Health & Insurance

Travel 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, health, and the type of trip you're taking.

Trip Cancellation Insurance (TCI) -- Trip-cancellation insurance helps you get your money back if you have to back out of a trip, if you have to go home early, or if your travel supplier goes bankrupt. Allowed reasons for cancellation can range from sickness to natural disasters (the islands occasionally get whacked by a hurricane). Trip-cancellation insurance is a good buy if you're getting tickets well in advance -- who knows what the state of the world, or of your airline, will be in 9 months? Insurance policy details vary, so read the fine print -- and especially make sure that your airline or cruise line is on the list of carriers covered in case of bankruptcy.

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 -- Hospitals and clinics are widespread in the South Pacific, but the quality varies a great deal from place to place. You can get a broken bone set and a coral scrape tended, but treating more serious ailments likely will be beyond the capability of the local hospital everywhere except in Tahiti. For this reason, I always buy a travel insurance policy that includes medical evacuation in case of life-threatening injury or illness. Otherwise, the cost of a flying ambulance would wipe out my life's savings.

Check with your insurer, particularly if you're insured by an HMO, about the extent of its coverage while you're overseas. With the exception of certain HMOs and Medicare/Medicaid, your medical insurance should cover medical treatment -- even hospital care -- overseas (don't forget to bring your insurance ID card!). However, most out-of-country hospitals make you pay your bills up front, and they send you a refund after you've returned home and filed the necessary paperwork. If you do get medical treatment in the islands, save all of your receipts!

If you require additional medical insurance, try MEDEX International (tel. 800/527-0218 or 410/453-6300; www.medexassist.com) or Travel Assistance International (tel. 800/821-2828 or 202/331-1596 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 U.S. domestic flights, checked baggage is covered up to US$2,500 per ticketed passenger. On international flights (including US portions of international trips), baggage is limited to approximately US$9.07 per pound, up to approximately US$635 per checked bag. If you plan to check items more valuable than the standard liability, see if your valuables are covered by your homeowner's policy, get baggage insurance as part of your comprehensive travel-insurance package, or buy Travel Guard's BagTrak product. Don't buy insurance at the airport, as it's usually overpriced. Be sure to take any valuables or irreplaceable items with you in your carry-on luggage, as many valuables (including books, money, and electronics) aren't covered by airline policies.

If your luggage is lost, immediately file a lost-luggage claim at the airport, detailing the luggage contents. For most airlines, you must 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.

Car-Rental Insurance -- If you hold a private auto insurance policy, you probably are covered in the United States, but not necessarily abroad, for loss or damage to the car and liability in case a passenger is injured. The credit card you used to rent the car also may provide some coverage. Check your own auto insurance policy, the rental company policy, and your credit card coverage for the extent of coverage.

Even if you have such coverage, rental car companies in the islands are likely to require that you pay for any damages on the scene and sort it out with your insurer or credit card company when you get home. Given the hassles this can cause, I always buy the collision damage waiver and liability policies offered by the local companies. It adds to the cost, but it's a relatively small price to pay for peace of mind.

Staying Healthy

The South Pacific islands covered in this book pose no major health problems for most travelers, although it's a good idea to have your tetanus, hepatitis-A, and hepatitis-B vaccinations up to date.

There are plenty of mosquitoes, but they do not carry deadly endemic diseases such as malaria. From time to time the islands will experience an outbreak of dengue fever, a viral disease borne by the Adës aegypti mosquito, which lives indoors and bites only during daylight hours. Dengue seldom is fatal in adults, but you should take extra precautions to keep children from being bitten by mosquitoes if the disease is present. (Other precautions should be taken if you are traveling with children;.)

Among minor illnesses, the islands have the common cold and occasional outbreaks of influenza and conjunctivitis (pink eye).

Cuts, scratches, and all open sores should be treated promptly in the tropics. I always carry a tube of antibacterial ointment and a small package of adhesive bandages such as Band-Aids.

Throughout the islands, sexual relations before marriage -- heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual -- are more or less accepted (abstinence campaigns fall on deaf ears). Both male and female prostitution is common in the larger towns. HIV is present in the islands, so if you intend to engage in sex with strangers, you should exercise at least the same caution in choosing them, and in practicing safe sex, as you would at home.

Tap water is safe to drink in the city of Papeete on Tahiti, on parts of the island of Bora Bora, on Rarotonga in the Cook Islands, and in the main towns in Fiji. You can buy bottled spring water in most grocery stores.

If you have a chronic condition, check with your doctor before visiting the islands. For conditions like epilepsy, diabetes, or heart problems, wear a MedicAlert Identification Tag (tel. 800/825-3785; www.medicalert.org), which will alert doctors to your condition and give them access to your records through MedicAlert's 24-hour hot line.

Pack prescription medications in your carry-on luggage, and carry prescription medications in their original containers. Bring along copies of your prescriptions in case you lose your pills or run out. Carry the generic name of medicines, since local pharmacies primarily carry medications manufactured in France, Australia, and New Zealand, and the brand names might be different than in the United States.

And don't forget sunglasses and an extra pair of contact lenses or prescription glasses. You can easily replace your contacts and prescription lenses only in French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, and Fiji.

Smoking Lowdown -- Although antismoking campaigns and hefty taxes have reduced the practice to a large extent, cigarette smoking is still more common in the islands, and especially in French Polynesia, than in Western countries. Most office buildings and the airlines are smoke-free, but nonsmoking sections in restaurants are rare. Not all hotels have nonsmoking rooms, so don't assume you'll get a non-smoking room without asking for one.

Insects & Other Critters -- "You will find that we Cook Islanders are among the friendliest people in the South Pacific," a sign in a Cook Island resort advises its guests. "Amongst all the friendly people we also have the friendliest ants, roaches, geckos, crabs, and insects, who are all dying to make your acquaintance."

Indeed, the South Pacific islands have multitudes of mosquitoes, roaches, ants, houseflies, and other insects. Ants are omnipresent here so don't leave crumbs or dirty dishes lying around your room. Many beaches and swampy areas also have invisible sand flies -- the dreaded "no-see-ums" or "no-nos" -- which bite the ankles around daybreak and dusk.

Insect repellent is widely available in island shops. The most effective contain a high percentage of "deet" (N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide).

I light a mosquito coil in my non-air-conditioned rooms at dusk in order to keep the pests from flying in, and I start another one at bedtime. Grocery stores throughout the islands carry these inexpensive coils. I have found the Fish brand coils, made by the appropriately named Blood Protection Company, to work best.

Don't be frightened by those little geckos (lizards) crawling around the rafters of even the most expensive bungalows. They're harmless to us humans but lethal to insects.

Also, don't be surprised to see a multitude of dogs, chickens, pigs, and squawking myna birds, even in the finest restaurants.

Staying Safe

While international terrorism is a threat throughout the world, the South Pacific islands are among the planet's safest destinations. Tight security procedures are in effect at the major airports, but once you're on the outer islands, you are unlikely to see a metal detector, nor is anyone likely to inspect your carry-on.

The region has seen increasing property theft in recent years, however, including occasional break-ins at hotel rooms and resort bungalows. Although street crimes against tourists are still relatively rare, friends of mine who live here don't stroll off Papeete's busy boulevard Pomare after dark, and they keep a sharp eye peeled everywhere in Fiji. For that matter, you should stay alert wherever you are after dusk.

Don't leave valuable items in your hotel room, in your rental car, or unattended anywhere.

Women should not wander alone on deserted beaches any time, since some Polynesian men may consider such behavior to be an invitation for instant amorous activity.

When heading outdoors, keep in mind that injuries often occur when people fail to follow instructions. Believe the experts who tell you to stay on the established trails. Hike only in designated areas, follow the marine charts if piloting your own boat, carry rain gear, and wear a life jacket when canoeing or rafting. Mountain weather can be fickle at any time. Watch out for sudden storms that can leave you drenched and send bolts of lightning your way.