Insurance – A Critical Part of Every Expedition

Comprehensive travel insurance – including medical, trip cancellation, and evacuation cover – is a non-negotiable requirement for any Isolation Outfitters expedition. We require written confirmation of cover before you depart.

Every angler should budget for a policy that includes:

• Trip cancellation

• Medical emergencies

• Evacuation and repatriation

Protect Your Trip Investment

When you pay your 50% deposit to confirm a trip — whether for a hosted expedition, guide, or lodge services — it’s wise to purchase travel insurance at the same time. Doing so may give you immediate protection for that investment.

Your payment passes through several providers — including guides, lodges, helicopter operators, and logistics companies — all with their own cancellation policies. In most cases, these are strictly non-refundable, unless a replacement can be found for your booking.

Please check that your policy includes reimbursement for non-refundable costs if you're unable to travel.

What to Look For in Fly Fishing Travel Insurance

A solid travel insurance policy should cover:

• Pre-trip cancellation (e.g. injury, illness, family emergency)

• Natural events or severe weather that affect travel

• Medical emergencies and hospitalisation abroad

• Delays, baggage loss, or gear issues

• Trip interruption or curtailment

Also check:

• What documentation you’ll need to make a claim

• Whether there's 24/7 support in your language

• If the claims process is straightforward and fast

Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) Coverage

If you’re booking months in advance, consider a Cancel for Any Reason policy upgrade. It may reimburse up to 75% of your trip cost, even if your reason for cancelling isn’t typically covered.

Recommended Providers

• New Zealand travellers: Southern Cross Travel Insurance, AA Insurance

• US-based anglers: Signature Travel Insurance, Travelex Insurance

• UK travellers: Staysure™

Understanding the Claims Process

Before buying your policy, review:

• How to make a claim

• Whether there’s a toll-free 24/7 number

• What documentation is required

• Timeframes for resolution

Even minor issues like lost baggage should be resolved quickly. Ensure your provider can support you wherever you’re headed.

Global Rescue:
Medical & Evacuation Cover

For anglers traveling to remote regions – like Tierra del Fuego, the Pacific atolls, or New Caledonia – emergency medical and evacuation coverage is essential.

We recommend Global Rescue, the leader in international medical assistance and field evacuation. Their Signature Travel Insurance (offered with IMG) includes:

• Trip Cancellation: Up to 100% of non-refundable costs

• Trip Interruption: Up to 150%

• Medical Cover: Up to $100,000

• Cancel for Any Reason: Up to 75% (upgrade option)

• Sports Equipment Rental: Up to $2,000

• Accidental Death or Dismemberment: Up to $100,000

They also offer multilingual support, remote medical access, and emergency evacuation to your hospital of choice.

Why Medical Evacuation Cover Matters

When you’re traveling to the remote, often wild places where the world’s best fly fishing is found, conventional insurance may not be enough.

If something goes seriously wrong – a medical emergency, injury, or severe illness – you need more than a standard policy. You need fast, professional medical support and the ability to be evacuated to a proper hospital or back home. This is especially critical in remote parts of Patagonia, Mongolia, Bolivia, and off-grid saltwater flats.

That’s why Isolation Outfitters strongly recommends — and may require for some of our remote trips — specialist evacuation insurance through a provider like Global Rescue.

Why Global Rescue?

Global Rescue is the gold standard in emergency medical evacuation and remote travel assistance. Their cover ensures you’re never alone, no matter how far off the map you are.

Benefits include:

• Worldwide field rescue and medical evacuation — to the hospital of your choice

• 24/7 access to medical and security professionals — including multilingual support

• Telemedicine consultations — so help is never more than a phone call away

• Evacuation from remote or hostile regions, not just urban centres

• Coordination with local emergency services and aircraft when needed

You can choose between short-term trip cover or annual memberships, and add Signature Travel Insurance for comprehensive trip protection.

Standard Insurance Often Isn’t Enough

Many travel and health insurance policies exclude evacuation services, especially in remote or unstable regions. Even if they do cover it, they often limit evacuation to the nearest appropriate medical facility — not your preferred hospital or home country.

Global Rescue, by contrast, ensures you’re moved to the hospital of your choice, anywhere in the world.

Our Position

Due to the nature of our trips and the remote destinations we operate in, we strongly encourage all guests to hold:

• Comprehensive travel insurance, and

• Dedicated emergency medical evacuation cover via Global Rescue

In future, proof of this coverage may be required prior to departure.

Next Steps

Visit www.globalrescue.com to explore:

• Individual trip coverage

• Annual membership options

• Combined Signature Travel Insurance + Evacuation packages

It’s a small investment for major peace of mind, and one that can make all the difference when the unexpected happens.

Understanding the Claims Process

Before buying your policy, review:

• How to make a claim

• Whether there’s a toll-free 24/7 number

• What documentation is required

• Timeframes for resolution

Even minor issues like lost baggage should be resolved quickly. Ensure your provider can support you wherever you’re headed.

River Closures & Regulatory Disruption

Recent river closures – such as in Alaska and Norway (July 2024) – have left many anglers out of pocket. In this event, we will try to help as best we can, but the previous experience of fly fishing lodges, operators and travel industry businesses is that a claim on your travel insurance may be the most effective way of recouping your costs incurred in a forfeited trip. Make sure your insurance policy covers government-imposed access restrictions that may arise after booking.

You should be able to:

• Choose a cancellation amount to match your prepaid costs

• Confirm you’ll be reimbursed for flights, guides, and lodges

• Adjust your level of cover to balance premium costs

Final Thoughts

Securing the right insurance gives you peace of mind so you can focus on more important things: choosing flies, packing your gear, and maybe upgrading your rod.

Travel insurance isn’t just a box to tick – it’s your safety net, your exit plan, and your guarantee that if something unexpected happens, your adventure is still protected.