You’re Going to Antarctica! Now What? (Part 2)
Part 2: Insurance, Medical & Vaccinations
You’re well on your way to planning your amazing Antarctic adventure. Now that you have your passport and flights sorted, what’s next? The ever-important topics of health and insurance.
This is a necessary topic that needs to be addressed well before your voyage, so no procrastinating allowed, got it? As always, if you have any questions feel free to reach out to our team via chat or email or by calling (1) 802-698-8479.
Please click here for our current policy regarding the novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
Insurance
When booking travel insurance for a destination like Antarctica, you can’t just purchase any old insurance. All polar operators will require you to purchase evacuation insurance from a remote destination as well as your regular medical coverage.
All passengers on a Polar Latitudes voyage must carry a Travel Protection Plan that covers personal injury, medical expenses, repatriation expenses, evacuation expenses, and pre-existing medical conditions. We strongly advise you to carry a plan which includes coverage for cancellation, curtailment, trip interruption, and all other expenses which might arise as a result of loss, damage, injury, delay or inconvenience occurring to or otherwise involving a passenger. Did you know that a potential evacuation from Antarctica can cost up to $150,000? Needless to say, we recommend that no policy carry less than this amount of coverage.
Prior to your voyage, we require that you provide us with the information of your carrier, policy number, and the 24-hour contact number to reach them.
Vaccinations
For travel to Argentina and onward to Antarctica, the vaccination guidelines are constantly changing due to COVID-19. Each specific country that you are traveling from/through/to will likely have vaccinations guidelines in place at the time of your travel. We suggest checking your country’s Center for Disease Control closer to your time of departure to be certain. You can view our general COVID plan here – please bear in mind this will be updated closer to the launch of our next season.
Health Care on Board
All guests are required to complete a medical questionnaire prior to travel. This questionnaire is reviewed by our medical staff who will contact you if they foresee any difficulties. Every voyage has a currently practicing and English-speaking doctor experienced in emergency medicine onboard. Medical services are available 24 hours a day.
Please click here for our current policy regarding the novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV).
Traveling with Medication
If you are currently taking medication that you will need to bring with you on your voyage, we recommend saving an empty bottle of the same medication then splitting your prescription between the two into your carry on and checked luggage so that you are covered in case of an emergency. Please ensure that you bring enough medications to last throughout your entire trip.