Your guide to getting the best travel insurance for backpacking
A commonly asked question i get is ‘Paige, do i really need travel insurance?’. And if you want a one word answer, it’s YES. Unless you have access to an unlimited budget then i wouldn’t take the risk of saving a few quid, not when it comes to your health and life. Maybe a tad extreme, but it’s the truth.
I hope you never have to use your travel insurance, but nethertheless, it’s always best to be covered for peace of mind. With so many to chose from it can be overwhelming, which is why I’ve narrowed it down to some of the best out there!
Safety Wing
Safety wing is a company built by digital nomads, for nomads. One of my go to companies for travel insurance for many reasons. One of the biggest reasons is that you can take out insurance whilst you are already traveling. Not many companies on the market offer this, usually you have to be insured before you leave the country.
This makes it SO flexible, especially for those that decide to travel longer than originally planned. Also you can pay monthly, so you’re not paying a huge lump sum out of your savings, also great if you’re not entirely sure how long you will be on the road for. You are only then paying for the months you are traveling. If you are a traveling family, you also get up to 2 children (1 per adult) added onto your insurance completely free of charge! (Under 10 years old). With safety wing you are covered under health and travel, not just health cover!
Travel Supermarket
I got my very first backpacker insurance from travel supermarket. It has the options for; backpacker, gap year, winter sports, and will compare prices and policies with so many competitive companies. Giving you so many options to compare all on the one website. Always do you searching in ‘incognito’ or ‘private mode’, that way prices won’t go up whilst you’re looking at different policies.
WorldNomads
World nomads is another travel insurance provider, specifically aimed at travellers and backpackers. They cover for everything you can imagine related to travel, and they cover you in over 130+ countries. What’s good about Worldnomads, is that they cover for a huge range of sports and activities without breaking your budget!
True Traveller
True traveller is perfect for travellers and backpackers that are from the UK and Europe. They are another company that will insure you whilst already on the road and out of your own country. Brilliant at giving you a competitive price, whilst also making sure you’re fully covered for your trips of a lifetime!
Tips for choosing travel insurance
You don’t know what you don’t know. So i’m going to go through some things to be aware of and to look out for when picking your travel insurance provider.
- FCDO – a lot of travel insurance companies put into the small print regarding FCDO advice. If the FCDO advises against travel to the country you are visiting, then some insurance companies will not cover you in that country. Even if you trip over and break a leg, they will use the FCDO to avoid paying out, so make sure you read the small print!
- If you plan on traveling long term you may pick up some volunteering along the way to help pay for your trip, make sure this is included in your cover.
- You want to make sure you are covered for; Medical, travel disruptions, baggage loss, more than your standard ‘activities’, money and travel documents, biking/driving (especially if you plan on visiting SE Asia), and legal fees, gadgets+electronics
- If you plan on traveling long term you may want to visit home at some point, make sure you are still covered if you return and then leave the country again
- Also check the excess, you don’t want to be paying out a huge amount of money if you need to make a claim !
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