First World Cruise booked ...

[travelwell]

Aqudessiac,

We have covered ourselves with Travelex insurance, cost wise it helped for me to be under 60 and husband under 65 at time of booking. We are in the states, where you are from changes the insurance you need or can get. You have to buy trip insurance with in 10 days of booking to cover pre existing conditions.The 20% deposit for the cruise was significant so we have insured our deposit. We used a travel agent who is very familiar with booking extended and world cruises. She has been invaluable. I would not do it yourself or use an ordinary travel agency.

 

My parents are all in independent retirement communities that have assisted living, memory care and nursing home available if needed. I have siblings that know we will be out of

commission for 4 1/2 months and have agreed to cover. But, I am the nurse and usually one everyone turns to for health issues. At moment they are healthy but 2 years is a long time. Biggest concern is something happening to one of my parents and other left alone. My husband will be 66 and me 62 at the start of the cruise,  the age things start to happen. Yes, we want to be at our best also, we have many days in middle of no where. 

 

The dog is actually a big concern. He will be a 7 year old spoiled Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I have family willing to take him. I’d really like him to stay at the house and have some one house sit but they must be dog lover.  It is too far away to decide. I am playing with idea of trusted house sitter. May try them for a week later this year.

As for kids, my daughter, son in law  and grandchildren 1100 miles away and a son 900 miles miles away. We see them a couple times a year, thus it will not feel different. As my husband and I still work we are not much help to them for the minor emergency’s. We will be retiring right before the cruise.

Do not let alcohol throw you off one way or the other. Wine glasses set up at the table and if you do not drink the glasses will be quietly removed. We often go to the lounges prior to dinner, nice way to meet up with people. I often get a seltzer with lime.  I will say there are extra drinks you might enjoy that will cost you on other lines. Speciality coffees, virgin daiquiris made with real strawberry’s etc. When you look at cost per drink many of virgin drinks more expensive then wine or beer. 

[Aquadesiac]

Thanks for the suggestion on travel insurance. We've always gone with what our TA recommends, but it might be prudent to do a little checking on our own. We do use a seasoned agent from a company that specializes in world cruises & luxury travel. She's terrific and her company offers lots of extras. I'd never book directly on a cruiseline website. 

 

Wow! 20% Somehow, I don't remember the initial deposit for our Princess WC being quite that steep. Is 20% common with most other lines? 

 

As far as my parents go, I am the local kid. When they need help (like for example when my dad had a hip replacement in December) I'm there. All my sibs live in other states, but one of our daughters lives here and the other is just 3 hours away, so they would step up. I guess I need to remember that my being here wouldn't change any outcomes and my loved ones know how much I care for them. I just need to pray that all will be well at home while we're gone.

 

Specialty coffees do sound nice... 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

We've also insured with CSA, through our TA, until they stopped covering Canadians.  You shouldn't have any problem getting good coverage.  In our case, in our 70's, and being in Canada, it's very different, and we're having a great deal of trouble getting coverage for such an expensive trip.  Do it while you're still young!  We've left it a bit late I think, but then again, we might have been bored being at sea all that time when we were in our 60's.

[Aquadesiac]

I'm a big believer in doing what you can when you can, but I'm dismayed to hear that you have trouble finding insurance in your 70's. Is this a problem unique to Canadians? We had several older couples from Canada on our 2018 WC, but that was Princess so it wasn't nearly as spendy as the ones we've been discussing here.

 

So many things to consider...

 

 

[Heidi13]

18 hours ago, Aquadesiac said:

I'm a big believer in doing what you can when you can, but I'm dismayed to hear that you have trouble finding insurance in your 70's. Is this a problem unique to Canadians? We had several older couples from Canada on our 2018 WC, but that was Princess so it wasn't nearly as spendy as the ones we've been discussing here.

 

So many things to consider...

 

Although we are also Canadians, I don't believe the issue is unique to Canada, as we also experienced a problem finding a company to accept the risk for a World Cruise. We booked a Viking Ocean WC about 21 months in advance with a final payment date of 6 months out.

 

While none of the local brokers would accept the risk, I also tried the online insurers frequently quoted on CC. The response was consistent in that they were not prepared to accept the risk that far in advance for those prices. While the total cruise price for Princess v's luxury/premium line ends up being very close, with Viking & Regent the entire cost is paid up front.

 

With our previous WC in 2015 with Princess, we had no problem getting trip insurance.

[Wendy The Wanderer]

19 hours ago, Aquadesiac said:

I'm a big believer in doing what you can when you can, but I'm dismayed to hear that you have trouble finding insurance in your 70's. Is this a problem unique to Canadians? We had several older couples from Canada on our 2018 WC, but that was Princess so it wasn't nearly as spendy as the ones we've been discussing here.

 

So many things to consider...

 

 

 

I think it's a bit more difficult fro Canadians just because several carriers like CSA and Travelguard have ceased to underwrite Canadians at all for cruises, not sure why.  But even the one American carrier that our TA could suggest declined to cover us.

 

We're still considering the options, which include dropping down to a "lesser" cruise, like a Grand Cruise, or switching to Viking.  Viking will apparently cover us upfront for pre-existing at a reasonable cost, although the disadvantage is that you have to pay for the insurance when you book, so you'd better be darned sure you don't want to cancel for any other reason.  And right now, Viking is an unknown quantity for us, and we don't want to spend the money booking even a shorty to find out if we like the ships.

 

At the moment we have one carrier offering to cover C$30K each, plus my Amex card which would give us C$1500 pp for trip interruption, so a total of C$63K.  Not so great when the bill the the cruise is about C$160K not including possible overland add-ons. Agent is still searching, but I'm not hopeful.

[Go-Bucks!]

I had no problems getting travel insurance for my world cruise on Oceania.  I booked the cruise nearly 2 years before sailing (as soon as bookings opened up) and had to put down a 20% deposit.  I immediately shopped for travel insurance on insuremytrip dot com.  Only found 4 policies but all had similar premiums....I went with Berkshire Hathaway.  Covers pre-existing conditions cuz I got it quickly after booking/deposit.  Oceania cruisefares are alot higher than Princess but include things that would be necessary to purchase seperately, bringing the fares closer.  I'm in the USA, not Canada. 

[Scrapnana]

10 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

I think it's a bit more difficult fro Canadians just because several carriers like CSA and Travelguard have ceased to underwrite Canadians at all for cruises, not sure why.  But even the one American carrier that our TA could suggest declined to cover us.

 

We're still considering the options, which include dropping down to a "lesser" cruise, like a Grand Cruise, or switching to Viking.  Viking will apparently cover us upfront for pre-existing at a reasonable cost, although the disadvantage is that you have to pay for the insurance when you book, so you'd better be darned sure you don't want to cancel for any other reason.  And right now, Viking is an unknown quantity for us, and we don't want to spend the money booking even a shorty to find out if we like the ships.

 

At the moment we have one carrier offering to cover C$30K each, plus my Amex card which would give us C$1500 pp for trip interruption, so a total of C$63K.  Not so great when the bill the the cruise is about C$160K not including possible overland add-ons. Agent is still searching, but I'm not hopeful.

Is it possible to purchase your insurance using your Florida address?

 

Also, what amount of medical coverage does the Viking cruise give you? I have found that most cruise line's insurance is for a ridiculously low amount.  

 

Is it possible to buy short term travel medical insurance similar to this in Canada?  https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/products/single-trip/voyager-quote-results.cfm?qid=y8Wm3Ak1Hd1383254

 

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

 

15 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

I had no problems getting travel insurance for my world cruise on Oceania.  I booked the cruise nearly 2 years before sailing (as soon as bookings opened up) and had to put down a 20% deposit.  I immediately shopped for travel insurance on insuremytrip dot com.  Only found 4 policies but all had similar premiums....I went with Berkshire Hathaway.  Covers pre-existing conditions cuz I got it quickly after booking/deposit.  Oceania cruisefares are alot higher than Princess but include things that would be necessary to purchase seperately, bringing the fares closer.  I'm in the USA, not Canada. 

 

Good for you.  And you almost needed it, didn't you?  

 

9 hours ago, Scrapnana said:

Is it possible to purchase your insurance using your Florida address?

 

Also, what amount of medical coverage does the Viking cruise give you? I have found that most cruise line's insurance is for a ridiculously low amount.  

 

Is it possible to buy short term travel medical insurance similar to this in Canada?  https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/products/single-trip/voyager-quote-results.cfm?qid=y8Wm3Ak1Hd1383254

 

 

No, it isn't possible--I've checked, we'd have to be legal residents.  Not sure why this is so difficult for Canadians, but age is definitely a factor, and our health history I guess.

 

I'm sure I can buy travel medical in Canada if I wanted it.  We have coverage already as a pension benefit.  All we need is trip cancellation and I guess interruption, no medical.  Viking is just the former, no medical.

 

We're close to cancelling and booking something different. Husband is not convinced about VO since he did not care for Oceania at all, so is reluctant to commit to a line we haven't tried for a 4 month cruise.

Edited January 4, 2019 by Wendy The Wanderer

[Scrapnana]

3 minutes ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

 

Good for you.  And you almost needed it, didn't you?  

 

 

No, it isn't possible--I've checked, we'd have to be legal residents.  Not sure why this is so difficult for Canadians, but age is definitely a factor, and our health history I guess.

 

I'm sure I can buy travel medical in Canada if I wanted it.  We have coverage already as a pension benefit.  All we need is trip cancellation and I guess interruption, no medical.

How nice not to have to worry about medical insurance!  

Does your cruise line have a cancellation policy offered?    I know HAL has one although it only covers something like 75% of your cost - still some coverage is better than none.

[Aquadesiac]

We're doing a 21 day on Cunard this summer with an eye to maybe a WC later on. It does make  sense to try a line before you commit to a longer cruise.

 

I've been lurking a bit on VO roll  calls and I'm not seeing anything about a passenger choir. We really enjoyed singing on our Princess WC. It was a great way to make friends and singing Waltzing Matilda  on deck as we sailed into Sydney Harbor was something I'll never forget.

 

I know VO has lots of enrichment activities, but can any of you who've sailed her elaborate on what's available? Thanks.

[Heidi13]

10 hours ago, Scrapnana said:

Is it possible to purchase your insurance using your Florida address?

 

Also, what amount of medical coverage does the Viking cruise give you? I have found that most cruise line's insurance is for a ridiculously low amount.  

 

Is it possible to buy short term travel medical insurance similar to this in Canada?  https://www.geobluetravelinsurance.com/products/single-trip/voyager-quote-results.cfm?qid=y8Wm3Ak1Hd1383254

 

 

The Medical component of the Viking insurance is limited to $100K + an additional $100K for evacuation/repatriation pp. So we do require additional medical insurance before departing.

 

Affirmative, in Canada we can purchase short term medical insurance policies from a number of companies. For visiting the US we can purchase an individual trip or multi-trip policy. 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

3 hours ago, Scrapnana said:

How nice not to have to worry about medical insurance!  

Does your cruise line have a cancellation policy offered?    I know HAL has one although it only covers something like 75% of your cost - still some coverage is better than none.

 

Yes it is nice, especially since we spend almost half of the year in Florida, and coverage otherwise would be very expensive for us. And as for the cruise, yes, some coverage is better than none.  We can buy Regent Care, when the penalty period kicks in, but it will cost us 20% of our cruise fare, in this case, about C$30K!!  That's a big chunk of change. 

 

Right now I'm looking at a circle South America trip on Regent as a consolation prize, if we have to cancel.  Still an expensive cruise, nice and long.  We have done parts of this itinerary in the past but have really wanted to do the rest and don't mind returning to most places.  So we'll see.  Even with that cruise  it might be a problem to get insurance.

[Go-Bucks!]

On 1/4/2019 at 10:06 AM, Wendy The Wanderer said:

And you almost needed it, didn't you?  

 

 

 

 

Hmmm....not sure what this means.  I'm leaving for the Oceania world cruise in 3 weeks!  👍

[Wendy The Wanderer]

15 hours ago, Go-Bucks! said:

 

Hmmm....not sure what this means.  I'm leaving for the Oceania world cruise in 3 weeks!  👍

 

Didn't you have a medical issue lately?  Sorry if I'm confusing you with someone else.

[travelwell]

Wendy,

When Regent Mariner adds segments in 2021 is it possible to buy WC in segments and spread insurance risk with different insurers. Long shot but wonder.... 

 

[Go-Bucks!]

5 hours ago, Wendy The Wanderer said:

 

Didn't you have a medical issue lately?  Sorry if I'm confusing you with someone else.

 

I had a kidney stone but nothing that should keep me from sailing.  🤞

[Wendy The Wanderer]

18 hours ago, travelwell said:

Wendy,

When Regent Mariner adds segments in 2021 is it possible to buy WC in segments and spread insurance risk with different insurers. Long shot but wonder.... 

 

 

Thanks, but I don't think Regent would let us do that.  We'd lose all our full-cruise perks I think.  And the broker I'm working with is looking at different carriers to spread the risk around.  So there's still hope.  We just went through a whole weekend of considering the alternatives, and will stick with our booking for now.  We can still bail more than a year from now.  But really, really want to take this cruise!

[travelwell]

Wendy,

I am sorry you are missing the fun of imagining the cruise, this is obviously stressful. You are right though, you do have time to find what works.

lisa

[Wendy The Wanderer]

13 hours ago, travelwell said:

Wendy,

I am sorry you are missing the fun of imagining the cruise, this is obviously stressful. You are right though, you do have time to find what works.

lisa

 

Thanks Lisa,

 

We've decided to be hopeful.  Perhaps we might feel confident enough to do without insurance (gulp).  We really want to do this cruise!  And I'm not going to angst about it for a while, don't need that stress.

[LynnTTT]

My husband and I are booked on a Costa world tour in January 2020.

We have a quote for fairly comprehensive coverage for about 8% of what we anticipate to be the full cost of the premium.  Seems high, but we will be 72 and 71 so that may be the problem

This is a really cheap cruise so we do have some concerns. There are not as many port days as some world cruises.

It's going to be mostly Europeans so we hope that there will be at least some Americans and Canadians to talk to! Hopefully, we won't have the exact same people at our dining table for all 112 days! Hell, I wouldn't want to have every meal with best friends for four months!. Maybe the dining coordinator will do a change-up at some point. 

I know we'll get tired of cruise food- but Italian cruise ship food must be good, right?  The price includes beer and wine at meals, but again, it's an Italian cruise line so I assume it will be at least "drinkable".

Lots of questions but we are going because we'll get to go to many places we could never afford to go to (Easter Island/Pitcairn Island, Tahiti/Australia and New Zealand/Goa etc).  We have traveled extensively, but we only have so many years left to travel.

 

 

[Wendy The Wanderer]

Sounds like fun, Lynn. Yes, lots of sea days, and probably fewer ports, but I'm sure it will be great.  And remember that most Europeans speak English these days, so you'll be able to broaden your horizons in that way too.  Maybe they will shuffle the dining seats around for each segment?  If there are segments.

 

We have managed to obtain pre-existing coverage for about 2/3's of the cost of our cruise in 2021.  The agent said it had nothing to do with our age or health status, that it was entirely an issue of the cost of the cruise (which on a luxury line is considerable.)  So if we do this, we will be "self-insuring" about 1/3 of the price, and paying a hefty, but reasonable insurance premium for the other 2/3's.  Looks like about 10% or so.

[baz48]

9 hours ago, LynnTTT said:

My husband and I are booked on a Costa world tour in January 2020.

We have a quote for fairly comprehensive coverage for about 8% of what we anticipate to be the full cost of the premium.  Seems high, but we will be 72 and 71 so that may be the problem

This is a really cheap cruise so we do have some concerns.

 

 

Lynn,  Have you sailed on Costa before?  If not, you might consider doing a trial run before to make sure you like the cruise line.  It's a lot of money and a long time on the ship if you find you don't like it after a week or so.

[Heidi13]

10 hours ago, LynnTTT said:

My husband and I are booked on a Costa world tour in January 2020.

We have a quote for fairly comprehensive coverage for about 8% of what we anticipate to be the full cost of the premium.  Seems high, but we will be 72 and 71 so that may be the problem

This is a really cheap cruise so we do have some concerns. There are not as many port days as some world cruises.

It's going to be mostly Europeans so we hope that there will be at least some Americans and Canadians to talk to! Hopefully, we won't have the exact same people at our dining table for all 112 days! Hell, I wouldn't want to have every meal with best friends for four months!. Maybe the dining coordinator will do a change-up at some point. 

I know we'll get tired of cruise food- but Italian cruise ship food must be good, right?  The price includes beer and wine at meals, but again, it's an Italian cruise line so I assume it will be at least "drinkable".

Lots of questions but we are going because we'll get to go to many places we could never afford to go to (Easter Island/Pitcairn Island, Tahiti/Australia and New Zealand/Goa etc).  We have traveled extensively, but we only have so many years left to travel.

 

 

We booked a 2020 WC with Viking Ocean and due to the cruise cost and booking almost 2-years in advance, we were unable to get private insurance. We opted for the Viking insurance, which does not use age to determine premiums. Our cost was about 6.7%, for cancel for no reason and pre-existing conditions waived.

 

Thought I should provide a caution on the Pacific portion of your cruise.Unfortunately many of the cruises are unable to visit Easter Island, due to swells. It is a tender port. Our 2015 WC was the first Princess cruise in 5 or 6 years to get ashore. At Pitcairn Island, they also do not have a dock to go alongside, or even tender. The locals bring a large boat out to the ship and board via the pilot ladder. It is an impressive sight watching them load all their wares aboard the ship. They set up a marketplace aboard ship and have a power-point presentation.

 

For our last WC we dined at the same table every night, with the same people. We even visited the specialty restaurants, or buffet as a group. However, I expect you can probably change tables, at least every segment.

[Aquadesiac]

11 hours ago, Heidi13 said:

We booked a 2020 WC with Viking Ocean and due to the cruise cost and booking almost 2-years in advance, we were unable to get private insurance. We opted for the Viking insurance, which does not use age to determine premiums. Our cost was about 6.7%, for cancel for no reason and pre-existing conditions waived.

 

Thought I should provide a caution on the Pacific portion of your cruise.Unfortunately many of the cruises are unable to visit Easter Island, due to swells. It is a tender port. Our 2015 WC was the first Princess cruise in 5 or 6 years to get ashore. At Pitcairn Island, they also do not have a dock to go alongside, or even tender. The locals bring a large boat out to the ship and board via the pilot ladder. It is an impressive sight watching them load all their wares aboard the ship. They set up a marketplace aboard ship and have a power-point presentation.

 

For our last WC we dined at the same table every night, with the same people. We even visited the specialty restaurants, or buffet as a group. However, I expect you can probably change tables, at least every segment.

 

Did you have to pay for your Viking insurance at the same time as booking? The 2021 itinerary is seriously calling to me...