9 Best Travel Insurance for Costa Rica

Costa Rica is an incredible and unforgettable destination that everyone should visit at least once in their lifetime. Once you go once, you’ll likely want to go back time and time again.

Many visitors return to visit Costa Rica year after year because they quickly fall in love with this country. As with any travel, visiting Costa Rica comes with risks. So, what’s the best travel insurance for Costa Rica?

Although Costa Rica is a very safe place to travel, as with anywhere, it’s wise to get travel insurance before you go.

Lots of things can happen on any vacation and you want to be covered for things like travel delays, trip cancellation, trip interruption, and lost luggage no matter where you travel to ensure that you have the best time you possibly can on your trip, worry-free.

Another important reason to get travel insurance when you travel anywhere is to ensure that you are covered for any illnesses or accidents that you may experience while traveling. These types of problems can happen anywhere, but they may be more common in certain countries like Costa Rica.

The reasons for this are common sense. In Costa Rica, there are many insects and wild animals, and adventure sports are common activities for tourists in this part of the world.

Costa Rica offers excellent medical care for its citizens and visitors, but no one wants to return home after a wonderful trip with a massive medical bill.

So, if you’re looking for travel insurance to cover your upcoming trip to Costa Rica but are having trouble deciding between the many companies and policies available, you came to the right place.

In this informative post, we’ll review all the different travel insurance plans available to you. This will make it easy for you to compare and contrast their offerings and will help you to find the best travel insurance for Costa Rica for you. Read on to learn all about them.

Travel Insurance Providers

Many people choose to buy their travel insurance directly from an insurance company. This is a great strategy if you already know what types of coverages you seek and need.

Most companies offer at least two or more levels of insurance plan so you can choose the one that suits you best. Some offer add-ons so you can add things like rental car coverage and extreme sports if they aren’t already included in the policy that you choose.

World Nomads, RoamRight, Insured Nomads, AIG Insurance, and Allianz Insurance are all reputable providers in the world of travel insurance. Check out these companies and the plans they offer below.

1. World Nomads – Great for Digital Nomads

World Nomads is one of the best travel insurance companies out there no matter what your destination. The company’s site is easy to understand and use.

Not only you can get a quote on Costa Rica travel insurance in seconds, but you’ll likely be pleased with the price you see as well. Policies are underwritten by Nationwide Insurance.

Two World Nomads Plans to Consider

When you enter your data into the World Nomads site for your trip to Costa Rica, you’ll be offered two different plans from which to choose.

The Standard Plan and the Explorer Plan are quite similar. The Explorer Plan offers a higher level of coverage in some areas and also covers some activities that are not covered by the Standard Plan.

Both plans offered include $100,000 of emergency accident and sickness medical coverage including $750 for emergency dental care.

They also both include $25,000 in non-medical emergency transportation and $750 for baggage delays on your outward journey.

Additionally, these plans also cover emergency evacuation, trip cancellation, trip interruption insurance, trip delay, lost baggage, repatriation of remains, and accidental death and dismemberment. Coverages are higher coverages in all categories on the Explorer Plan.

In most cases, the Standard Plan will be plenty for most travelers. The Standard Plan covers not only the above but also most of the active activities you might try on your trip.

However, if you plan to engage in certain specific and sometimes dangerous adventure sports during your trip – such as free diving, rock climbing, deep water scuba diving, or sky diving – you should splurge for the Explorer Plan.

One other bonus of the Explorer Plan to know is that it covers $35,000 in rental car damage. Rental cars are often damaged in Costa Rica due to various road hazards so this coverage is important to have if you choose to rent a car.

The Standard Plan does not offer any rental car coverage at all. However, if you want to rent a car in Costa Rica but still want to stick with the Standard Plan, you can buy separate insurance coverage from the rental agency.

Or, you can reserve and pay for your rental car with a credit card that includes rental car coverage among its benefits.

See Related: World Nomads Insurance Review

2. RoamRight – Two Great Plans Plus Add-Ons

This company, RoamRight, is more like World Nomads than InsureMyTrip, TravelInsurance.com, and AARDY in that it is an actual insurance provider rather than a provider and policy comparison site.

If you like the prices and policies you see on the RoamRight site, you’ll be buying your Costa Rica travel insurance from RoamRight directly and RoamRight will be the company with which you are covered.

RoamRight Travel Insurance is underwritten by its parent company, Arch Insurance Company, which also offers other types of insurance beyond travel insurance.

Two RoamRight Plans to Consider

When we did our initial search of this site for an imaginary trip to Costa Rica, we ran into a snag right away.

Our first search returned zero results because the sample dates we were inputting were too close to the present date. RoamRight requires that your trip be at least twenty-one days away if you wish to buy their insurance.

Once we changed the dates to a month from now rather than next week, the site gave us two plans from which to choose: the Pro Plan and the Pro Plus Plan.

The difference in price for a weeklong trip was only a few dollars. And, the coverages were much better in most categories with the Pro Plus Plan, so it is worth choosing the higher-level plan.

Both plans offer the same coverages in several categories, though. You can be reimbursed up to $500 for itinerary changes on both plans and up to $500 for a missed connection as well. You’ll get $300 on both plans for a luggage delay of over twelve hours on your outward journey, too.

All other coverages are better on the Pro Plus Plan. For example, for standard trip cancellation insurance coverage, there’s a ceiling of $15,000 on the Pro Plan, but there’s no top limit on Pro Plus.

For trip interruption insurance, you’ll get 100% of your trip cost on the Pro Plan, but you can receive up to 150% of your cost with Pro Plus. If your trip is delayed, you’ll get $150 a day up to $600 on Pro, but $200 a day up to $1000 on Pro Plus.

Furthermore, Pro Plus covers up to $50,000 for emergency medical coverage versus $25,000 on the Pro Plan. It offers double coverage on emergency evacuations as well. Accidental death and dismemberment are not covered on the Pro Plan, but it is on Pro Plus.

Unlike World Nomads Travel Insurance, which includes dangerous adventure sports and rental car damage on its Explorer Plan, hazardous sports coverage and rental car damage coverage are things you can add on to Pro or Pro Plus for additional fees.

Furthermore, if you’re only looking for rental car damage coverage or medical coverage only, you can buy these things as standalone policies from RoamRight, too.

And, if you travel often or long term travel, RoamRight offers annual travel insurance plans too – and for a very affordable price, compared to their shorter-term rates.

RoamRight is a high-quality travel insurance coverage provider that is a great alternative to World Nomads if you want more options to tailor the plan that you by specifically to you and your needs.

3. Insured Nomads – Simple Insurance for All Types of Travelers

Despite the similar name, Insured Nomads is not affiliated with World Nomads at all. World Nomads’ insurance is underwritten by Nationwide Insurance and RoamRight is a subsidiary of Arch Insurance Company.

In contrast, Insurance Nomads is a completely independent travel insurance company, and brand new to the scene.

It offers travel insurance for short-term trips, global health insurance for people traveling long-term and living abroad, and group insurance for companies that send their staff to other countries to work.

This post is about short-term trip insurance coverage for Costa Rica, though, so we’ll continue to focus on that.

When visiting Costa Rica, most of the international travelers that are our readers are purchasing travel insurance to make sure they are covered for emergency medical expenses, travel delay benefits, trip cancellation insurance, emergency medical evacuation, and so on for a short vacation.

But, know that Insured Nomads also offers coverage for the travel situations described above if any of them apply to you.

One Comprehensive Insure Nomads Plan for Your Costa Rica Trip

Insured Nomads Travel Insurance is a bit different from World Nomads or RoamRight as it includes almost everything in its standard World Explorer plan.

Its policy comes with rather high coverages – instead of offering multiple plans to choose from or add-ons. Instead, you can choose a higher deductible to lower the cost of your coverage if you wish.

This policy offers up to $2,000,000 in maximum benefits for people under age 69. It also includes some things that other companies don’t.

For example, Insured Nomads offers coverages like cybersecurity coverage, mental health support, and telemedicine visits.

If you travel with Fido you’ll also be covered for pet evacuation. You’ll even get airport lounge access in over 1300 airports worldwide.

Of course, you’ll also be covered for all emergency medical expenses including emergency vision and dental, emergency medical evacuation, ad repatriation of remains.

Coverages also include trip interruption insurance, accommodations or evacuation in the event of a natural disaster, lost luggage, and personal liability as well, just like with the other providers listed above.

You will have to add on adventure sports and marine activities, but since not everyone participates in these sorts of things, including them as add-ons make sense.

There are several countries for which Insured Nomads does not offer coverage and these are listed on their site.

None of them are surprising omissions. Costa Rica is included with no limitations. And, if you wish to stay on your trip to Costa Rica longer than you originally planned, it’s easy to extend your coverage online.

Insured Nomads is a great choice for travel insurance and has an A Rating from the Better Business Bureau. With this company, you’ll have peace of mind during your whole trip.

Pretty much every problem you may encounter in Costa Rica is covered by Insured Nomads. You’ll just have to choose a deductible, and a zero deductible is an option that is available to you if that’s what you want.

4. AIG Travel Guard – Perfect Plans for Older Travelers

AIG Insurance offers all kinds of insurance. The company’s Travel Guard program exists for short-term travelers going on vacation. You’ll likely find that its coverage will be excellent for your trip to Costa Rica.

Three AIG Travel Insurance Plans to Consider

This company offers three main plans for short-term travel insurance. The Essential Plan is AIG Travel Guard’s budget plan. The Deluxe Plan offers the most comprehensive coverage. Most people choose AIG’s Preferred Plan which is right in the middle.

All of these plans include coverage for emergency medical expenses and since travel medical insurance is a primary reason for people to buy travel insurance for Costa Rica, this is very important. All three plans include $500 for emergency dental coverage.

For emergency medical expenses, you’ll be covered for up. to $100,000 on the Deluxe Plan. The coverage is up to $50,000 on the Preferred Plan, but you’ll only be covered for up to $15,000 on the Essential Plan.

As for standard trip cancellation insurance, you’ll be entitled to 100% of your trip cost on all three plans.

For trip interruption insurance, you’ll get up to 150% back on the two higher plans or 100% on the Essential Plan. If your trip is delayed, you’ll get $200 a day on the two higher plans or $100 a day on the lowest.

All three plans also include varying levels of coverage for emergency evacuation, lost or stolen baggage, and baggage delay.

They all include a $30,000 payout for accidental death or dismemberment. If you want car rental damage coverage, you can get that as an add-on for an additional price.

…Plus One Last-Minute Plan

If you’re looking for last-minute coverage before you depart, you might also consider the Pack N’ Go Plan. This travel insurance plan does not include coverage for trip cancellation since the people who purchase it are about to depart.

However, it will cover you for emergency medical expenses, trip interruptions, and offers trip delay benefits as well. You’ll be covered for all issues you might encounter once your Costa Rica trip is underway.

AIG Insurance is a reputable company that is well-known nationwide in the United States. Their three-tiered insurance plans give travelers a lot of flexibility when it comes to choosing travel insurance for their trip to Costa Rica or anywhere else they wish to go.

See Related: AIG Travel Guard Review

5. Allianz Travel Insurance – Choose Your Own Adventure 

One last company to consider is Allianz. Don’t be put off by their odd spelling of what seems to be intended to be “alliance.” Despite this, Allianz is a well-known company that offers solid coverage that is underwritten by the BCS Insurance company.

In addition to three levels of travel insurance plans for Costa Rica, this company also offers annual travel plans and standalone rental car insurance coverage as well.

Three Allianz Trip Insurance Plans to Consider

When we input our information for a quote for travel insurance for our imaginary trip to Costa Rica, Allianz came back to us with three different plans from which to choose.

The company’s OneTrip Basic Plan was quite affordable but offered much lower coverage limits than the medium-level plan (OneTrip Prime) or highest-level plan (OneTrip Premier).

The price jump to OneTrip Prime wasn’t massive, but the leap in price to OneTrip Premier was rather large. It may be cost-prohibitive for some travelers.

All three plans offer reimbursement if your trip to Costa Rica is canceled. They also include $2,000-$3,000 in reimbursement for trip interruption, and $10,000 to $50,000 for emergency medical coverage.

Emergency transportation is also included with coverage up to $1,000,000 on the company’s most expensive plan. You’ll also be covered for baggage loss or damage on all plans but you’ll only get $500 back on the OneTrip Basic Plan.

Baggage delay and trip delay benefits are also included at varying levels based on the plan that you choose.

All plans include the opportunity to upgrade to include rental car coverage for an additional fee.

Allianz Travel Insurance is a fine competitor to the other companies listed above. However, the cost does not match the coverage that you’ll receive.

It’s not a bad company to select, but you’ll enjoy better coverage when you buy travel insurance for Costa Rica from the other companies listed above and more bang for your buck, too.

Travel Insurance Brokers and Marketplaces

Many travelers, especially those who are purchasing travel insurance for the very first time, might not know where to begin when shopping for insurance. That’s where insurance brokers and online comparison marketplaces come in handy.

These types of sites will show you a number of different plans offered by several different providers. You can compare them against one other on the results page or with a few simple clicks and then purchase insurance through the site.

InsureMyTrip, TravelInsurance.com, AARDY, and Squaremouth are all examples of these types of sites.

If you’re feeling overwhelmed when trying to compare individual companies yourself, this is a great place to start and purchase your travel insurance.

1. InsureMyTrip – Many Options for You

InsureMyTrip is not a travel insurance company itself. Rather, this site asks you to input information about your travel plans and then returns over a dozen different options for you to compare from different insurance companies.

Some of the companies featured for Costa Rica on this site include Trawick International, Travel Insured International, General Global Assistance, WorldTrips, John Hancock Insurance Agency, Inc, and others.

Our Insurance for Costa Rica Results on InsureMyTrip

This site is easy to use and is a great place to start when you don’t know where to start. It’s user-friendly and you’ll see the prices of each plan on the list along the righthand side of your screen.

There are also reviews from travelers of each insurance plan that number in the hundreds for each one in most cases. You can also filter the plans that you see in the results based on the types of coverage that you seek and your specific needs.

Once you narrow your search, you can do side-by-side comparisons of plans that interest you and then you can purchase insurance directly through InsureMyTrip. It’s so easy – you’ll love using this site to compare plans.

It will even give you specific recommendations for your chosen destination. On our quick search, InsureMyTrip recommended Trawick International’s Safe Travels Voyager and WorldTrips’ Atlas Journey Preferred or Premier plans for Costa Rica in particular.

2. TravelInsurance.com – Fewer Options = Less Overwhelm!

Like InsureMyTrip above, TravelInsurance.com is a travel insurance search and comparison website that will show you a variety of different plans from different providers.

Also, like the other sites described above, you’ll find a form on the main page to fill out with your travel information including dates of travel, destination, your age, your country and state of residence, and a few other things. Then this site will give you its personalized recommendations for travel insurance.

Our Insurance for Costa Rica Results on TravelInsurance.com

When we requested a quote on TravelInsurance.com for a trip to Costa Rica, we received far fewer results than when we did the same search on InsureMyTrip. However, the initial results screen included far more information than the same results page on InsureMyTrip.

Some might like this because it allows for easy comparison. TravelInsurance.com suggested policies from three providers: GoReady Travel Insurance, Trawick International, and Seven Corners Travel Insurance.

As with InsureMyTrip, you can filter these results further to match your personal needs and preferences. There are reviews of each company and policy for you to check out as well.

TravelInsurance.com is a great travel insurance comparison website if you want to compare several different companies but you don’t want to be overwhelmed with too many suggestions.

See Related: TravelInsurance.com Review

3. AARDY Travel Insurance – Reliable Offerings for All Travelers

AARDY.com is yet another travel insurance marketplace type of site. Although these policy and provider comparison sites are all quite similar, they have subtle differences. You’ll likely settle on a personal favorite after giving them each a try.

AARDY puts its best foot forward on the main page by telling visitors that the site has an A+ Rating with the Better Business Bureau.

It currently has a 4.9 rating on Trustpilot with over 10,000 user reviews. Further, it also tells visitors that the site offers a Best Price Guarantee and that you won’t find lower prices anywhere else. These factors are surely a big draw for many.

Like InsureMyTrip and TravelInsurance.com, AARDY asks the same questions about your trip and yourself to find quotes for your trip.

On the site’s main page, partnerships are identified between AARDY and Travel Insured International, Trawick International, Seven Corners, IMG Insurance, AIG Travel Guard, and John Hancock Insurance Agency, so you can expect to get results from some or all of those companies before you even fill out the form and hit submit.

Our Insurance for Costa Rica Results on AARDY

Our initial search on this site returned fourteen policies with all of the above companies represented at least once.

This was more results than we received when we used TravelInsurance.com but still less than were shown in our search on InsureMyTrip. The prices of each policy were clearly stated on the main results page as were the coverages for easy comparison.

However, unlike the other two marketplace sites mentioned above, there were no reviews of the policies by travelers available.

This may or may not be a dealbreaker for you; some people love reading reviews while others ignore them altogether.

Otherwise, AARDY is very straightforward and very user-friendly, and there’s a chat feature on the site if you have any questions before you purchase insurance..

4. SquareMouth – Dozens of Policies With Easy Comparison

One more travel insurance marketplace site that is worth checking out is SquareMouth. Again, you’ll enter information about your trip and yourself and the site will give you a whole bunch of different travel insurance companies and policies from which to choose.

Information about the insurance details for all the suggested policies is listed clearly on your results page, and you can do a side-by-side comparison of as many suggestions as you’d like with just a few clicks.

You can also filter the results you see based on specific policy features and there are plenty of reviews and ratings to check out as well.

Our Insurance for Costa Rica Results on SquareMouth

A quick search using our imaginary Costa Rica trip search terms returned twenty-nine results.

Like the other marketplace sites mentioned above, this search returned results from a number of different companies including Trawick International, Seven Corners, AXA Assistance USA, Travel Insured International, General Global Assistance, and others.

We saw a large fluctuation in price among them, but they were proportional to the levels of coverage offered by each.

Some of the policies were highlighted to indicate positive reviews by major publications like Travel Weekly and Forbes and included links to more information about their rankings. 

SquareMouth is one of the best travel insurance marketplaces around. You’ll be offered a wide variety of policies to choose from and a wide range of price points; it’s likely that you’ll easily be able to find the right policy for you on this site. 

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