World Nomads vs Allianz: What's a Better Option?
Written by Antonio Cala.
Table of Contents
When planning your next adventure, securing the right travel insurance is crucial for peace of mind. World Nomads and Allianz are two prominent providers offering comprehensive coverage tailored to various travel needs.
In this article we will present a comparison of their travel insurance policies, examining key aspects such as coverage options, cost-effectiveness, customer service, and additional benefits.
Whether you’re an occasional traveler or a globetrotter, understanding the nuances between World Nomads and Allianz can help you make an informed decision, ensuring you’re protected no matter where your journey takes you.
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.
World Nomads vs Allianz
World Nomads
Catering primarily to budget travelers and backpackers, World Nomads offers traditional travel insurance policies that are both affordable and comprehensive. Their plans provide robust medical coverage, adequate trip protection, and some equipment coverage, all under a single policy.
Additionally, their top-tier plan includes coverage for a wide range of adventure activities, ensuring that thrill-seekers are well-protected during their travels.
Allianz
Allianz travel insurance is a ok choice for travelers, providing decent medical coverage, though the maximum limit is $50K. However, their online reviews are not particularly encouraging.
On the positive side, Allianz policies are generally not too expensive, and the higher-tier options offer substantial trip cancellation coverage, up to $100K, making them suitable for high-end adventure vacations.
World Nomads in Detail
Nationalities: Most nationalities can purchase insurance from World Nomads, including residents of the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, India, Australia, or New Zealand. However, as of the current writing, most European residents are unable to buy a World Nomads policy.
Pre-existing conditions: Not covered.
Seniors Over 65: Travelers aged 70 and over are not covered.
Trip Duration: All plans cover trips up to 365 days.
Groups: Insurance policies for solo travelers, couples and families are available.
Reasons To Buy
The price is competitive.
Reasons To Avoid
Prices and coverage vary greatly by the country of residence.
Some European nationalities are not covered.
Pre-existing medical conditions not covered
Max age is 70 years old.
Emergency Accident & Sickness Medical Expense: Up to $100,000. Coverage is for medical expenses for emergency treatment of an accidental injury that occurs during the trip. Emergency treatment must be medically necessary and performed during the trip. Refer to the certificate / policy for complete details.
Emergency dental treatment: Up to $750. Coverage is for emergency dental treatment for accidental injury to sound, natural teeth. The injury and treatment must occur during the trip.
Emergency Evacuation: Up to $500,000. Coverage is for an accidental injury or sickness occurring during the trip that results in your necessary emergency evacuation. An emergency evacuation must be ordered by a physician who certifies that the severity of your accidental injury or sickness warrants your emergency evacuation. Refer to the certificate / policy for complete details.
Trip Cancellation: Up to $10,000. Reimburses for prepaid, non-refundable cancellation charges if you must cancel your trip (after the effective date) due to covered sickness, accidental injury, or death of you, a family member or traveling companion; inclement weather, unforeseen natural disaster at home or at your destination, strike or other covered reasons. Refer to the certificate / policy for complete details.
Trip Interruption: Up to $10,000. Reimburses for prepaid, non-refundable, unused expenses if you must interrupt your trip (after departure) due to a covered sickness, accidental injury, or death of you, a family member or traveling companion; inclement weather, unforeseen natural disaster at home or at your destination, strike, or other covered reasons. Refer to the certificate / policy for complete details.
Trip Delay: Up to $3,000. Coverage is for unused portion of pre-paid accommodation or additional expenses, on a one-time basis, if you are delayed en route to or from the trip for 6 or more hours due to a defined hazard as explained in the certificate / policy.
Baggage & Personal Effects: Up to $3,000. Reimbursement is for loss, theft or damage during the trip to baggage and personal effects (including sporting equipment) owned by you, provided you have taken all reasonable measures to protect, save and recover the property. Per article limit of $500.
Activities covered based on 4 groups. You pay more for higher group. The Explorer plan includes more activities than the Standard Plan. Extreme activities not covered (cave diving, free soloing, etc)
For those seeking budget-friendly travel insurance with solid medical coverage, the World Nomads Explorer Plan is an excellent choice.
While it does offer some trip protection, it doesn’t provide as extensive coverage as Allianz does.
On the good side, their policies are more affordable and World Nomads receives much better reviews online.
Allianz in Detail
Nationalities: Only US citizens and residents are eligible through www.allianztravelinsurance.com. Some countries have their own Allianz insurance website, like the UK, Spain or Germany.
Pre-existing conditions: Yes.
Seniors Over 65: Not specified.
Trip Duration: Short term and annual plans available.
Reasons To Buy
High trip cancellation/interruption coverage.
Pre-Existing Medical Conditions accepted.
Reasons To Avoid
Very bad online reviews
Not all nationalities are covered.
Policy wording not clear on adventure activities coverage
Emergency Medical Coverage: Coverage Amount up to $75,000 This benefit covers losses arising from covered medical and dental emergencies that occur during your trip. For dental expenses, there is a maximum coverage limit of $750 for all eligible dental treatments.
Emergency Medical Transportation Coverage: Coverage Amount up to $1,000,000 This benefit covers medically necessary transportation to the nearest hospital or appropriate facility following a covered.
Trip Cancellation Coverage: Coverage Amount Up to $200,000 This benefit reimburses your prepaid, non-refundable expenses if you need to cancel your trip due to a covered reason. Unique to the OneTrip Premier Plan, a NOAA hurricane warning is included as a covered reason for trip cancellation. For detailed information, please refer to your plan documents.
Trip Interruption Coverage: Coverage Amount Up to $300,000 This benefit reimburses you for the unused, non-refundable portion of your trip and covers the increased transportation costs required to return home due to a covered reason.
Baggage Loss/Damage Coverage: Coverage Amount up to $2,000 This benefit covers the loss, damage, or theft of your baggage and personal effects.
The Allianz One Premier plan could be a choice for travelers going on high end organized trips or expeditions.
It offers a very high trip cancellation coverage (up to $200,000), a competitive medical coverage up to $75,000 and emergency evacuation up to $1,000,000.
However, Allianz gets the worst reviews online so if you are interested on their services, please do your research before going ahead.
Comparing Coverage Details
Company |
Plan |
Medical Expenses |
Emmergency Evacuation |
Trip Cancellation |
Trip Delays |
Equipment Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Explorer |
$100,000 |
$500,000 |
$10,000 |
$3,000 |
$3,000 |
 |
One Premier |
$75,000 |
$1,000,000 |
$200,000 |
$300,000 |
$2,000 |
Pricing
World Nomads is definitely cheaper than Allianz as they specifically target the budget traveler.
However, you should notice that the trip protection coverage is what makes a travel insurance expensive and Allianz offers a much higher trip protection than what World Nomads offer, so it’s not entirely fair comparing the two providers just with price.
What's Covered & Who's Eligible
Company |
Nationalities Covered |
Preexisting Conditions |
Coverage for Seniors Over 65 |
Destinations Covered |
Adventure Activities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Many not covered |
No |
Yes, up to 70 |
Some not covered |
Some not covered |
|
|
A few |
Yes |
Not clear |
Some not covered |
Some not covered |
User Reviews and Testimonials
Most of the reviews Allianz receives online are very negative, where World Nomads, although they do get some bad reviews as well, the majority are positive.
World Nomads Online Reviews
Allianz Online Reviews
Conclusion
The short answer and my personal opinion is to go with World Nomads.
The Explorer Plan from World Nomads is provides a pretty decent medical coverage (up to $100k) and the policies are some of the most affordable in the market. The trip cancellation coverage is only $10,000 and preexisting conditions are not covered, so keep those in mind if you decide to go ahead with them.
If you are planning to go on a high-end adventure trip that costs over $10,000, Allianz could provide you the coverage you need for the trip, but their online reputation is very bad. There are better options on the market, like Faye or Travelex, that will give you that coverage for your high-end trip.
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
If you want to read what other people have to say about the differences between World Nomads and Allianz, here are some resources I found from around the web.
World Nomads Reviewed: Who’s It For?—Plus Ideal Alternatives – by alittleadrift.com
Thoughts on Allianz Global Travel insurance? – by Reddit.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