Help,

We're looking for insurance for our vehicle that we're taking to Southern Africa for our 6-month trip. Thanks for your help.

Need your advice—this is a bit urgent! 😅

I’m leaving in 1 month for 7 months in South America (mainly Argentina, with a quick stop in Chile and Bolivia). I still haven’t decided on: 👉 Travel insurance. 👉 The best bank card for abroad.

I’m a bit behind schedule and would really love your feedback: 👉 Which insurance do you recommend (reliability in case of trouble)? 👉 Which bank do you use while traveling to avoid fees (mainly in Argentina)? Boursorama? 👉 Any idea about fees with Western Union?

For now, I’m planning to bring as much cash as possible to avoid fees and exchange money locally. My bank (La Poste) gave me a Visa Premier for insurance/repatriation, but after reading the terms, I see it’s limited to 180 consecutive days—so 6 months, not 7.

Thanks in advance for your tips—it’ll help me make a decision quickly! :)

Hello, We’re a couple in our seventies planning a 12-day trip to Namibia this coming September. We have a Visa Premier card. In your opinion, should we take out additional travel insurance like Europ Assistance or Chapka? We don’t want to repeat our bad experience in 2020: we’d taken out insurance with Allianz (over 500 € for 11 days). Our trip to Botswana was canceled due to COVID-19, and they were quick to cite the "epidemic" exclusion to refuse reimbursement. Just to clarify: the flights will be with Lufthansa, departing from Luxembourg. Thanks in advance to anyone who can give us some advice!

.hi there I'm looking for travel insurance for the USA for a 1-month trip as a tourist. Could anyone give me some advice? Thanks so much

Hi there,

I feel like a total newbie—I’ve never really thought about this before, beyond repatriation—what happens if I get seriously ill or injured abroad? Thankfully, it’s never happened to me.

But now I’d like to cover my bases.

Do you know of any insurance providers, or where to look and how to choose one, that covers potential hospitalization costs, specifically in Uzbekistan?

I don’t even know if this kind of coverage is tied to a specific destination, in Europe (France?), or if it’s arranged directly in the country... 🤪

Catherine

Bonjour, je me permets d'écrire pour demander des informations en effet, j'ai cru comprendre qu'il fallait souscrire OBLIGATOIREMENT a une assurance pour pouvoir atterrir a ZANZIBAR. Quelle est la démarche à effectuer et quelle assurance ?? Merci par avance pour vos retour cordialement seb

bonjour merci beaucoup pour les informations.

si je comprends bien c'est obligatoire, mais cela sert a rien, mais obligatoire, donc si pas de prise de cette assurance pas possibilité d'aller zanzibar🙁

Bonjour,

Oui il y a une assurance OBLIGATOIRE .... mais!

D'abord lire attentivement ceci: C'est très bien expliqué par nos services consulaires .

https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/fr/information-par-pays/tanzanie/conseils-aux-voyageurs-entree-sejour

En résumé, un peu simpliste, c'est Obligatoire, mais c'est une "arnaque" du gouvernement de Zanzibar . Si on a un Pb, il faut éviter de s'en servir, et surtout avoir une assurance "sérieuse de chez nous" . Le mieux c'est de ne pas aller à Zanzibar ....!

Puma2A

A priori c'est cela !! Espérons que des personnes revenant de Zanzibar vous éclaireront un peu plus. Mais les conseils aux voyageurs de notre gouvernement ce sont des infos très sérieuses .

..

merci beaucoup pas le choix de la prendre alors merci beaucoup

😉

Hi everyone. After years of traveling to the USA without any medical insurance subscriptions—and luckily never having any major health issues (though I did get a scorpion sting buried in the sand at CBSouth, 😇)—life has caught up with us, and we’re now being forced into "wisdom" and leaving our carefree days behind.

So, I’m looking for the best compromise for a 2-month health insurance plan. I’ve read the discussions on this topic, but the most recent one is from last year, and I’d love your take on the current situation. I’m familiar with the usual options like Europ Assistance and AXA, but I’ve just discovered Chapka and Heymondo (the latter seems interesting in terms of both price and coverage).

What do you think of these last two? How do they compare in terms of value for money against the bigger companies?

Thanks in advance, everyone.

For 4 years now, my husband has been on ALD; no one will insure him. We’re supposed to leave for Bali in May, and I’ll have to cancel the trip because of this insurance issue. His ALD is cancer. Just like with trip cancellation insurance, it’s not valid if it’s for his health reasons—health issues are considered foreseeable, so they won’t reimburse you. Big problems with Carrefour travel agency.

Thanks for your help—I’m at a loss. Best,

Hi,

I read on another forum that there might be an issue with insurance for our vehicles in the Faroe Islands.

Apparently, we wouldn’t be covered once we disembark from the ferry. From what I understand, the DK on our green card no longer applies to the Faroe Islands.

Could anyone confirm this?

Thanks

hi Do you know of any travel insurance for someone with a pre-existing condition? Can a person who’s had a heart attack and is on medication get travel insurance? Thanks

Hi there, Does anyone know if there’s travel insurance for someone who’s had a heart attack? I can’t find an insurer that covers a pre-existing condition, even if it’s stable. Thanks so much!

Hi there. I’m reaching out to ask for your advice about travel insurance for my trip.

I bought Eurostar tickets back in January, but I forgot to take out travel insurance right away.

I’d like to get multi-risk travel insurance now, but most insurers say you have to sign up within 48 to 72 hours after buying your transport tickets.

Do you know of any insurance that doesn’t have this deadline and lets you sign up even months after buying your tickets?

Thanks so much for your help in advance.

Best regards

Hi there, Do I need a return ticket? Proof of insurance and a hotel reservation?? I’m French. Also, is there any control on meds and sleeping pills?? Thanks a bunch!

Hi everyone!

Quick message for the visa experts!

I was planning to enter Thailand with an OA visa applied for from France. This one requires mandatory insurance, in short, it’s a bit "restrictive."

I was wondering if you see any issues with this "setup": 1- Enter with a Non-Immigrant O visa (valid for 90 days) applied for from France (relatively easy to obtain) 2- Apply for an extension with multiple entries for one year before the 90 days expire (Extension of Stay Based on Retirement) That way, I don’t have to provide "visa-compliant" health insurance (I’ll get one separately, don’t worry! :)) 3- Renew the extension year after year.

Constraints: - File a presence declaration every 90 days - Don’t forget to request the "multiple re-entry permit" for 3,800 THB - Open a Thai bank account upon arrival + transfer the 800,000 THB

Side question: Can you open a Thai bank account with an O visa, specifically to make the required funds deposit for the extension?

Thanks in advance for your feedback! Olivier

Hi everyone, My question is simple. Do you need an international driver's permit in Thailand to ride a basic scooter?

Hi there, we’re planning our trip to the North Cape this summer. We bought a new vehicle for it. Unfortunately, the registration document is still being processed, and the delay seems long—I don’t think I’ll have it in time for our departure... I have the transfer documents, insurance in my name, and all the supporting paperwork, but not the registration document. So my question is: does the ferry company require the registration document *mandatorily* when boarding in Denmark or not? Thanks for any insights...

Hi, I went to submit my visa application to visit my partner’s family. We’re religiously married in France. I provided an accommodation certificate, pay slips, travel insurance, and a document stating we’re religiously married—signed, etc. I want to travel with my partner’s son, who has both Algerian and French passports and is a minor. So, I told them he lives with us. Since his father has custody, they didn’t charge me anything and said they’d call me back because my file is going to a committee. I also told them I needed to leave by July 15th. This is the Lille consulate—has this ever happened to any of you?,

Hi everyone!

I just got notified of a short-stay visa refusal for Greece, with the reason being that the purpose and conditions of my stay weren’t sufficiently justified. Yet I included in my application an explanatory letter, paid round-trip flight and hotel reservations, a paid ticket for my visits, and travel insurance—all matching the duration of my stay. I’m really puzzled by this decision and feel it’s unfair. Could anyone here shed some light on what might have gone wrong?

Thanks in advance!

Best regards,

Hi everyone, I’m looking for info on how long it takes to get a tourist visa in Jakarta. My Indonesian friend has almost all the documents ready but is missing flight tickets and insurance. We’d like to book them last minute for practical reasons. Has anyone had a recent experience and could tell me how long it usually takes? Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone!

I have two American cousins. The older one was born in Paris, and his sister was born in California. The latter is planning a trip to Paris this summer, but she recently fell ill, and American doctors don’t know what’s wrong. I had the idea of letting her take advantage of her trip to get treated here, avoiding the high healthcare costs of the American system in the process. The problem is, I can’t find anything online about this—just testimonials from French people who used to be American, but nothing for a simple tourist.

Could you shed some light on this for me?

Thanks in advance.

Hi there,

I’d like to know if anyone has already applied for a private visa to Russia with an invitation from a Russian resident. I traveled earlier this year with an e-visa, but since I want to stay longer, I’ll be visiting my friend who lives in eastern Russia. For the visa application, does the invitation need to be on an official paper form issued by the Russian ministry? And most importantly, do I need to present the original for the application, or is there an electronic version that can be sent directly to the consulate in France? Thanks for any info if you’ve gone through this process before!

Best regards,

Gilles

Today I ended up being denied boarding at CDG. I booked the trip through a physical travel agency with no assistance for the visa application. I applied in plenty of time and got the approval. Except I put the 9th (the day I left France) as the date instead of the 10th, which is the arrival date in India. That’s what caused the denial. I’m guessing I don’t have any recourse? Thanks for your replies.

It’s currently possible for a French national to enter Belarus through any land or air border point and stay for up to 30 days, for any reason. I did this last November, driving my own car from France, entering at Terespol and Brest-Litovsk (7-hour queue on the Polish side for political reasons and 3 hours of formalities on the Belarusian side), and exiting through Lithuania (1.5 hours on the Belarusian side and 3.5 hours on the Lithuanian side for political reasons). The rest of the trip was a real pleasure...

Hi there,

My partner, our 8-year-old daughter, and I are going on vacation to Gex.

We’ve decided to spend one day in Switzerland and another in Italy. Will we need ID (national ID card or passport)? Do we also need ID for our daughter?

Thanks so much for your answers! 🙂

We’re planning a trip to the Philippines from April 22 to May 8, 2026. Flight from Geneva with a layover in Turkey and Manila. Our itinerary: Angeles – Busuanga – Palawan…

The Philippines are a dream destination, but is it possible to travel there safely? I’ve heard that checked luggage often gets lost, tap water isn’t safe to drink, and mosquitoes are everywhere.

For water, what’s the best solution to carry in a backpack? Is a filtering water bottle 100% reliable?

For mosquitoes, should we treat our clothes with repellent? Are you vaccinated against hepatitis A, malaria, or dengue? Or is there an oral treatment to take?

Thanks for your feedback!

Hi there, I know there are similar topics here and elsewhere, but they’re a few years old, and I need an up-to-date answer to make sure I don’t throw over 1000 € out the window. Thanks for your patience.

I’m planning a trip from France to Alberta/British Columbia, and I’m unsure about which bank card to use for the security deposit with the rental company (I’m thinking of going with AVIS).

I contacted Avis Canada, and they told me a credit card is absolutely required. I asked my bank for a credit card (a *real* credit card), but they only offered me a deferred debit card.

My question: For a rental with Avis Canada, is a Gold International Mastercard deferred debit card usable for the security deposit needed to finalize the rental? Is the "CREDIT" label enough? (Some cards say "CREDIT" and others say "CARTE DE CREDIT"—seems minor, but it’s actually a big deal in how the card works.)

I’ve seen conflicting info everywhere I look... My bank says it’s *usually* okay (the deferred debit card), while Avis Canada insists it *must* be a credit card, not debit—even when I mention the deferred debit card.

I know the whole credit card concept is already confusing, and on top of that, some sites say a deferred debit card counts as a credit card, while others say it doesn’t.

Thanks to anyone who can share a recent experience! Have a great day