Vacation Protection...did you buy it?

[Rottweiler Puppy]

That which doesn't kill you only makes you stronger and if I die on a cruise there be worse ways to go.

 

Lol lots of things that dont kill you can make you weaker, permanently. As long as no one else has to foot your bills, go for it and enjoy the cruise.

[Rottweiler Puppy]

We always take out travel insurance, as you never know what might happen on a cruise.

 

Exactly. A guy got nailed by a box jellyfish on my cruise (8 people that day were hospitalized)

 

I dont want to know what a hospital bill in Grand Cayman looks like.

[vikkster]

Just one medical evacuation will pay for all of the years of purchasing insurance. It happens more often than you nay think. :o

[elcuchio24]

we vary rarely get cruise insurance of any kind.

[cruisenanny]

Exactly. A guy got nailed by a box jellyfish on my cruise (8 people that day were hospitalized)

 

I dont want to know what a hospital bill in Grand Cayman looks like.

 

Yikes, a box jellyfish:eek: That's scary stuff! You're making me rethink...

[teaach]

I bought the cruise line insurance, which I never do. Carnival said I could cancel for ANY reason and recoup 75% of upcoming cruise on a future cruise. I know that cruise ins. is a secondary policy and I usually buy ins. from the site mentioned on these boards, but I caved. I would never travel without ins. just for the peace of mind of med. evac. protection. My husband was healthy as a bull for 62 yrs., never went to the doctor (pretty much a man thing) and went flat onthe floor one night. He spent the next 12 days in Critical Care and 6 more nights in the hospital. He almost died 3 times, lost 55lbs. and I will always have ins. in case of a repeat performance or an accident. I need peace of mind. LOL

[arpie05]

We've cruised 4 times with 5&6 booked for Dec. Never bought any cruise insurance. I figure over a lifetime of cruising I'd probably spend more on insurance than any money I'd receive in claims. The actual premium is reasonable and probably worth it for peace of mind.

 

I definitely recommend looking into insurance. If you have kids, an outside vendor is usually much cheaper.

 

I spent $45 to "insure" our cruise last year. The cruise cost $1000 and airfare was $900. I "insured" from an outside vendor. My son came down with a throat infection and two ear infections two days before we were leaving. We canceled. Even at 15 (his birthday present) he did not feel like going.

 

For our upcoming cruise Carnival is charging $207 for insurance for 3 people for a $1227 cruise + air. But my friend is 55. When I priced it at the time of booking because of her age, the price was similar. Carnival's insurance does cover airfare even if you don't book your airfare with them.

 

You may think you will never cancel but you never know what will happen.

[gtalum]

How many millions of people cruise every year and how many people need a med-evac from Belize every year. Buy the cruise insurance if you wish.

 

How many millions of people own homes, and how many of those homes are destroyed in a year? Yet most people still buy homeowners' insurance.

[elcuchio24]

How many millions of people own homes, and how many of those homes are destroyed in a year? Yet most people still buy homeowners' insurance.

 

It's a flawed argument, because eventually you get that financial barrier where it is no longer in your opinion worth it to get insurance. Of course you have insurance on your home because is is a large asset. Same goes for car, boat, etc. Do you have insurance on your jewelry? Some do, some don't. Do you get insurance when you rent a car so you don't have to pay your deductable is something happens to it? Some do, some don't think it's worth it. So there you go--it's personal choice, trying to mark examples isn't going to change anyone's mind.

[klmorg]

We ALWAYS buy travel insurance from an independent party thru insuremytrip.com, never thru the cruisline, and YES, we have had to use it when my seemingly healthy & relatively young DH had a heart attack on board & we had to debark in Grand Cayman. Mega expenses were incurred on board, in GC, air ambulance to Miami, in Miami, & finally home. We were fully reimbursed, and so grateful for insurance. You just never know what could happen.....

[mondello]

How many millions of people own homes, and how many of those homes are destroyed in a year? Yet most people still buy homeowners' insurance.

Please read post #12. Thread is about CRUISE insurance!!!

[Sparky2]

We purchase trip insurance through a 3rd party and get primary coverage. We're in our early 70's so it is relatively expensive. However, Medicare does not cover out of the US and our Medigap coverage only covers 80% after $250 deductible. I'm not sure if it would include MediVac coverage.

 

We can afford to lose the cost of cruise & air, but if we had to pay a huge MediVac bill, it would certainly cut into our retirement income which is what we live on.

 

Peace of mind is certainly worth the price (even though we cringe every time we pay it).

[Rottweiler Puppy]

Yikes, a box jellyfish:eek: That's scary stuff! You're making me rethink...

 

While the carribean ones arent as deadly as the Australian ones, they put a big dude on our boat in massive agony and hospital. 20 something stings that day, 8 hospitalizations.

 

I was glad I paid that whopping $17 for insurance that week. It sure showed me you never know what can happen and being prepared is always good.

[maxxedout2]

No, but we don't fly to ship.

 

Yes, we do buy extra health insurance

because my particular policy does not cover

me out of the country...it includes med evac costs

back home. Not through cruise line though.

 

:cool:

[KarenMF]

We've cruised 4 times with 5&6 booked for Dec. Never bought any cruise insurance. I figure over a lifetime of cruising I'd probably spend more on insurance than any money I'd receive in claims. The actual premium is reasonable and probably worth it for peace of mind. We may buy it when we get older or book in hurricane season. Our Dec. B2B is the first time we booked so far in advance so, maybe now we better start considering it more. All I know is it would take a lot to make me miss a cruise.

 

I spent $50 - 60 for insurance last year and I got almost $1000 back for a cruise that I had to cancel for medical reasons. I have taken 12 other cruises and even at $50 - 60 per cruise, I'm still ahead of the game.

[momof2cruiser]

We buy our travel insurance thru Travelguard....runs roughly $100.00 total for 2 people....and kids are free. I can't imagine why someone wouldn't invest $100.00 to be sure in the event of an emergency (either before the cruise or during), they are covered! All this going back and forth over such a small amount of money is so silly!

[KarenMF]

I don't buy it, but we live close to port and arrive the night before. Only a serious illness or injury would prevent us from going and the likelyhood of that happening is very, very small. Yes, it can happen, but its not likely. We don't have sick family members, we don't have issues getting time off work.

 

There is absolutely nothing that would require an immediate return home - our health insurance covers us abroad, and I'm not traveling anywhere I can't get medical care. If anything happens back home, it can wait until I get home in 5 days or under.

 

For us, it doesn't make sense and in the even we can't go, it's not a huge amount of money lost because we stay on under 5 days cruises due to school and work schedules ad we book super early.

 

I used to think that way - until I got sick and had to cancel a cruise. Just because you don't have sick family members or have not been sick yourself does not mean there is a small likelihood that it can happen. Anyone can sick or hurt at any time.

[hannahsmomtoo]

Got a call from Carnival last night wanting to review the travel insurance and make sure I understand everything it covers. She said that normally 90% of the guests buy it, so I was curious, how many people actually purchase it and if so, have you ever needed it.

 

 

I booked my cruise thru Carnival but bought the travel insurance thru AAA .. MUCH better rate and the kids were free to cover.

[mondello]

I spent $50 - 60 for insurance last year and I got almost $1000 back for a cruise that I had to cancel for medical reasons. I have taken 12 other cruises and even at $50 - 60 per cruise, I'm still ahead of the game.

We booked a huge beach house in the OBX during hurricane season. I bought the insurance 'cause there were 3 other families involved. Our trip was cancelled last Sept. due to Irene washed out the only highway. So yes, insurance is a great safety net for those not willing to take a chance. As I posted elsewhere, I used to book last minute when there was much less chance of fate intervening. Imagine if CCL made insurance mandatory to shut uo the whiners.

[Alliezona09]

In my 9 Carnival cruises (2 with rccl) ~ I have never bought trip insurance and have only had to cancel one trip~ a 3 dayer 2 days before she sailed so we lost the cruise fare~ but we knew that we would and we didn't ***** about it as it was our choice to cancel~ I was able to get my fees & taxes refunded along with my OBC for ES rate reductions~!

[klmorg]

In my 9 Carnival cruises (2 with rccl) ~ I have never bought trip insurance and have only had to cancel one trip~ a 3 dayer 2 days before she sailed so we lost the cruise fare~ but we knew that we would and we didn't ***** about it as it was our choice to cancel~ I was able to get my fees & taxes refunded along with my OBC for ES rate reductions~!

 

Also consider what could happen on the ship, or in the ports... medical emergencies can be mighty costly (based on our firsthand knowledge:)). Just sayin'....

[Rottweiler Puppy]

It seems folks here are talking about a different travel or cruise insurance? Some seemed to only be concerned wth trip cancellation so they elect to not get it because of that, not because of potential health issues.

 

Are there two types and one only covered trip cancellation?

[elcuchio24]

Also consider what could happen on the ship, or in the ports... medical emergencies can be mighty costly (based on our firsthand knowledge:)). Just sayin'....

 

Also keep in mind that many medical plans cover out of country expenses, evac, etc. I know mine does. Do you know if yours does?

[gtalum]

It seems folks here are talking about a different travel or cruise insurance? Some seemed to only be concerned wth trip cancellation so they elect to not get it because of that, not because of potential health issues.

 

Are there two types and one only covered trip cancellation?

 

Basic travel insurance generally covers emergency trip cancellation, health care and medical evacuation. Most people seem primarily concerned about trip cancellation but the health care and evacuation are where the real economic risk lies. It can easily cost $100,000 to get a medical charter flight back to the US from a Caribbean port.

[spiritfox]

I don't really think people need to be hostile just because some of us don't like cruise insurance. I buy enough insurance as it is and don't really care to purchase cruise insurance--just a personal choice--my choice. But there is nothing wrong with another's choice to buy it if they wish. :)