My mother and I are traveling together. My main point of confusion is how to set up the insurance since my mother is a Canadian resident and I am a US resident. Do we need to purchase separate policies? Shannon

Thanks Shannon for the good question. You’ll need to get separate policies. That’s because each Travel Insurance Policy is filed with the Insurance Department in every US State or Canadian Province it’s offered for sale.

Generally, the plans are the same in all the States or Provinces they are sold, but sometimes there are subtle differences that could make a policy claim complicated at best. Or completely denied at worst.

Plus, not all policies are available to everyone. Of the 6 companies we offer, Canadians can only get three of the companies (CSA, Travel Guard & TravelSafe).

Whether you’re taking your first cruise or have been on a few, this question always comes up: “how do I select the right cruise?” It should come as no surprise that every cruise line out here offers something different.

My family & I have taken 3 cruises. The first was Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth 2 on a transatlantic crossing - as our first cruise this gave us too high a standard to measure the others by.

The second was on the Norwegian Sun in Jan. 2006. They had a really good kids program and the Freestyle Dining (no set dinner seating times) was especially good since our children don’t get hungry on a regular schedule.

The third was Royal Caribbean’s Mariner of the Sea. The kids prgram was good, but not as good as NCL’s. The ship was very nice & we were happy on this trip, too.

One of the blogs I regularly read has a good article called Find the best cruise for you…. I found this to be a good read especially if you’re wondering if you should use a travel agent or not.

I am going on an organized tour in Asia. The tour operator requires that each person have $75,000 insurance for “repatriation of remains”. Even though I would just as soon leave my remains in Asia, I do want to go on the tour! I looked at your plan comparisons and I can’t see any that specify insurance for repatriation of remains. Which plans offer it? Jane

“Repatriation” means “to bring or send back to his or her country or land of citizenship.”

All our plans include “repatriation” as part of the Emergency Evacuation or Transportation coverage. There are 2 different kinds of repatriation coverage in our plans:

1) Medical Repatriation: Something bad happens to you and you are sent home, for example, via an air ambulance

2) Repatriation of Remains: Something even worse happens to you (you pass away) and your body is transported home

We often hear “I would just as soon leave my remains in _____”, but the reality is that if you passed away, you are removed from the decision-making process. I’m sure your relatives would rather have you repatriated back home. It wouldn’t be fair for them to have to pay the expense, so that’s why all our travel insurance plans include “repatriation”.

BOLD TOURISM SHAKEUP:

CANADA TO PURCHASE ELY, MINNESOTA

Deal Could be Final by Early 2009

ELY, MINN. - April 1, 2008 - Today it was announced that Canada has made an unprecedented offer, as a boost to tourism, to purchase the famous Boundary Waters town of Ely, Minn., and relocate it north of the U.S./Canadian border.

In a prepared statement, the Premier of Ontario pledged Ely will retain its worldwide reputation as the entryway to the Boundary Waters, though now from the other side, as well as its legendary lakes, resorts, restaurants, gift shops and museums, including the world-famous International Wolf Center.

Reportedly, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources has entered into negotiations with the Minnesota DNR and the Governor’s office to arrive at a satisfactory price. Sources close to the deal say that Ely will become Ely, Ontario as early as 2009.

Minnesota residents are left wondering if this might be the last summer to enjoy the one million acres of unspoiled wilderness Ely is known for worldwide. It’ll certainly be the last summer we can spell neighbor without a ‘u,’ ” says Ely mayor Charles Novak. “And all the schools will have to start using zed instead of ‘z’ when they teach the alphabet, and we’ll all have to learn the value of a loonie, I guess.”

Outraged Minnesotans have launched a counterattack and are petitioning the state and considering a protest at the capitol. Interested citizens can visit ely.org or call 1-800-777-7281 to sign the petition or to volunteer for the protest, or just to book one last summer fling in Ely.

Just to make sure we all are talking about the same thing, here’s how a Top-Up Travel Insurance Plan works for any Canadian resident and for Snowbirds in particular:

Your Provincial Emergency Medical coverage typically covers you out ot province for up to 60 days usually at no additional cost. After the 60 days you are on your own to find insurance. A policy you’d get that starts after the 60 days is called a “Top-Up Travel Insurance Plan”.

Travel health insurance plans are commoly sold as “Top-Up Travel Insurance Plans”. The drawback is that since you aren’t covering 100% of your trip’s length, you have to use a travel health insurance plan. The reason I’m telling you travel health insurance plans aren’t the best choice is because they usually have a strict definition of what constitutes a pre-existing medical condition. Here’s a typical definition:

A pre-existing condition is defined as any injury, illness, sickness, disease, or other physical, medical, mental or nervous condition, disorder or ailment that, with reasonable medical certainty, existed at the time of application or at any time during the three years prior to the effective date of the insurance, whether or not previously manifested or symptomatic, diagnosed, treated, or disclosed prior to the effective date, including any subsequent, chronic or recurring complications or consequences related thereto or arising therefrom.

If this sounds restrictive, you’re right. If you have no other choice, getting this Travel health insurance plan is far better than having no coverage at all. Go here if you’d like to see this plan.

You have another choice: It’s getting a regular travel insurance plan. This may sound too simple & a waste of money since it will cover you for your entire trip’s length (ovelapping the first 60 days with your provincial plan). The fact is that you will get a far better plan at a better price and you can cover stable pre-existing medical conditions without a premium increase. In fact, you won’t have any medical forms to fill out, either.

Go here if you’d like to see this Snowbird travel Insurance plan.