Travel Insurance for Skiing Explained
Skiing trips are among the most common getaways for active travelers during the winter. Many travel insurance policies are building with these travelers in mind, and include Sports & Activities coverage specifically to cover travelers who plan to ski during their vacation. However, there are policies that will exclude these types of activities altogether, so it’s important for travelers to understand what to look for.
What should I look for when buying ski travel insurance?
Squaremouth recommends travelers taking a ski trip look for a comprehensive policy with coverage for skiing and other winter sports. These policies will include benefits for trip cancellations, medical emergencies, and lost, damaged, or delayed equipment.
Under the Trip Cancellation benefit, if you are forced to miss your skiing trip due to a reason covered by your policy, such as an illness, injury, or death of you, a traveling companion, or a family member, you can be reimbursed for 100% of your prepaid and non-refundable trip expenses. This can include airfare, hotel accommodations, or the money you spent on lift tickets.
Most travelers taking adventure vacation, such as a skiing trip, are primarily interested in having Emergency Medical and Medical Evacuation coverage. Nearly every travel insurance policy with Trip Cancellation will include these benefits. For travelers going skiing, Squaremouth recommends at least $50,000 in Emergency Medical coverage, and at least $100,000 in Medical Evacuation coverage.
In addition to these major benefits, travel insurance can also reimburse travelers if their equipment is lost or damaged during their trip. For example, if you bring your own skis on your trip, and they are lost or damaged by your airline, they can be covered by a policy with Sports Equipment & Fees coverage. Some policies with this benefit can also cover travelers for the additional amount they pay to rent new equipment.
To search for travel insurance for skiing, travelers can use Squaremouth’s Adventure Travel Insurance activity selection matrix.