Did you buy trip insurance ?

[cpawson]

My husband and I are taking our grandchildren and adult children to WDW for a week--- there will be 8 of us. With the airfare, WDW tickets, hotel, food etc. it will cost a "pretty penny" as my Irish grandmother was fond of saying !

We are thinking about getting trip insurance for everyone and would appreciate some input as to whether or not you have gotten it and what you paid and what company would you
recommend.

Thanks for any assistance.

Cheryl and Ray

 

[Carrie Ellis]

cpawson,

I can not tell you a price on your trip but I had to respond when I read your post!

I would consider it highly. When my mom and dad go on a cruise they alway buy trip insurance and I am sure that your trip will be close to the same price.

I buy it when I buy through hotwire my plane tickets and rental cars. But I have little kids and goodnes know what might happen with them any given day! ha!

I would say yes if it is $200 or less for all.

The alternative would be a bummer.

 

[cpawson]

Carrie,

Very good point --- I think I will check into it.

I hope someone else reponds --- who has used it and can make some recommendations.

Thanks,
Cheryl and Ray

 

[mad4themouse]

I think you need to weigh the cost of the insurance vs. what you stand to lose if you cannot make the trip at the last minute.

For instance, would the airfare be refundable? Would you be able to exchange the tickets for a future date by paying a penalty fee (and how much is that fee)?

What about your hotel and park passes? Did you purchase a package? If so, what is the refund policy? Did you book the hotel separately from the passes? If so, check the cancellation policy for the hotel. Some expect at least 5 days notice while others want only 24 hrs. And most will only charge you the one night's deposit if you havr to cancel at the very last minute. And park hopper passes never expire. So if you purchased these separately, you can just save them for when the trip can be made if you need to cancel this trip. This is another reason why I prefer to book my own trips and not purchase packages.

Lastly, find out what the insurance will cover. If one of the grandkids gets sick and cannot go on the trip, the insurance might allow for the child's immediate family to get a refund but the extended family may not be eligible.

 

[bigbabyblues]

We always purchase trip insurance for our trips. When I booked out WDW trip last week, we had just had to cancel our trip to the beach one day before we were supposed to leave. The insurance company will no reimburse us for that trip, because our reason was not covered, but I did buy the insurance for our WDW trip as well. We booked a package and will be flying, and always better safe than sorry, at least for us.

Steph

 

[Lewisc]

Did you book a package? I never consider trip insurance for Disney trips BUT I don't book a package:

Rental car--no penalty
Disney tickets--good forever, you can always wait and buy them when you get there.
Hotel--Depending on where you stay the penalty may only be one night and you may be able to cancel a few days before
Airline--SW will let you keep the credit for a year.
Food--If you don't show up for a PS there is no charge (a few you have to cancel 24 hours in advance).

Now if you booked a package...check the cancellation terms. Trip insurance may make some sense.

 

[mrsboz]

I do not buy the insurance. Having said that, it is because I book everything separately by myself. I have a child who has bad asthma and is frequently sick. We had to change our travel plans last year due to her illness. I cancelled everything and did not have to pay a penalty. My airplane tickets cost a little more ($100. total for the whole family) but that was only because they didn't have the cheapest ticket available at that time. If you book everything yourself you can usually cancel right up until the day before without suffering any penalties. I find that this works best for us. Good luck with your decision and have a nice trip.

 

[cpawson]

I do NOT have a package deal - I booked everything separately.

The airfare for all of us is $2,000.00.

Hotel - Hilton and I can cancel 24 hours in advance without penalty.

I have NOT bought the WDW tickets yet.

Alamo rental ---- can easily cancel.

Based on the suggestions here on the board perhaps I'll check and see the cost of Insurance just for the airfare --- since that is the only cost that has a HUGE penalty.

I really appreciate everyone's assistance !

Cheryl and Ray

 

[Lewisc]

What airline? You can usually change your flight reservation paying just the difference in fare and a change fee. SW doesn't have a change fee and some airlines MIGHT waive the fee if someone died, is in the hospital or has a bad illness.

Many of the travel policies exclude pre-existing conditions. It's too late for you BUT for other people following this thread; check the cancellation/change policies of your airline BEFORE you book. If the fares are close you might go with the airline with the more liberal rules.

 

[Mortlives]

I'm with Mrsboz. If we paid for trip insurance every time we went somewhere, we would have paid the price of another vacation by now.

Twice, we have had to delay a trip to WDW. The first time cost us nothing, the second time cost us $450 change fee because our travel agent didn't buy the type of airline tickets we told her to buy (she was jacking her commission ). Lesson learned the second time wasn't to buy insurance, but to book everything yourself.

Even assuming we would have to eat the cost of a vacation once, we would still be ahead on dollars.

Of course, that's me. Your circumstances may be different. Keep in mind that disaster might mean you lose all your money. And you may not be willing to take that kind of chance. I'm willing to, just because it all averages out in the long run. I figure the odds of having that kind of catastrophe often enough to make it worth my while are (knock on wood) small.

Kungaloosh!
Mort.

 

[cpawson]

Once again, thank you for all the assistance -

Our flights are booked on Air Tran and United.


Cheryl and Ray