What is adventure travel insurance?
Adventure travel insurance is designed for travellers hooked on extreme sports and boldly exploring the nooks and crannies of the world.
Regular travel medical insurance covers a bit of croquet in a safe country. Adventure travel medical covers kite surfing off the coast of Papua New Guinea, with a bit of trekking through the bush to attend a Sing Sing at the weekend.
Adventure sports and exploration is hard work, usually in remote places. That’s why this kind of insurance handles emergency medical issues, including medical evacuation.
Ok, I’ve got the medical stuff covered. What else do I need?
What kind of trip are you taking? Consider the kind of travelling you want to do before adding bells and whistles. Backpackers who don’t book ahead don’t need cancellation insurance, whilst others may feel more comfortable in knowing that lost meals and flights are covered. And how remote is your location? Easy to rebook/recoup the cash for a surfing trip to Johannesburg. But birders, (yes, birders are adventure travellers) looking for a red-crested spoon-billed Pinkney’s bald blue-footed booby, in special winter plumage during a two-week mating season in the Falkand Islands? Miss it, and might as well call it quits for the Big Year.
Guard your gear
Extreme sports require extreme gear. Protect it with Lost or Stolen Luggage cover.
Read the fine print
Read your policy. How many surfboards will the insurance company replace if they disappear? If your camera falls off a cliff, will the policy pay for a replacement, of the current value of it?
Consider the activities you plan to do off-book. Will the ceremonial ‘tea’ you plan to drink void your policy? If you have a bad reaction and need emergency care? Short answer: YES.
Having an adventurous spirit when doing sports or exploring the world is a wonderful thing. Being adventurous with emergency medical care is just crazy. If you break a leg during the trip of a lifetime, do you really feel like spending all day finding a hospital? Do your friends?
Adventure travel insurance allows travellers to focus on that wave, those bats, your heartbeat after running the 40th mile.
