Login | Register | Subscribe to the GG RSS Feed

No Passport + No Travel Insurance = Lots of Worries

1
2
3
4
5

Are you prepared for life threatening situations when you travel?

A sick child is scary enough when you have access to your family doctor and health insurance. It's down-right terrifying when your child falls ill in a foreign country. The Cortes family traveling aboard Royal Caribbean's Majesty of the Seas found out just how challenging it can be this past weekend.

Got Travel Insurance?Got Travel Insurance?The family's 7-month old daughter fell ill on the second night of the cruise. The ship's doctor diagnosed the child with norovirus and said the family needed to get her to the hospital.

The whole family disembarked in Bahamas near midnight and saw a doctor who diagnosed her with a head cold, but nothing more serious. Trouble is, the ship had already set sail, leaving the family stranded in a foreign country without passports or travel insurance. They spent almost $2,000 in accommodation and travel expenses getting home.

Whether the cruise line, the ship's doctor or the family was at fault is still up for debate. Royal Caribbean says the family waited to long between phoning the ship's doctor and actually bringing the child to him. The parents say they were given 10 minutes to get off the ship - the mom disembarked in her pajamas.

What's clear is that the family didn't plan ahead for the worst possible scenario. No one wants to consider the "what ifs," but keeping your family safe means thinking ahead. Covering the basics of insurance and passports lets you focus on more important issues in an emergency - like your child's health.

The disgruntled Cortes family went public with their story this week, demanding compensation from the cruise line. Royal Caribbean maintains that a Guest Care Specialist accompanied the family to help with on-island arrangements and has offered to refund the cruise and the cost of the family's flights home, "despite the company's strong disagreement with the manner in which the Cortes family's situation has been recounted in the media."

Bottom line? You're responsible for yourself and your family. Not the cruise line, airline or resort you visit. And traveling with kids but no insurance and no passport is just plain stupid.

Would you travel outside the US without a passport? Travel insurance?

Rate This Post

Average: 5 (1 vote)

Bookmark This Post



Comments

Nobody deserves that kind of

Nobody deserves that kind of treatment, but honestly those people were just plain stupid. Honestly - who leaves home without a passport. And with kids! What were they thinking????????

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
Image CAPTCHA
Copy the characters (respecting upper/lower case) from the image.
Register

Membership is free and with it you can set up a profile, vote on stories and post your opinions.

Already a member?
Login
Not a member? Join!
Register

Most Recent Comments

  • On Canada Goes Green for St. Patrick's Day, Julia Rosien said "Great to meet you as well, Terri. And yes, we adore the Bay of Fundy :-) While I'll agree it's no longer parka weather in your neck of the woods, it's not quite string bikini weather either. Shall we toast to it and let the beer warm us up? Happy St Paddy's Day! Julia"

  • On Canada Goes Green for St. Patrick's Day, Terri said "hey Travel girls, great to hear that you love our Bay of Fundy here on the east coast of Canada as much as you love Tim Horton's ...and, as a Bay of Fundy chick, I love the green tide analogy. For sure, there will be lots of fun times down here around St Paddy's day but I just want to send you a correction to say you certainly won't be needing a parka? to visit at this time of year. It's +8 to +10 degress Celius (that's in the 50s F for our American friends) - definitely well above parka weather. haha So nice that the birds are chirping and the maple sap is flying out of the trees and, ultimately, on to our pancakes. Happy spring! Terri the Bay of Fundy blogger bayoffundy.blogspot.com "

  • On Bonaire - Landsailing or Diving, Ann Phelan said "I love when folks visit our island and immerse themselves in the very cool diversions offered..thanks for sharing."

  • On Tour Bus Crash in Tortola – Caribbean Princess Passenger Dies, Sad and heavy heart said "On a note about the roads of Totrola which are steep, and windy and narrow, all the more reason that tour vehicles should have regular safety checks, SEATBELTS (which dirvers should mandate use or not allow passengers to continue with the tour, driver's should go slow, and Princess Cruise Lines should do extensive background checks, and not hire people with the nick-name of Crash-Dummy."

  • On Tour Bus Crash in Tortola – Caribbean Princess Passenger Dies, Jan said "We were also on the ship with our friends, had spent the day at the beach in Tortola where the slider on my Omega came off, "broke" and lost. I had just purchased it on board the ship the day prior. But nothing can compare to the loss of a family member. The Captain had everyones attention for the announcement. Captain Draper done a great job informing the passengers of the accident. Our thoughts and prayers are with the Rumphrey family."