Travel Insurance
Last updated 28 July 2026
01
Why we insist on it
A tour price covers the journey we have planned. It does not cover what happens if you fall ill, if a bag goes missing, if a flight strands you overnight, or if you have to cancel for a reason nobody could foresee.
Medical treatment abroad is expensive, and an air evacuation from a mountain route can cost many times the price of the tour. Insurance is the difference between a bad day and a bill that outlasts the holiday.
02
What a policy should cover
At a minimum: emergency medical treatment and hospitalisation, emergency evacuation and repatriation, trip cancellation and curtailment, baggage loss or delay, and personal liability.
For our Himalayan journeys, check specifically that the policy covers evacuation from remote areas — it is the cover you are least likely to use and least able to do without.
03
Buy it when you book, not before you fly
Cancellation cover only protects money you could still lose. Bought the week before departure, it cannot cover a deposit you paid months earlier and have already forfeited.
The useful moment to buy is when you pay your first deposit. That is also when a visa refusal, an illness or a family emergency starts costing you money.
04
Declare pre-existing conditions
Insurers ask about existing medical conditions, and answering loosely is the most common way a claim is refused. Declare everything, even where it raises the premium.
Tell us too. Some of our itineraries — the high-altitude yatras in particular — are physically demanding, and we would rather have an honest conversation about whether a journey suits you than discover the problem at 3,500 metres.
05
Where cover usually stops
Read the exclusions before you read the headline figure. Policies commonly exclude altitude above a stated limit, trekking beyond a stated grade, adventure and water activities, pre-existing conditions you did not declare, incidents involving alcohol, and travel against medical advice or an official advisory.
Altitude limits matter to us more than most operators: Char Dham, Leh–Ladakh and the Tawang route all spend time high enough that a standard policy's ceiling can be exceeded. Check the number, and if it is too low, buy the upgrade.
Cover for a country under a government travel advisory is often void. If an advisory is issued for somewhere you are booked to visit, tell us and check your policy.
06
Carry the details with you
Travel with the policy number, the insurer's 24-hour emergency number and the claim procedure — on your phone and on paper, because phones break and networks fail exactly where you need them.
Leave a copy with someone at home, and give a copy to your tour manager at the start of the journey. It is the fastest thing to hand over in a hospital and the hardest to find in a hurry.
07
Making a claim
Most insurers require you to contact them before incurring a major medical cost, wherever that is possible. Keep every receipt, prescription and report, and get a written police report for theft — most policies will not pay without one.
Our tour manager will help you get to care and will assist with reports and paperwork on the ground. The claim itself is between you and your insurer.
08
How we help
We will tell you what cover your journey needs, including the altitude and activity limits to look for, and we will flag anything in your itinerary that a standard policy may not reach.
Insurance is not included in your tour price unless your itinerary says so explicitly, and a policy is a contract between you and the insurer — read it before you buy.
Not sure whether a policy is enough for your journey? Send us what you are looking at and we'll tell you what to check before you buy.