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26 Mar 2024

Best cruise insurance 2024

We reveal the best travel insurance policies if you're going on a cruise, and why standard travel cover isn't enough.

Dean SobersSenior researcher & writer

In this article

What is cruise insurance?
Best travel insurance policies for cruises
What does cruise insurance cover?
More on cruise insurance
How we analyse cruise insurance

What is cruise insurance?

Cruise insurance is a specific type of travel insurance policy that covers accidents, injuries and other potential mishaps that could occur during a cruise holiday.

Bear in mind that the European Health Insurance Card (Ehic) and new Global Health Insurance Card (Ghic) won't cover the cost of rescue from a cruise, so relying on them alone could prove extremely costly.

Here we reveal the best travel insurers for going on a cruise and explain why standard travel cover may not suffice.

Please note that the information in this article is for information purposes only and does not constitute advice. Please refer to the particular terms and conditions of an insurer before committing to any financial products.

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Best travel insurance policies for cruises

We've listed the travel insurance policies that offer cruise cover either as standard, or as an add-on.

They're ranked by policy score, which (unlike the scores in our best travel insurance reviews) include cover features specifically designed for cruises. Some of these cruise-specific features are shown in our tables.

Select a table:

Top 20 highest scoring policies


Barclays	Travel Pack Worldwide Travel Insurance	As standard	81%	£10,000.00	£10,000,000.00	£10,000.00
Staysure	Signature	Optional extra	76%	£1,500.00	£1,000.00	£500.00
AllClear	Platinum	As standard	76%	£1,000.00	£1,000.00	£500.00
Unity Travel	Gold	Optional extra	75%	£750.00	£1,500.00	£500.00
NFU Mutual	Home and Lifestyle	As standard	75%	Not covered	Not covered	Not covered
Insurancewith	Platinum	Optional extra	75%	£1,500.00	£1,000.00	£5,000.00
Tesco Bank	Premier	Optional Extra	75%	£500.00	£1,000.00	£500.00

Table note: the policy score is our assessment of how comprehensive the travel insurance is, including cruise specific cover areas. See our full methodology below.

What does cruise insurance cover?

Most cruise insurance policies cover the following areas:

Cabin confinement

If you fall ill during your cruise, you may be ordered to stay confined to your cabin to stop your illness spreading.

The cabin confinement clause in cruise insurance allows you to receive compensation for every 24-hour period that you have to stay confined. In our most recent analysis, the median daily cover limit was £1,000.

Unused excursions

Most cruise insurance companies will cover the cost of any prebooked excursions that you're unable to use because you've been confined to your cabin due to illness or injury.

Itinerary change

Sometimes, your cruise operator may have to change the itinerary of your trip due to adverse weather or timetable restrictions.

For example, if you signed up to an eight-stop cruise but due to a faulty engine you could only stop at six. If a significant proportion of the services on your cruise can't be provided, you should be entitled to compensation from the cruise operator too.

Missed port departure

Missed port departure covers the cost of accommodation and travel expenses if you miss your cruise leaving and need to catch it at another port. This could be due to a number of reasons, such as:

public transport delays
accident or breakdown in the vehicle you're travelling in
an accident or breakdown ahead on the motorway that causes delays
strike, industrial action or adverse weather.

Cancellation and curtailment

Cruise holidays can be expensive and are often booked far in advance of the travel date. Cancellation cover allows you to claim back the cost cancelling your trip before you take off. This includes things such as flights, hotel bookings and travel to and from airports.

Curtailment covers the cost of your cruise if it's cut short and you return home early unexpectedly.

Cruise interruption

Cruise interruption covers the cost of you needing hospital treatment during the course of your cruise. This includes medical bills as well as expenses required for you to rejoin your cruise where possible.

Medical expenses

Medical expenses cover costs that arise due to you falling ill or getting injured during your trip. This includes the cost of medical treatment, procedures and daily hospital room fees where they apply.

Medical expenses also cover the cost of having to fly you back to the UK via air ambulance so that you can be treated. Some policies will also pay for accommodation for your travel companions if you require extensive treatment.

Baggage and belongings

Most cruise insurance policies will cover the cost of your baggage or belongings being lost, stolen or delayed during your trip. The level of cover that you're likely to get may vary depending on your policy, so be sure to check the terms and conditions before taking one out.

Money

The majority of cruise insurance policies will cover the cost of your travel money being lost or stolen. The sum you're allowed to claim for will vary among insurers, so it's important to make sure that you have the right level of cover.

If you're getting foreign currency, you might be better off with a travel debit card or travel credit card. You get better exchange rates, no fees and fraud protection.

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More on cruise insurance

If you're planning on taking a cruise, don't assume it'll be covered by your standard travel insurance policy.

Cruises can last months or even longer at sea, but some annual policies cover trips of no longer than 22 days.

Cruise cover also comes with additional features of cover that aren't typical in a standard travel insurance policy.

Cruise insurance is primarily bought as an add-on to a standard travel insurance policy.

Ehic and Ghic are free medical cards that can be used throughout the EU (but no longer Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, in most cases). Both entitle you to treatment in state hospitals at the same price as residents of the country you're visiting.

If you have an Ehic already, it will still be valid until it reaches its expiry date. But now that the UK has left the EU, the Ehic has been replaced by the Ghic, which is almost identical but isn't valid in any non-EU countries.

It's advisable that you take your Ehic or Ghic with you if your itinerary includes stops in any EU countries, as it could allow you to access state healthcare.

Medical facilities on a cruise are usually operated by private, non-state funded, healthcare companies. As a result, your Ehic or Ghic is unlikely to be accepted as a way of getting medical treatment.

You can find out more about how this works in our guide to the Ehic and Ghic.

How we analyse cruise insurance

We analyse cruise insurance as part of our travel insurance reviews. The main difference is the policy score: the policy score you see here includes cruise specific elements, which are usually excluded.

The policy score rates how comprehensive the cover is - the higher the better.

Claims performance, service and price aren't taken into account - just the levels of cover.

In April 2023, we surveyed 56 travel insurance companies about their levels of cover and analysed 161 of their policies. We rated 67 key elements of each policy.

Initially, we score all of the product elements out of five, reflecting how competitive each provider is in that area compared with other insurers.

Then, based on our assessment of which elements are more or less important for customers choosing and using policies, we adjust the impact that each element has on the overall score. Among the highest-weighted elements are medical expenses cover, cancellation cover and the compulsory excesses on the policy.