June 1, 2020
Due to travel restrictions, plans are only available with travel dates on or after
Due to travel restrictions, plans are only available with effective start dates on or after
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For some, “adventure travel” means a fun ziplining excursion in the Costa Rican cloud forest. For others, it means a week-long trek through Argentina’s rugged Torres del Paine.
Both are right! In general, adventure travel includes physical challenges as well as a connection to nature and the local culture. Soft adventure travel involves low-risk physical activity and/or venturing into less developed destinations. Hard adventure travel raises the stakes with more demanding challenges, more remote destinations, and more risk.
Whether you enjoy backpacking or car camping, it’s crucial to protect your trip—and yourself. Here’s what you need to know about buying insurance for adventure travel.
First, it’s important to know that Allianz Travel Insurance does not cover certain risky activities. When you read your plan documents, you’ll see that you are not covered for any loss resulting directly or indirectly from extreme, high-risk sports or activities including—but not limited to—the following:
Read your plan documents carefully to find out what’s excluded from coverage, and understand that an activity may be excluded even if it’s not specifically named in your plan. Please contact Allianz Partners if you have questions about what’s covered.
That depends on what you plan to do, where you’re going, and what your travel budget looks like.
Already planning your trip? Don’t wait too long to protect it. Get a quote today.
Even if your adventure vacation is on the softer side—a cycling or hiking trip, for instance— you’re still facing a higher risk of injuring yourself while you’re on your trip. Many people don’t realize that their domestic health insurance card won’t be accepted overseas. Instead, hospitals want payment up front. That’s why it’s so important to have travel insurance with emergency medical/dental benefits.
If you suffer a serious covered injury or illness on your vacation, travel insurance can reimburse the reasonable and customary costs of necessary emergency medical care. We may even guarantee payments, where accepted.
If you get sick or injured when you’re traveling overseas and you need transportation to a hospital, medical evacuation costs can be staggering—often in the five figures or even six. If your adventure vacation takes you to a remote or wilderness area, or if your condition is severe, these costs can dramatically increase.
Emergency transportation benefits, a crucial component of travel insurance, can arrange and pay for transportation to the nearest appropriate hospital or other facility if local medical facilities are unable to provide appropriate treatment for your covered illness or injury. Allianz Partners can also arrange and pay for your transportation home following a covered illness or injury, with a medical escort if necessary.
Unless you opt for a camping trip close to home, adventure travel isn’t cheap. A high-end cruise expedition to the Galápagos Islands may cost $6,000-$9,000 per person. An 11-day trek on the Trans Bhutan Trail? $4,000 or more, plus airfare.1 A 12-night safari to Kanya and Zanzibar? $13,000 or more, plus airfare.2 Trip cancellation benefits offer crucial protection for your vacation investment. If you have to cancel your trip unexpectedly for a covered reason, travel insurance can reimburse you for your non-refundable, pre-paid trip costs, up to the maximum benefit of your plan.
GoPros, hiking boots, ski goggles, cycling jerseys, performance clothing… you pack a lot of stuff for your adventure vacation. What if that gear is damaged, gets stolen, or just never shows up at the baggage claim?
That’s when your baggage loss/damage benefits can kick in. Travel insurance can reimburse you for the actual price, actual cash value, repair or replacement of your stuff— whichever is less, based on the limits in your insurance policy’s letter of confirmation. You’ll need receipts or proofs of purchase to get the maximum reimbursement for your items.
Just know that there’s a maximum limit for certain high-value items, including watches, cameras (including video cameras) and related equipment, binoculars, telescopes, sporting equipment, mobile devices, smartphones, computers, radios, drones, robots, and other electronics (including parts and accessories). Check your plan documents for the full list of high-value items.
That depends on what you’re planning to do. Let’s see how travel insurance covers some popular adventure travel activities.
Do you need special safari travel insurance? Probably not. Standard travel insurance plans from Allianz Partners plans can cover safari trips—just make sure you get one with robust emergency transportation benefits, in case you have a medical emergency in a remote part of the bush.
If you’re going on your first safari tour, you may be surprised to find it’s not that adventurous! Typically, you spend most of your time in a safari vehicle looking for animals, or relaxing in camp. Learn more: 7 Things You Don't Know About Taking a Safari Vacation (Until You Go)
You do need special insurance if you’re traveling to take part in an athletic competition. Allianz Travel Insurance excludes any losses resulting from participating in or training for any professional or amateur sporting competition while on your trip. (This doesn’t include informal recreational sporting competitions, such as a pickleball tournament organized by your hotel or a limbo contest on a cruise ship).
Travel insurance is a must for ski vacations. Did you know that trip cancellation/trip interruption benefits can protect all your prepaid, nonrefundable ski trip expenses, including lift tickets and rentals?
Do you need specific travel insurance for skiing? Probably not, but read your plan carefully. Allianz Travel Insurance plans can protect ski vacations, but they do not cover losses resulting from skiing or snowboarding outside marked trails or in an area accessed by helicopter. And, as mentioned above, our plans will not cover you if you participate in any amateur or professional sporting competitions during your trip.
If you’re planning to go scuba diving on your trip, make sure you have travel insurance to protect you in case of a medical emergency.
Allianz Travel Insurance plans can protect travelers who participate in recreational scuba diving. However, free diving and scuba diving at a depth greater than 60 feet, or without a dive master, are excluded from coverage. If you’re planning to dive deeper than 60 feet, or if you’re diving without a dive master, look into getting specialized dive insurance.
Heading out on an epic bike ride through the Balkans, or hiking through the fairytale mountains of the Dolomites? Good news: your Allianz Travel Insurance plan can protect you on the journey. You don’t need special travel insurance for your trekking or cycling vacation. Just make sure your plan includes those all-important emergency medical and transportation benefits.
Travel safely, and enjoy your adventure!
View all of our travel insurance products
Terms, conditions, and exclusions apply. Please see your plan for full details. Benefits/Coverage may vary by state, and sublimits may apply.
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