Cruise travel insurance

Yes, it’s sensible to wait until after you’ve booked your cruise to arrange cruise insurance. This way you’ll know:

• The cruise provider’s requirements for travel insurance

• The value of your trip for cancellation costs

• Where you’ll be travelling.

But once you’ve booked your cruise, it’s wise to get your travel insurance arranged as soon as possible. This means you’ll be covered for anything you’ve paid upfront if you need to cancel for a reason specified in your policy.

The Global Health Insurance Card (GHIC) can give you access to state-provided medical treatment while cruising in most European countries and Australia.

With this card, you can get medical treatment on dry land at the same cost as the locals. So, if it’s free for them, it’s free for you.

The GHIC isn’t a substitute for cruise travel insurance, though. It won’t pay for getting you home or cover other costs linked to a medical emergency.

You can get a GHIC free through the NHS website.

You can get cruise travel insurance:

• For a couple

• For a family

• For a group.

If you’re including other people in your cruise insurance, you’ll need their dates of birth and details of any pre-existing medical conditions they might have. This will ensure you get an accurate cruise travel insurance quote.

Bear in mind that a group premium will be affected by the ages and health of other participants. So, if one person is over 80, for example, it may work out cheaper to get that person an individual policy.

Cruise insurance can be more expensive than standard travel insurance because there are more potential risks for insurance providers to consider.

For example, if you’re injured on board, an air ambulance may be the only way to get you to hospital on dry land. Outbreaks of some illnesses can also spread quickly in confined spaces with shared facilities. And medical costs can be far higher in some countries than others.

Passengers may also take more luggage than on a flight, costing more to replace if it’s lost or damaged. And cruises may be longer than your average holiday, which typically makes them more expensive to insure.

It’s a good idea to get insurance. While you can be treated by the NHS, some cruise-related issues will be the same as anywhere in the world.

Examples of where travel insurance can help protect you include:

• You’re confined to your cabin

• Your luggage is lost or stolen

• Cancellation for reasons covered by your policy.

There’s no single ‘best’ cruise travel insurance as such. What’s best for you depends on your personal circumstances, where you’re going and how comprehensive you want the cover to be.

It’s a good idea to compare different cruise policies and customer reviews of providers to find the right one for your needs.

Finding cheap cruise insurance can be simpler if you compare quotes. But remember, cheapest doesn’t always mean best. You’ll need to make sure you have enough cover for your luggage, health conditions and everything you plan to do on holiday.

If you’re only planning one cruise in a 12-month period, single trip cruise travel insurance should suffice. But if you’re taking more than one cruise and other trips in a year, it will probably be more cost-effective to take out annual travel insurance including cruise cover.

Yes, you can get cover for a river cruise if you’re holidaying on inland waterways like the Danube or Douro. You won’t be covered on a river cruise if your policy doesn’t include cruise-specific travel insurance though.

Yes, cruise insurance with repatriation cover is widely available and included as standard in most travel policies. It typically covers:

• Transport back to the UK for medical treatment

• Air ambulance assistance or a medical escort if needed

• Travel and accommodation costs for a friend or relative

• Repatriation of the body after a death.

Yes, several providers offer travel insurance for short cruises that only last a few days.