Passports

Pass Ports and Visa Requirements

As of June 1, 2009 the identification requirements have changed for all United States citizens.

You will no longer be able to exit or enter the United States from Mexico, Canada or any other country without proper identification. Please go to the link on my web page (Traveler Resources) to review all passport and visa requirement for each country you plan to visit or call your travel professional for help.

One of most disappointing situations that you can run into is to arrive at the airport and be told you cannot go on your dream vacation because you do not have a current passport or a visa.
These new requirements include all members of your family regardless of their ages.

Travel Insurance

WHY PURCHASE TRAVEL INSURANCE?

There are hundreds of situations that could arise to cause you to cancel your vacations plans. I have found personal stories motivate people to action. This is a true story. This could happen to you!
My wife and I, in May of 2008, planned a trip around the world. We had two reasons for planning such a trip. First, was to visit my wife’s sister and her husband, who were currently sailing in south East Asia in their own sail boat and second to gather first hand information, photos and videos for use in my travel agency.
Our first stop was in Beijing, China, site of the 2008 Summer Olympics. Our plans were to stay in Beijing and sight see for4 days and then catch the Siberian Express to Mongolia. We had scarcely checked into our hotel when I started feeling ill. I first thought I was suffering from jet lag or had a touch of food poisoning. I excused myself and went to our room to relax and recover. To say the least, I ended up in the hospital in Beijing with an acute appendicitis.
I did not purchase travel insurance because I did not feel we needed it. Both of us are in excellent health and had no reason to consider it. To make a long story short, I ended up staying in the hospital for 12 days and had a major operation to remove my appendix. Our trip stopped right there. We had to cancel the reminder of our trip and sadly had to say goodbye to my wife’s sister and brother-in-law. I was very lucky since the Chinese have socialized medical system; they do practice western style medicine and handle their foreigner visitors differently.
When we returned home, we spent our time negotiating with the airlines and tour operators to recover our vacation dollars. This process took months. Sadly to say, we were not able to recover much of our money.
If we had purchased travel insurance our story would have been much different. As soon as I was admitted to the hospital and the travel insurance carrier was notified, they would have sent a medical adviser to the hospital to evaluate my medical condition. Once our vacation plans were canceled, the insurance company would have arranged our transportation for our flight home and paid for the entire medical expense. The travel insurance company would have reimbursed our unused portion of our vacation plus paid to get us home. Remember your own medical insurance may or may not cover you when you are out of the country.
The cost of travel insurance depends on the type of coverage you may want and what type of trip you are planning. Normally the cost is 4% to 8% of your total travel package. The cost is nominal so you can relax and enjoy your vacation knowing your family is protected against the unexpected.
Let me preface by stating that all travel insurance policies are not created equal. Make sure you read and understand the policy fully or call your insurance broker or travel agent for more information before purchasing. Each policy is different on what it will or will not cover.

Swine Flu (H1N1) is just another reason why you need to have travel insurance added to your bookings. There have been news items recently where travel insurance suppliers were made out to be “bad guys” if they did not waive all the rules for cases of Swine Flu. What the reporters do not emphasize in their coverage is that if the traveler had purchased travel insurance they would already be covered to cancel for medical reasons. Do the right thing; protect your vacation investment with travel insurance, so your only worry will be what you need to pack.

Capt Bob