In a recent post on this blog we talked about the importance of considering travel insurance for a RTW trip, especially travel medical insurance. We talked about a couple of tummy ailments that can end up being serious medical issues if they’re left untreated, and the fact that they’re relatively common when you’re traveling to unfamiliar places makes planning for their eventuality even more important.
But beyond the dreaded “Delhi belly,” there are other common travel disasters that could impact your trip – not to mention the lives of the people in the places you’re visiting – and although it may seem like they’re less likely to happen, it’s never good to be caught without a plan. The news has been full of stories of earthquakes, tsunamis, and tornados in recent years, and you just never know when you’ll be in the wrong place at the wrong time – especially when you’re on a long-term round the world trip.
In some cases, there’s very little you can do to avoid a “travel disaster.” Predicting things like tornados isn’t possible more than a few minutes or maybe hours before they hit, so it’s not like you can alter your travel plans to get out of a storm’s way in that amount of time. What you can do, however, when you’re researching (for instance) where to go in June, is look up when tornado season or hurricane season is for the parts of the world where those are regular issues. Yes, it’s likely that you’ll find more cheap tickets available to the Caribbean during hurricane season, but the fact that anyone visiting the Caribbean at that time of year is at risk of getting caught in a hurricane is the reason those tickets are so cheap. It’s a matter of weighing risks like that and, if possible, taking measures to protect yourself from potential problems.
As mentioned before, getting travel medical insurance is a good way to make sure you’ll be able to get the medical help you need if you’re hurt while you’re traveling (either as a result of a natural disaster or some extreme sport you’re trying for the first time), but there are other types of travel insurance that you may want to look into as well. Trip Protection insurance will help you get your money back on non-refundable travel purchases (such as a tour that’s cancelled due to a strike), and there are also insurance policies that will help you get reimbursed if your luggage is lost or stolen.
Planning for the worst isn’t nearly as fun as expecting the best when you’re thinking about a RTW trip, but it’s far better than assuming everything will be fine and then getting caught with your proverbial pants down.
photo by taigasylvan