Our experience with travel insurance

If you are taking a big trip you need to have travel insurance. There is no way around it. Not only can you get valuable peace of mind but you get help when you need it. Traveling doesn't get better than that.

I experienced this first hand when my daughter and I were traveling to Alaska. One minute we were cruising on the interstate and the next we were standing on the side of it. Things got pretty tense but with help from AAA we made it to the repair shop.

Broken PT Cruiser

The situation deteriorated when we found out that the shop was closed on Sunday. We were faced with an unexpected car repair bill, additional nights out that cost twice what we budgeted and additional meals. I allowed a extra in our travel budget but no the $1,100 we needed to get out of the jam.

Help from friends at home was a huge relief. It also helped to know that our AAA membership came with a limited amount of travel insurance. The motel nights and meals could be reimbursed. We weren't able to use it but rental car reimbursement also came with the plan.

Some travel insurance plans will cover medical emergencies or routine illnesses. Other plans will simply make referrals and help you decipher any existing medical coverage that you may have. It really pays to read the fine print before buying a policy

Vacations are supposed to be fun and stress free. The whole reason for taking one is to leave your worries at home. Like any vacationer, we planned to have a fun trip. Upgrading our AAA membership before leaving helped make our getaway worry free. We didn't plan on using the travel insurance but we were glad it was there when we needed it.