through them, as they probably receive a commission.
Whereas most airline passengers don't bother with travel insurance, today around 35% of all cruise passengers purchase travel insurance - a figure up from around 12% before the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001. Not surprisingly, the number of Americans purchasing travel insurance in general has also increased since the terrorist attacks. People tend to purchase travel insurance for a particularly expensive or important trip, or if they are flying somewhere isolated or dangerous.
One easy thing you may want to do to prevent problems and delays if you are flying from your home to your departure port is simply fly the day before and stay overnight. This is a fairly easy way to prevent flight delays from causing you to miss your cruise. Most cruise lines will try to accommodate you by boarding you at a future point of call if this happens - the problem may be changing your airline tickets accordingly.
Insurance provided by your cruise line may not cover pre-existing conditions especially if it is a volatile or unstable condition. Some third party insurance policies will issue insurance to cruise passengers with pre-existing medical conditions - this may be a better option than taking it out through your cruise line.
One of the most common pre-existing conditions is being pregnant - you can still fly or take a cruise if you are pregnant although the airlines and cruise companies have their own guidelines and rules on this.
And cruise lines reserve the right to drop a particular port of call, or substitute another one. If this happens, you usually are not allowed to compensation. And some cruises are canceled or postponed due to infectious diseases - there have been several well-publicized cases recently. Statistically, if you are on the maiden voyage of a particular cruise or company, it is more likely to be canceled.
You may not be adequately insured for those popular shore excursions if you purchase travel insurance through your cruise line. Unfortunately, many shore excursions are operated by unlicensed companies - this may be one area where you need to take out extra insurance or be selective about which shore excursions you choose to take.
