Traveling for pleasure or business, catastrophes can always arise; and while we all know the option for travelers insurance exists it’s not uncommon to still avoid it. For starters, there are always the horror stories, about how someone’s plan didn’t even pay out when it was needed, or it was only a waste of money (typically costing between 4-8% of the total trip cost) because nothing bad happened anyways! Yet the moment something does go wrong, having a good travelers insurance plan can make the whole ordeal much smoother, not to mention less expensive. Plus, picking your plan wisely can save you tons—granting you a suitable plan for a fraction of the cost.

1.     Types of Travelers Insurance

Travelers insurance is not a one-size-fits-all type deal; there are many different levels of coverage offered and depending on associated risks and circumstances, needs vary greatly.

Trip Cancellation, Interruption, Delay Insurance: This is the closest to all-inclusive travel insurance that you can get; if unable to go on the trip you will be refunded, and if calamity strikes while vacationing, you will have medical and evacuation coverage too.

Medical Insurance: Your health is of most importance, but most health insurance brands do not cover injuries or issues that occur overseas, therefore it can change your life, and future bills, to have medical travel coverage while you are vacationing.  Incredibly inexpensive, someone in their 50’s might pay $40 for 2-weeks of health coverage worth $50,000. One can also buy a separate policy for medical evacuation, such as an airlift home, which can cost $100,000+.

Baggage Insurance: Basic baggage insurance will protect your luggage in the instance it is lost or stolen, granting up to $2,5000 in reimbursements.

Before deciding on what type of coverage you need, check first with your priority insurance(s) to see which areas (if any) you are already covered on, that way you don’t double-pay for insurance.

2.     Look Out For Cancellation Waivers  

Look out for cancellation waivers, many of these sell for around only $50 but in the instance you have to cancel your trip at the last minute, say a few days before you are scheduled to leave, which is most often the case, it is unlikely you will be granted any money back. They also don’t return all pre-paid money; instead they simply stop any pending payments from going through and offer you a free trip voucher.

3. Don’t be Over-Insured 

Insurance plans offer a ‘cancel for any reason’ upgrade, allowing a traveler to cancel their trip at any time, for any reason, and still get their money back—this seems logical, if you’re going to pay for insurance might as well make sure you are covered for every reason there is—right? Think again; most comprehensive plans include cancelation insurance for nearly every reason you could think of, unless some very strange circumstances are suspected to arise it’s not worth the 50%-100% markup a ‘cancel for any reason’ plan comes with.

Often people pay too much for travel insurance by getting themselves over insured, prepared beyond what’s even necessary. For instance, the costs of medical aid or evacuation in an emergency might be high, but it’s unlikely to reach over $500,000; therefore having a plan that covers beyond that might only add unnecessary costs to your premiums.

4. Read, and Re-Read, Policy

Understand the policy in great detail before agreeing to anything. Going through third-party sights like Expedia might seem like the financially savvy thing to do but the policy details outlined on these sites tend to be vague, confusing, and presented in a way that turns people off from actually reading the terms. When buying insurance from an actual agency you are more likely to get what you need because it’s easier to understand the policies offered.

When reading over any policy, look carefully for loopholes and exclusions; if something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Being unable to cash out on insurance because of hidden exclusions one failed to notice is one of the worst, and most frustrating, realizations.  Also, make sure you actually need coverage on everything detailed within a policy, if it covers something you don’t need you can have the plan adjusted. Often, plans include car insurance but perhaps your regular auto insurance already covers you while traveling, or you don’t plan to be driving anyways, in which case, your premium will be reduced because you are decreasing your liability.

London, UK – Beyond Luxury Media Ltd, the organiser of leading travel trade events PURE Life Experiences and LE Miami, announces the launch of a groundbreaking new travel trade show that will turbocharge business opportunities for Africa’s finest travel products.

The show will be called We Are Africa and will be held in Cape Town, South Africa, starting in May 2014. Announcing this new event Serge Dive, CEO of Beyond Luxury Media Ltd, said:

“Over many years our team has consistently broken the mould of traditional trade shows by creating superior events that redefine key industries in travel: luxury, experiential and contemporary. However, the Africa-based participants at these events represented just one section of our global exhibitors. It is therefore not surprising that once close working relationships were forged with Africa’s key travel trade players, we were continually asked to create an equally game-changing ‘All Africa’ travel show exclusively for product from this great continent. I have listened carefully to our partners across Africa and as a result am presenting We Are Africa, a totally new platform for buyers to do business with suppliers of African tourism.

This groundbreaking event will not be about luxury travel or experiential travel. It will be, quite simply, a platform to showcase remarkable brands and operators that constitute the very best of African tourism: brands that are worth talking about and above all have the potential to truly excite an internationally discerning clientele. Africa is uniquely rich in outstanding tourism product, which we will select by invitation only to attract buyers from all corners of the world.

Participating buyers and suppliers will be selected from the ‘best in breed’ across tourism markets so that We Are Africa encompasses all the ingredients needed to make a successful, modern travel trade show. Buyers from the world over will be hosted and offered a comprehensive menu of familiarisation trips across Africa. The event will include scheduled appointments, a conference, workshop sessions and an exciting new African awards ceremony to highlight the best in breed. Finally, no event organised by Beyond Luxury Media would be complete without our ‘special ingredient’ – fabulous parties for all buyers and exhibitors to network the night away!

We Are Africa will differentiate itself from other travel trade events in two respects. Firstly, our show will concentrate on bringing new markets and new business to Africa. Secondly, we will focus on assembling a unique community that is passionate about promoting the very best of Africa to the world, sharing sales and marketing ideas that will create as many networking and lead opportunities as possible.

In the spirit of all the shows that the Beyond Luxury Media team has built, We Are Africa will herald the creation of a genuine movement for those who want to stand out, be counted and celebrate and promote the unique beauty of Africa to the world. I believe that these values are epitomised by the name of our show: We Are Africa.”

The timing of the show in early May 2014 will give each buyer hosted by We Are Africa the opportunity to extend their stay and to go to Durban to meet other South African travel trade suppliers.

For more information contact:

Ryan Wallace, Exhibition Manager, We Are Africa
ryan@beyondluxury.com

Beyond Luxury Media Ltd is a UK registered company, wholly owned by Serge Dive and Sarah Ball

I’ve had a week of maps!

I’ve always loved maps. As a child, a favourite pastime was to devour the MelWays (the Melbourne road map book). Of course as I grew a little older, I moved to studying my Atlas where I would dream and plot my later travels across the globe. I’ve always wanted a map mural in my office, like those you see in Travel Agents but I would pin all the places I’ve been and all the places I’m still longing to get too! There wouldn’t be a corner left bare I’m sure.

Anyway, last week I went off to a nearby home-wares store to spend a gift voucher I had. I had no idea what I was after, not really needing anything, when I happened across this lovely antique style framed map. It was instant love. My 18 year old was with me at the time and she too fell in love with it. She declared “You must get this and when you die I shall have it!”. No beating around the bush for her. It has now been mounted on the wall and looks fantastic. More global travel dreaming!

Only a matter of days after my prized purchase, a delivery in the mail arrived. It was like Christmas time! Linda from Journey Jottings had very kindly sent me a sample of her newest range including the Journey Jottings Jotter. She knows I’m a BIG fan!  The photo below is of the inclusions which I mulled over during lunch in the garden on that hot, Autumn day.

Do you share my passion for maps? Do you have a favourite map somewhere in your home to remind you of the dream, travel destinations yet travelled?

Deciding quite what amounts to the perfect cruise holiday package is a tough challenge indeed. For parents the idea of an ideal cruise is likely to involve the right balance between spending time with the children and spending time away from them. For couples, the aim might be to strike a more romantic note and we all have our favourite regions of the world that capture our imaginations like nowhere else. But the beauty of cruise holidays these days is that there really ought to be something for everyone and every reason to expect that somewhere there will be an ideal escape for you and your travelling party.

A key issue to decide upon as you plan and look around for cruise deals is whether you intend to stay on-board your chosen ship for just a short time or for as long as you can manage. There are packages that keep holidaymakers sailing for close to a month but the most common offers are on deals for a week, 10 days or close to a fortnight. Some ships are rather more family friendly than others, which you might well want to look into, and some ships are famed more for their food than for their evening entertainment and vice versa. The choice of course is entirely up to individuals but there is a lot to be said for doing some basic research online and finding out what experienced cruise-holidaymakers have to say about certain cruise ships and particular packages.

P&O has long been among the most popular providers of cruise adventures among UK consumers and the Azura is perhaps the most impressive ship in the company’s spectacular fleet. The good news is that there are P&O Azura deals available on package tours to a variety of stunning locations during the final few months of 2012 and right throughout 2013.