Travel insurance for a trip to Rome – Forbes Advisor | Tech US News

If you’re planning a trip to Rome and want to cross off your to-do list with the mastery of a gladiator, consider buying a solid travel insurance plan to safeguard the hard-earned cash you’re spending to visit the Eternal City.

Hotels, tours, excursions, transport and meals can add up to a very expensive Roman holiday. A Forbes Advisor analysis of travel insurance rates found that the average cost of travel insurance is 5% to 6% of the cost of your trip; for a $5,000 business, the average cost of travel insurance is $228. You don’t have to be a Renaissance philosopher to know that’s why you should look for travel insurance plans with the following benefits:

• Trip cancellation coverage
• Travel delay coverage
• Trip interruption coverage
• Coverage of medical expenses
• Emergency evacuation coverage
• Baggage loss coverage

Trip cancellation insurance for having to give up Rome

Sometimes things don’t go as planned, Julius Caesar comes to mind, who was assassinated by political rivals shortly after declaring himself dictator. If you have to kill your plans for your dream trip to Rome due to unforeseen circumstances, trip cancellation travel insurance can prevent your financial losses. Benefits offset prepaid, non-refundable travel costs.

The list of accepted reasons for cancellation will appear on your travel insurance policy and will generally include:

• Death, illness or injury to you, a traveling companion or close relative
• severe weather
• A sudden dismissal
• Your travel supplier goes out of business
• A national transit strike
• A serious family emergency
• Military orders
• Unplanned Jury Functions
• civil unrest

Not all reasons for canceling your trip will be covered by a basic travel insurance plan. Trip cancellation benefits won’t cover your losses if you read bad reviews about your tour operator and decide you want to go to the Bellagio in Las Vegas.

related: Travel insurance for a trip to Italy

“Cancel for any reason” travel insurance.

Consider Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) travel insurance if you want maximum trip cancellation protection. CFAR offers you a refund for lost money if you cancel your trip for reasons that wouldn’t otherwise be covered, such as bad hotel reviews, rainy weather, or a negative attitude among your fellow travelers.

CFAR can be added to a basic travel insurance plan, but you usually need to buy it after you book your trip. It generally offers compensation of 75% of non-refundable travel costs paid in advance, as long as you cancel at least 48 hours before your scheduled departure. CFAR adds an average of 50% to the cost of travel insurance.

Sistine Chapel travel delay insurance

Rome wasn’t built in a day, and sometimes hold-ups on your itinerary mean you can’t get there that fast either. You can get financial support from your travel delay insurance benefits if the reason you are late to Rome is caused by an airline mechanical problem, bad weather or other reasons listed on your policy.

Travel delay insurance allows you to recoup the money you spend on food and items to help you stay comfortable when you have a layover. Please note that there is a specified time period stated on your policy before travel delay benefits take effect, which can be six or 12 hours.

If you miss your first day in Rome and have to skip a tasting of authentic carbonara pasta dishes due to the delay, you can file a claim for that loss as well.

Travel interruption insurance for the rise and fall of your trip to Rome

We can’t all be like Charlton Heston’s character Ben-Hur, who emerges victorious after the famous three-minute chariot race against his nemesis in the titular 1959 epic. Unfortunately, unexpected circumstances can defeat even the most heroic of travelers . But if you have to say goodbye to Michelangelo’s David because of an emergency back home, your trip interruption insurance can help.

Trip interruption benefits may cover the cost of your last-minute coach flight back to the US. USA and they can refund any prepaid, unused, non-refundable deposits you give since you left Rome early.

For example, if you paid in advance for a private one-day tour of the Colosseum, a translator and a selected Italian meal with wine pairings, you can file a claim to recover these costs.

Travel insurance “Interruption for any reason”.

Consider buying ‘interruption for any reason’ (IFAR) travel insurance if you want the freedom to get home early no matter the cause. IFAR usually offers compensation of up to 75% of non-refundable travel costs that you have booked in advance and lose by cutting a trip short. It adds between 3% and 10% to the cost of your travel insurance, and you usually have to be at least 48 hours into your trip for the benefits to apply. Like CFAR, you must usually purchase IFAR within 14-20 days of making your first travel deposit.

related: Advantages of buying travel insurance immediately after booking your trip

Travel medical insurance for Rome

If you decide to recreate the famous Vespa ride that Audrey Hepburn and Gregory Peck took in “Roman Holiday” and get rid of it, travel medical insurance can help pay for your treatment.

Before traveling abroad, you should check with your national health insurance to see if any comprehensive insurance cover is offered. In general, it is not. Also, Medicare is also not accepted in foreign countries. This is why travel medical insurance is essential for travel to other countries.

Travel medical insurance pays for x-rays, lab work, ambulance service, medications, and doctor and hospital bills, up to your policy limits.

Italy has lifted Covid travel restrictions so you no longer need to show proof of a Covid vaccination or a negative test. But you still want to protect your travel investment if you contract Covid. It’s smart to make sure your travel insurance policy covers Covid-related illness and cancellations.

It is also wise to purchase emergency medical evacuation insurance when traveling abroad. Benefits help pay for medical evacuation services at the nearest facility equipped to treat you if you are injured or ill and need emergency medical transportation to receive care.

related: Best travel insurance plans Covid-19

Baggage insurance to comply with St. Peter’s Basilica dress code

If your luggage doesn’t arrive in Rome when you do, the clothes you traveled in may not cut it if you want to visit places in Vatican City that have dress codes. Baggage insurance can help you pay for clothes and other items you need to buy if your luggage is lost or stolen. You can file a baggage insurance claim to recover the value of your possessions, taking depreciation into account.

Baggage delay insurance can help you if your bags arrive after you. Baggage delay cover kicks in after a certain period of time, for example six or 12 hours. Benefits help pay for personal needs, such as a change of clothes and toiletries you buy to keep you comfortable until your luggage arrives, up to your policy limits.

Baggage insurance also covers other personal belongings while you are on your trip. As in many European cities, tourists in Rome are often victims of petty theft.

“If you must carry expensive belongings, make sure they are secure, as bag straps can easily be cut and ripped off, especially in busy areas of the city near major attractions such as the Spanish Steps or the Colosseum,” warns Scott Adamski, spokesperson from AIG. travel insurance

If you’re waiting to throw your pocket change into the Trevi Fountain and your Fendi sunglasses are taken off your head, you can file a claim. Make sure you get a report from your tour leader or local authorities.

Also, although they are discouraged, Adamski notes that tourists often take their passports with them on sightseeing trips, and then if their passport is stolen, they face the challenges of replacing the document before returning home.

“Travel insurance plans typically offer protection for passport replacement, up to a specified dollar limit (see your insurance policy for details), and most importantly, the company’s 24/7 help center travel insurance can help with the locations and requirements to get a replacement.” says Adamski. Services like these can be invaluable when such a mishap occurs.

It is important to read your policy carefully to understand the baggage and personal possession limits per capital, what is excluded and how depreciation affects reimbursement. Cash will not be refunded and expensive jewellery, heirloom art or rare gold coins may not be covered.