Is RC Vacation Protection Worth It?

[KD412]

Hi everyone, we booked our two honeymoon sailings back in June and, from best I can remember, we opted out of the Vacation Protection Plan. I called to see about repricing with current sales and realized that the day after booking, we got updated invoices with the protection added. I was told we could take it off prior to final payment date. We don't remember opting to add this back on, but since it is currently on my reservations, I wanted to get a few opinions as to if this is worth it. We are young, healthy, rarely sick, and will be in town the night before each sailing so we have a buffer for travel delays. 

[Momof4crazytocruise]

We always buy a third party policy. We find that we can custom tailor it to fit our needs and it costs way less. I would spend some time researching policies and see what you get vs. what you pay. I use https://www.travelinsurance.com/ and they give several options from different underwriters. We care  more about medical coverage than say, lost luggage, so we can find one that fits us using the comparison tables. I have never used RCCL vacation protection plan, so I can't speak on how easy it is to make claims or what they cover. 

[Atlantix2000]

Haven't used it, but I have the general sense that RC's insurance isn't nearly as extensive as what you can buy elsewhere (most likely for cheaper).  Things you'll want to compare: allowed reasons for cancellation, medical coverage, medical evacuation and repatriation (the cost to get you home after a serious accident/death), reputation for actually delivering/paying on claims in a timely manner, etc.

[JLMoran]

Had it on my first cruise with Royal but didn't have to use it. My one concern with it was that even though I got it the same day I booked, it did not include any waiver for pre-existing conditions. Doesn't sound like that'll be an issue for you or your spouse-to-be (congratulations, by the way!).

I would say that the coverage is bare-bones, and not likely to fully cover a medical issue treated on board or off-ship. And the policy only covers the time on the ship and any excursions or flights booked directly through Royal, nothing purchased via third party excursions or through the airlines. If you don't think you'll need it or that it's not going to cover your needs fully in case of an interruption, get them to return you the money for that.

I do recommend that you get some kind of travel insurance through tripisurance.com, insuremytrip.com, or another broker-type service. Even though you're both healthy, no one can foresee freak accidents or weather events. Since you are young and healthy, anything you buy should be pretty inexpensive, especially if you take a policy that focuses more on refunding the price of the trip and flights/excursions than medical coverage.

I have a 14-night transatlantic cruise coming up next year, with a number of expensive excursions, plus a few days planned at our final disembarkation port before flying home one-way. A policy from InsureMyTrip.com / Travelex (a division of Berkshire Hathaway) to cover all of that, plus a hefty medical / medevac / lost luggage allowance, for my family of four (ages 53, 50, 19, and 16 at time of travel)? Only $632 ($158 per person). Totally worth it for the peace of mind it brings, and something for just you and your spouse will likely be lower.

[twangster]

Coverage varies by state or country of residence so consider that when reading opinions.

The nice thing about Royal's plan at least in my state is that it includes a 70% CFAR clause.  If in the days before if I need to cancel for any reason (CFAR) I get 70% of the cruise fare back in the form of FCC good for a year.   If I get sick, if the place that boards my dog closes on short notice, if I lose my job, whatever the reason I don't lose everything, I lose 30%.  I can buy a policy elsewhere with 100% CFAR but that can be costly.   In the trade off between cost of insurance and coverage this works for me.  

In any case make sure you compare apples to apples when researching.  

[ChessE4]

6 hours ago, KD412 said:

Hi everyone, we booked our two honeymoon sailings back in June and, from best I can remember, we opted out of the Vacation Protection Plan. I called to see about repricing with current sales and realized that the day after booking, we got updated invoices with the protection added. I was told we could take it off prior to final payment date. We don't remember opting to add this back on, but since it is currently on my reservations, I wanted to get a few opinions as to if this is worth it. We are young, healthy, rarely sick, and will be in town the night before each sailing so we have a buffer for travel delays. 

I concur with @twangster but wanted to point out that different policies emphasize different features.  You probably want some type of insurance unless you don't need the $$, but Allianz has better medical coverage than the contractor used by Royal.  Also, the hurricane/weather protection isn't that great with Royal's contractor.  We learned that with Dorian.  If our house became uninhabitable, we were covered.  But we weren't covered if the roads were closed and we couldn't get to the port.  We would have to try to use something like trip interruption or trip delay.  On the other hand, Royal has better luggage protection, which is a common claim item.  Whether young or old, you can have an expensive accident on vacation, so I would worry more about medical coverage -- the potential $$ liability is greater than for your luggage.@JLMoran  covered that point with his recommendation.