Travel insurance for Bali

Does Bali require travel insurance?

Though it’s not a legal requirement to buy travel insurance for a holiday to Bali, it’s unwise to travel without it.

Nobody likes to imagine anything going wrong on a trip of a lifetime. But things happen that you can’t foresee.

You could fall ill, for example, or have an accident while you’re away and need hospital treatment, or evacuation, costing thousands of pounds. Or you may be forced to cancel your holiday before you go.

Travel insurance covers all these eventualities and more. It can provide peace of mind and ensure you’re not out of pocket if something untoward happens on your trip.

You’ll need a worldwide travel insurance policy for Bali and you can choose from single trip or annual travel insurance.

Single trip travel insurance will suit you if you only plan to visit Bali in the next 12 months.

But if you’re taking other trips during the year, an annual policy could work out cheaper. It will cover you for all your holidays, as long as each trip lasts no longer than a certain duration. Depending on the policy, that could be around 30 days per trip.

If you’ve got a longer trip planned, perhaps incorporating other countries as well, then you’ll need long-stay travel insurance. It’s often called gap-year or backpackers insurance.

This type of insurance covers you for a continuous trip lasting between 2 and 18 months.

What’s usually covered by travel insurance?

Most travel insurance policies include cover for:

• Medical expenses - If you fall ill or have an accident, you’re covered for emergency and ongoing treatment.
• Repatriation - Pays to get you back home to the UK because of your health, or because an illness or accident affects your travel plans.
• Lost or delayed luggage - Covers the cost of essential items you need for your trip. Keep receipts for any replacement items you buy as a result of lost luggage. Your insurer may ask for them if you need to claim.
• Cancellation and curtailment - Can compensate you if you need to cancel or cut short your holiday due to things like illness or bereavement.
• Personal liability - You’re covered if found liable to pay damages if you accidentally injure someone or damage their property on your trip. You won't be covered for accidents that happen while under the influence of alcohol.

Travel insurance to cover typical activities in Bali

Relax on laid-back beaches and swim under sparkling waterfalls. Tour exquisite Hindu temples, meet macaques at Ubud’s sacred monkey forest and climb volcanoes.

Beautiful Bali is an island full of natural wonders and new experiences to discover.

Whatever you plan to get up to on the island, make sure your travel insurance covers you for the activity in question.

For example, Bali’s a popular surf destination. So if you plan on riding some serious reef breaks, or even just want to sample surf school, you should check that your travel insurance will cover you for taking part.

Or perhaps you might like the chance to meet manta rays or Mola Mola sunfish in the azure ocean on a scuba diving or snorkelling session.

Sports cover varies between policies. Some insurers cover certain activities automatically and allow you to add others for an extra fee whereas some sports may not be covered at all.

It’s not worth the risk to take part in a sport that’s not covered by your policy. If you were to be injured as a result of the activity, your medical costs wouldn’t be covered.

Medical cover and healthcare in Bali

There are three BIMC private hospitals that provide good facilities; in Kuta, Nusa Dua and Ubud that cater for residents and tourists. But treatment can be expensive.

In parts of Bali, healthcare can be quite basic, especially in remote areas. For anything beyond minor treatment, you may have to be transferred or evacuated and this could cost thousands of pounds. So it’s really important you have adequate travel insurance to cover both medical and repatriation costs.

Do I need vaccinations for Bali?

You should check with a travel clinic or doctor for the latest vaccination advice for Bali about six to eight weeks before you travel.

Ensure you’re up to date with the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine and the diphtheria-tetanus-polio vaccine.

In general, recommended vaccines for most travellers to Bali are:

• Hepatitis A
• Tetanus
• Typhoid

In addition, depending on how long you’re staying in Bali, what activities you’re doing and where you’re going, the following vaccines may also be recommended:

• Cholera
• Hepatitis B
• Japanese Encephalitis (JE)
• Rabies

There’s a risk of malaria in Bali, plus dengue fever. You should take precautions to avoid mosquito bites.

Do I need a visa?

You can purchase a tourist visa on arrival at Bali’s international airport, Ngurah Rai. It costs IDR 500,000 and is valid for 30 days. It can be extended once (for a maximum of 30 days) by making an application to an immigration office in Indonesia.

If you want to stay for longer than 60 days, you’ll need to apply for a B211 tourist visa before your arrival.

Is there any travel insurance that covers Bali’s volcanoes?

Bali sits in the ‘ring of fire’, an area along the Pacific Ocean prone to volcanic eruptions and earthquakes because of the amount of movement of tectonic plates there.

The island is home to several active volcanoes including Mount Batur and Mount Agung, which erupted most recently in 2019, causing flight cancellations.

To protect yourself against the disruption that volcanic activity might have on your trip to Bali, you need travel insurance with ‘trip disruption’ cover or ‘natural catastrophe’ cover for things like volcanic activity, volcanic ash, earthquake, tsunami, flooding and so on.

You’ll usually need to buy this kind of cover as an ‘add-on’ to a standard policy.

With this type of cover in place, you’re protected if volcanic activity or volcanic ash means you need to cancel your trip before you leave or while you’re travelling, or if it disrupts your holiday while you’re there and prevents you from continuing it.

You should always check the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) advice before travelling to any volcanic areas.

If the FCDO advises against travel, you may invalidate your travel insurance if you ignore the advice and travel anyway.

Tips to help you stay safe in Bali

While Bali is deemed to be quite safe to visit, bag-snatching and pickpocketing in busy tourist areas can be common. Take sensible precautions and keep your phone, purse and wallet out of sight and hold your bag close to you in crowded areas.

Credit card fraud is also an issue. Make sure your card isn’t taken out of your sight during a transaction.

Avoid tap water and ice cubes in drinks, and beware of drink-spiking in clubs.

Driving in Bali can be hazardous because of poor traffic discipline. During rainy season (November to March), keep abreast of local weather reporting and take extra care when walking or driving in case of floods and slips and landslides.

Drug possession is a serious offence in Bali, so avoid at all costs. Police often raid tourist spots and you could face a long prison sentence if you’re caught with drugs.

Does travel insurance cover scooters in Bali?

Scooters, mopeds and motorbikes are easy to hire here and they look like a lot of fun. However, it’s notoriously dangerous to drive a motorcycle in Bali and there are hundreds of fatal accidents every year, especially among tourists. So you should weigh up the risks before you decide. A good option may be to hire a driver and ride a motorcycle that way.

You’ll need an International Driving Permit to drive a scooter and you must wear a crash helmet.

Check that your insurer covers motorcycle use in Bali. Some won’t cover any scooter use, even as a passenger.

Others will insure you to ride bikes only up to a certain engine capacity.