Comprehensive travel insurance

If you're looking for ultimate peace of mind while travelling, you'll want comprehensive travel insurance. Compare quotes from 15 brands – that’s more than any other site in Australia.

A woman travelling in Asia

Add kids under the age of 1 by typing a “0” 0 traveller(s)


By submitting this form, you agree to our Privacy & Cookies Policy and Terms of Service. By entering an email address you agree to create a Finder account. We will send you an email to setup your password.

Key takeaways

  • Comprehensive travel insurance is the highest level of cover you can get.
  • It can cover medical costs, cancellations, lost luggage, personal liability and more.
  • While most brands have a comprehensive policy, not all policies are created equal.

What is covered by comprehensive travel insurance?

Hospital

24/7 medical assistance

Most comprehensive travel insurance policies cover you for unlimited medical expenses and 24/7 medical care, including repatriation.

Plane icon

Delays and cancellations

Comprehensive travel insurance can cover you for cancelled or delayed flights. This is the most common reason for claims. According to Finder research, 29% of Australians, equivalent to around 5.8 million people, have had their flight delayed or cancelled in the last 12 months.

Coronavirus

COVID-19 expenses

Comprehensive travel insurance policies now cover COVID. This includes medical expenses, cancellations and rearrangement costs.

Lost luggage

Luggage and personal belongings

Unlike a basic policy, comprehensive policies typically cover lost and delayed luggage and personal items. They also come with high limits so it can cover all of your expenses.

Is comprehensive travel insurance worth it?

Almost 1 in 3 Australians, equivalent to 3.5 million people, suffered a travel mishap while abroad in the past 12 months, according to a July 2023 Finder survey. 14% have endured travel delays, while 8% lost personal items. Comprehensive travel insurance can cover this but a basic policy often won't.

Reasons you might need better cover

  • If you're travelling with family. Because there are more of you travelling, there's more chance something could go wrong – and when it does, it's often very expensive.
  • If you're going on an expensive holiday. Planning that trip of a lifetime to North America or Europe costs a lot of money before you even get there. Cancellation cover here is vital. Can you imagine getting a bad flu or COVID a few days before take-off and your doctor advising against travel?
  • If you're going to a country where medical care is expensive. Making sure you have unlimited medical cover can be hugely important in countries such as US, Japan and Singapor.
  • If your luggage is expensive. Travelling for a longer period or as a family usually means your luggage is worth a lot. If it was to get lost, you could be out of pocket for hundreds or maybe even thousands of dollars.
  • If you're going to a country where petty crimes are common. It's so important to see different places in the world but that can sometimes mean theft and petty crimes are more common. A comprehensive policy can cover you for things like a stolen passport, phone or camera.

2024 Finder Travel Insurance Award winners

Basic vs comprehensive travel insurance

Basic travel insurance is cheap and affordable, but it doesn't cover you for everything that's available in a top policy. Cheap travel insurance will generally cover basic medical costs, and some extra travel related costs, like delays or cancellations. However, a basic policy won't cover everything, and might have lower claim limits on some benefits.

Comprehensive travel insurance is a little more expensive, but still quite affordable for most people. A top policy will likely offer higher limits for common claims, and cover more of the 'nice to have' benefits like luggage delays, resumption of trip and more.

Frequently Asked Questions

Tim Bennett's headshot
To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Tim Bennett as part of our fact-checking process.
Gary Ross Hunter's headshot
Editor, Insurance

Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 647 Finder guides across topics including:
  • Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
  • Managing the cost of living

More guides on Finder

  • Butter International Travel Insurance review

    Butter International Travel Insurance comes with all the essentials and plenty of optional extras for those who want further coverage.

  • Bali travel insurance

    Ready to get moving? See quotes and compare travel insurance policies for Bali from 15
    brands

  • Travel insurance with natural disaster cover

    From fire and flood to earthquake and volcanic eruption, natural disasters can cause travel chaos, but travel insurance will have you covered.

  • Couples travel insurance

    Learn how couple’s travel insurance can save you money.

  • Travel insurance for missed flights and delays

    This article examines what is and isn’t covered by missed flight travel insurance and also takes a look at other types of trip interruption and cancellation cover.

  • USA travel insurance

    Ready to get moving? See quotes and compare travel insurance policies for USA from 15
    brands

  • Is credit card travel insurance enough?

    One of the features of many high-end or rewards credit cards is complimentary travel insurance. Unlike standalone travel insurance policies which require you to pay a premium, these policies are offered for free to cardholders. However, keep in mind that you still need to pay your card’s annual fee and will need to use your credit card to book certain holiday costs in order to activate cover.

    Similar to standalone travel insurance policies, complimentary credit card travel insurance offers cover for a host of risks you face while travelling, including overseas emergency medical expenses, cancellation fees and lost deposits, luggage and personal belongings, and legal liability.

    However, just as with any other type of insurance, these policies feature a range of limits and exclusions that you should be wary of before setting off on a trip. It also pays to compare credit card travel insurance policies closely before deciding which card offers the right cover for you.

  • Travel insurance for backpackers

    Review affordable backpacker insurance for your next overseas adventure and find the right insurance policy to cover commonplace backpacking travel risks.

  • Domestic travel insurance: Australia

    Domestic travel insurance can provide cover for trip cancellation (domestic flights), loss or damage to luggage and expensive items, car rental excess charges and much more. Find out why domestic travel insurance is worth getting and compare policies from Australian insurers.

Ask a question

You are about to post a question on finder.com.au:

  • Do not enter personal information (eg. surname, phone number, bank details) as your question will be made public
  • finder.com.au is a financial comparison and information service, not a bank or product provider
  • We cannot provide you with personal advice or recommendations
  • Your answer might already be waiting – check previous questions below to see if yours has already been asked

Finder only provides general advice and factual information, so consider your own circumstances, or seek advice before you decide to act on our content. By submitting a question, you're accepting our Terms Of Service and Finder Group Privacy & Cookies Policy.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

4 Responses

    Default Gravatar
    DenesSeptember 16, 2023

    I am an amateur photographer travelling overseas with a suite of camera equipment; what options do have for insuring a more expensive camera body and lens? My current travel insurance cover will not cover two of the most expensive pieces of equipment.

      AvatarFinder
      GarySeptember 29, 2023Finder

      Hi Denes,

      Thanks for getting in touch. You should look at our guide on travel insurance for expensive items. There are a handful of policies that will allow you to increase your cover on certain items for up to $10,000. Hopefully this helps.

      Thanks,
      Gary

    Default Gravatar
    KelJuly 22, 2017

    I am traveling to Fiji for business what insurance do I need?

      Default Gravatar
      JonathanJuly 22, 2017

      Hello Kel,

      Thank you for sending your inquiry. :)

      Please feel free to compare travel insurance for Fiji. Kindly input the travel details on the form and click “Get Quote Now” green button.

      Please take note of their benefits, exclusions and fees by looking at their individual product T&Cs.

      Hope this helps.

      Cheers,
      Jonathan

Go to site