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The biggest change in trip insurance in the past decade is the wealth of new, smaller options: buying coverage just for medical concerns, or just for trip delays, or even just for baggage. “Travel insurance has gone from a one-size-fits-all type product to plans that are really customized for specific types of travelers and needs,” says insurer TravelGuard spokesman Dan McGinnity. “We have plans for student travelers, or for outdoors fanatics, or for kids under the age of 17 for no additional cost.” According to North Carolina travel agent Nancy Cutter, the industry has “realized that some people don’t want all the electric water heater Suppliers bells and whistles.” If you have bad luck when it comes to flight delays and cancellations, for instance, you might think about trip delay or interruption insurance—which would cover your costs if you have an unexpected layover due to an airport shutting down—and can cost as little as 10. After all, you might not feel like you’re vulnerable for medical reasons on your Mississippi riverboat cruise, but you could be up a creek if you miss your flight connection and, as a result, the cruise’s embarkation. Some companies even sell annual coverage. American Express’s Global Travel Shield offers trip delay plans that start at 9 for a single trip or 99 for any trip you take during one year. Some would say, though, that a trip delay plan is often not worth it.

“It depends on what caused the delay,” says the Consumer Federation of America’s Robert Hunter. “If it’s the airline’s fault, you already have protection; they have to put you up, especially if you say that magic number”—Rule 240, which refers to the Contract of Carriage, the rights that airlines are required to grant passengers. “But if it’s weather-related, you’re stuck—they don’t have to pay when it’s not their fault. Advertisement 4 of 11 iStock Consider Evacuation Insurance Some people don’t ever buy travel insurance, but do buy evacuation coverage. That way, they can get a nice flight to their home hospital rather than having their torn rotator cuff repaired overseas where the injury happened. Traditional insurance plans may include evacuation coverage as an add-on benefit, but before you buy, read the fine print about the terms of evacuation. “You might be evacuated to what the insurer deems to be the nearest appropriate facility,” says TravelGuard’s McGinnity, “or you could be evacuated to your choice of hospitals, or home.” Some companies, such as MedJet, offer ongoing membership to cover you all the time and get you to your choice of hospital—even if that means flying you halfway around the world. MedJet memberships for travel within the continental U.S. start at 175 annually, while the global plan starts at 250; you can also buy single-trip plans. American Express’s Global Travel Shield offers an annual plan that starts at 59, which gets you to the nearest appropriate facility and includes a round-trip ticket for a loved one to come to your bedside. Advertisement 5 of 11 iStock Beware of Restrictions on Blanket Policies The newest trend in trip insurance is the “cancel for any reason” policy, which allows you to cancel for (as the name suggests) any reason.

“If you’re going to a country with an outbreak of H1N1 and you want to cancel, it would not be covered in a traditional plan,” says Evans of InsureMyTrip.com. “But a ‘cancel for any reason’ plan covers you for anything, even ‘I just don’t want to go,’ or ‘I got a better offer.’ ” But there are possible catches. These plans, no surprise, cost more—up to 50 percent more than a traditional trip-insurance plan (and the traditional is about 4 to 8 percent of your total trip cost, according to the USTIA). Timing is also key here: you have to buy it within 15 to 21 days of your trip, and you can’t renege on your trip within 2 days of departure.