The Weather Risks Travelers Forget to Insure, and Why It’s a Mistake
St. Petersburg, FL – July 29, 2026 — When planning their trips, most travelers know to think about insurance ahead of hurricane or winter storm season. Their impact on travel is well-known and largely expected during their respective months.
But according to Squaremouth, the nation’s largest travel insurance marketplace, wildfires, heatwaves, and floods cause the same type of travel disruptions, yet are often overlooked by travelers. Squaremouth explains why this summer has made a case for changing that.
What’s Happened This Summer, and Why It’s Not Going Away
- Heatwaves: Europe is experiencing a record-setting summer heatwave. This has led to closures in major tourist sites and is causing widespread travel disruptions, raising health concerns for travelers, and presenting travelers with a tough decision on whether to keep their plans.
- Floods: Earlier this year, heavy rainfall in Hawaii led to the worst flooding the state has experienced in two decades. This summer, Central Texas and Kansas City also experienced major flooding from severe storms. Each of these events triggered widespread evacuations and water rescues.
- Wildfires: Wildfires have burned in various popular destinations this summer, forcing evacuations and flight delays due to poor visibility. Spain and France are experiencing some of their worst wildfires ever, and a major fire in Canada has pushed smoke into cities across the country and into the U.S.
Collectively, heatwaves, floods, and wildfires have caused major travel disruptions across key destinations this year, but these aren’t new summer travel disruptions. In fact, they’ve all intensified in recent years and have become a fixture that travelers need to prepare for every summer, just like hurricane season.
Why You Shouldn’t Overlook Travel Insurance
Travel insurance plans treat wildfires, heatwaves, and floods the same way as hurricanes and winter storms. If any of these events result in a mandatory evacuation order, uninhabitable accommodations, airport or flight closures, or a medical emergency, travel insurance coverage can apply.
Look for travel insurance plans that include:
- Trip Cancellation and Trip Interruption: Reimburses all unused, prepaid, and non-refundable trip expenses if a traveler must cancel or shorten their trip due to severe weather or a natural disaster.
- Travel Delay: Reimburses meals, hotel stays, and other necessary expenses if a traveler is significantly delayed en route to their destination.
- Emergency Medical and Medical Evacuation: Covers the cost of medical treatment and an evacuation, if necessary, if a traveler is injured or becomes ill during their trip.
- [Optional] Cancel For Any Reason: Provides maximum flexibility by partially reimbursing travelers who are no longer comfortable traveling to a destination that may have been impacted by one of the listed events above. This is an optional add-on available within some plans.
“Travelers instinctively know to check the hurricane forecast before they buy travel insurance. We’d like them to take a similar approach with wildfire, heat, and flood advisories,” says Chrissy Valdez, Senior Director of Operations at Squaremouth. “The risk is there, and the coverage works the same way. Travelers just aren’t used to thinking about these risks like they think about a storm.”
Squaremouth has travel insurance resources for each event type, explaining in more detail how coverage can apply:
- View Squaremouth’s Wildfire Travel Insurance Guide
- View Squaremouth’s Flood Travel Insurance Guide
- View Squaremouth’s Heatwave Travel Insurance Guide
To compare travel insurance plans with coverage for severe weather and natural disasters, visit Squaremouth.com.