Popular destinations are mandating travel insurance
Countries and cruise lines are turning to travel insurance as a resource to regain tourism, with some requiring mandatory purchase, says US travel insurer Squaremouth
This year, six of Squaremouth’s top 10 international destinations comprise Caribbean destinations. Three of which – Costa Rica, Turks and Caicos, and The Bahamas – require travel insurance. Of the three, Costa Rica has the most specific regulation, requiring unvaccinated visitors purchase US$50,000 in emergency medical coverage and $2,000 in quarantine lodging coverage.
Royal Caribbean, Carnival, and Disney cruise lines have also taken a stance, requiring unvaccinated travellers to be insured on ships departing from Florida. These requirements range from $10,000 to $25,000 in Emergency Medical, and $20,000 to $50,000 in Medical Evacuation coverage.
Most policies meet the limits
According to Squaremouth, most travel insurance policies will meet these limits. In fact, they typically recommend cruisers purchase even higher limits due to the expensive nature of medical care on a cruise ship and evacuation from a remote destination.
Squaremouth says these requirements are for relatively low levels of coverage and shouldn’t cost travellers a significant amount on top of their other trip expenses. Those who are buying a policy just to meet these requirements can expect to pay about four per cent of the cost of their trip on an insurance policy.