TRAVEL INSURANCE
The only fixed cost I have (outside of taxes) is travel insurance. Healthcare in developing countries can be extremely cheap (dental cleaning in Thailand $15, stitches in Nepal $6, vaccination in Indonesia $5). But it can also be extremely expensive in North America, Europe, Singapore, etc. For peace of mind, I would recommend traveling with a travel insurance policy. If you are involved in a serious accident (and they do happen) you want to minimise what you pay out-of-pocket for treatment.
Deductibles
If you are healthy, take a high deductible ($1000-2500) as you will likely never pay it. If you tend to visit doctors and hospitals frequently, consider a lower deductible but this will increase the cost. The deductible represents the costs you cover before the insurance kicks in. So if you have a $2,500 deductible on a $10,000 injury, you pay the first $2,500 and (hopefully) your insurance covers the remaining $7,500. Once you pay enough to cover the deductible for the year, the insurance should pay 100%. Be mindful of this when signing up for insurance, there are many policies to choose from out there. It all depends on your situation, your resources, and your health.
Sport Riders
If you plan to have some fun on your adventure, make sure you have Adventure Sports Rider coverage included in your policy (or pay extra to get it). Some high-risk activities like sky diving, deep-sea diving, bob sledding, etc are never covered. But make sure your policy covers the activities you plan to enjoy (in my case trekking, cycling, mountain biking, etc). I have IMGlobal insurance these days (see below).
International Medical Group: IMGlobal website (check Patriot Travel Medical Insurance plan first).
$2,500 deductible and $1,000,000 coverage globally (no sports rider) costs $559.02/year ($1.53/day).
$2,500 deductible and $1,000,000 coverage globally (with sports rider) costs $670.82/year ($1.84/day).
Skip the bottled water (get a filter), and your medical costs are easily covered for the year.
World Nomads website (Used previously but now more expensive and excludes more adventure activities).
$1050/year ($2.87/day) with possibly no deductible for $100,000 coverage (read fine print). Gets solid reviews and support from Lonely Planet but now also charging a premium price.
Deductibles
If you are healthy, take a high deductible ($1000-2500) as you will likely never pay it. If you tend to visit doctors and hospitals frequently, consider a lower deductible but this will increase the cost. The deductible represents the costs you cover before the insurance kicks in. So if you have a $2,500 deductible on a $10,000 injury, you pay the first $2,500 and (hopefully) your insurance covers the remaining $7,500. Once you pay enough to cover the deductible for the year, the insurance should pay 100%. Be mindful of this when signing up for insurance, there are many policies to choose from out there. It all depends on your situation, your resources, and your health.
Sport Riders
If you plan to have some fun on your adventure, make sure you have Adventure Sports Rider coverage included in your policy (or pay extra to get it). Some high-risk activities like sky diving, deep-sea diving, bob sledding, etc are never covered. But make sure your policy covers the activities you plan to enjoy (in my case trekking, cycling, mountain biking, etc). I have IMGlobal insurance these days (see below).
International Medical Group: IMGlobal website (check Patriot Travel Medical Insurance plan first).
$2,500 deductible and $1,000,000 coverage globally (no sports rider) costs $559.02/year ($1.53/day).
$2,500 deductible and $1,000,000 coverage globally (with sports rider) costs $670.82/year ($1.84/day).
Skip the bottled water (get a filter), and your medical costs are easily covered for the year.
World Nomads website (Used previously but now more expensive and excludes more adventure activities).
$1050/year ($2.87/day) with possibly no deductible for $100,000 coverage (read fine print). Gets solid reviews and support from Lonely Planet but now also charging a premium price.