You want to know which is the best travel insurance? Because, not something else, but before going on a trip and, especially if you plan to be away from home for some time, it is essential to get a good travel insurance. In this article we show what are the points to consider when choosing the one that best suits our trip, what aspects to look for before hiring it and a few more tips. And we bring discount!
When we started traveling, choosing the perfect insurance was one of the things that gave us more headaches: the market is full of them ... But How to choose the best travel insurance? Then we give you the keys to do it. Mothers of all travelers in the world, after this post we know that you will love us, because there is nothing more important than health (and yes, indigestion after eating too many croquettes, is covered by insurance).
It is true that many times we are too optimistic and we think that nothing will ever happen to us, but the day that happens, if you are also far from your home, it is all a brown. Since we started traveling, back in 2011, We have always hired travel insurance before starting each of our adventures. This is recommended both for those who plan a short trip, and for those who leave home for long periods.
We always leave a space in the budget to devote to this expense. And it is that sincerely one travels much calmer (we and our families) knowing that if something happens you can have a group of specialists who take care of everything.
In addition, depending on the destination, the joke of not traveling with good travel insurance can be expensive. Many countries like the US They have a disastrous public health, and the private one costs a lot, do not be surprised that you have a leg plaster but you have to leave without a kidney to be able to pay it! If travel insurance is interesting for any destination, there are some for which it is especially.
Is it only recommended for long trips?
No, to think that taking out travel insurance only for long stays abroad is a mistake we usually make. Whenever you go on a trip to places where you are not covered by public health, it is advisable to take out insurance. We know many cases in which the trip was "twisted" to the first change ... poor Pepita (we will keep his real name in anonymity to not disclose his "bad leg"), which broke his leg the first day of his travel around Iceland and the joke cost him a lot of thousands of € (true story).
Also keep in mind that prices are for duration, so for short trips the price will not be excessive.
Keys to compare the best travel insurance
Travel insurance in the market there are many, so we will have to take into account a few premises to choose the one that best suits our trips:
1) Check the maximum time allowed to stay abroad: If you are going to travel for long periods of time, check if the insurance has a time limit away from home, it may insure you for one year, but only trips with a limit of 30-60-90 continuous days outside your country of home.
2) Know if in case you need assistance the insurer takes care of all payments, or if the other way around we have to advance the money that will be reimbursed once we return to Spain. It is better that they take care of everything, then it can be stressful to look for each receipt to send to the insurer and a mess of bureaucratic procedures.
3) Know the insurance limit for medical, hospitalization and repatriation expenses (clearly the higher, the better). Especially in countries like the USA, where for a day of hospitalization they can charge you up to $ 10,000! We have recently seen travel insurance with a coverage of € 50,000 ... that's poop! This is one of the most important aspects and this is known by Iati, which has recently folded the coverage in all its insurance.
4) Have transfers in case of death abroad. We don't want to leave a nice gift to the family after they die, right? (Although, obviously ... none of that will happen because we don't want to pat it!)
5) The more coverage have insurance, usually more expensive it is. If you think you will not need anything related to flight delay, luggage, adventure sports coverage, etc. Maybe you can get insurance with a tighter price.
6) Keep track of the small letters: If you plan to do diving, climbing, risk sports, in many cases there are clauses that exclude them. There are special insurances for these activities such as Iati Mochilero.
7) Do you attend in Spanish? This is very interesting if you are traveling in countries where you do not work in your local language. In case of an accident, make sure that the attention is going to be in Spanish and they will take care of everything, without having to bother giving you many more explanations in the hospital, or that they have the service of putting a translator.
Save or not on your travel insurance
The decision to choose an insurance or another should not be taken only for the final price of the policy, although obviously we always tend to choose the cheapest ones. It is more important to have references about the company, talk to other travelers, search travel forums and blogs and read the comments of people who have already tried that insurance.
It is no use saving a few euros in insurance that then will not provide the service efficiently and quickly. Remember that what is at stake is your health! And with health you should not play ...
What travel insurance do we use?
Given all this we opt for the insurance offered Iati. It is an insurance company specialized in travel insurance, with a lot of years of experience, a few insurance options at different prices, unbeatable attention, extensive coverage and with excellent opinions of travelers.
Luckily we have only used it a couple of times, in Australia and Colombia, coincidentally for the same reason. Lety was stung by a spider in the face in the first case, and behind the ear in the second, and he put on the crappy thing. The attention of Iati was perfect, we were assigned in both cases a local coordinator with whom we had all the conversations, and who looked for us the nearest clinic and hospital, etc.
Many travelers with whom we agree have also had to use Iati, in different situations, such as the friend who in Vietnam had to be admitted to a hospital for dengue (poor Fra, the comic ended well huh, our favorite pizzaiolo is now safe and sound ). Or the one who had to have surgery for appendicitis in a hospital in Chiang Mai (see that you are ill, cousin!).
In our case, since we spend more time away from home than inside, we have the insurance Iati Great Travelers, which has two modalities: long-term travel, and annual multi-trip. We opted for the latter, which covers all the trips we make during a year with a 90-day limit (then we tell you more about all the insurance offered by Iati). Perfect for us!
→ If you want you can benefit from a 5% discount if you hire through this link
If you do an exhaustive search, you will see that there are many insurance companies, and you may prefer not to give as much importance to the reputation of a company as Iati and save you a few euros in some other company ... We with this, the truth, we prefer to go to the safe and We haven't found any company with as many positive recommendations as Iati.
What travel insurance suits you?
If you finally decide to take out travel insurance, you will have to opt for one or the other depending on your needs and characteristics of your trip. Iati has a wide range of modalities, with different coverage. We leave you the most important data of each one and check which of them best suits you:
♣ BASIC IATI
It is the basic insurance, ideal for short trips (maximum 30 days), which covers up to € 50,000 of medical expenses, along with other basic coverages. It is recommended for those who want to travel to destinations where health is not expensive and be calm.
♣ IATI STANDARD
Insurance that increases the amount of medical expenses at € 200,000, and collect some more toppings. It's perfect if you think the previous one falls short. It is what we usually catch our family when they accompany us on trips, as long as the destinations are not hyper expensive, like the ones we tell you next ...
♣ IATI STAR
Ideal for vacation trips in destinations where health is expensive as in the US, Canada or Japan, and for those who want to be completely calm, with the highest limits, both in medical expenses (up to € 500,000), as in the rest of coverage (luggage, theft, delays…. Something very important is that it covers adventure sports (kayaking, trekking, snorkeling…), so if on your trip you plan to practice any of these, it may be the best option for you.Of the three, it is the most complete insurance and if you want to go well covered paying a little more, the ideal one.
♣ IATI BACKPACK
It is perfect for those who have planned to do risk and adventure activities, because Basic and Standard insurance do not cover accidents in these circumstances. Regarding the Star, diving, trekking at a higher height, canyoning, and a few more activities are also included. It has a limit of medical expenses of € 250,000, more than enough and very good coverage in general. It is usually the one we recommend for trips around Southeast Asia.
♣ IATI BLOGGERS AND GREAT TRAVELERS
For those crazy nomads for the trips that decide to leave everything to go out and explore the world! Or for those frequent travelers who occasionally embark on a new adventure. If any of these is your case, study the two different options:
- LONG DURATION: for long trips between 6 months and one year.
- ANNUAL MULTIVIAJES: to be covered for a whole year in your trips of less than 90 days (it is the one we have).
In both cases they have a € 200,000 medical coverage and lots of other extra coverage, so you can travel the sea of calm.
♣ Important
All the insurance offered by IATI are without franchise (you don't have to pay your one part and they another), the assistance is in Spanish and they take care of the expenses from the beginning, without having to advance your nothing. In addition, extra coverage of annulment expenses, for cases in which you cannot travel for different reasons. Study what your personal case is, review the coverage and hire!
Our experience with Iati
Long story short: while sleeping peacefully in a Australian cottage, a spider stung my face and the next day I woke up with half a swollen face (it looked like the cat woman). Total, who obviously called insurance and answered quickly and put me in touch with a coordinator (who spoke in Spanish) and who, living in Australia, took care of my case. The next day (I called at night) I already had an appointment at a private clinic and I didn't have to pay anything (Iati takes care of everything). There was a happy ending ... although I have a small scar of experience!
In Colombia Something similar happened to me in a trek through the Cocora Valley, but this time it stung me behind my ear. Total, that return to the same mess, and although it was on the other side of the world, the experience was as positive as the previous one. This time I was treated at a hospital in Medellin (one of the best in the city), where I had all kinds of tests and, luckily, the thing did not happen to adults.
5% discount on any Iati insurance
We hope we have convinced you to take out travel insurance before embarking on your adventure, be it with any company! And if you decide to do it with Iati, you will have a 5% discount! Click on the following link, fill in the boxes with your trip information and click on “calculate budget”. The prices that appear to you already have the discount applied, without promotional codes or more stories!
I want 5% discount on my Iati travel insurance
Have we helped you choose the best travel insurance? We hope so, because it is one of the fundamental aspects in the preparation of a trip, and we do not want unexpected surprises!
