You have probably heard about travel insurance but may not really know what it is or whether you need it. Perhaps a travel agent recommended that you get travel insurance, or maybe it was offered online at a travel web site. Either way you have a decision to make, and we will try to help you understand whether you really need travel insurance or not.

First of all, travel is not cheap. When you add up airfare, hotel reservations, and any other arrangements that you make for a trip, it can be a pretty hefty sum. So if you had to cancel your trip for any reason, you could stand to lose a lot of money. Travel insurance was created to help protect you in those cases where your trip becomes canceled due to unforeseen circumstances. Some of the situations that would be covered are perhaps your airline unexpectedly going out of business just before your trip, or maybe you get sick and are unable to travel during the dates you had selected. In both of those cases, if you had purchased travel insurance in advance, your money would be refunded and you would not lose anything.

Traveling abroad can have its own set of concerns these days too. Ever since September 11th, terrorism has become a concern around the world. And it's quite possible that an act of terrorism could break out in an area where you plan to visit. If that should happen, the airline is not required to refund your ticket simply because you choose not to travel due to terrorism. However, if you had purchased travel insurance, you would be covered and would lose nothing.

Another advantage of travel insurance abroad is that it can cover you for medical expenses that may become necessary on your trip. Very often, your medical insurance policy will not provide coverage outside of your home country. If your policy is like that, then travel insurance makes a lot of sense. It means that if any medical emergency arises while you are on your trip, you will be fully covered for the medical expenses incurred. That is a great peace of mind to have when you travel on foreign soil.

Sometimes airlines cancel flights for any number of reasons too, including bad weather conditions or emergency repairs. In such cases the airlines may not reschedule the flight and refunds are not given. Once again, if you have travel insurance you receive your money back no matter what the reason is for the flight not taking off.

Travel insurance can also cover lost luggage. Airlines try to locate and return all missing luggage if possible. But sometimes luggage is never found. Or perhaps it is found, but items have been removed. Travel insurance will help replace all of your lost items and luggage.

Basically, travel insurance protects you from any unforeseen occurrence that could interfere with your trip. It can work very well not only for air travel but also cruises too. If you travel a lot, getting a long-term travel insurance policy may make sense for you also. As with any consumer decision, be sure to do your homework and shop around to get the best deal. Make sure you know what your policy does and does not cover before you pay for it. But by getting the right travel insurance you can make sure that you are protected from unforeseen circumstances whenever you travel.