At Your Own Risk: 10 Countries Where Travel Insurance Won\’t Be Able To Help You

By: Patrick Chong

The foreign and commonwealth office draws up an extensive list of countries that should not be travelled to quite regularly, and is from that, that our, and other global travel insurance providers?, underwriters decide which countries travel insurance should be provided for. We look at the government travel advice and decide from that whether or not we can provide insurance to travellers.

Although global travel insurance does, by its nature, cover the majority of the world, the current climate ensures that there are some places where the likelihood of incident means that UK travel insurance providers are unable to offer protection. Thankfully, the list is clear of the majority of popular holiday destinations, and you?re unlikely to have your big holiday plans affected. The most likely group to have their travel plans altered by the foreign office?s travel advice are business travellers.

The foreign office?s travel advice is not to travel to the following countries, even if it means losing business ? the risk from the warzones listed below is just too great to make the reward worth the danger:

Here?s our top 10 countries to avoid travelling to, and the reasons for the high risk factor! The risk is far from conclusive (the foreign office?s travel advice lists many more countries), but to me, these are the ones that all travellers should avoid like the plague:

10) Liberia

Economic hardship in Liberia is currently making outbreaks of violence common, and foreigners (especially westerners) are at risk targets due to their affluence. This extra likelihood of incident ensures that no UK travel insurance provider would risk offering you cover if you choose to visit Liberia

9) Nepal

Occasional acts of terrorism and political violence in urban areas make Nepal off-limits for those who want to get travel insurance. In September this year, three nearly simultaneous bombs went off in the capital of Kathmandu, killing 3 and injuring many innocent bystanders.

Haiti

Haiti is considered off limits to many travellers on account of the high risk of kidnappings and civil unrest that is prominent. At the time of writing, there have been 12 kidnappings of American travellers in 2007 ? mostly criminal in nature. In the past, these kidnappings have ended in physical and sexual assaults and shootings. The potential for spontaneous protests and demonstrations has also been known to result in unexpected violence, day or night. It?s no surprise that the government?s travel advice is not to travel here!

7) Yemen

Due to the high levels of terrorist activity in Yemen, westerners are advised to steer clear of Yemen. If this is not possible, then all travellers are encouraged to stay vigilant and to keep a low profile to avoid attacks or kidnapping. The situation is so grave that the US Embassy often restricts American citizens from certain hotels, restaurants and shopping areas.

6) Israel

The Gaza Strip and West Bank has seen immense violence in recent months between Israeli and Palestinian factions, and shootings, kidnappings and violence demonstrations have occurred in each. The region?s continued instability makes travel to Israel widely recommended against ? the risk of abduction or worse makes travel insurance impossible to obtain.

5) Democratic Republic of Congo

The democratic republic of Congo remains one of the most dangerous places to travel in Africa, where violence, neglect and corruption has left the country distinctly damaged. Fighting erupted in the streets of Kinshasa in March this year, and the situation remains volatile despite the immediate threat of violence calming down.

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Any traveller brave enough to travel to the Congo should be extremely cautious, avoid the North Kivu district which is the backdrop to armed conflict between government troops and army rebels, avoid crowds and keep a close eye on local media.

4) Burma (Myanmar)

While the human rights situation makes Myanmar an ethically uneasy place to visit, currently there is a lot of personal risk involved as well. Throughout September, the anti-government protests sparked a violent crackdown from the authorities and made international headlines. Although the dusk-til-dawn curfew imposed in some of the towns has been lifted, it still remains an uncertain time to visit the country and you?re unlikely to find any global travel insurance company who will insure you.

3) Colombia

Colombia remains one of the most dangerous places to travel in the world thanks to the crime the country suffers from. The illicit drug trade in urban areas such as Cali and Buenaventura means that there is often a high risk of violence, while the more rural areas expose visitors to the country at risk from narcoterrorist groups who will often kidnap civilians to use for ransom or to gain media attention. Naturally UK travel insurance companies are loathe to insure travellers who choose to ignore these warning and travel to Colombia anyway.

2) Afghanistan

With the war on terror in Afghanistan still fresh in the mind, it?s no surprise that the country remains a big no-go area. Western tourists are obvious kidnap and assassination targets, as many of the disbanded Taliban and Al-Qa?ida forces remain at large and hostile to the new regieme. Additionally, the country remains unsafe due to tribal groups, explosive devices, landmines, military operations and acts of terrorism. Unsurprisingly, the government?s travel advice is to avoid travelling here at all costs!

1) Iraq

Given the high profile nature of western kidnappings by various insurgent groups, and the regular acts of terrorism and hostility to Western troops, it is no surprise that no travel insurance companies will insure travellers to the troubled country. The instability is caused by various groups ? Ba?ath regime remnants, transnational terrorists and criminal elements have been known to attack convoys en-route to venues, hotels, restaurants, checkpoints and police stations.

While holidaymakers are unlikely to be affected by these less touristy locations, their riskiness means that business travellers will have to forgo their travel insurance if they are unable to cancel their trips.

Article Source:
http://www.articlecity.com/articles/travel_and_leisure/article_3153.shtml
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An All Inclusive Caribbean Vacation In Honduras At La Ceiba

By: Gordon Steven

An All Inclusive Caribbean Vacation in La Ceiba in Honduras may not have been the first place that came to mind when you thought of All Inclusive Caribbean. In fairness you do need to take a look at The Palma Real Beach Resort and Casino before you make your mind up to go somewhere else.

The Palma Real Beach Resort and Casino, has a beachfront location within the Palma Real Beach resort and Villas.

You will find the resort quite beautiful with everything well maintained and kept clean by a maintenance team who seem to work round the clock on the grounds and the pool. The Palma Real Beach Resort and Casino is well laid out, and there are lots of things to do, and lots of amenities. This is so important when you go on an all inclusive vacation anywhere and the Caribbean shouldn?t be any different. There were kayaks, boogie boards, a trampoline, and mini golf. You can add to this a terrific animation crew who organise daily activities such as volleyball, soccer, dance classes, Spanish lessons, board games, walks, in fact almost anything you could think of.

There was no reason to be bored on your Honduras vacation at this resort, but if you wanted to be bone idle then that was fine too.

Food and drink are both plentiful. There is a buffet restaurant and the food is well varied for an all inclusive, and there are two a la carte restaurants that you can use three times a week, and you will find the service there very good. There have been complaints about food being cooked early and being left out in the sun, so this is something to keep an eye on.

The other difficulty which can occur at any All Inclusive Caribbean Vacation Hotel, and not just a Honduras Hotel is the behaviour of other guests. Be warned there are some who eat and drink too much because no money changes hands, so be prepared to attend meals early, and learn to stay out of their way.

One of the great things about All Inclusive and the Palma Real Beach Resort and Casino is no different, are the off site excursions. Whilst this is something you do have to pay for the prices are very reasonable. You definitely need to do the zip line tour high above the jungle canopy, and then after that you will be taken back up the mountain to luxuriate in one of the several hot springs. Go to Cayos Cochinos and do the snorkelling.

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Honduras is still in the early stages of tourism, so the locals are very friendly. It is worth going for a walk along the beach to Sambo Creek as a small couple of hours excursion.

Being a Honduras vacation you will need bug spray especially after it rains, because if you don?t then you will get bitten for sure.

Honduras is beautiful, The Palma Real Beach Resort and Casino is a very clean and well maintained resort, you just need to exercise a little caution over the All Inclusive element and care over the catering. Many people who stay there rave about it.

For more information about Caribbean Vacation Spots go to http://www.caribbean-vacationspots.com/pages/Site-Map.html

Article Source:
http://www.articlecity.com/articles/travel_and_leisure/article_3319.shtml
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