Taking a cruise to nowhere looks set to be the best option for a quick holiday right now. But before you get on that cruise liner, be sure to get the right travel insurance plan. Here are six options to cover your getaway on the high seas.
Best Travel Insurance For Cruise-To-Nowehere in Singapore
It’s relatively affordable and low commitment, and your exposure to strangers is limited to your fellow passengers (compared to the roving population of an entire city, say).
Besides, cruise ships can be fairly refreshing, with several entertainment, dining and leisure options on offer.
If all else fails, or if you simply don’t relish the idea of having to adhere to a timeslot, you can always just Netflix and chill in your cabin, buoyed by the gentle sea.
Now that we’ve planted the idea of going for a cruise holiday in your head, we’d be remiss if we didn’t also remind you of the importance of getting an appropriate travel insurance plan.
We’ve saved you some trouble. Here are six travel insurance plans that provide cover for cruise-to-nowhere holidays.
Protect your cruise holiday with these 6 travel insurance plans
Medical expenses: Up to S$1m (post-trip: Up to S$50,000)
Accidental death and disablement: Up to S$400,000
Hospitalisation allowance: S$200/day, up to S$20,000
Travel cancellation or curtailment: Up to S$15,000
Travel delay: Up to S$100 (S$100/6 hours)
Personal baggage: Up to S$8,000
Baggage delay: Up to S$1,000 (S$200/6 hours)
COVID-19 not covered
DBS TravellerShield Plus
Medical expenses: Up to S$1m (post-trip: Up to S$75,000)
Accidental death and disablement: Up to S$500,000 Trip delay: S$100/6hours, up to S$2,000
Personal property and baggage: Up to S$8,000
Medical expenses: Up to S$200,000
Hospital or quarantine benefit: S$100/day, up to S$1,400
Trip cancellation or curtailment: Up to S$7,500
Sompo Travel (COVID-19) Insurance
Medical expenses: Up to S$400,000 (post-trip: Up to S$10,000)
Accidental death and disablement: Up to S$500,000
Hospital allowance: Up to S$6,000 (S$200/day)
Trip cancellation, postponement or curtailment: Up to S$10,000
Loss or damage of personal belongings: Up to S$2,500
For policies issued on or after 20 July 2022, full vaccination is not required if the traveller fulfils the destination country's requirements and are not in breach of any government regulations. Travellers will need to take a pre-departure COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test and test negative within 72 hours prior to the scheduled departure date from Singapore.
Medical expenses: Up to S$200,000
Hospital or quarantine allowance: Up to S$1,400
Trip cancellation or postponement: Up to S$4,000 with S$100 excess
Trip curtailment or disruption: Up to S$2,000, with S$100 excess
Medical expenses: Up to S$1m (post-trip: Up to S$10,000)
Accidental death and disablement: Up to S$500,000
Hospital allowance: Up to S$20,000 (S$200/day)
Hospital allowance (in Singapore): Up to S$1,500 (S$100/day)
Trip cancellation: Up to S$10,000
Trip curtailment: Up to S$5,000
Personal effects: Up to S$3,000
Travel delay: S$500 (S$50/3 hours)
Medical expenses: Up to S$300,000
Quarantine allowance: Up to S$1,500 (S$100/day)
Trip cancellation, curtailment or disruption: Up to S$5,000
Travel postponement: Up to S$1,500
Starr TraveLead Cruise to Nowhere Insurance
Cruise benefits:
Up to S$1m for medical expenses, and S$500,000 for accidental death and disablement
Up to S$1,500 for travel postponement, and up to S$800 (S$100/6 hours) for travel delay
Up to S$7,500 for personal baggage, and up to S$1,200 (S$100/6hours) for baggage delay
COVID-19 limits:
Up to S$100,000 for medical expenses, and up to S$50/day, maximum 14 days for confinement
Up to S$1,000 for trip cancellation or curtailment
Premiums (single traveller, single trip, 3-day duration):
Gold: S$39
Silver: S$31
Bronze: S$24
Starr TraveLead offers up to S$100,000 coverage for COVID-19-related medical expenses under its Cruise to Nowhere Insurance plan.
On top of that, the plan also provides an allowance of S$50 per day for each day of confinement — whether at a hospital or in a place of quarantine — up to a maximum of 14 days.
Also, should you test positive for COVID-19 and have to forge your cruise, you can claim up to S$1,000 (Gold plan) or S$600 (Silver plan) for non-refundable expenses incurred.
Besides these highly useful COVID-19 benefits, Starr TraveLead Cruise to Nowhere Insurance also offers up to S$500,000 sum assured for accidental death or disablement, and up to S$1m cover for medical expenses — inpatient and outpatient bills included.
You can also choose to include Trip Coverage and Baggage Coverage to enjoy added protection during your cruise, such as up to S$7,500 benefit for baggage and personal belongings, and up to S$4,000 benefit for travel documents.
Note: This plan has been discontinued with effect from 4 April 2023
Allianz Travel Comprehensive (Platinum)
Cruise benefits:
Up to S$25,000 for denied boarding
Up to S$1,000 for cabin confinement
Overseas medical expenses up to S$1 mil (69 years and below in age)
Up to S$15,000 for trip cancellation or interruption
Up to S$2,000 for trip delay
COVID-19 limits:
As per cruise benefits
Premiums (single traveller, single trip, 3-day duration to Thailand):
Platinum: S$64.00
A positive COVID-19 test during your cruise can cause you to be denied boarding, or perhaps worse — confined in your cabin until the liner returns to Singapore.
Those are terrible situations to be caught in, but with the Allianz Travel Comprehensive plan, you’ll at least have some benefits to fall back on.
Available only on the Platinum tier, these cruise-specific insurance benefits will reimburse you up to S$25,000 for denial of boarding, and up to S$1,000 should you need to be confined in your cabin.
You can also enjoy up to S$1 million for medical expenses incurred during an emergency on your trip if you are 69 years old and below. For those who are 70 years old and above, the coverage is capped at S$250,000. This applies to all medical situations, not just COVID-19.
And should your cruise be cut short or cancelled, you will be covered for up to S$15,000. Meanwhile, trip delays are also covered for up to S$2,000. Such delays may be caused by instances due to sanitisation or other reasons.
SingSaver's Allianz Travel Insurance Exclusive Promotion: All successful applicants of Allianz Travel Insurance will receive 1x draw chance to enter our Weekly Lucky Draw where 1 lucky winner will stand to have their flight ticket reimbursed (up to a maximum of S$2,000). Valid till 31 July 2023. T&Cs apply.
Use the promo code AzSSV to get a 45% discount (Exclusive to SingSaver) and up toS$60 via PayNow when you apply (min. premium of S$60). Valid till 30 May 2023. T&Cs apply.
Allianz Travel Insurance includes coverage for both COVID-19 and Cruises to Nowhere.
Up to S$400,000 for accidental death and disablement
Up to S$15,000 for trip cancellation or curtailment
Up to S$8,000 loss or damage of personal baggage
COVID-19 limits:
Does not cover COVID-19
Premiums (single traveller, single trip, 3-day duration):
Deluxe: S$28
Standard: S$27
Essential: S$17
ERGO TravelProtect is a travel insurance plan that has a built-in cruise travel extension. This means that you can use this plan for insurance coverage for the cruise you’re planning to embark on.
The benefits are quite beefy, including up to S$1m for emergency medical expenses, plus up to S$50,000 for any medical expenses incurred in Singapore after your trip. There’s also a personal accident coverage of up to S$400,000.
In terms of travel inconveniences, you’re covered for up to S$15,000 in case your cruise is cancelled or curtailed. You can also enjoy up to S$8,000 benefit in case of lost or damaged luggage during your trip.
Do note that unlike some of the other plans in this article, ERGO TravelProtect does not have benefits that are specific to COVID-19. Hence, if your cruise suffers any negative impact on account of the pandemic, your claims may not be successful.
DBS TravellerShield Plus
Cruise benefits:
Up to S$1m for medical expenses, and S$75,000 for post-trip medical expenses
Up to S$500,000 for accidental death and disablement
Up to S$2,000 (S$100/6 hours) for travel delay
Up to S$8,000 for personal baggage
COVID-19 limits:
Up to S$200,000 for medical expenses, and up to S$100/day, maximum 14 days for hospitalisation or quarantine
Up to S$7,000 for trip cancellation or curtailment
Premiums (single traveller, single trip, 3-day duration):
Platinum: S$36
Premier: S$27.90
Classic: S$22.50
DBS TravellerShield Plus is a travel insurance plan that offers both cruise cover, as well as benefits for COVID-19, which allows you to cover all your bases when taking a holiday cruise.
As highlighted above, this plan also has extremely generous claims limits for all the important areas, with up to S$1m for overseas medical expenses (S$200,000 for COVID-19), up to S$500,00 for accidental death and disablement, and up to S$2,000 for travel delay.
There is also a daily allowance of S$100/day in case of COVID-19-related hospitalisation or quarantine, for as many as 14 days.
And to top it all off, this plan is priced very affordably.
For the latter, the plan includes not only emergency medical expenses, but also hospital and/or quarantine allowance.
Also offered are benefits for trip cancellations or disruptions; under normal circumstances, these have decently-sized claims limits.
However, should your cruise be cut short or cancelled because for reasons related to the pandemic, you’ll need to pay a S$100 excess.
For policies issued on or after 20 July 2022, full vaccination is not required if the traveller fulfils the destination country's requirements and are not in breach of any government regulations. Travellers will need to take a pre-departure COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test and test negative within 72 hours prior to the scheduled departure date from Singapore.
Up to S$1m for medical expenses, and S$10,000 for post-trip medical expenses
Up to S$500,000 for accidental death and disablement
Up to S$20,000 (S$200/day) hospital allowance
Up to S$10,000 for trip cancellation, and up to S$5,000 for trip curtailment
Up to S$3,000 cover for personal effects
Up to S$500 (S$50/3 hours) for travel delay
COVID-19 limits:
Up to S$300,000 for medical expenses
Up to S$1,500 (S$100/day) quarantine allowance
Up to S$5,000 for trip cancellation, curtailment or disruption
Up to S$1,500 for travel delay
Premiums (single traveller, single trip, 3-day duration):
Luxury: S$25.27
Savvy: S$22.61
Entry: S$13.96
Tiq recently extended insurance cover for COVID-19 as well as cruise-to-nowhere for its Tiq Travel Insurance plan, earning it a spot on our list.
The standouts here are the high claims limits for medical expenses while overseas, along with a modest benefit for follow-up treatment when you’re back in Singapore.
Also included are benefits of up to S$10,000 for trip cancellation, and up to S$5,000 for trip curtailment, along with up to S$3,000 worth of cover for personal belongings and luggage.
In terms of COVID-19 cover, you will get as much as S$300,000 overseas medical expense benefit, as well as up to SS$1,500 quarantine allowance, at the rate of S$100/day.
Testing positive before your cruise, or having it cut short due to an outbreak, will entitle you to claims of up to S$5,000. As for travel delays caused by COVID-19, you can claim up to S$1,500 in benefits.
SingSaver's Exclusive TIQ Travel Insurance Promotion: All successful applicants of TIQ Travel Insurance will receive 1x draw chance to enter our Weekly Lucky Draw where 1 lucky winner will stand to have their flight ticket reimbursed (up to a maximum of S$2,000). Valid till 31 July 2023. T&Cs apply.
Single Trip: Use promo code TIQSINGSAVER to enjoy 40% off when you apply. Valid till 18 Jun 2023. T&Cs apply.
Annual Trip: Use the promo code TIQSINGSAVER to enjoy a 60% discount on your COVID-19 add-on and get S$20 Cashback (Fulfillment by Etiqa) when you apply. Valid till 18 Jun 2023. T&Cs apply.
Key in the promo code under the coupon code section on the next page after selecting your destination and dates. The prices shown are before discounts.
Receive coverage for trip cancellations, medical expenses, and more when you purchase the COVID-19 Rider. T&Cs apply.
An ex-Financial Planner with a curiosity about what makes people tick, Alevin’s mission is to help readers understand the psychology of money. He’s also on an ongoing quest to optimise happiness and enjoyment in his life.