Cruise Insurance - How Important is it?

Does everyone buy cruise insurance? And, has anyone ever had to use it. I guess I'm asking, is it worth the cost? I'm about to book another cruise, and I'm really don't want to pay for the insurance - but if it's really worth it, I'll go ahead and get it. What say you fellow cruisers?

I pay about $25 per month for a cancer policy. Now I know it's not related really but... my line of thought is that if I don't ever use it, I'm happy.

I cruise in 2 weeks. First time. I did purchase a plan for about $25 per person plus some small fee. Gives me 10K medical and 100K medivac (my biggest concern even though it is highly unlikely) or something like that though I'd have to look it up to double check. Dropped my cruise total cost down to save a few dollars as I know I'll make the cruise as I'm about an hour or so from port and "retired."

There are plenty of choices and for me, for the 58 bucks, I feel better and still was cheaper then going through the cruiseline. How many folks spend that in the bar the first hour?

But, the choice is YOURS. Can you afford NOT to have insurance? Only YOU know the answer. Good luck.

Yes, it is worth it. If you need medical attention anywhere else in the world, they are going to want your credit card. I have known people who have gone bankrupt because of getting injured outside of the country.

Although medical is the most important thing to have (don't even set foot outside the country without out of country medical), cancellation/interruption/baggage is important, too.

I got stranded for 8 days in England in Dec/10 without my luggage. That little episode cost me $3000. In addition to that, I got hurt on the ship, and had to see a doctor.

I had 4 claims:

Medical

Baggage (I had to buy clothes, toiletries, etc)

Subsistence Allowance - 8 days of hotels, food, transportation, phone, internet, etc)

Trip Delay - Extra transportation costs to get home.

And for the record, I'm in my 40's and very fit. Crap happens to everybody. Don't risk it.

By the way, don't get the cruise line insurance. It sucks. The medical coverage is a joke.

We always buy cruise insurance but usually not from the cruise line itself. Typically we cruise in suites and purchase insurance through an "insure my trip" dot com website to protect our investment ($3000-6000 per trip) .

We have never had to use it in our 15 years of cruising but came close twice due to sudden deaths in the family . Now having learned to expect the unexpected we will continue to protect our investment. In addition having a policy gives peace of mind should serious medical issues arise while out of the country.

The most important thing when purchasing a policy is to make sure you understand what is covered and what is not. We always try to purchase our policy immediately after booking the trip in order to get the "pre-existing condition" waiver.

We've bought insurance for all but our first cruise. Last time we added the "cancel for work reasons rider, next time we will add "cancel for any reason"rider. We've had a couple situations bring our trip into doubt. It worked out so far, but its getting riskier and riskier each time.

NCL Sky 3/19/12

I buy the Travel Guard gold plan which is what we sold when I worked at a travel agency a few years back. The few of our clients that actually had to use it were very pleased.

I book my cruises online now because I get the cruise for less and an obc (which seems to be getting smaller all the time!) but better yet I get the Travel Guard gold plan through them for about 1/2 the price I'm quoted if I call TG direct. I guess an online agency sells in such volume that they can offer it at a discount!

But for your question, I didn't buy it for our first few cruises but I've seen a few emergencies happen over the years and know it could easily ruin us and have decided that it is much better to be safe than sorry! And hopefully we'll never need to use it!

Thanks all for your responses, and the very good advice to buy insurance. I also appreciate your suggestions for insurance companies...:)

We always buy insurance. If something medically happens between when we book and leave, we don't want to lose money if we can't go. Also, I have elderly parents and if something should happen to them that is serious, I want to make sure I am covered.

Having been on three cruises that has people either airlifted or taken off the ship by boat, it is ridiculously expensive if you become seriously ill on the ship and have to be airlifted off.

And my insurance doesn't cover hospitalization our of the U.S., so I have the insurance just in case, God forbid, something happens.

If you can afford to lose all your money if a serious illness occured to you or your immediate family after you make final payment, or if you can afford to pay to be airlifted off the ship, or if you can afford to pay a hospital bill in another country in order to be discharged - then you don't need travel insurance.

If you can't, but it. Third party insurance is often less expensive than the cruise lines too.

It also doesn't matter how old you are when you cruise. A 20 year old friend was visiting China (not on a cruise) and broke her arm. She had to be airlifted to a Chinese hospital, and then returned to the US for surgery.

Accidents can happen to the healthiest and youngest of us.

I usually get some form of trip insurance. I used it twice, once when my uncle died while I was in the middle of my cruise (NCL and they helped us a lot to get back home and with phone calls back and forth) and last year when I was suppose to go to Egypt. That insurance was one of the few times that I got it through the travel company because it was a cancel for any reason policy and I didn't trust that part of the world to be calm when I was suppose to go (I booked my trip months before the uprising). Point being, you never know what will happen to you or a loved one or the world being what it is today if you will feel safe going away.

Insurance can only give you peace of mind if you don't need to use it ---- But it is priceless if you do !!!!

I never had before, but this time I am taking two of my daughters as well. That plus I have a work conflict that might make me cancel (it was that or wait three years!) makes the NCL cancel for any reason at all, for $416 seem worth it. I know I could have insured outside, but the effort did not buy it's way in....

We have had to cancel trips twice. Once two weeks out( unexpected surgery) and one a week out ( unexpected serious illness). We bought one policy with Travelguard and one through the cruiseline. We had no problem getting all money back except the cost of the insurance.

We don't ever leave home without it.

I like TrvelGuard but mostly use AccessAmerica/Alianz.

Once we had to cancel our cruise due to my husband's back going out.

Got all my money back and wound up going on a cruise 6 weeks later.

I've heard horror stories and as much as I felt bad for people, I feel they

shouldn't bad mouth the cruise line for not giving them back their money.

If cruise lines were to give back all the money you were out, then no one would buy travel insurance.

Also, I've noticed over the years that my policy cover terrorism.

Isn't that sad that we need that? :mad:

I have never purchased it.

BTW NCL wanted $99 per person for the insurance. I got it for just over $100 for both of us. Like paying 1/2 price.

It all depends on ages, cost of trip & the state you live in.

Basic plan vs. classic etc.

Shop around.

Like someone else said.....PIECE OF MIND. :)

I have never purchased it.

I hope for your sake you never regret it.

I broke my ankle on Tuesday. I was supposed to leave for a Panama Canal cruise on Friday. Travel insurance is worth every penny it cost and much more.

Does everyone buy cruise insurance? And, has anyone ever had to use it. I guess I'm asking, is it worth the cost? I'm about to book another cruise, and I'm really don't want to pay for the insurance - but if it's really worth it, I'll go ahead and get it. What say you fellow cruisers?

We've been on more than a dozen cruises and have bought insurance for each cruise, and the airfare too. We've never had to use it but if we ever had to be medically evacuated the insurance would have more than paid for itself. Medical evacuation costs tens of thousands of dollars in many cases.

Also, if you buy the insurance within a week of booking then it pays for pre-existing conditions not only for those cruising but also for immediate family members. If you ever have to cancel your cruise because a family member gets sick from an already existing condition you'd be glad to have the insurance.

Also, if you get sick aboard ship and need to use that doctor or medical facilities it can be very expensive and isn't covered by most medical plans. Cruise insurance would reimburse your expenses.

So we think the insurance is definitely worth it even though thank goodness we've never had to use it.

I never buy it from the cruise line. I usually use Access America. I think it now has another name.

I'm 28 and buy it because we plan them so far out it's impossible to know what our lives will be like in 8+ months (just booked one for almost 2 years out!). Gives us piece of mind incase something happens between now and then.

Yes...cheap for the piece of mind it gives. I came close to needing it once. But like any insurance....you hope you never have to use it.

We always buy trip insurance. We used it on a Caribbean cruise. DH went snorkeling, swallowed sea water (how do you do that?), turned blue. Then spent 2 days in the hospital in Coxen Hole, Roatan. The doctor was a jewel and so were all her staff, but not a hospital like we're used to.

DH was taken from the beach excursion to the hospital in the back of a pickup truck! Missed the second half of the cruise, but joined our companions in New Orleans as they came off the ship. Hospital bill was 21000 Lempiras ($1,667). The killer was last minute airfare back to New Orleans for 3 of us. Long story short, the insurance paid it all including hotels, meals, and lost cruise days.

Thanks everyone...I'm going to look at all the choices mentioned and do some comparison shopping. I do appreciate your input. Again, thanks. :)

Thanks everyone...I'm going to look at all the choices mentioned and do some comparison shopping. I do appreciate your input. Again, thanks. :)

Very smart thing to do.

Does everyone buy cruise insurance? And, has anyone ever had to use it. I guess I'm asking, is it worth the cost? I'm about to book another cruise, and I'm really don't want to pay for the insurance - but if it's really worth it, I'll go ahead and get it. What say you fellow cruisers?

Yes, and here's why.

My DW, and two teenage sons and I traveled from New Orleans to Rome in June,2011 The plan was 8 nights in Rome doing the ugly tourist thing followed by a 12 night Holy land cruise on the Mariner of the Seas.

When our plane landed in Rome,my speach was slurred and I could barely walk.

Turns out I had a stroke during the flight. I am currently 53 years of age.

Without being too longwinded, I spent 7 days in a Rome hospital. I had 2MRI's,catscans ,ultrasounds, cardo-dopler and you name it. IV's, drugs. I could not understand the language, so television was bad and the hospital food was terrible. However the medical care there was excellent. They ended up releasing me a day and a half before my cruise. The doctors would not clear me to fly for 2 weeks after my release. I did get cleared for the 12 night cruise by the doctors and the travel insurance company.

The travel insurance I purchased picked up 100% of my medical bill, the cost of two hotel days after the cruise, and the additional airfare for us to change flights. The travel insurance was prepared to pay the cost to re-patrioate me via boat if necessary.

In closing, BUY THE BEST TRAVEL INSURANCE YOU CAN. I DID AND STILL DO.

If you want to know which travel insurance I bought, ask me and I will post. I don't think Cruise Critic will allow me to post without being asked.