Global Rescue vs Ripcord: A Comparison
Written by Antonio Cala.
Table of Contents
When embarking on an adventure or remote travel, having the right travel insurance is essential for peace of mind and safety. Global Rescue and Ripcord are two prominent providers in the adventure travel market, each offering specialized coverage for adventure travelers. However, they differ in key areas such as coverage options, online reviews, and pricing.
This article provides an in-depth comparison of Global Rescue and Ripcord travel insurance, outlining their strengths and weaknesses to help you decide which provider best suits your travel protection needs.
If you would like to know more about insurance options for adventure travel, make sure to check out our Complete Guide to Adventure Travel Insurance. Let’s get started.
Global Rescue & Ripcord Overview
Global Rescue
Global Rescue offers medical protection specifically tailored for adventure travelers heading into remote areas, whether alone or in groups. Coverage is available for all nationalities, with options for individuals over 75 years old.
Their services focus exclusively on medical and evacuation coverage, without including trip protection or baggage coverage.
The primary appeal of Global Rescue is its extensive global rescue network, enabling them to provide unparalleled emergency evacuation services to adventure travelers.
Ripcord
Ripcord distinguishes itself as a comprehensive travel program, offering evacuation, rescue, and premium coverages with minimal restrictions compared to other travel insurance plans.
Designed specifically for adventure travelers on independent or organized trips to remote locations, Ripcord plans cover individuals residing in the US and provide options for those up to 90 years old.
With a vast global rescue network, high medical coverage, and excellent trip protection, Ripcord delivers ultimate travel protection for adventure travelers.
Global Rescue in Detail
Nationalities: all nationalities are covered.
Pre-existing conditions: Yes.
Seniors Over 65: People aged 65-75 are included in the Individual Plan. Extended Plan memberships are available to those age 75-84 and include all services but are contingent upon completion of a medical form and a physician’s medical verification.
Trip Duration: Short term policies (7, 14 or 30-days) and long term policies (1 to 5 years) available.
Groups: Individual, family and student plans available.
Situations covered: It covers civil unrest, natural disasters, government evacuation orders and other security emergencies (when purchasing the Security package).
Reasons To Buy
Remote locations coverage.
Coverage available for 65-84.
Pre-existing conditions accepted.
All nationalities accepted.
Reasons To Avoid
The price is a bit higher than other insurance policies. However, no other company provides the same coverage as Global Rescue.
It doesn’t cover trip cancellations or delays.
It doesn’t cover equipment.
Worldwide field rescue (up to $500,000) in remote or dangerous environments. Global Rescue’s deployable teams are standing by to rescue their members from the point of illness or injury for any serious medical emergency.
Medical Evacuation. Global Rescue’s fully deployable medical teams have unparalleled capabilities to transport our members back to their home hospital of choice from anywhere in the world. This includes global COVID-19 transport.
Medical & Security Advisory Services. Global Rescue’s operations centers are staffed by experienced nurses, paramedics and military special operations veterans. Global Rescue also has partnerships with the Johns Hopkins Emergency Medicine Division of Special Operations, Elite Medical Group and Partners HealthCare, the Harvard Medical School affiliate.
Security Membership. Global Rescue’s teams of military special operations veterans are available to provide advisory, consultation and evacuation services for events like natural disasters, terror attacks and civil unrest when you are in danger.
Destination Reports & Event Alerts. Destination reports for 215 countries and principalities worldwide include entry requirements, COVID-19 travel status and restrictions, detailed health and security assessments and required immunizations. Keep up to date on health and security events worldwide.
My Global Rescue Mobile App. Access Global Rescue services in one location. Browse destination reports and alerts, activate emergency assistance, real-time virtual health visits and keep track of the people you care about with GPS tracking and messaging.
Security Package. Physical extraction when you are in danger of bodily harm. It includes civil unrest, natural disasters, government evacuation orders and other security emergencies.
High Altitude Evacuation.. This is for individuals traveling above 15,000 ft (4,600 m) during any part of their trip (excluding airplane travel). It also includes emergency physical transport due to injury or illness.
Global Rescue offers the most comprehensive travel protection available worldwide, featuring minimal restrictions and extensive coverage compared to other medical insurance options.
It’s an evacuation & medical-only protection plan, specifically designed for adventure travelers heading to remote areas. For adventure trips, especially in remote locations, Global Rescue is our top recommended choice.
Ripcord in Detail
Nationalities: Only residents of the United States.
Pre-existing conditions: Yes.
Seniors Over 65: Travelers aged 65-90 are covered.
Trip Duration: Short term and long term plans available.
Groups: Individual and family plans available.
Reasons To Buy
Coverage up to 90 years old.
Pre-Existing Medical Condition Exclusion Waiver Available.
Reasons To Avoid
Only available to residents of the US.
- 32 covered reasons for trip cancellation & interruption, including business reasons, hunting & fishing restrictions, and pets
- Pandemic coverage that includes cancellation, interruption, and quarantine
- Medical evacuation and rescue from the point of emergency to your home hospital of choice
- $100,000 of primary medical expense coverage
- Pre-existing medical condition waiver if purchase conditions are met
- Political, security and natural disaster evacuation for unexpected natural disasters, terrorism, civil war, and other dangerous & chaotic events
- Search and rescue
- Travel inconvenience benefits
Ripcord provides a comprehensive travel insurance policy tailored for the adventurous traveler. It offers crucial on-trip services, including medical evacuation from the point of injury or illness to your home hospital of choice, search and rescue, and extraction in cases of natural disasters, political unrest, or security threats.
With extensive coverage for trip interruption and cancellation due to sickness, injury, pandemics, business reasons, and hunting and fishing restrictions, Ripcord ensures you are fully protected.
Comparing Coverage Details
Company |
Plan |
Medical Expenses |
Emmergency Evacuation |
Trip Cancellation |
Trip Delays |
Equipment Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Travel |
$100,000 |
$500,000 |
None |
None |
None |
 |
Travel Protection |
$100,000 |
1,000,000 |
100% |
150% |
$5,000 |
Pricing
If you compare both companies offering Medical and evacuation services only, their prices are very similar.
For a 2-week plan, Global Rescue travel membership costs around $184, while the Ripcord plan costs around $162.
On this particular case, Ripcord is a bit more affordable, but this changes depending on the destination and extra add-ons you might choose.
What's Covered & Who's Eligible
Company |
Nationalities Covered |
Preexisting Conditions |
Coverage for Seniors Over 65 |
Destinations Covered |
Adventure Activities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
All |
Yes |
Yes, up to 84 |
All |
All |
|
|
US only |
Yes |
Yes, up to 90 |
Most Countries |
All |
User Reviews and Testimonials
Insurance companies often receive negative online reviews due to issues like complex policy language, claim denials, slow processing times, and perceived unfair practices.
Global Rescue and Ripcord also receive some bad reviews online, but both companies receive positive reviews as well.
Global Rescue Online Reviews
Ripcord Online Reviews
A word of caution here. It’s very difficult to find reviews for Ripcord on public sites, like TrustPilot or Google Reviews, so proceed with caution.
Conclusion
The only debate between these two companies only exists is you live in the US, as Ripcord is only available to US citizens & residents.
If you plan to go adventuring in remote areas or doing any adventure activity, and only want the emergency medical & evacuation coverage, then the absolute best choice is Global Rescue. Apart from their world-class evacuation services, their membership includes substantial medical coverage as well.
If you also want trip protection and some equipment coverage, then Ripcord is also a great option. Please note we couldn’t find many reviews online (either positive or negative), so proceed with caution if you decide to go with Ripcord.
Other Travel Insurance Reviews
If you would like to read more about other insurance companies for adventure travelers, you can check out our other reviews below:
- Allianz
- Dive Assure
- Divers Network Alert
- Global Rescue
- Faye
- Medjet
- Ripcord
- SafetyWing
- Travel Guard
- Travelex
- World Nomads
If you would like to read more about insurance options for other type of adventure trips, you can check out our other reviews below:
- Skiing & Snowboarding
- Hiking Trips
- Mountaineering & High Altitude Trekking
- Mountain Biking, Bike-touring & Bike-packing
- Rock Climbing, Ice Climbing & Bouldering
- Kayaking, White Water Rafting & Paddle Boarding
- Fishing & Spearfishing
- Diving Liveaboards & Freediving
- Sailing, Kite Surfing & Surfing
- Adventure Cruises
- Adventure Motorcycling
Other Reviews Online
While researching, you might want to know what other publications say about Global Rescue and Ripcord.
Although direct comparisons between the two are rare, as there are not many reviews on Ripcord, here are some of the articles I found interesting.
Global Rescue vs Ripcord – by 24hourcampfire.com
Global Rescue Travel Insurance Review – by nerdwallet.com
About the Author
Antonio was born and raised in Southern Spain, and quit his job in 2013 to travel the world full-time with his wife Amanda for 10 years straight. Their passion for adventure took them to visit 150+ countries.
They cycled 25,000km + from California to Patagonia, sailed over 10,000NM around the Caribbean & Sea of Cortez, rode their motorbikes 30,000 kms+ across West Africa (Spain to South Africa) and visited Antarctica, among many other adventure expeditions. Today, they’re still traveling, currently around the USA with an RV.
Traveling to so many places, remote destinations and by different means taught them a lot about travel insurance, which policies to hold depending on the area and the type of adventure they were doing. Antonio now publishes regular content to help other travelers choose the best travel insurance for adventure trips.
Together, they also run the travel community Summit, the RV site Hitched Up, the boutique accommodation blog Unique Places and the popular newsletter Adventure Fix, where they share their knowledge about the places they’ve visited and the ones still remaining on their list.
Antonio Cala
Co-Founder of Adventure Fix