In my letter “Heading to Cuba by Cruise Ship” (Sept. ’15, pg. 12), I discussed the plans my wife, Patti, and I made for a cruise to Cuba in January 2016. Having returned, I wanted to share with ITN readers what happened, what didn’t happen and what has changed since we first signed up for the cruise.
We booked our trip in April 2015 with Cuba Cruise (Toronto, Ontario, office: 855/364-4999, www.yourcubacruise.com), making our final payment in August.
A local newspaper mentioned a cruise ship that travels between Montego Bay, Jamaica, and Cuba, making five landings in Cuba.
I went on the website, www.yourcubacruise.com, in April and booked a cruise with ease through Cuba Cruise (phone the Toronto, Ontario, office at 855/364-4999), selecting one of the few balcony suites for CAD1,414 per person, double occupancy, which worked out to $2,318 for both my wife and me. Shore excursions and booze are not included, but onboard meals and services are. Air miles covered our airfare to Jamaica.
S.L. PEEK, Jr., of Starke, FL, wrote to ITN, “In the August ’97 issue, page 4, was a question concerning whether Medicare benefits would be paid overseas.
“The 1996 Medicare Handbook states, ‘Medicare in general will not pay for health care obtained outside the U.S. and its territories. There are some very limited exceptions for care obtained in Canada or Mexico.’
Below are four letters/inquiries from ITN readers on the subject of travel insurance. Each is immediately followed by my response or recommendations.
Among the choices to be made regarding travel insurance, emergency medical evacuation coverage continues to be what I recommend most.
I believe that emergency medical evacuation coverage is a must for overseas travelers (and especially for seniors). This coverage is so rarely used that it can be relatively inexpensive to purchase, and it is often available at no or very little extra cost through a variety of “clubs” or affinity groups.
Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) has added a whole new dimension to international travel. This is a significant concern for mature travelers, as it has been reported that the fatality rate of patients over the age of 65 is 50%.
Reacting to the current uncertain travel conditions, airlines and tour companies have adopted (probably temporarily) flexible terms and conditions that will allow travelers to cancel or reschedule trips easily and with little or no penalty.
In what may well be a travel industry first, Uniworld, to encourage the travel-shy, is offering free travel insurance on most of their 60 European river cruises in April and May of this year.
With Uniworld’s “Worry-free Travel Protection Gold Plan,” guests can cancel for any reason up until the day of departure. Cancellation coverage guarantees a refund of 100% of the cruise cost in cash and travel certificates.
Ruth Harris of Concordia, KS, sent ITN the following letter: “We have all been warned to watch for a ‘preexisting-condition clause’ in travel insurance. Uniworld has changed the company from which they get their travel insurance for their travel packages; consequently, if you are over 70 years of age, you may not want to buy your travel insurance through Uniworld.
Graham Collins of Vancouver, B.C., Canada, found out the hard way that the fine print in his Trip Mate travel insurance policy did not cover an unexpected change in his freighter’s itinerary.
Early in 2001 he boarded a freighter for a round-trip Vancouver/Chile/Vancouver itinerary. When booking with TravLtips, he was encouraged to purchase a travel insurance package for US$340.