When I purchased my Celebrity cruise with Best Price Cruises (my travel agent) I was given free travel insurance that is called "VacationProtect - Standard". The insurance was free, but I did decide to purchase the "CYM" option for an additional $39.00 pp. (CYM-means Change your mind).
I would like to hear your opinions on travel insurance. This is the first time I have ever had travel insurance and I was wondering if you thought if it was a good idea to buy the additional option of "CYM".
I'm a little leery of "free" insurance; you have either paid for it as a hidden charge in your cruise fare, or if it in fact was "free" then I would be dubious about what kind of coverage your actually received. I don't mean to sound so negative, but insurance can be very valuable--or completely worthless; and very often you won't know which it is until you need it.
But getting that out of the way, yes, insurance is important and "CYM" is important, assuming that means you can cancel at the last minute for any reason.
The main components you want to look for are "trip cancellation", "trip interruption", medical coverage, medical evacuation coverage and baggage loss or damage protection. A cruise is a considerable investment and you need to protect your investment.
I would look closely at your "free" coverage, and if you don't see all or most of the above components, I would consider getting additional coverage from one of the many very reputable independent providers, such as Travel Guard.
Check the limitations- For example -trip cancellation. What do they consider valid reasons for cancellation? Injury/sickness only? Changed you mind? Depending on your job situation, you may want to make sure it includes loss of job/layoff or transfer.
For baggage delay, is that total or per day delayed? We met a couple on our last cruise that didn't get their luggage until the 7th day of a 12 day cruise. They basically had to buy a week worth of clothing and necessities. Would you be able to do that for $250?
Its those types of limitations you have to worry about. The TYPES of coverages you have is a good set. Just be weary of what/how they kick in. And bring a copy of your policy with you in case you need to check it about something. You would most likely need to purchase everything on a credit card and then submit a claim for it. It would be bad to assume you are covered and then end up eating the cost because you weren't covered in the way you thought. Just food for thought. Most likely you won't need to use the insurance but you can't be sure.
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