InsureMyTrip Blog

We’re pleased to welcome to the InsureMyTrip blog a friend of ours, renowned travel blogger Johnny Jet!  Johnny has graciously agreed to share with us his perspective on one of our travelers’ most popular fall vacation destinations.

For many, Italy is a favorite vacation destination and it’s definitely one of mine. If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me where they should go on their maiden Italian voyage, I would be a very wealthy man. Instead of you lighting up my cell phone, I figured I would share my opinion here.

Ideally, you should try to hit Italy’s big three (Rome, Florence and Venice) sometime in your life. So if you think this is a once in a lifetime trip, then I would recommend you start off in Venice and make your way down to Rome (through Tuscany).  You can sign up for a tour if you don’t want to have to think about your every move – I hear Trafalgar and Perillo offer excellent tours.

But after you are done with that trip, you’re going to need a vacation from your vacation so add on a few extra days and go to my favorite place in Italy; the island of Ischia. Ischia is Capri’s little known sister island, despite the fact that she’s three times bigger and a lot less expensive. Many travelers consider it a slice of heaven and I’m sure after your stay, you will too.  Ischia is a volcanic island that’s six miles (10 km) wide and four miles (7 km) long. It’s located in the Tyrrhenian Sea between the Gulf of Gaeta and the Bay of Naples. It’s famous for its warm mineral springs and incredible vistas.

To get there from Rome is easy. Just take a high-speed train from Rome to Naples, which takes an hour.  When you get to Naples, jump in a taxi to the Molo Beverello Port, a 10-minute ride away. Drivers charge tourists a flat rate of 15 euros (US $21) but my local Italian friends say that if you tell the driver ‘tariffa predeterminata’, the fee is just 10 euros (US $14) including luggage.  There are multiple ferry companies offering transit to Ischia so look at the ferry schedule on the departure board and give your business to the one leaving the earliest; they usually depart every 30 minutes. Tickets cost 16 euros (US $23) each and the ride is just under an hour. Tip: Naples is still notorious for crime. Be sure to take off all your jewelry, including the fake stuff, and safeguard your belongings.

The island is a popular destination in the summer, attracting mostly mainland Italians and Germans. In fact, there are so many Germans that almost all the signs and menus are in both Italian and German; many of the locals speak both languages, too. One of Ischia’s best attributes is that few Americans visit. Don’t get me wrong! I love my fellow citizens, but it’s so much more authentic to be surrounded by locals. For me, being surrounded by Americans when I’m abroad diminishes some of the mystique of foreign travel.

Good to know: Like in Capri, most hotels in Ischia are seasonal. They open in early April and close at the end of October. The population in Ischia is 70,000, but in the summer, this number rises to 90,000. The island gets a total of five million visitors a year, many visiting just for the day.

There are plenty of hotels and bed and breakfasts to choose from for every budget. Just be sure to make advance reservations in high season. I recently stayed at the five-star Hotel Terme Manzi. It’s expensive but has the island’s best restaurant located on its premises. But a few years ago, I shacked up at the three-star La Ginestra for just 80 euros (US $114) a night and that included breakfast and dinner like most hotels on the island.

While you are in Ischia, you’re probably just going to want to relax at the beach and eat good food (and gelato!) while recovering from your whirlwind trip exploring Italy’s treasures. But you really should try to visit these three places:

-The Negombo Health and Beauty Center is a natural thermal spa on the Tyrrhenian Sea surrounded by beautiful gardens. It’s a 10-minute, free shuttle ride from the hotel and a perfect place to unwind.

-La Mortella Gardens, located on a volcanic gorge, has over 3,000 different species of tropical flora from around the world. The views and waterfall make it a perfect place.

-At Fumarole Beach, you can not only swim but the locals cook dinner at night underneath the sand! They don’t use a grill but rather the vapor from the volcano. That’s how close to the surface it is.

Tips:
-Don’t spend 2 euros on a small bottle of water. Instead, find out where the closest grocery store is and stock up. I bought a large bottle of water for under US $1 (0.63 euro).

-I wouldn’t rent a car but depending on your motor skills, I would entertain the idea of getting a Vespa, even though they can be dangerous. I do recommend taking the public bus, which connects to the major towns and costs under $2 USD. Just be sure to buy tickets in advance from either a newsstand, bar, travel agency or tobacconist.

As you can probably tell, I love Ischia and it holds a special place in my heart. And it’s not just because it’s where my grandparents emigrated from in the 1920s. After experiencing the food, views and people, I suspect that you will feel the same way. In fact, I can pretty much guarantee it!

Happy Travels,

Johnny Jet

JohnnyJet.com

Facebook: /Johnny.Jet

Twitter: @JohnnyJet

John E. DiScala (a.k.a. Johnny Jet) travels around 150,000 miles and visits over 20 countries each year. He and his website JohnnyJet.com have been featured over 2,000 times in major publications, including USA Today, Time, Fortune and The New York Times, and he has appeared on ABC, CBS, CNBC, CNN, MSNBC, NBC, FOX News Channel and PBS.  JohnnyJet.com has been named “one of the top best money-saving web sites for travel” by Budget Travel Magazine, while  the L.A. Times calls it “one of the top 10 essential travel resources on the internet.” Outside Magazine touted Johnny for having one of the world’s best “dream jobs”. He writes for Frommers.com, The Huffington Post, LAX Magazine and has written for USAToday and ABC News.  Sign up today for Johnny Jet’s free weekly travel newsletter at JohnnyJet.com.

One of the reasons we’re so adamant about trying to stay in touch with our customers is that it’s often the experience of one traveler that helps us better serve the needs of all travelers.  One person’s experience can sometimes help us to uncover unique questions and concerns about travel insurance that might help somebody else in choosing the right policy for their trip.  That’s why, for many of our Customer Care Representatives, the most memorable Hurricane Season stories are the ones that involved slightly less common questions from travelers.

“I had clients call who were in Mexico at the time of a storm, and their hotel mandated that everyone had to evacuate.  Luckily they made it to the airport before it was shut down, so they were able to get home.  They used their trip interruption coverage to help recover their costs.” Lynne, Customer Care Training and Communications Specialist

Why it was unusual: Although Lynne’s clients were told by their hotel manager that they had to leave the property, there was actually no mandatory evacuation from the city in which they were staying.  While some travel insurance plans state that a mandatory evacuation is a covered event, many travelers could be confused by what a “mandatory evacuation” really means.  In this case, while the term didn’t apply, the travelers were still able to recoup the expenses involved in cutting their trip short, because uninhabitable accommodations — i.e., a hotel that’s closed and evacuated due to the storm — are often covered as reasons for trip interruption.

Confused?  Here’s what to ask: What happens if  a hurricane hits while I’m on vacation, and I can’t stay in my hotel any longer?  What kind of coverage would I have if I left early?

“This is kind of an unusual one, but it’s something I think people should really be aware of.  I spoke to some travelers who were supposed to be spending the night on a sailboat while the hurricane was coming through.  They were covered, fortunately, because it was a charter boat – but I want to make sure people know that they have to ask questions about getting coverage for something unique like a stay on a sailing vessel, because it’s not the type of thing that is covered by every standard policy.” –Darryl, Customer Care Representative

Why it was unusual: Cruising might be a popular travel choice, but spending just one or two nights on a private boat isn’t for everyone.

Confused?  Here’s what to ask: If there is anything about your travel plans that you think may be somewhat unconventional — unusual accommodations, adventure sports, wilderness experiences, whatever it may be — please share that with a Customer Care Representative.  You may want to say something like, “I’m not sure if this is significant, but I’m planning to spend the night on a raft going down the Nile…what happens if the river floods unexpectedly and I can’t fulfill my plans?”  As Darryl’s experience with the charter-boat passengers illustrates, there may be specific coverage readily available for certain things, while others may require a bit more research, or may not be covered at all.  It’s best to know well in advance of your trip whether or not your exotic plans can be protected by travel insurance, so there are no surprises in the midst of your adventure.

“I do remember speaking with an insured that had purchased (one of the policies offered on InsureMyTrip.com).  There was a hurricane warning and she was able to cancel her trip and receive the cost of the trip back.  She wanted us to know how extremely happy she was that she had spoken to a knowledgeable customer care specialist who had suggested purchasing one of the policies that offered cancellation due to a hurricane warning. “ –Nancie, Customer Care Representative

Why it was unusual: As Nancie points out, not every package policy will cover you if you decide to cancel your trip based on a hurricane warning alone.  Many of them stipulate that a hurricane must actually occur, and cause certain complications for travelers, for coverage to kick in.  However, we do have some plans that extend the cancellation coverage to travelers who want to change their plans based on a warning, so this particular customer was fortunate to have made an informed choice.

Confused?  Here’s  what to ask: If you really feel that you’d be among the people who would want to cancel due to the threat of a hurricane, then it’s absolutely worth asking one of our Customer Care Representatives to explain to you about not only policies that will cover cancellation due to a hurricane warning, but also Cancel For Any Reason coverage, which provides a broader spectrum of protection and may be the most comfortable choice for some travelers.

The bottom line: We can never know too much about your travel plans.  The more information you provide to us as we’re helping you research your options, the better able we’ll be to provide you with a policy that truly meets all of your unique needs as a traveler.  Call one of our Customer Care Representatives at 800-487-4722 to receive personalized service and answers to all of your travel insurance questions.

Bri, Marketing

In my life, there are various people who travel.  One of my oldest friends from my junior high school days racks up serious frequent flier miles globetrotting for business.  My sister, a professor of antiquities, is always flying off to some envious locale for a conference or a “research” trip (note, dear, sister, that all those photos of you posing with a glass of wine in front of a gorgeous seascape don’t quite match up to your talk of dusty library carrels and hours spent poring over engravings).  And a dear friend from graduate school invariably spends her summers, unfettered by work responsibilities, exploring various corners of the world with the kind of adventurous yen that I can’t quite muster.  I admire it, but I can’t muster it.

Aside from the business-travel guy, whose needs are covered entirely by his company, most of the travelers in my life find themselves in frequent need of travel insurance.  For my sister, it’s a need usually heightened by the requirements of embassies, host organizations, and other entities; for my adventure-traveling friend, it’s a need identified, somewhat regretfully, by a rather embarrassing incident on a backpacking trip in the Highlands.  (More on that in a moment.)  And while both of these women are quite educated, savvy creatures more than capable of researching and purchasing their own travel insurance, guess who they usually call to help them?

Luckily for both of them, they not only have me — they have my husband, who happens to be the Product Underwriting Manager here at IMT.  He’s the one who got on the phone with my sister last summer and convinced her that she was about to be penny-wise and pound-foolish in purchasing a lesser (and therefore less expensive) policy for her upcoming sabbatical.  It’s a good thing he did, too, because between flight delays and unexpected problems with accommodations, she certainly ended up needing the coverage he recommended.  As for my adventurous friend, she received the tag-team approach on a recent visit to our home.

As she was detailing the plans for her upcoming trip to Africa, I managed to gently prod her several times into proclaiming “Oh!  While I’m here, I should ask you guys about insurance.”  My husband then took over with the details, as I helpfully chimed in from time to time.  For example: “You know, he’s right about getting medical evacuation and hospital of choice.  You may not want to, say, fall over a waterfall in Africa, gash your leg severely — or worse — and end up stranded in the middle of nowhere, until some strange men pull up in a Jeep and offer to try to transport you to a hospital 20 miles or so away.”

Obviously I’m not usually so specific, but remember that embarrassing incident I referred to earlier?  This scenario at the waterfall was the spectacular ending to her Highlands adventure.  Had it not been for the kindness of (fortunately altruistic) strangers, she’d have been in a very dangerous predicament.  She knew it, too.  She left our house armed with plenty of information and several quotes for appropriate policies.

I’m certain that both my sister and my friend would be able to find travel insurance on their own, but they don’t have to.  That’s what friends (and relatives) are for.  When you need advice on any subject, research is great — but let’s be honest; if you’ve got a friend who knows something about it, you’ll ask them as well, and be more likely to feel comfortable that the information they’ve given you is correct.  And while not everyone has an old college buddy or close relative working in the travel insurance industry, you do have the next best thing: InsureMyTrip.

Our Customer Care representatives are licensed insurance specialists who don’t work on commission, so they not only know what they’re talking about, but they’ll only recommend the policies that are best for you.  They don’t have a certain number of calls that they have to take in a day, so they can give you the attention and time you need to make an informed decision.  Just like a good friend, they’re available to help you out when you need it, by phone, live chat, or email — and they’re here seven days a week.

You may not have an actual friend who works at IMT (and who can oh-so-kindly remind you of your most embarrassing travel moments), but we’d like to be your travel insurance companions nonetheless.  It’s often said that in life, it’s not what you know, but who you know.  Why not get to know InsureMyTrip?