People opting for learning holidays 'need comprehensive travel insurance'
Published On 29 February 2008
More and more young people are opting for gap years which include them learning a new skill and this has made it even more important for these individuals to take out appropriate travel insurance before they depart, an industry expert has said.A spokesperson form STA Travel explained that these so-called 'learning holidays' were becoming ever more popular, with possible activities ranging from cooking to kite-surfing.
She suggested that the fact that many of these holidays took place in remote locations made comprehensive travel insurance vitally important.
"The further you are away from home, or the more secluded your location, the more expensive it would be to repatriate the traveller back to the UK in the case of an accident or illness," the spokesperson pointed out.
"The quality of medical care is imperative, so it is crucial to ensure your policy includes the cost of private health care or air lift to a country with more sophisticated health service if deemed necessary.
"Adventure activities such as kite-surfing do carry more risk, so it is imperative the passenger is covered for the activity they are taking part in."
Finally, the expert said that these holidays tended to be expensive, which meant that it was important a person took out insurance as soon as they booked the trip.
By doing this, the holidaymaker covered "themselves against potential costs if they were forced to cancel due to circumstances outside their control".
