Neil Aronson If your like me you enjoy planning a trip to Thailand or anywhere. But rarely finding the best travel insurance is not the first thing I think of. However it needs to be on your list of items to plan and book. You never know what might happen.
Imagine investing thousands in a dream vacation only to cancel due to illness or losing your luggage mid-trip. Travel disruptions—from trip cancellations to medical emergencies—can lead to financial losses and stress. Without travel insurance, you risk covering these costs yourself.
Planning a trip can be a lot of fun: researching amazing bucket-list activities, daydreaming about picture-perfect beaches and epic hikes, booking the cheap flights that will take you to the world’s most amazing destinations. Planning gives you ownership of your trip and lets you imagine all the wonderful adventures you’ll have.
What is significantly less fun (yet equally important) is searching for the right travel insurance plan for your trip. Reading through the fine print, searching out reviews you can trust, picking the best plan — it can be a little tedious.
It is important to note these two things. You personal health insurance back home may not cover much if you have a medical emergency. Secondly, travel insurance also covers trip cancelations, lost luggage, delays and more.
So here are three of the best travel insurance options we personally have used and are top rated for Thailand and International Travel.
Two of these companies are insurance companies offering their own policies, while Squaremouth is a marketplace offering you a choice of dozens of the best travel insurance options.
Squaremouth
Squaremouth provides quotes for several different kinds of policies, and is a marketplace for you to choose from dozens of the best travel insurance companies. Squaremouth has helped over 3.5 million people buy policies since 2003. It offers dozens of providers, including many of the best travel insurance companies you can choose from include Nationwide, Berkshire Hathaway Travel Insurance, Travel Insured International, Seven Corners, and Tin Leg, great for Thailand.
Single trip travel insurance
As you might expect, these are short-term policies intended to cover one trip. The coverage is more comprehensive than an annual travel insurance policy, with rates based on a percentage of your costs, typically between 4% and 8%.
Annual travel insurance
If you expect to travel a lot in a year, this policy can simplify things by putting all your coverage in one place. It varies by provider, but multi-trip policies usually cover travel delays, lost luggage and medical expenses.
Cruise travel insurance
The best travel insurance policies for cruises include:
- Travel to and from your port of call
- Coverage at sea
- Trip delays, interruptions or cancellation
- Delayed or lost baggage
- Emergency medical care and evacuation
Adventure and sport travel insurance
Many standard travel insurance policies don’t cover high-risk activities like skydiving, skiing and scuba diving. SquareMouth includes providers who offer coverage for extreme sports, adventure travel and more.
Flight insurance
flight insurance can help you recoup costs that aren’t reimbursed by your airline, like cancellation due to a family member’s death or a job loss. It only covers the flight, however, not accommodations or rental cars.
Group travel insurance
If you’re a large family heading to a wedding or coworkers going on a business trip, group travel insurance can be a lot cheaper than buying multiple individual plans.
To qualify for a group policy with Squaremouth, you’ll need to have 10 or more U.S. residents all going to the same destination within the same timeframe.
Medical travel insurance
Your health insurance may not cover medical care if you’re abroad. A medical travel policy can pay for doctors’ visits, hospital stays and even an emergency evacuation if you unexpectedly get sick or injured.
How much does Thailand travel insurance cost?
At the time of writing, the average cost of travel insurance for Thailand is roughly $8 per day.
This is based on internal sales data from roughly 5,000 travelers who used Squaremouth to protect their trips to Thailand over the last 12 months. The average traveler spent $216 on Thailand travel insurance with an average trip length of 28 days.
Thailand is one of the least expensive destinations to insure due to below average trip costs. Average premiums are roughly 60% less than the average cost of international travel insurance.
Medical-only travel insurance is also very affordable when visiting Thailand, with plans averaging $2.75 per day.
Safety Wing
Safety Wing is our top choice when it come to International Travel Insurance. They offer what they call Nomad Insurance, or Travel Medical Insurance for Nomads. They have progressive flexible coverage.
It works like a subscription and they offer multiple services for different sort of nomads, travelers and remote workers. So it’s not only great for your regular trips, but for digital nomads such as travel bloggers working overseas for long periods of time.
Highlights of SafetyWing:
- Available for purchase in 180 countries and can be purchased while already traveling.
- Affordable! They are competitive in each category. For example, Travel medical coverage starts from $45.08/4 weeks. This is 1/3rd of the price of the biggest competitor for similar coverage. That’s only $1.61 per day.
- Policies Include:
- Travel medical — Access a qualified global network of hospitals and doctors for unexpected medical problems and accidents. Includes coverage for: Doctors, Hospitals, Emergency medical evacuation.
- Travel — Includes coverage for: Travel delay, Lost checked luggage, Emergency response & natural disasters, Personal liability.
They can provide adventure sports coverage. This includes medical expenses resulting from injuries sustained during activities such as hiking, skiing, snowboarding, and scuba diving. As well as search and rescue expenses in case of emergencies.
Some activities like high altitude hiking or deep diving may require additional coverage. So make sure you review the policy’s terms and conditions before engaging in any high-risk activities.
AXA Travel Insurance
We have used AXA Travel Insurance on a few trips to Thailand during Covid-19, and were happy with the process. So has to be one of our top recommended companies to purchase travel insurance. Their coverage is excellent, and it is a very reputable company. They have easy to understand policies with solid coverage.
What is included in your coverage with AXA Travel Insurance:
- Trip Protection includes Trip Cancelation, Trip Interruptions, Missed Connections, Trip Delay.
- Emergency Travel Protection includes Emergency Medical Evacuations, Repatriation of Remains, Emergency Evacuation due to Catastrophe, Security or Political Evacuation.
- Accident and Health Protection includes Medical Expenses and Accidental Death.
- Baggage Protection for damage, loss, theft, delay of luggage.
- Additional Options Available.
The Hidden Costs of Unprotected Travel
When traveling, we don’t often think about what we could lose if something unexpected happens.
- Trip cancellations can cost thousands in non-refundable deposits.
- Your regular health plan may not cover medical emergencies abroad, leaving you with hefty hospital bills.
- Lost or delayed luggage can ruin your trip before it even starts.
- A delayed or canceled flight can add additional hotel and meal costs you didn’t plan for.
Without more comprehensive travel insurance, any unexpected event can derail your budget and potentially ruin your trip.
Choosing the Right Travel Insurance Plan
A good travel insurance plan will give you peace of mind by covering these unexpected expenses. Here’s what to look for:
1. Trip Cancellation Insurance
If unforeseen events force you to cancel—such as illness, jury duty, or a family emergency—this coverage reimburses 100% of prepaid, non-refundable costs.
- Tip: Consider a “Cancel for Any Reason” (CFAR) add-on for extra flexibility, covering up to 75% of costs.
2. Travel Medical Insurance
Your regular health insurance may not provide coverage abroad. Travel medical insurance includes coverage for:
- Doctor and hospital visits
- Prescription medications
- Emergency treatments
- Important for Seniors: Medicare does not cover international medical costs.
3. Emergency Medical Evacuation
If you’re traveling to a remote location, this coverage pays for transportation to the nearest quality medical facility. Some plans offer up to $1 million in coverage.
4. Travel Delay Insurance
Compensates for unexpected delays due to weather or airline issues. It covers:
- Meals
- Accommodation
- Essential purchases (e.g., toiletries, clothes)
5. Trip Interruption Insurance
If you need to cut your trip short due to an emergency, this covers:
- Non-refundable trip costs
- Last-minute flights home
6. Baggage and Personal Effects Coverage
Lost luggage? This coverage reimburses you for lost, stolen, or damaged items.
- Tip: Baggage delay insurance covers essential purchases while waiting for your bags to arrive.
How to Choose the Best Travel Insurance Plan
Consider the following factors to find the right policy:
- Your Destination: International travelers need medical coverage, while domestic travelers may only need trip protection.
- Trip Cost: Higher-value trips with prepaid reservations benefit from cancellation coverage
- Activities Planned: Adventure travelers should look for plans covering extreme sports.
- Flexibility Needs: If you want the option to cancel for personal reasons, opt for CFAR coverage.
- Covid-19 Coverage: Some plans specifically cover Covid-related cancellations and medical expenses.
Resources
Agoda is the best place to book cheap affordable hotels in Thailand, especially Chiang Mai. They also book flights as well.
Expedia is my favorite place to book flights, hotels, cars, and more. Their group includes Hotels.com and Vrbo for vacation rentals.
Viator is the top choice for activities. Book everything from a cooking class to tours outside the city to places like Doi Inthanon National Park to see some incredible waterfalls.
12Go is the top transportation source for Asia. From busses to trains to regional flights.
