Written by the Paramount Gorilla Expeditions team, based in Uganda, on safari travel insurance and medical evacuation cover.
Standard travel insurance and medical evacuation cover are different things, and a safari trip needs both. Many camps and parks are hours from a hospital that can treat a serious injury or illness, so getting you to proper care quickly is what evacuation cover is for.
Standard safari travel insurance
This usually covers trip cancellation, lost baggage, delays and routine medical treatment. It is worth having for any international trip. Read the policy for exclusions, including activities such as gorilla trekking, balloon flights and walking safaris.
Medical evacuation cover
Evacuation usually means a light aircraft or helicopter, arranged by a specialist air-ambulance or flying-doctor service operating in East Africa. Membership or cover is relatively inexpensive compared with what it protects against, and it means an evacuation is arranged quickly, not after a long claims process.
Check your safari travel insurance before you travel
- Does your policy cover evacuation from remote areas, and by air?
- Does it cover the activities you plan?
- Do your camps include evacuation cover, or can they arrange it? Confirm it rather than assuming.
- Does it cover pre-existing conditions you declare?
- What is the emergency number, and who calls whom?
Entry rules may involve insurance
Some destinations have introduced insurance requirements for visitors, so check the official rules for each country. See visa and entry requirements and our Visa & Travel Documents page.
Activities to check in your policy
Some safari activities fall outside standard cover, so check the activity list in your policy for:
- Gorilla and chimpanzee trekking
- Hot-air balloon flights
- Walking safaris and night drives
- Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, which needs cover for high-altitude trekking
- Scuba diving in Zanzibar or the Seychelles
- White-water rafting on the Nile at Jinja
If an activity is excluded, ask your insurer for an add-on before you travel, not after something goes wrong.
Our approach
We build evacuation cover confirmation into every itinerary as a standard checklist item. Read malaria and vaccinations and first-time safari planning.
Planning more than one country?
On a trip across several countries, the entry and health rules differ from one border to the next.
- the insurance rule that now applies on arrival: the insurance rule that now applies on arrival.
- who needs a certificate, by country: who needs a certificate, by country.
- one visa for three countries: one visa for three countries.
- every route, visa rule and package in one place: every route, visa rule and package in one place.
Insurance is one of the items most quotes leave out. See how it fits into the cost of an East Africa safari with a list of what is usually extra.
Plan your safari travel insurance
For health advice, check the CDC Travelers' Health pages and see a travel clinic. We confirm the current fees for your dates in every quote.
For vehicle insurance excess and breakdown cover on a hired car, see our self drive safari guide.
For older travellers, see our safari for seniors guide on declaring conditions and checking age limits.
For health rules and carrying help on a gorilla trek, see our gorilla trekking age limit guide.