Silversea Cruise Travel Insurance - 2024 Review

Background

Silversea Cruises is one of the world’s leading ultra-luxury cruise lines. Based out of Monaco, for over 30 years Silversea has helped define luxury cruising. The acquisition of Silversea by Royal Caribbean in 2018 only helped bolster the financial resources of Silversea, as it expands its all-suite vessel fleet.

A Silversea Cruise is all inclusive including drinks, gourmet meals, in-suit dining, butler service and gratuities.

Our Silversea Cruise – An Expedition Cruise to Antarctica

For our sample trip we chose a 20-day expedition cruise on the Silver Cloud for our two travelers aged 60 and 55.

The trip begins in Buenos Aires and travels to the Antarctic continent and returns to Ushuaia, Argentina. As air travel to/from Argentina can vary we will only include our cruise cost for this review.

After choosing our Silver Suite stateroom, the total cost of the trip for both travelers is $92,000

Silversea has teamed with Allianz insurance to provide travel insurance to their travelers to be billed along with the trip. However, the insurance isn’t available for review and purchase on their website. You must call an agent to get a price and it will be included in your invoice.

For our travelers from California, the Allianz insurance is 10.5% of the trip cost, bringing the insurance cost to $9,660. What is included for our $9,660? Let’s see.

Silversea Cruise Travel Insurance Coverage Levels

Provided by Allianz:

Trip Cancellation - Up to 100% of Trip Cost up to a maximum of $100,000

Trip Interruption - Up to 100% of Trip Cost up to a maximum of $100,000

$50,000 Emergency Medical

$250,000 Emergency Transportation

Travel Delay $300/day up to a max of $1,000

Baggage Loss/Damage $3,000

Baggage Delay $1,000

Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver provided as long as the travel insurance is fully paid for no later than final trip payment date.

In reviewing the coverage, the medical coverage is far too low for a trip to Antarctica and the medical coverage is also low considering the distance from the US.

When traveling outside the United States, TripProtectors recommends a minimum coverage of $100,000 in Medical Insurance, $250,000 in Medical Evacuation, and a Pre-existing Medical Condition Waiver. However, since we are traveling to Antarctica, we recommend having at least $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage. We will use these criteria ($100,000 of medical coverage and $500,000 of medical evacuation coverage) to choose the best options for our comparison quotes.

Comparison Quotes

Based on our sample couple, ages 55 and 60, we created comparison quotes using TripProtectors travel insurance marketplace engine. The trip cost used for the comparison is the cruise cost for both travelers of $92,000.

The least expensive plan with adequate coverage on our quote from TripProtectors is the IMG Travel SE.

The IMG Travel SE Policy includes $250,000 for Medical Insurance and $500,000 for Medical Evacuation. A Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver is included if you purchase the policy within 20 days of your initial trip payment or deposit. While providing more coverage than the Silversea Allianz policy, it is also $3,500 LESS than that policy. This additional savings could be used for additional excursions, shopping, or other adventures.

For a Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) policy, the least expensive plan on our Aardy quote is the John Hancock Gold (CFAR 75%).

This plan provides $250,000 of medical coverage and $1 million of medical evacuation coverage and includes a waiver to cover pre-existing medical conditions provided the policy is purchased within 14 days of the initial trip payment or deposit.

While more expensive than the Silversea Allianz plan, it provides significantly more coverage and allows you to cancel for any reason not listed in the policy and receive a 75% refund in cash of the trip cost.

Next, we broke down the benefits of each policy in a side-by-side comparison

Benefit	Silversea Cruise Protection Plan	IMG Travel SE	John Hancock Gold (CFAR 75%)
Trip Cancellation	100% of Trip cost up to $100,000	100% of trip cost	100% of trip cost
Trip Interruption	100% of Trip cost up to $100,000	150% of trip cost	150% of trip cost
Medical Insurance	$50,000	$250,000	$250,000
Medical Evacuation	$250,000	$500,000	$1,000,000
Baggage Loss/Damage	$3,000	$1,500	$2,500
Baggage Delay	$1000	$250	$400
Travel Delay (Incl quarantine)	$1,000	$2000 per person	$1000 per person
Missed Connection	No	$1,000 per person	$1000 per person
Cover Pre-existing Medical Conditions	Yes, if purchased on or before final trip payment	Yes, if purchased within 20 days of deposit	Yes, if purchased within 14 days of deposit
Cancel For Work Reason	No	Yes	No
Interrupt For Any Reason	No	No	No
Cancel For Any Reason	Yes up to 75% in future cruise credit	No	Yes 75% of trip cost
Accidental Death & Dismemberment	$25,000	$25,000	$100,000
Cost of Policy	$9,660.00 (10.5% of trip cost)	$6,072.00 (6.6% of trip cost)	$12,907.50 (14% of trip cost)

Overall, the IMG Travel SE provides much better coverage than the Silversea policy at a much lower cost. If a CFAR policy is desired, while a bit more than the Silversea policy, the John Hancock Gold (CFAR 75%) will provide higher coverage than the Silversea policy plus the ability to cancel for any reason and receive a cash refund instead of cruise credit. Both are great options over the Silversea policy.

Trip Cancellation

A significant concern for travelers is Trip Cancellation. If you became ill or had an accidental injury prior to your departure date, you may have to cancel your travel arrangements, resulting in financial losses. While disappointing, Trip Cancellation is doubly painful without cancellation insurance.

Silversea permits cancellation for the following reasons:

1. Sickness, injury or death to yourself, a traveling companion, or members of either of your immediate families which is diagnosed and treated by a physician at the time your cruise vacation is terminated.
2. Involvement in a traffic accident en route to departure that causes you to miss your cruise.
3. You or your traveling companion are quarantined.
4. Your home is made uninhabitable due to a natural disaster.
5. Being called to serve jury duty or are subpoenaed.
6. A terrorist event happens within 100 miles of your travel destination.
7. You or your traveling companion are laid off by your employer, through no fault of your own after purchase of the policy.
8. You, a traveling companion, or a family member serving in the U.S. Armed Forces is reassigned or has personal leave status changed, except because of war, the War Powers Act, or disciplinary action.
9. Your travel carrier cannot get you to your original itinerary’s destination for at least 24 consecutive hours from the originally scheduled arrival time due to a natural disaster, severe weather, or a strike, unless the strike was threatened or announced prior to the purchase of your certificate, or an FAA or foreign equivalent mandate.

Unfortunately, Silversea’s list of cancellation reasons lacks some important coverages.

We recommend policies that also include:

• Default or bankruptcy of the common carrier or travel supplier
• Employer-initiated transfer of 250 miles or more
• Mechanical breakdown of a common carrier
• Mandatory evacuation
• Documented theft of passports or visas

Trip Interruption

A Trip Interruption is a situation during your trip that causes you to miss some or the rest of your vacation. It’s like Trip Cancellation but happens during your travels.

The most common trip interruption is the injury or illness of a traveler. If you had an injury or illness on your vacation but can continue traveling after treatment, trip interruption reimburses the unused portion of the trip, and the cost to rejoin the trip in progress.

Trip interruption also includes a family member who had a sudden grave illness or passed away. If your covered situation requires curtailing the trip and going home early, Trip Interruption also reimburses for the unused portion of the trip, plus the added cost of going home early.

In the Silversea travel insurance policy, Trip Interruption benefits share the same list of covered reasons as Trip Cancellation, but also include the additional reason of you or a traveling companion being hijacked while on your trip. Like cancellation, the Silversea travel insurance has a $100,000 cap for Trip Interruption. That amount includes reimbursement of unused trip costs plus the added cost of transportation home.

Travel insurance plans like the IMG Travel SE and the John Hancock Gold (CFAR 75%) offer 150% of trip costs for interruption. Therefore, they cover up to 100% of the unused costs, plus up to an additional 50% to cover transportation costs to return home.

Cancel For Any Reason

Cancel For Any Reason cruise insurance provides the highest level of flexibility and reimbursement if you must cancel your trip for any reason not covered by the policy.

If you cancel your Silversea cruise for a reason not listed in the Silversea insurance policy, they grant future cruise credits for up to 75% of the prepaid, non-refundable cancellation fees paid to them. When it comes to refunds, we always prefer cash since future credits may not be used.

Alternatively, travel insurance policies like John Hancock Gold with Cancel for Any Reason included pay a 75% cash refund of all prepaid, non-refundable trip costs including arrangements made outside of Silversea. This could include flights, hotels, rental cars, excursions, and transfers.

Cancel For Any Reason policies have several stipulations:

1. Purchase the policy within 10 - 21 days (depending on policy), of your initial payment or deposit date and
2. Insure 100% of the prepaid trip costs subject to cancellation penalties or restrictions. For additional prepaid non-refundable payments made after the purchase of the policy, insure within 10-21 days (depending on policy), of each subsequent payment added to your trip, and
3. Cancel your trip 2 days or more before your scheduled departure date.

Medical Insurance for Emergency Treatment

One of the most important factors in selecting trip insurance is having adequate Medical Insurance when you travel. Anything can happen, including accidental injuries or sudden illness.

If you have a medical emergency when traveling and don’t have proper medical insurance coverage while overseas, you could find yourself with huge, unexpected hospital bills. Many Americans mistakenly believe countries with universal health care will treat them for free. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Instead, Americans receive treatment at private hospitals, not public, and must pay like anyone else. Admission for inpatient care can cost $3,000-$4,000 per day, plus the cost of treatment, x-rays, surgeries, and specialists.

A common misconception is that Medicare will pay for hospitalization overseas.  Unfortunately, they won’t. Medicare does not pay providers outside the US. Some Medicare supplements do cover overseas, but have lifetime limits or reduced benefits, and pay for emergencies only. They can still require you to pay 20% of the costs. As a result, you could go on vacation and end up with medical bills in the thousands.

TripProtectors urges overseas travelers to take travel medical insurance of at least $100,000 per person. In a medical emergency, $100,000 provides ample health care and helps protect your retirement savings from unexpected financial burdens.

Silversea’s travel insurance provides a $50,000 benefit for Medical Insurance. Both the IMG Travel SE policy and the John Hancock Gold include $250,000 per person, of medical coverage ($200,000 MORE than Silversea), so you can receive proper treatment without ending up in debt.

Emergency Medical Evacuation

Medical Insurance isn’t the only potentially expensive part of a trip. Emergency Medical Evacuation transports you from the place of injury or illness to the closest hospital. Once you’re stable enough for transport, Medical Evacuation brings you home via commercial flight or, if necessary, private medical jet.

Medical flights can cost up to $25,000 per hour and regular health insurance does not cover it. In addition, the US State Department does not offer any medical treatment or evacuation assistance for US citizens. TripProtectors advises travelers to get at least $250,000 Medical Evacuation if traveling close to the US and $500k or more if traveling to further locations such as Asia or Africa, to assure there’s enough coverage to get them back home from almost anywhere if they experience a serious medical event. For our trip to Antarctica, we would recommend $500,000 - $1 million in medical evacuation coverage.

The Silversea policy includes Medical Evacuation up to $250,000 per person, which is great for travel closer to the US but inadequate for longer distances. The IMG Travel SE provides $500,000 per person of medical evacuation while the John Hancock Silver (CFAR 75%) provides $1 million per person, so you can feel secure knowing you have adequate coverage to transport you back home if needed.

Pre-existing Medical Conditions

A significant concern for senior travelers can be pre-existing medical conditions. A Pre-Existing Medical Condition is one in which you’ve received medical treatment, testing, medication changes, added new medications, or received a recommendation for a treatment or test that hasn’t happened yet. Most travel insurance policies exclude pre-existing conditions unless you purchase the policy within the required time from your initial trip deposit date (called the Time Sensitive Period). Otherwise, the insurer will look backward 60, 90, or 180 days (depending on the policy) from the date you purchased the insurance to see if there are any pre-existing medical conditions they won’t cover. This is called the Look Back Period. Any medical conditions older than this Look Back Period, unchanged or stabilized with no medication dosage changes are covered, as are any new conditions that arise after you purchase the policy.

If you must cancel, interrupt, or seek medical treatment for a medical condition while traveling, travel insurance policies typically exclude claims related to Pre-existing Medical Conditions. However, if you purchase the policy within a few days of your Initial Trip Payment or Deposit date, many policies add a Waiver to the policy that covers Pre-existing Conditions. As a result, there is no Look Back Period and Pre-existing Conditions are covered.

Silversea’s policy will cover Pre-Existing Conditions as long as you purchase the policy on or before you make your final trip payment.

The IMG Travel SE policy also covers Pre-existing Medical Conditions as long as you purchase the policy within 20 days of the initial trip deposit or payment, while the John Hancock Gold gives you 14 days from the initial trip payment or deposit to purchase the policy to get the waiver.

Price and Value

The Silversea policy through Allianz carries minimal medical coverage and less than optimal medical evacuation coverage for distant travels and is more expensive than other available options. The medical insurance coverage is only $50,000, and only $250,000 for medical evacuation, which may not be adequate for a serious illness or injury in remote travel destinations. Cancellation reasons are quite good but several reasons such as bankruptcy or theft of passports are not included. Also, cancellation only grants future cruise credits that expire after 24 months. Overall, the Silversea Plan offers limited value for the price.

In contrast, by comparison shopping, we found the IMG Travel SE policy comes in at $6,072.00 ($3500 LESS than Silversea plan!) It includes superior medical and evacuation benefits, 100% refund for trip costs for covered cancellation, 150% refund for covered trip interruption, and a robust list of cancellation reasons. The John Hancock Gold (CFAR 75%) provides higher medical and medical evacuation coverage than the Silversea plan and provides a 75% refund in cash versus cruise credits for about $3200 more than the Silversea plan.

Conclusion

Silversea provides travelers with a minimal insurance policy for a high cost that could leave travelers unpleasantly surprised during an emergency. Medical coverage is low and medical evacuation may be insufficient for remote areas. Bankruptcy or insolvency of the carrier is specifically excluded which is concerning. Overall, we rate it a 6 out of 10.

Travelers planning a Silversea Cruise will find the best value for their money and peace of mind when they shop for travel insurance at TripProtectors Travel Insurance Marketplace. There, you can review dozens of options and select the best policy to fit your needs.

To help you find the best policy, TripProtectors recommends having at least $100,000 in travel medical coverage and $250,000 emergency medical evacuation when traveling within a few hours flight time of US borders and $500,000 or more for travel further afield. And, if you purchase the policy within the 14-21 days of initial trip payment, please consider a travel insurance policy with the pre-existing condition waiver included to ensure the most coverage for your money.

If you are planning a Silversea cruise in 2022, be sure to pack insurance before you travel. You never know when you may need it.

Have questions? Chat with us online, send us an email at agent@TripProtectors.com or alternatively call us at +1(650) 397-6592. We would love to hear from you.

Safe Travels!