Health & Insurance

Because Scotland is far from home, and a number of things could go wrong -- lost luggage, trip cancellation, a medical emergency -- strongly consider travel insurance. Check your existing policies and credit card coverage before you buy travel insurance. You may already be covered for lost luggage, cancelled tickets, or medical expenses.

The cost of travel insurance varies widely, depending on the cost and length of your trip, your age and health, and the type of trip you're taking, but expect to pay between 5% and 8% of the vacation itself. You can get estimates from various providers through InsureMyTrip.com. Enter your trip cost and dates, your age, and other information, for prices from more than a dozen companies.

Trip-Cancellation Insurance -- Trip-cancellation insurance will help retrieve your money if you have to back out of a trip or depart early, or if your travel supplier goes bankrupt. Permissible reasons for trip cancellation can range from sickness to natural disasters to the State Department declaring a destination unsafe for travel.

For more information, contact one of the following recommended insurers: Access America (tel. 866/807-3982; www.accessamerica.com); Travel Guard International (tel. 800/826-4919; www.travelguard.com); Travel Insured International (tel. 800/243-3174; www.travelinsured.com); and Travelex Insurance Services (tel. 888/457-4602; www.travelex-insurance.com).

Medical Insurance -- Scotland has the U.K.-wide National Health Service, which provides residents with free care. Visitors needing emergency treatment will be admitted into hospital wards without questions or evidence of ability to pay. Extended treatment in a hospital may result in a bill, however.

For travel overseas, most U.S. health plans (including Medicare and Medicaid) do not provide coverage, and the ones that do often require you to pay for services upfront and reimburse you only after you return home. As a safety net, you may want to buy travel medical insurance, particularly if you're traveling to a remote or high-risk area where emergency evacuation might be necessary. If you require additional medical insurance, try MEDEX Assistance (tel. 410/453-6300; www.medexassist.com) or Travel Assistance International (tel. 800/821-2828; www.travelassistance.com; for general information on services, call the company's Worldwide Assistance Services, Inc., at tel. 800/777-8710).

Lost-Luggage Insurance -- On flights within the U.S., checked baggage is covered up to $2,500 per ticketed passenger. On international flights (including U.S. portions of international trips), baggage coverage is limited to approximately $9.07 per pound, up to approximately $635 per checked bag. If you plan to check items more valuable than what's covered by the standard liability, see if your homeowner's policy covers your valuables, get baggage insurance as part of your comprehensive travel-insurance package, or buy Travel Guard's "BagTrak" product.

If your luggage is lost, immediately file a lost-luggage claim at the airport, detailing the luggage contents. Most airlines require that you report delayed, damaged, or lost baggage within 4 hours of arrival. The airlines are required to deliver luggage, once found, directly to your house or destination free of charge.

Health & Safety

Staying Healthy -- Scotland poses no particular health concerns. The crisis over so-called mad-cow disease has passed and in fact it apparently never affected cattle in Scotland. Restrictions have been lifted, but it has been suggested that it's safer to eat beef cut from the bone instead of served on the bone. Avian flu remains a concern here as almost everywhere, but the country is not particularly vulnerable.

In general, contact the International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers (IAMAT; tel. 716/754-4883, or 416/652-0137 in Canada; www.iamat.org) for tips on travel and health concerns in the countries you're visiting, and for lists of local, English-speaking doctors. The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (tel. 800/311-3435; www.cdc.gov) provides up-to-date information on health hazards by region or country and offers tips on food safety. The website www.tripprep.com, sponsored by a consortium of travel medicine practitioners, may also offer helpful advice on traveling abroad. You can find listings of reliable clinics overseas at the International Society of Travel Medicine (www.istm.org).

What To Do If You Get Sick Away From Home -- If you need a doctor, your hotel can recommend one, or you can contact your embassy or consulate. If you need an ambulance, dial 999. Remember: U.S. visitors are eligible for free emergency care. For follow-up care, you should expect to be asked to pay.

If you suffer from a chronic illness, consult your doctor before your departure. Pack prescription medications in your carry-on luggage, and carry them in their original containers, with pharmacy labels -- otherwise they might not make it through airport security. Carry the generic name of prescription medicines, in case a local pharmacist is unfamiliar with the brand name.

Staying Safe -- Like most big cities in the Western world, Edinburgh and Glasgow have their share of crime. Handguns are banned by law, however, and shootings are exceedingly rare. Knives present a problem but one largely confined to youth gangs. Fights can flare up unexpectedly in either city, but in Glasgow, particularly, during heated soccer matches; exercise caution if any are being played during your stay. Marches of the Orange Order in June and July can also be scenes of random aggression.

In general, however, compared to most large cities of Europe, Edinburgh and Glasgow are equally safe, and violent crime against visitors is extremely rare. The same precautions prevail in these larger cities as they do elsewhere in the world. Tourists are typically prey to incidents of pickpocketing; mugging; "snatch and grab" theft of mobile phones, watches, and jewelry; and theft of unattended bags, especially late at night, in poorly lit areas of the city. Also avoid visiting ATMs if it is late and not many people are around.

Visitors should take steps to ensure the safety of their passports. In Scotland, you are not expected to produce photo identity to police authorities, and passports may be more secure in locked hotel rooms or safes.

Dealing with Discrimination -- Both Edinburgh and Glasgow are progressive cities and, in Scotland, discrimination is punishable by law. Racial flare-ups have occurred in housing projects on the cities' outskirts where asylum seekers have been sent. Travelers should not experience any discrimination, although gay and lesbian tourists do occasionally report cool receptions at smaller hotels and B&Bs.