Health & Insurance

Insurance

Check your existing insurance 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 you 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. Insurers usually won't cover vague fears, though, and travelers have not been given refunds for Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS)-related cancellations.

Note: Many tour operators, including those catering to China, include insurance in the cost of the trip or can arrange insurance policies through a partnering provider, a convenient and often cost-effective way for the traveler to obtain insurance. Make sure the tour company is a reputable one, however: Some experts suggest you avoid buying insurance from the tour company you're traveling with, saying it's better to buy from a "third party" insurer than to put all your money in one place.

Medical Insurance -- Check with your individual health plan to see if it provides coverage for travel to China. In any event, consider purchasing travel insurance that includes an air ambulance or scheduled airline repatriation, but be clear as to the terms and conditions of repatriation. With several advanced clinics staffed by foreign doctors in Shanghai, travelers can expect a fairly high quality of health care, though avoid, if possible, regular Chinese hospitals. In the latter, you'll have to pay your (more than likely substantial) bill upfront and in cash, and then only submit your claim after you've returned home. Be sure you have adequate proof of payment.

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 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.

Staying Healthy

Hygiene standards in Shanghai are some of the highest in China, but despite this, the standards of many places are still not up to those in developed nations. Do take precautions here you may otherwise overlook at home, more so if you plan to travel outside of China's big cities. Still, travelers shouldn't be unduly worried. The greatest risk to your enjoyment of traveling in China is probably that of stomach upsets caused by low hygienic standards. To minimize this risk, wash your hands frequently, and keep them away from your mouth and eyes; eat freshly cooked hot food, especially if away from the top international hotels; eat only fruit that you peel yourself; and only drink boiled or bottled water bought in supermarkets, larger shops, and convenience stores. Never drink tap water. Use bottled water to brush your teeth.

Another common ailment is respiratory illnesses of various kinds, from the common cold (which can be picked up during the long flight over, the overcrowded subways, or the change in temperature and humidity) to upper respiratory tract infection, often mistaken for a cold, all of which are exacerbated by Shanghai's heavy pollution. Standard over-the-counter cold remedies are easily available at drugstores and supermarkets, though you may want to bring your own if you use any regular medications. More serious infections can be treated at any of the clinics that cater to foreigners. At press time, SARS was not a concern in Shanghai, but check the latest news before you leave.

The SARS crises hit China in 2003, and avian influenza (or "bird flu") struck a chicken farm on the outskirts of Shanghai in 2004, but both have been brought under control and you should have little to be concerned about. Bird flu, however, is still being monitored closely by health authorities throughout the world, so check the latest news before you leave.

General Availablity of Health Care -- Shanghai has several clinics with the latest equipment and English-speaking, foreign-trained doctors who deliver international-caliber health care. Expect to pay rates comparable to those in the West. In general, avoid Chinese hospitals.

Other Ailments -- Besides the common illnesses mentioned earlier, other ailments to guard against, especially in the summer months, include excessive sun exposure, heatstroke, and dehydration. Shanghai's pollution makes most days appear overcast, but the sun still has the power to burn. Shanghai's hot humidity during the summer can also cause those just coming from drier climes to fatigue quickly. Drink plenty of bottled water.

Led by AIDS, sexually transmitted diseases are also on the rise in China. The government denied the existence of AIDS for as long as it could, and while there are now a few public campaigns addressing the issue, there is still a lot of ignorance and silence surrounding AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Condoms, including Western brands, are widely available in Shanghai.

What To Do If You Get Sick Away From Home -- If you begin to feel unwell, contact your hotel reception first. The top hotels have in-house doctors or doctors on call who may be able to treat minor ailments and direct you to the best places should further treatment be required. Foreign consulates can provide a list of area doctors who speak English. In many cases, you'll be expected to pay the full medical costs upfront. Keep all proof of payment so you can submit your health insurance claim when you return home.

Before You Go

No vaccinations are required for entry to China and Shanghai, but be sure your inoculations are up-to-date. The standard inoculations are for polio, diphtheria, and tetanus, while additional inoculations may be against meningococcal meningitis, cholera, typhoid fever, hepatitis A and B, and Japanese B encephalitis. Some of these vaccinations, such as the one for Hepatitis B, may require several shots over a span of several months, so allow enough time before your trip. Mosquito-borne malaria, while a cause for concern in more rural parts of China, is not a factor in Shanghai. Consult your doctor or a specialist travel clinic about your individual needs. For the latest information on infectious diseases and health-related travel risks (including the latest update on the ever-changing situation with malaria), 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 China, 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 overseas clinics at the International Society of Travel Medicine (www.istm.org).

Standard over-the-counter remedies are easily available at drugstores and supermarkets, though you may want to bring your own if you use any regular medications. It's best to stock up on all your prescriptions before you leave, but prescriptions can also usually be filled (at least with a generic equivalent, if not the actual drug) at select Shanghai pharmacies if you're in a pinch. Carry the generic name of prescription medicines, in case a local pharmacist is unfamiliar with the brand name. Don't forget an extra pair of contact lenses or prescription glasses, though there are plenty of optometrists in Shanghai who can replace your glasses or lenses. Feminine hygiene products such as sanitary napkins are widely available, but tampons are usually sold only in international supermarkets and pharmacies like Watson's.

Staying Safe

China is one of Asia's safest destinations. Most likely the biggest potential threat you'll encounter will be the pickpockets who tend to congregate in crowded places like train, bus, and subway stations; airports; popular tourist sights; and crowded markets. As always, the standard precautions apply: Leave as many of your valuables as you can in hotel safes; any other valuables should be distributed around your person, and not kept inside your purse or backpack, which can be easily picked. Wear a money belt inside your clothes. Always leave one copy of your passport and traveler's check receipts at your hotel.

Visitors should also beware of scam artists who will use the pretext of practicing their English to try and befriend you, with the goal of separating you from your money. As far as many Chinese are concerned, there's no such thing as a poor foreigner. These scams can range from "art students" taking you to special shops and pressuring you to buy paintings that are neither authentic, unique, or worth what's claimed, to the friendly face who'll offer to buy you a meal or a drink at a local haunt, where you'll find yourself with 12 opened bottles of warm beer you didn't order; and if you refuse to pay, several thuggish bouncers stand between you and the door.

Solicitations are also commonplace, whether in a bar, karaoke joint, or even your hotel room, where many a China visitor has been telephoned in the wee hours, with a voice on the other end inquiring "Massagee?" (The caller always hangs up when a woman answers.) Caveat emptor: Not only is there a higher-than-expected incidence of sexually transmitted diseases in China, but there have been reports of men, foolish enough in the first place to accept such invitations, being forced to pay huge sums for services not actually rendered.

If you find yourself a victim of theft, file a police report at the local PSB. Don't expect any redress, necessarily, but at least you'll have the report for insurance claims back home.

In general, there's very little harassment of solo female travelers, in and of itself a rare sight among Chinese.

For all travelers, however, if you are planning a bout of bar or club hopping, do travel in groups and watch your drinks, as stories have surfaced around press time of the appearance of drugs, particular those with sedative properties like Rohypnol (officially known as Flunitrazepam), being slipped into drinks.

Another major hazard that tourists will have to contend with is traffic. Even if foreign visitors were allowed to drive (which you are not without a Chinese driver's license), you stand little chance against Chinese motorists who treat lane markings and traffic lights like so much fluffy roadside decoration. Seat-belt rules and speed limits are consistently ignored. There really is only one rule on Chinese roads: Might is right, which kicks pedestrians down to the bottom of the traffic food chain. Still, if you look every which way before you cross, generally go with the flow, and take your cue from locals, there's little cause for concern. Paying greater attention in the streets will also prevent you from falling down open manholes or being hit by debris from Shanghai's many construction projects.