1. Is having travel insurance for South America mandatory?
With the reopening of tourism during the global COVID-19 pandemic, some countries are requiring travelers to have travel insurance. At the moment, there isn’t a country in South America that requires mandatory travel insurance to enter the country. This can change at any time however, therefore you should check the current requirements in each country.
Regardless of whether it is mandatory or not, purchasing travel insurance for South America is extremely necessary and essential.
We never know when we are going to get sick or have an accident. If this happens to you in a country that you do not know and where you don’t have medical coverage, it can become a real nightmare. You will be on your own to find the best medical attention and you will have to face all the economic expenses. However, if you have travel insurance, there will be a team of people who will help you emotionally and financially.
Your travel insurance for South America should meet the following requirements:
– CUSTOMER SERVICE IN YOUR LANGUAGE. Something very important is that your insurance company offers all the information and service in your language. Explaining a claim in detail in a foreign language can cause misunderstandings and add complications to the process.
– ADVENTURE SPORTS. Basic insurance does not cover certain sports or activities. For example, if you are going to travel to Peru and are going on a hike in Huaraz or Ausangate, you should include adventure sports coverage. The added coverage will be cover hikes above 3,000 meters of altitude. It is also necessary to add this extra coverage for sports such as canyoning, diving, mountain biking or rafting.
– MEDICAL COVERAGE. Since you invest in travel insurance, make it a good one. I recommend that you cover a minimum of 100,000 in terms of medical assistance.
– *COVID-19 COVERAGE*. It is very important that your travel insurance covers medical care in case of Covid-19 infection. Not all insurance covers the coronavirus. Do not worry, the insurance that I am going to recommend does cover it.
– NO MONEY UP FRONT. I recommend looking for a company that does not make you advance the money since doing all the paperwork to get the money is quite a hassle. Before heading to a center yourself, you should call the company so they can tell you where to go and take care of all the paperwork.
– CANCELLATION COVERAGE. Some policies give you the option to add coverage for trip cancellation expenses. The insurance company cover several cancellation reasons: new hiring, job dismissal, call from the hospital to operate, etc.
2. Travel insurance for South America
Now that you are aware of what travel insurance should cover, I recommend what is, in my opinion, the best travel insurance for South America: HEYMONDO.
Why purchase travel insurance for South America?
The travel insurance for South America that I recommend will not only be useful if you have an incident in which you need medical attention, but it also covers a series of other things:
– MEDICAL ASSISTANCE. In case you get sick, have an accident, get Covid-19, etc. The insurance will cover the costs of treatments, surgeries, medications, hospitalizations, emergencies, medical tests, etc.
– FAMILY DISPLACEMENT. If you are hospitalized for more than 5 days and you do not have the company of a family member, the insurance covers the costs of moving a family member to your destination. In addition, it will also cover the expenses of the displaced family member for 10 days.
– BAGGAGE DAMAGE. The insurance covers your checked baggage. In case of theft, serious damage or loss, the insurance will give you financial compensation. Similarly, you will also receive compensation if the waiting time for the delivery of the suitcase is too long.
– LEGAL AND CIVIL LIABILITY. In case you need legal help abroad or in case you inadvertently cause material or bodily harm to third parties.
– DENTAL EXPENSES. The insurance covers certain expenses if you urgently need dental treatment (endodontics, caps, prostheses and implants are excluded).
– EARLY RETURN. The insurance will cover early return travel in the event of death or serious hospitalization of a family member or serious damage to the home or workplace.
Best travel insurance for South America
As I mentioned before, the travel insurance that I have been using for the last few years and the one that I always recommend is HEYMONDO. Some of the best aspects about his travel insurance are:
↠ VALUE-FOR-MONEY. The coverage offered by Heymondo travel insurance is one of the most comprehensive in the market and, however, they maintain a very competitive price. You will be covered during your trip to South America without having to increase your budget too much.
↠ 24/7 MEDICAL CHAT. Something that I love about HEYMONDO and that I have used on several occasions is the medical chat. You can contact a doctor or pediatrician 24 hours a day to ask any questions you have about your health. This has come in handy for me while traveling when I had some symptoms. Better to ask a doctor than Google.
↠ REFUND OF POLICY. If, for whatever reason, you aren’t able to go on your trip and you had already bought travel insurance, HEYMONDO can provide a full refund for the policy.
↠ HEYMONDO APP. One of HEYMONDO’s latest innovations is the exclusive HEYMONDO app for its customers. When you purchase an insurance policy for the first time, you can download the app. Thanks to this you will be able to call the insurance through the internet (something that is great because when traveling we do not always have a sim card that can make calls), talk to a health professional through the medical chat, review your policy and coverage, make claims, etc.
↠ COVID-19 COVERAGE. If you are looking for travel insurance to South America that covers COVID-19 related issues, I am happy to tell you that HEYMONDO covers the costs of medical assistance if you contract the virus. On the other hand, it also covers expenses if you have to extend your stay in the hotel due to medical quarantine. In addition, if you add cancellation coverage, it will cover your travel expenses if you have to cancel it due to illness or death of the traveler or family member due to COVID-19.
This is why Heymondo is the best travel insurance for South America.
How much does travel insurance for South America cost?
We’ve come to one of the most important points: how much does travel insurance for South America cost? The price of your insurance will depend on the duration of the trip and the coverage. HEYMONDO offers three types of insurance: Heymondo Top, Heymondo Premium and Heymondo Medical.
PRICE FOR TRAVEL INSURANCE FOR SOUTH AMERICA:
– 2-week coverage: from $76.63 USD
– 3-week coverage: from $96.81 USD
– 1-month coverage: from $120.95 USD.
– 2-month coverage: from $265.84 USD
– 3-month coverage: from $257.41 USD (long stay)
Below you can see the price and coverage of a HEYMONDO travel insurance policy for a 1-MONTH TRIP TO SOUTH AMERICA:
↠ HEYMONDO TOP: $120.95 USD.
250,000USD in medical assistance, repatriation and early return included, $1,700USD in baggage coverage, $3,500USD in cancellation, $450USD in travel disruption, tech coverage add on.
↠ HEYMONDO PREMIUM: 145.14 USD.
$500,000USD in medical coverage, repatriation and early return included, $2,500USD in baggage coverage, $7,000 in cancellation and interruption, tech coverage add on optional, adventure sports coverage optional.
↠ HEYMONDO MEDICAL: $116.10 USD
$500,000USD in medical assistance, repatriation and early return included.
You can see the complete coverage of each policy before purchasing it by clicking on “General conditions”.
As you can see in the table, the price of travel insurance may be expensive for some but as a reader of my blog, you can purchase an insurance policy with a 5% discount.
3. Vaccines for South America
MANDATORY VACCINES TO TRAVEL TO SOUTH AMERICA
To travel to Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Ecuador, Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana, it is mandatory to have the yellow fever vaccine if the traveler is coming from a country where yellow fever exists (endemic).
RECOMMENDED VACCINES TO TRAVEL TO SOUTH AMERICA
Regardless of the destination: It is recommended to have the tetanus vaccine, the triple viral vaccine (measles, rubella and mumps) and the Hepatitis A vaccine.
Depending on the areas of the country or countries you plan on visiting: It is recommended to have the yellow fever vaccine.
According to the clinical characteristics of the traveler or the trip: In special cases it may be advisable to have the Hepatitis B vaccine, the typhoid fever vaccine, the typhoid fever vaccine, the flu vaccine, the rabies and pneumococcal vaccine.
You can refer to the CDC’s website to see which vaccine is recommended to travel to certain countries in South America.
I also recommend consulting a health professional about any vaccine related question or concern.
4. Safety in South America
Safety in South America is one of the reason many people hesitate to travel to South America. Unfortunately, what we read in the media or see in the news about South America is all negative, which ultimately makes us think that all countries in the continent are dangerous. In fact, whenever you tell someone you are traveling to South America, the first question he or she asks is, is it dangerous? Aren’t you worried or afraid? Etc.
Obviously, we all know countries in South America aren’t among the safest in the world; however, if you practice basic precautionary measures and you aren’t a victim of bad luck, nothing bad will happen. I’ve travel to Colombia, Peru, Chile and I haven’t run into any safety issues. Below, I will give you a few safety tips you should follow before departing to South America.
– VALUABLE ITEMS. It is very important that, especially in big cities, you do not go around showing your valuable items. Use your phone or camera when you have to and then store it well. Also, I recommend being discreet and not carrying many expensive items with you (watches, jewelry, etc.). If you are going to take a long bus trip, always keep your valuables with you.
– VISIT PLACES DURING THE DAY. We all know that any place is safer during the day than at night. If you are going to move around the city at night, I recommend doing it by taxi instead of public transport or walking.
– BEWARE OF TAXIS. Always use official taxis. If in doubt, ask the hotel or restaurant to call a taxi for you. At the airport, always go to the accredited taxi zone. Many robberies take place in unofficial taxis, so you have to be careful with this. Another option is to use Uber or a taxi app.
– KEEP YOUR PASSPORT IN A SAFE PLACE. Take a photocopy or picture of your passport with you and leave the original in a safe place inside your hotel.
– DO NOT RESIST. If you are unlucky and end up being a victim of assault, don’t even think about resisting. Better to finish the trip with a little less money than to end up injured or not finish it at all.
As I said before, if you are careful, everything will most likely be fine… Although you can have bad luck anywhere in the world.
I hope that this post about the best travel insurance for South America has been very useful when planning your trip. If you have any questions, I encourage you to leave a comment. Until next time, traveler!
