Best Travel Insurance for Backpacking Europe & the Alps!

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This summer, I hiked the famous Alta Via 1 trek in the Italian Alps and had to look for the best travel insurance for backpacking Europe. Doing the research was like opening a Pandora’s box!

There are a bunch of options out there, but I found that you need to watch out for policy limitations, specifically on activity and altitude.

Not all companies I looked at covered the altitudes I was going on in the Dolomites. Some had extra high fees for adventure sports, which trekking, paragliding, and heading up a via ferrata qualified as. And a few (like Allianz & World Nomads) were quite frankly too expensive for my budget.

I know backpacking has a “go cheap or go home” connotation to it, but this was my first backpacking trip, and it was about getting the best gear, support, and care I needed at a decent value. I wanted to set myself up so I didn’t have to worry about the safety, and I could just enjoy the hike and hut culture in the Dolomites!

➡️ BACKPACKING TRAVEL INSURANCE I USE IN EUROPE ⬅️
I use SafetyWing Nomad Insurance with the added Adventure Sport option, as it covered me up to 6,000 meters in the Dolomites & paragliding.

Obviously, prices will vary based on your age and the add-on options you pick, but my total cost was $66 for 4 weeks.

This post is about sharing the pros and cons of the travel insurance companies I reviewed before going backpacking across the Italian Alps in the hopes of helping you choose the right one for your adventures.

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Why Do Backpackers Need Insurance?

Travel medical insurance is not the sexiest thing to think about when planning an epic trip to scale mountains or backpack across Eastern Europe, but here we are – adulting.

Insurance is key not just because of the financial side if something goes wrong but also because after an accident, it can make the difference between being taken care of quickly or facing delays in getting the urgent help you need.

Also, shit happens.

On my first backpacking trip to Croatia, I was drugged in an empty bar in Dubrovnick in broad daylight and went home with some mean-looking bruises. I had to visit the hospital the next day and get checked out.

A year later, on a road trip through southern Turkey, I had to pause for days due to some pretty bad food poisoning – I lost 5 pounds in one week that time! Thankfully, I called a doctor who prescribed me antibiotics, and I had my AirBnB host pick it up.

Or the time in Norway when I developed the worst UTI I had ever known. I’m not going to go into that one, but I went to an emergency clinic to see a gyno and paid nothing in the end.

The point is that I didn’t plan for any of these things to happen, but when they did, I was glad to have someone to call and help me sort out hospitals, checkups, and medicine abroad – in a foreign language.

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What Does Travel Insurance Cover?

These days, I hope for the best but plan for the worst. And I hope never to have to use my medical insurance plan.

Here’s what a normal backpackers insurance will cover:

• Coverage for most countries in the world
• Search & Rescue
• Medical emergencies (surgery, hospitalization fees, evacuation to the nearest hospital)
• Flight delays and cancellations
• Trip cancellations (due to injury or a death in the family) – not just because you don’t want to go anymore
• Emergency evacuation (due to injury or natural disaster)
• Dental emergencies (thank the lord for this one!)
• Lost or stolen baggage
• Death overseas
• Repatriation (returning you to your own country in case of emergency)

What you have to be mindful of when looking for the best insurance for you is your activity and the altitude the policy covers.

I needed something extra that covered me at 5,000 meters of altitude, as that was the highest peak we were trekking to. I also wanted to paraglide in Seceda near Ortisei!

I also wanted a budget-friendly policy because your girl is not made of money. Plus, all the hiking gear costs an arm and a leg.

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What Does Travel Insurance NOT Cover?

Most backpacker insurance policies do not cover:

• Accidents while engaging in extreme adventure activities – which sometimes include American football, motorbiking, paragliding, or bungee jumping
  • The insurance I like, SafetyWing, covers paragliding, and that’s one of the reasons I chose it.
  • NOTE: I can’t believe American football is an extreme sport up there with paragliding.
• If you hurt yourself while drunk or high on drugs
• If you’re negligent, like when you leave your bags unattended and they get stolen
• Pre-existing conditions (like cancer) or general check-ups (save those for your at-home insurance)
• If you get mugged and your cash and wallet are stolen
• If you change your mind about your trip because you get into a fight with your bestie and want to cancel everything

Basically, read the fine print, and don’t be a reckless, careless idiot. ❤️

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Best Travel Insurance for Backpackers in Europe

I looked into a few backpacker insurance companies. Still, there are really only 2 companies that I recommend because both are easy on the wallet and comprehensive in their coverage – SafetyWing and InsureMyTrip.

👉 PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: I use Allianz Insurance in my current home country of Portugal, but when I looked into coverage for hiking the altitudes I wanted in the Dolomites, they quoted me $200 for one week of high-altitude trekking.

I also checked World Nomads, and they came in at about $140.

I ended up going with SafetyWing – I paid $66 for a similar 1-week policy. Prices will vary based on age and package you pick, but I wanted you to get the gist of the compared rates.

SafetyWing [WHAT I USE]

SafetyWing is the first recommendation (and my favorite). It’s the one I went with for my Dolomites trip.

Their standard coverage costs about $56 for 4 weeks of travel outside the United States (for travelers aged 10-39). That’s the lowest price I could find for reliable travel insurance.

💰 MY TRIP INSURANCE COST: I paid $66 for a month-long policy, including the adventure sport option for the high altitude I would be at, and the paragliding (which I never ended up doing because the wind would not cooperate).

Here’s a quick overview of what SafetyWing offers as a basic package so you know:

• Super affordable plans (with a $250 deductible for US residents)
• Can purchase and renew plans while abroad
• Claims can be filed online
• $250,000 USD in emergency medical coverage
• Friendly and responsive customer service
• After being abroad for 90 days, you keep your medical coverage for 30 days in your home country (15 days for US residents)
• Best for digital nomads and budget travelers

Beyond the bare bones $56 a month basic package, you can extend your coverage in the following ways.

• ADD ON: Adventure Sports (the options I went for due to altitude consideration for the Dolomites)
  • Extends list of covered sports to include activities like kite-surfing, parachuting, paragliding, skydiving, scuba diving, and more up to $100,000. [full list here]
  • Mountaineering at elevations under 6000 meters altitude (it’s important to check your altitude)
• ADD ON: Electronics Theft (great for those video/photographers out there)
  • It covers electronics like laptops, tablets, and cameras for up to $1000 per stolen item and has a yearly limit of $3000 per policy.
  • You must have proof of ownership, such as a receipt, for the items you wish to cover.

This is the best travel medical insurance for long-term travel because you can renew while you’re abroad, but it is also for anyone looking for cost-friendly, reliable insurance for those adventure trips in Europe.

InsureMyTrip

InsureMyTrip is basically the Booking.com of travel medical insurance companies. It’s an aggregator that spits out and compares the prices of different companies so that you can choose the plan that’s best for you.

It’s also one of the only plans that covers older folks, as most travel insurance companies won’t cover travelers over 65. This is probably why InsureMyTrip is the go-to for senior adventure seekers.

Here’s what I found that differentiates them:

• Coverage for senior travelers over 65
• “Anytime Advocates,” ask the insurer to give your claim a second look if you think it was unfairly denied.
• They compare 20 different companies to make sure you get the best plan
• Reviews of each policy so you can see what other travelers are saying

The huge benefit of using InsureMyTrip is that they guarantee the lowest prices. Everybody says this, but what they mean is this – you won’t find the same policy at a lower price anywhere else.

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FAQ: Travel Insurance for Backpackers in Europe

Here are a few questions I dug into when doing my research on travel insurance for backpacking Europe.

Do you need special travel insurance for backpacking?

Maybe. If you’re just doing a classic city break trip, you should be all right with the most basic insurance policies unless you’re engaging in an extreme sport or going to altitudes above a certain level.

Here’s what is considered an extreme sport by most insurance companies:

Should you buy travel insurance when going to Europe?

Yes. Your home country’s insurance only covers you when at home.

Shit happens when you’re traveling, and that’s when the travel medical insurance kicks in.

Plus, for peace of mind, you can get a month-long basic plan coverage with SafetyWing (what I use) for $56. It’s the most affordable option out there for reliable travel insurance.

I paid more for lunch at the airport than I did for travel insurance…

Will my US health insurance cover me in Europe?

No, your US health insurance will probably not cover you in Europe. Double-check your policy, but in general, insurance is country-specific, so your US insurance will cover you in the US only.

What is the average cost of travel medical insurance?

This really depends on the policy and the company. When I looked at quotes for my trekking trip to Italy, here is what I found for 1 week of basic coverage:

• SafetyWing: ~$56
• World Nomads: ~$90
• Allianz: ~$150

What is the best travel insurance company?

I think Allianz is considered one of the best travel insurance companies in the world – likely because they’re huge and German. But they’re also expensive.

The truth is, there are tons of good, reputable insurance companies out there.

Choosing the best one for you depends on what you want covered and your budget.

I prefer to use SafetyWing because it covers my adventure hiking and random itch for jumping off cliffs and out of airplanes. And they are affordable, starting at about $56 a month.

Conclusion: Best Travel Insurance for Backpacking Europe

Backpacking is the best adventure travel you can get, and I think everyone should do it at least once in their lives.

Despite what people think, backpacking is not about being cheap; it’s about focusing on the experience at hand while not spending your life’s savings.

It’s about being scrappy, flexible, safe, and budget-conscious.

In that vein, the best way to have the best backpacking time of your life and not worry about crazy expenses if something happens is to buy travel insurance. I use SafetyWing when I travel, and it’s what I recommend to you as well.