Health & Insurance

Travel Insurance

Greece presents no special problems when it comes to insurable "incidents," but it should be noted that most Greeks do not carry very much insurance so you will not be able to collect much if you are in an accident. Check your existing homeowner's, medical, and automobile insurance policies as well as your credit card coverage before you buy travel insurance. You may already be covered for lost luggage, canceled tickets, or medical expenses. If you are prepaying for your trip or taking a flight that has cancellation penalties, consider cancellation insurance.

The cost of travel insurance varies widely, depending on the destination, 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.

U.K. citizens and their families who make more than one trip abroad per year may find an annual travel insurance policy works out cheaper. Check www.moneysupermarket.com, which compares prices across a wide range of providers for single- and multi-trip policies.

Most big travel agents offer their own insurance and will probably try to sell you their package when you book a holiday. Think before you sign. Britain's Consumers' Association recommends that you insist on seeing the policy and reading the fine print before buying travel insurance. The Association of British Insurers (tel. 020/7600-3333; www.abi.org.uk) gives advice by phone and publishes Holiday Insurance, a free guide to policy provisions and prices. You might also shop around for better deals: Try Columbus Direct (tel. 0870/033-9988; www.columbusdirect.net).

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. Trip cancellation traditionally covers such events as sickness, natural disasters, and State Department advisories. The latest news in trip-cancellation insurance is the availability of expanded hurricane coverage and the "any-reason" cancellation coverage -- which costs more but covers cancellations made for any reason. You won't get back 100% of your prepaid trip cost, but you'll be refunded a substantial portion. TravelSafe (tel. 888/885-7233; www.travelsafe.com) offers both types of coverage. Expedia also offers any-reason cancellation coverage for its air-hotel packages.

For details, 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 -- 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).

Canadians should check with their provincial health plan offices or call Health Canada (tel. 866/225-0709; www.hc-sc.gc.ca) to find out the extent of their coverage and what documentation and receipts they must take home in case they are treated overseas.

Lost-Luggage Insurance -- 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

General Availability of Healthcare -- There are no immunization requirements for getting into Greece, though it's always a good idea to have polio, tetanus, and typhoid covered when traveling anywhere. In Greece, modern hospitals, clinics, and pharmacies are to be found everywhere, and personnel, equipment, and supplies ensure excellent treatment. Dental care is also widely available. Most doctors in Greece can speak English (having trained in England or the U.K.) or some other European language.

Prescriptions -- Pack prescription medications in your carry-on luggage, and carry prescription medications in their original containers, with pharmacy labels -- otherwise they might not make it through airport security. (Even pills with codeine -- such as those sold over-the-counter in Canada -- might be questioned.) Also bring along copies of your prescriptions in case you lose your pills or run out. Don't forget an extra pair of contact lenses or prescription glasses. Carry the generic names of prescription medicines, in case a local pharmacist is unfamiliar with the brand name.

Common Ailments -- Diarrhea is no more a problem in Greece than it might be anytime you change diet and water supplies, but visitors occasionally experience it. Common over-the-counter preventatives and cures are available in Greek pharmacies, but if you are concerned, bring your own. (Cola soft drinks are said to help those with digestive difficulties from too much olive oil in their food.) If you expect to be taking sea trips and are inclined to get seasick, bring a preventative. Allergy sufferers should carry antihistamines, especially in the spring.

Sun -- Between mid-June and September, too much exposure to the sun during midday could well lead to sunstroke or heatstroke. Sunscreen and a hat are strongly advised.

Dietary Red Flags -- Nothing in the Greek diet requires any special warning. Greece's natural water is excellent, although these days you will usually be served -- and charged for -- bottled water. Milk is pasteurized, though refrigeration is sometimes not the best, especially in out-of-the-way places. Greece is not equipped to serve kosher meals.

Bugs, Bites & Other Wildlife Concerns -- There is no particular risk of poisonous bites, although mosquitoes can occasionally be a nuisance: You might well travel with some "bug-off" substance. Dogs, by the way, should not present a danger of rabies, but you are strongly advised not to reach out and touch the dogs that roam around Greece.

What to do if you get sick away from Home -- If you suffer from a chronic illness, consult your doctor about your travel plans before your departure. For conditions like epilepsy, diabetes, or heart problems, wear a MedicAlert identification tag (www.medicalert.org), which will immediately alert doctors to your condition and give them access to your records through MedicAlert's 24-hour hot line. Before setting off, contact MedicAlert (from within North America tel. 888/633-4298 or from abroad at 209/668-3333). If you have special concerns, before heading abroad you might check out the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (tel. 800/311-3435; www.cdc.gov/travel. You can find advice on health and medical situations in foreign lands as well as listings of reliable medical clinics overseas at the International Society of Travel Medicine (www.istm.org).

You can also contact the International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers (IAMAT; tel. 716/754-4883 or, in Canada, 416/652-0137; www.iamat.org) for tips on travel and health concerns in the countries you're visiting, and for lists of local, English-speaking doctors. Travel Health Online (www.tripprep.com), sponsored by a consortium of travel medicine practitioners, may also offer helpful advice on traveling abroad.

Any foreign embassy or consulate can provide a list of area doctors who speak English. If you get sick, consider asking your hotel front desk to recommend a local doctor -- even his or her own. You can also try the emergency room at a local hospital. In addition, many hospitals have walk-in clinics for emergency cases that are not life-threatening; you may not get immediate attention, but you won't pay the high price of an emergency room visit. In an emergency, call a first-aid center (tel. 166), the nearest hospital (tel. 106), or the tourist police (tel. 171).

Emergency treatment is usually given free of charge in state hospitals, but be warned that only basic needs are met. The care in outpatient clinics, which are usually open mornings (8am-noon), is often somewhat better; you can find them next to most major hospitals, on some islands, and occasionally in rural areas, usually indicated by prominent signs.

Greeks have national medical insurance. Citizens of other E.U. nations should inquire before leaving, but your policies will probably cover treatment in Greece. Non-E.U. travelers should check your health plan to see if it provides appropriate coverage; you may want to buy travel medical insurance instead. Bring your insurance ID card with you when you travel. Although you will receive emergency care with no questions asked, make sure you have coverage at home.

Safety

Staying Safe -- Greece is undeniably exposed to earthquakes, but there are few known instances of tourists being injured or killed in one of these. Of far more potential danger are automobile accidents: Greece has one of the worst vehicle accident rates in Europe. You should exercise great caution when driving over unfamiliar, often winding, and often poorly maintained roads. This holds true especially when you're driving at night. As for those who insist on renting motorbikes or similar vehicles, at the very least wear a helmet.

Crime directed at tourists was traditionally unheard of in Greece but in more recent years there have been occasional reports of cars broken into, pickpockets, purse-snatchers, and the like. (Ask yourself whether it is necessary to travel with irreplaceable valuables like jewelry.) Normal precautions are called for. For instance, if you have hand luggage containing truly expensive items, whether jewelry or cameras, never give it to an individual unless you are absolutely sure it will be safe with him or her. Tourists who report crimes to the local police will probably feel that they are not being taken all that seriously, but it is more likely that the Greek police have realized there is little they can do without solid identification of the culprits. As for the other side of the coin -- police being exceptionally hard on foreigners, say, when enforcing traffic violations -- although there is the rare reported incident, it does not seem to be widespread.

Drugs, however, are a different story: The Greek authorities and laws are extremely tough when it comes to foreigners with drugs -- starting with marijuana. Do not attempt to bring any illicit drug into or out of Greece.

Dealing with Hostility -- There is no denying that many Greeks are opposed to American foreign policies in recent years, but there are no reported incidents of attacks on individual travelers.

That said, if you get to speaking with Greeks who dislike American policies, they will not be bashful about expressing their opinions or challenging yours.

Security in Greece -- Inevitably and understandably, travelers might be concerned about the threat of terrorists in Greece. As for Al Qaeda or Islamic militants, there has never been any indication that they have a presence, let alone an agenda, in Greece. For one thing, Greece is pro-Palestinian, and militant Muslims have no desire to offend. This is not to say that there might not be angry and anti-American Middle Easterners in Greece. In fact, many Greeks oppose U.S. foreign policies; most particularly, the war in Iraq. But in all locales where tourists are apt to be, you will find at least formal politeness.