Planning Your Trip to Norway - Norway - page 26

calendar, attracting world attention.
Held at Oslo City Hall on Decem-
ber 10. Attendance is by invitation
only. For information, contact the

Nobel Institute, Drammensveien
19, N-0255 Oslo 2 ( & 22-44-36-
80; www.nobel.se).

6 Travel Insurance
Since Norway is far from home for
most of us, and a number of things
could go wrong—lost luggage, trip
cancellation, a medical emergency—
consider the following types of
insurance.
Check your existing insurance poli-
cies before you buy travel insurance to
cover trip cancellation, lost luggage,
medical expenses, or car-rental insur-
ance. You're likely to have partial or
complete coverage. But if you need
some, ask your travel agent about a
comprehensive package. The cost of
travel insurance varies widely, depend-
ing on the cost and length of your trip,
your age and overall health, and the
type of trip you're taking, but expect
to pay between 5% and 8% of the
vacation itself. Some insurers provide
packages for specialty vacations, such
as skiing or backpacking. More dan-
gerous activities may be excluded from
basic policies.
TRIP-CANCELLATION INSUR-
ANCE Trip-cancellation insurance
helps you get your money back if you
have to back out of a trip, if you have
to go home early, or if your travel sup-
plier goes bankrupt. Allowed reasons
for cancellation can range from sick-
ness to natural disasters to the State
Department declaring your destina-
tion unsafe for travel. (Insurers usually
won't cover vague fears, though, as
many travelers discovered who tried to
cancel their trips in Oct 2001 because
they were wary of flying.) In this
unstable world, trip-cancellation
insurance is a good buy if you're get-
ting tickets well in advance—who
knows what the state of the world, or
of your airline, will be in 9 months?
Insurance policy details vary, so read
the fine print—and make sure that

your airline or cruise line is on the list
of carriers covered in case of bank-
ruptcy. A good resource is “Travel
Guard Alerts,” a list of companies
considered high-risk by Travel Guard
International (see website below). Pro-
tect yourself further by paying for the
insurance with a credit card—by law,
consumers can get their money back
on goods and services not received if
they report the loss within 60 days
after the charge is listed on their credit
card statement.
Note: Many tour operators, partic-
ularly those offering trips to remote or
high-risk areas, include insurance in
the cost of the trip or can arrange
insurance policies through a partner-
ing provider, a convenient and often
cost-effective way for the traveler to
obtain insurance. Make sure the tour
company is a reputable one, however:
Some experts suggest you avoid buy-
ing insurance from the tour or cruise
company you're traveling with, saying
it's better to buy from a “third party”
insurer than to put all your money in
one place.
For more information, contact one
of the following recommended insur-
ers: Access America ( & 866/807-
3982; www.accessamerica.com); Travel
Guard International ( & 800/826-
4919; www.travelguard.com); Travel
Insured International ( & 800/243-
3174; www.travelinsured.com); or
Travelex Insurance Services ( & 888/
457-4602; www.travelex-insurance.
com).
MEDICAL INSURANCE For
travel overseas, most health plans
(including Medicare and Medicaid)
do not provide coverage, and the ones
that do often require you to pay for
services upfront and reimburse you