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Despite being a developed island with a long history of tourist travellers, Hawaii is not without its travel risks and travel insurance will offer financial protection for a range of losses including:
Simply enter your trip details in the enquiry form below to compare travel insurance for Hawaii. If you want some more information about what to look for, carry on reading!
While travel involves an element of risk wherever you go in the world, there are certain risks specific to Hawaii that you need to be aware. These include;
While you may be a safe traveller, it doesn't take a situation caused yourself to throw your financial circumstances into jeopardy. For instance if you become ill while in Hawaii and need a few nights in hospital you could face heavy hospital expenses. Similarly if you have to cancel your plans for reasons outside of your control, travel insurance can refund costs such as refundable flights.
As Michael had taken out a comprehensive travel insurance policy prior to travelling, he contacted the emergency assistance team who assisted Michael with his claim. After providing his insurer with police reports, the receipt for his laptop and the receipt for the passport and visa replacement, Michael was able to cover his losses as detailed below:
Although Michael did have to cover $100 in excess charges and the original value of his laptop, without travel insurance, Michael would been left $4,200 out-of-pocket.
Many Australians travelling to Hawaii do so to enjoy the range of adventure activities on offer, including:
While some insurers such as Travel Insuranz automatically cover activities such as parasailing, others may require you to add the activity as an extra or with an "adventure sports package". You should always check with your policy for any activities you plan on undertaking.
Australians love to surf and surfing in Hawaii is the ultimate destination for many Aussie board riders. Great surf locations around the islands include Waikiki, Peahi (the famous Jaws), Sunset Beach, Diamond Head, Pipeline, Hanalei Bay, Chuns Reef, Sandy Beach, Pounders Beach and Laniakea Beach. While surfing on your travels is great fun, it also carries many risks factors e.g. your surfboard could be damaged whilst in transit, or you could cut yourself on a reef whilst you are in action.
The reason for this is because a good surf travel insurance policy will also cover you for:
The main risks surf policies will not cover you for are:
One of the common exclusions in surf travel insurance policies relates to professional surfing. This exclusion applies in most sports-related cover and excludes cover if you receive any sort of wage, salary or financial reward for taking part. Most policies allow participation in amateur surf events, providing you receive no financial incentive for taking part. If you are a pro surfer on the world circuit, you would need to arrange specialised insurance that covers you as a professional sportsperson.
Read the complete Surf Travel Insurance Guide
The recent volcano eruption in Bali and subsequent ash cloud that disrupted numerous flights, is a good example of when an insurer will cover you for cancellations or delays due to unforeseen circumstances. The key word here is ‘unforseen’, where claims were only paid out on those Bali cancellation claims for policies bought before the initial eruption. The ash cloud caused disruptions for some time, so after the initial eruption, it was considered a ‘known event’ by insurers.
Travel insurance is all about covering unexpected events and if people booked flights to Bali knowing there was a reasonable expectation they would be disrupted by cancellations, then in many cases they were not covered by their travel insurance. This interpretation varied with insurers, but the date when cover was taken largely dictated whether claims were paid or not, something worth keeping in mind if travelling to Hawaii, where volcanic activity is commonplace.
One of the risks particular to Hawaii is its active volcanoes, which have claimed a number of lives in the past. Dangers they pose include:
If you hike through Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, your travel insurance will usually cover you for any hiking related injuries you might suffer such as a sprained ankle. But if you injure yourself in a volcano-related incident where you have not followed the instructions of your guide or have put yourself at risk in some way, then your travel insurance would be voided and would not cover your medical and hospital expenses.
Yes, some insurers will offer cover up to $6,000 in car rental excess insurance.
Travel insurance does not cover
These liabilities are covered by a separate car insurance policy that the rental car company will require you to take out.
As Hawaii is a state of the USA, health care is extremely expensive. A 10-minute consultation with a GP can cost anywhere between US$100 and $150 and one night in intensive care in a Hawaiian hospital can cost up to $10,500.
In the case of an emergency, contact your insurer’s emergency assistance service as soon as possible after the incident. They will assess your situation and depending on the terms of the policy they can provide a guarantee of payment in emergency situations. If the costs are only a few hundred dollars, such as treatment by a GP, your insurer will usually require you to pay upfront and claim when you get back home to Australia.
If you have a pre-existing medical condition that hasn't been approved by your travel insurer then you may not be covered for any medical costs that arise from the condition. If this happens in Hawaii, you may be liable for it's high cost of hospital expenses and treatment.
Australians visiting Hawaii for less than 90 days can enter without a visa under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). You must however apply for and be granted an Electronic System for Travel Authorisation (ESTA) prior to leaving Australia (this can be obtained online). All foreign tourists visiting Hawaii, whether under the VWP or not, are required to:
Unfortunately not. Make sure you apply for your visa ahead of booking your trip.
Many high-end rewards or platinum credit cards include complimentary travel insurance as one of their many benefits. So if you book and pay for your Hawaiian getaway using your credit card, you may be able to enjoy the convenience of complimentary travel insurance cover. This can save you the time of shopping around for cover, as it’s included as part of your credit card’s annual fee and you can enjoy cover for a wide range of travel risks.
However, you should be aware of the limitations of credit card travel insurance cover before deciding whether it’s right for you. While many standalone travel insurance policies offer unlimited cover for overseas medical expenses, credit card travel insurance usually has a limit on the amount of coverage available for overseas medical expenses. With hospital beds in the United States costing an average of$751.06 a night, combined with expensive medical treatment costs and potentially medical evacuation costs, the cover offered by your credit card may be insufficient.
Make sure to compare the cover offered by your credit card’s travel insurance with the benefits of standalone travel insurance before deciding which form offers enough protection for your holiday to Hawaii.
For many people, the idea of shopping around for travel insurance sounds time consuming and the most convenient option is to simply to purchase a policy and your holiday from your travel agent. While this may seem like a handy time-saver, purchasing travel insurance from a travel agent can cost you more than if you were to purchase online.
Travel agents sometimes charge a commission and other fees on top of the price of the policies they sell, so you end up paying much more for cover than you need to.
As far as weather is concerned, Hawaii, being on the edge of the tropics, only has two main seasons; a summer dry season (May to October) and a winter rainy season (November to April).
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Holidaying safely in Hawaii is much like holidaying anywhere else. Common sense is the key. There are risks involved in any form of travel and provided that you listen to warnings, don’t take unnecessary risks and cover yourself with travel insurance, you’re likely to have a fun, safe and uneventful holiday. Some useful precautions to ensure you do include;
If there’s an emergency while you are holidaying in Hawaii, there are a number of ways to get help:
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*The use of terms 'Best' and 'Top' are not product ratings and are subject to our disclaimer. You should consider seeking independent financial advice and consider your own personal financial circumstances when comparing travel insurance policies.*Price based on quote for basic policy for a 2 day trip for 18 year old traveller. Please note that prices are subject to change. Price last checked as correct on October 2015.
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