Do I Need Travel Insurance to Climb Kilimanjaro?

Do I Need Travel insurance to Climb Kilimanjaro?

Travel insurance is mandatory to climb Kilimanjaro with Peak Planet.

The reason we require insurance is so that our clients are protected from unexpected events or costs that may arise before, during or after your trip.

What Does Travel Insurance Cover?

Trip Cancellation and Interruption

Though no one plans to cancel a trip when it is booked, things do happen that force a person to reconsider their travel. Sometimes things arise while clients are traveling.

Travel insurance covers expenses if you need to cancel your trip for a covered reason. This includes climb costs, safari costs, Zanzibar trips, and all other costs related to hotel rooms, transportation, etc. Some policies have an add-on option where you can cancel for any reason.

Lost, Stolen or Delayed Baggage

This component of travel insurance reimburses you for lost, stolen, or damaged baggage and personal effects, including carry-on bags, passports and other belongings. Lost baggage includes events like losing your luggage between your cab ride and the airport, between connections, or even at the destination hotel. Most policies also pay claims for baggage delays, so that travelers can replace items they need immediately when they arrive at their destination.

Emergency Evacuation and Medical

If you get sick or suffer an injury while traveling, emergency medical coverage can cover thousands of dollars in unexpected charges. Emergency medical evacuation coverage will provide transportation to the nearest adequate hospital if necessary. The cost of a medical evacuation could easily be tens of thousands of dollars. This also typically covers repatriation.

Kilimanjaro Search & Rescue

We enroll all of our clients with AMREF Flying Doctors, who operate helicopter evacuation services for Mount Kilimanjaro. This service is only available to clients with valid travel insurance.

What Should I Look for in Travel Insurance?

What Travel Insurance Companies Do You Recommend?

Our top recommendation for travel insurance is Travel Guard’s Essential Insurance Plan. Note that Travel Guard is only available to U.S. residents.

If you are outside the United States, we recommend World Nomads Explorer Plan.

If you choose an alternative travel insurance policy, please be sure that it covers trekking up to 6,000 meters.

Travel Guard Essential Plan

The Essential plan will protect you against trip interruption, trip cancellation, delays and unforeseeable expenses, such as lost, stolen and damaged baggage; medical expenses and emergency medical evacuation.

Brief Description of Coverage. Coverage may not be available in all states.
For questions regarding coverage, services or to file a claim please click here.

• 100% Trip Cost Trip Cancellation & Trip Interruption. Reimburses nonrefundable, unused payments or deposits if you must cancel or interrupt your trip due to an illness, injury, or death of you, a family member, traveling companion or business partner or other covered reasons.
• $500 Trip Interruption-Return Air Only. Reimburses the additional airline transportation expenses incurred by you to reach the return destination for trip interruptions due to one of the Unforeseen events shown in the Trip Interruption section.
• $500 Trip Delay. Reimburses up to $100 per day for reasonable additional expenses until travel becomes possible if your trip is delayed for more than 12 hours due to covered reasons.
• $750 Baggage & Personal Effects ($50 Deductible). Reimburses you if your luggage is lost, damaged, or stolen while on your trip.
• $200 Baggage Delay. Reimburses you for the purchase of necessary personal effects if your bags are delayed for more than 24 hours.
• $15,000 Accident Sickness Medical Expense ($50 Deductible). Pays for medical expenses incurred while on a trip.
• $150,000 Emergency Evacuation & Repatriation of Remains. Covers evacuation expenses as directed by a physician to the nearest adequate medical facility or home in the event of death or if medically required.

Extra Coverages

(when coverage is purchased within 15 days of Initial Trip Payment)

• Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver. (Limitations apply)
• Trip Cancellation and Interruption coverage due to Financial Default of an airline, cruise line, or tour operator. (Financial default is not covered for all suppliers. Please visit www.travelguard.com/customerservice/alertlist/ for details.)
• $25,000 Accidental Death & Dismemberment Common Carrier Air Only.

Optional Coverage*

The following will be included if elected and appropriate costs have been paid.

• Emergency Evacuation Upgrade. Evacuation benefit limit will double.
• Accidental Death & Dismemberment Common Carrier Air Only. Coverage for accidental death or dismemberment that occurs when traveling on a regularly scheduled flight or charter. Amount selected from the minimum of $100,000 up to a maximum of $500,000
• Car Rental Collision Coverage. $35,000 in primary coverage, subject to a $250 deductible. Covers physical damage to a rental car for which the car rental contract would hold you responsible. (Coverage is not available to residents of Kansas or Texas.)

* Optional coverages cannot be purchased separately and may vary by state.

Assistance Services

• Travel Medical Assistance** A menu of services available for emergency medical requests, including prescription replacement, physician referrals, medical evacuations, and more.
• Worldwide Travel Assistance** Assistance with any travel emergency or request for general travel information, including lost, stolen or delayed baggage; replacing a lost passport or travel documents; emergency cash transfers; pre-trip travel advice; inoculation information; and more.
• LiveTravel® Emergency Services** Dedicated LiveTravel® counselors available to help with any travel request, including flight or hotel rebookings, rental car reservations, roadside assistance, and more.
• Concierge Service** Whatever you need, whenever, or wherever you need it, you can call on your own personal assistant to help. Services include tee time reservations, restaurant referrals and reservations, wireless device assistance, sporting or theater tickets, and more. If you need it, we’ll find it for you.
• Personal Security Assistance. Assistance to help maintain personal safety and personal information while traveling. Services include evacuation assistance, 24/7 access to security and safety advisories and more.
  To enroll in the Essential Plan, pay the plan cost at any time up until 24 hours prior to departure.

** Non-insurance services are provided by Travel Guard.

World Nomads Explorer Plan

Limits shown are per person insured.

• $100,000 Emergency Accident & Sickness Medical Expense. Coverage is for medical expenses for emergency treatment of an accidental injury that occurs during the trip. Emergency treatment must be medically necessary and performed during the trip. Refer to the certificate/policy for complete details.
• $750 Emergency dental treatment. Coverage is for emergency dental treatment for an accidental injury to sound, natural teeth. The injury and treatment must occur during the trip.
• $500 Hospital advancement. Coverage is for payment to a hospital, up to the maximum benefit shown on the confirmation of coverage, if needed to secure your admission to a hospital because of accidental injury.
• $500,000 Emergency Evacuation & Repatriation. Coverage is for an accidental injury or sickness occurring during the trip that results in your necessary emergency evacuation. An emergency evacuation must be ordered by a physician who certifies that the severity of your accidental injury or sickness warrants your emergency evacuation.
• Transportation to join you. If you are traveling alone and are in a hospital alone for more than 7 consecutive days, upon request, a person chosen by you can be brought for a single visit to and from your bedside, provided that repatriation is not imminent. Included
• Return of minors. Ensures the safe return of your dependent children traveling with you if you are hospitalized for more than 7 days and they are left unattended.
• Repatriation of remains. Coverage is for reasonable expenses to return your body to your home if you die during the trip.
• $25,000 Non-Medical Emergency Evacuation. Coverage is for transportation expenses if there is a civil or political unrest in the country in which you are visiting (which may or may not be specifically related to terrorism). In addition, you will be transported home if there is an eligible natural disaster or if you are expelled from a country.
• $10,000 Trip Cancellation. Reimburses for prepaid, non-refundable cancellation charges if you must cancel your trip (after the effective date) due to covered sickness, accidental injury, or death of you, a family member or traveling companion; inclement weather, the unforeseen natural disaster at home or at your destination, strike or other covered reasons.
• $10,000 Trip Interruption. Reimburses for prepaid, non-refundable, unused expenses if you must interrupt your trip (after departure) due to a covered sickness, accidental injury, or death of you, a family member or traveling companion; inclement weather, the unforeseen natural disaster at home or at your destination, strike, or other covered reasons.
• $1,500 Trip Delay. Coverage is for the unused portion of pre-paid accommodation or additional expenses, on a one-time basis, if you are delayed end route to or from the trip for 6 or more hours due to a defined hazard as explained in the certificate/policy.
• $3,000 Baggage & Personal Effects. Reimbursement is for loss, theft or damage during the trip to baggage and personal effects (including sporting equipment) owned by you, provided you have taken all reasonable measures to protect, save and recover the property.
• $750 Baggage Delay. (outward journey only) Reimbursement is for the purchase of necessary personal effects if your checked baggage is delayed or misdirected by a common carrier for more than 12 hours, while on a trip.
• $35,000 Collision Damage Waiver. (CDW) – where permissible. Reimbursement is for damage to a rental car while in your possession, for any cause not within your control, including but not limited to: collision, theft or natural disaster.  Please note: Some rental vehicle companies may not accept this coverage, and may require you to buy rental car insurance underwritten by a carrier that is filed in that country.
• $10,000 Accidental Death & Dismemberment. Coverage is for the loss of life or limb as a result of an accidental injury occurring during the trip. The loss must occur within 365 days after the date of the accident causing the Loss.
• Unlimited One Call 24-Hour Assistance Services. The One Call multi-lingual professionals are available 24 hours a day to provide help, advice, and referrals for medical emergencies. We will help you locate local physicians, dentists, or medical facilities. When medically necessary, we will arrange and pay for appropriate transportation, including an escort, if required, to a suitable hospital, treatment facility or home. Payment for medical evacuation is available only for covered claims and up to the amount of coverage provided in the policy. All medical transportation services must be authorized and arranged by One Call.

Other Insurance

The above insurance companies will not cover all locations. If that is the case, you can check some of the following:

• Allianz
• Travel Insurance.com
• Travelex
• RoamRight
• InsureMyTrip
• Generali

Please note: We have not worked with these companies, and cannot guarantee they will offer trekking up to 6,000 meters.