Worldwide travel insurance for Irish travellers: compare cover with or without the USA from €2.32 a day

Yes: outside Europe the Irish EHIC has no value and a foreign hospital bill is yours to pay, so worldwide travel insurance is essential. For Irish residents, real prices start at €2.32 a day outside North America and €3.08 a day with the USA included, with medical cover of €500,000 or more.

Worldwide travel insurance is a single-trip or annual policy valid in every destination, including the USA and Canada where treatment costs the most. Irish insurers sell it in two tiers, worldwide excluding the USA and Canada and worldwide including them, and some also carve out Mexico and the Caribbean. It is the natural cover for a round-the-world trip, a multi-stop itinerary or a route you have not fixed yet.

As a policy analyst I read two numbers before the price: the medical ceiling and the repatriation terms. Insurance Ireland recommends at least €1 million of medical cover, a figure the Department of Foreign Affairs repeats in its travel insurance advice, and HelloSafe's own risk data sets the same €1,000,000 floor for the USA. Only 13 of the 60 plans in our database match a fortnight in the USA for an Irish resident, and their medical ceilings run from €75,000 to unlimited, so the real choice is narrower than the adverts suggest.

If you want the wider picture first, start with our guide to travel insurance in Ireland; this page is HelloSafe's worldwide travel insurance Ireland comparison: policies valid in every country, priced in euro for a departure from Ireland and read against their actual policy wordings.

The best worldwide travel insurance for Irish travellers is Go Protect: the cheapest quote in our USA comparison at €43.12 for 14 days, with €500,000 of medical cover outside Europe under its policy wording, cancellation up to €12,000, direct hospital billing, repatriation at actual cost and no practical age limit.

WorldSecure Platinum at €65.34 is the pick for a long trip: cover for up to 12 months to age 65, cancellation up to €9,000, €2,000 of baggage cover and extreme sports included. Go Explore + at €113.30 pairs a €500,000 ceiling with no medical excess for travellers under 65 on a USA itinerary, and World Travel at €163.90 accepts travellers up to 84 and lifts its medical limit to €700,000 in the USA and Canada.

Recommended for youA. FruchardCo-Founder & Travel Insurance Expert

The view of Antoine Fruchard

Whatever country you land in, what you really buy is the right to walk into any hospital, hand over your policy and be flown home to Ireland if things go wrong, without advancing a cent. Every plan we shortlist for Irish residents does exactly that, with direct billing and repatriation paid at actual cost. Go Protect is my first pick because it adds real cancellation cover up to €12,000, lifts its medical ceiling to €500,000 as soon as you leave Europe and still came out cheapest at €43.12 for two weeks in the USA; its limits are a 90-day maximum per trip and a €30 excess per claim. If you are away longer, WorldSecure Platinum covers 12 months for €65.34; if you are over 65 and heading to North America, World Travel is the plan whose wording rises to €700,000 there. Antoine Fruchard, Co-Founder & Travel Insurance Expert at HelloSafe

MutuaideGo Protect

Included coverage

International emergency medical expenses€500,000

Emergency medical evacuation & repatriationActual costs

Direct billingIncluded

From€43.12

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MGENWorldSecure Platinum

Included coverage

International emergency medical expenses€500,000

Emergency medical evacuation & repatriationActual costs

Direct billingIncluded

From€65.34

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MGENGo Explore +

Included coverage

International emergency medical expenses€500,000

Emergency medical evacuation & repatriationActual costs

Direct billingIncluded

From€113.30

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Price for 1 traveller aged 34, 14 days in the USA, departing from Ireland. Prices in euro, calculated by HelloSafe, August 2026. The same plan costs less when your trip does not include the USA or Canada; your own price depends on your age, the length of the trip and the destination.

The cost of worldwide travel insurance depends on who is travelling: real quotes for Irish residents range from €31.68 for a week in the USA at age 40 to €269.50 for an annual worldwide policy. Here are the prices we captured for five typical profiles, budget, mid-market and premium.

Buy worldwide travel insurance including the USA and Canada only if your route touches them: on most plans, that tier costs Irish travellers 20% to 107% more. WorldSecure Platinum quotes €46.89 for 14 days in Thailand and €65.34 for the same fortnight in the USA; World Travel jumps from €79.20 to €163.90.

Irish insurers split worldwide cover into two zones because North American healthcare is the most expensive on earth. Two of our plans price by contract rather than by geography: Go Protect costs €43.12 for a fortnight whether you fly to Bangkok or Boston, and Safe Extreme stays at €193.60. If you add a North American stop later, upgrade before departure; the rule also catches Caribbean cruise calls, which some Irish insurers group with the USA tier.

For everywhere else, from a beach fortnight in Thailand to a loop through Asia and Oceania, the excluding tier is enough: prices start at €2.32 a day with WorldSecure Basic for under-40s, or €3.08 a day with Go Protect at any age. Wherever you land, HelloSafe's USA risk data shows why the ceiling matters more than the price tag.

One honest caveat: apart from Safe Nomad, which pays medical costs at actual cost but stops at age 39, no plan sold to Irish residents in our comparison reaches that €1,000,000 floor. The strongest combinations are World Travel's €700,000 in the USA and Canada, and the €500,000 of Go Protect outside Europe, Go Explore +, Safe Start, Safe Care and SafeTrip Tourism, all with repatriation at actual cost and direct hospital billing.

Worldwide travel insurance covers emergency medical costs and hospital stays abroad, repatriation to Ireland, 24/7 assistance, baggage, personal liability and, on the most complete plans, trip cancellation. It protects you before, during and after departure, in any country your chosen tier includes.

Medical cover is the heart of the policy: it pays for consultations, admissions and surgery abroad up to the stated ceiling, and every plan in our Irish shortlist bills the hospital directly so you never advance thousands of euro yourself. Outside Europe, treat €250,000 as the working minimum and aim for €500,000 or more when North America is on the route.

Repatriation organises and pays for your medical return to Ireland when local treatment is not enough. From long-haul destinations it is one of the most expensive services on the policy, which is why every shortlisted plan covers it at actual cost rather than up to a cap that might fall short.

Cancellation refunds your trip if a listed event stops you travelling: Go Protect pays up to €12,000, WorldSecure Platinum up to €9,000 and SafeTrip Tourism up to €6,000, while Go Explore, Go Explore +, Safe Start, Safe Care and Safe Nomad carry no cancellation cover at all. Baggage cover runs from €250 with Go Explore to €2,000 with WorldSecure Platinum, Safe Start, Safe Nomad and Safe Extreme.

Even worldwide travel insurance has limits: policy wordings void cover in sanctioned or war-torn countries and name Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Iran, Cuba or Syria outright, exclude pre-existing conditions on several plans, apply age caps between 39 and 84, and never apply in Ireland itself. Reading these clauses before departure is what prevents a refused claim.

Worldwide does not mean unconditional. Go Protect's wording excludes stays in Russia, Ukraine and North Korea and any incident in a country on its insurer's red list, and its personal liability cover does not apply in Switzerland, Russia, Iran or Cuba. Safe Care and SafeTrip Tourism exclude North Korea, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Syria and Crimea. WorldSecure Platinum voids cover wherever UN or EU sanctions apply, and none of them insures an incident in your own country of residence.

Age is priced and capped, sometimes by zone. WorldSecure Basic and Safe Nomad stop at 39, Safe Extreme at 49, Safe Care at 64, WorldSecure Platinum at 65, Safe Start at 69, Safe World at 79 and World Travel at 84. Go Explore and Go Explore + accept travellers under 80 for a world zone excluding the USA and Canada, but only under 65 once the USA or Canada is on the itinerary. Go Protect, Go Annual and SafeTrip Tourism have no practical age limit. At 65, a fortnight in the USA costs from €43.12 but the mid-market quote is €163.90.

The excess is where cheap plans differ: Go Protect applies €30 per claim, Go Explore €30 per condition and World Travel €50 per claim, while Go Explore + charges none and WorldSecure Platinum's wording sets no medical excess either. Pre-existing conditions are excluded outright by the wording behind Go Explore and Go Explore + (any condition diagnosed or treated with hospitalisation in the six months before departure) and by WorldSecure Platinum; Go Protect only excludes them from cancellation when they arose between booking the trip and buying the policy.

The plans at the top of our comparison handle these conditions well. Go Protect names its cancellation reasons explicitly, from illness and bereavement to pregnancy complications up to the 28th week, redundancy and a refused visa, pays medical reasons with no excess and lifts its ceiling to €500,000 outside Europe. World Travel raises its limit to €700,000 in the very zone where bills are highest, and Go Explore + drops the excess entirely.

• ✓
  Medical ceiling of €250,000 or more : the protection floor outside Europe; aim for €500,000 or more when the USA or Canada is on the route, as Go Protect and Go Explore + provide.
• ✓
  Repatriation at actual cost : a medical return from the other side of the world is among the most expensive claims of all; every shortlisted plan pays it in full.
• ✓
  Direct hospital billing : the insurer settles the hospital bill itself, so you never advance large sums; included across our Irish shortlist.
• ✓
  Age and zone match : check the cap for your zone, not just the headline age, as Go Explore + shows with 80 outside North America but 65 with the USA or Canada.
• ✓
  Cancellation up to your trip price : Go Protect (€12,000) and WorldSecure Platinum (€9,000) refund a long-haul booking; a €1,500 cap like World Travel's rarely does.

• ✕
  Sanctioned countries and war zones : cover is void where UN or EU sanctions apply, and Russia, Ukraine, North Korea, Iran, Cuba, Syria, Sudan or Crimea are named exclusions on several plans.
• ✕
  Pre-existing medical conditions : the wording behind Go Explore, Go Explore + and WorldSecure Platinum excludes them and their consequences.
• ✕
  Your country of residence : a worldwide policy protects you abroad, never for incidents at home in Ireland.
• ✕
  Trips longer than the plan allows : Go Protect stops at 90 days and Safe Care or SafeTrip Tourism at 60; a gap year needs WorldSecure Basic, WorldSecure Platinum or Go Explore + (up to a year).
• ✕
  Unlisted cancellation reasons : a change of mind is not covered; Go Protect refunds only the reasons named in its wording, plus its "any justified reason" clause with an excess.

How to claim on worldwide travel insurance

1. Call the 24/7 assistance number on your certificate before any hospital admission: prior contact is what triggers direct billing and, if needed, the repatriation decision.
2. Give the hospital your policy number and let the assistance team guarantee payment; keep every receipt for out-patient care you pay yourself.
3. For theft, loss or delay, get a written report from the police, airline or hotel as soon as it happens; for cancellation, gather the medical certificate or the document behind the reason.
4. Submit the claim online with the documents; the insurer deducts the plan's excess (€30 on Go Protect, none on Go Explore + or WorldSecure Platinum) and reimburses the balance in euro.

Worldwide travel insurance costs from €2.32 a day for Irish travellers under 40 (WorldSecure Basic, €32.45 for a fortnight outside North America) and from €3.08 a day at any age (Go Protect, €43.12 for 14 days with the USA included). The most complete plans for two weeks in the USA sit between €65.34 and €163.90.

Age, trip length and the zone tier drive the final price: a family of four pays from €90.18 for two weeks in the USA, a 30-day round-the-world trip at 25 starts at €53.24, and the median of the eleven plans we priced for a solo 34-year-old in the USA is €99.00. The per-profile table above gives the detail; to see these quotes against your own dates, compare travel insurance for your exact trip.

No: neither the EHIC nor Irish private health insurance replaces worldwide travel insurance. The European Health Insurance Card only gives access to public healthcare in the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, and the Department of Foreign Affairs is explicit that it covers no repatriation, no private care and nothing across most of the world.

The EHIC, issued free by the HSE, is still worth carrying for the European legs of a trip: it entitles you to medically necessary treatment in the public system on the same terms as a local resident, as Citizens Information explains. It becomes irrelevant the moment you land in the USA, Asia, Oceania or almost anywhere else, and it never pays to fly you home.

Irish health insurance helps more than people think, but within tight limits. Vhi's plans pay up to €65,000 or €100,000 for emergency in-patient treatment abroad approved in advance, and Laya's overseas benefit is limited to sudden emergencies, with medical transport up to €2 million, both after a call to their assistance line. Neither pays for cancellation, baggage or personal liability, out-patient bills come back through your plan's own excess, and a serious hospital stay in North America can exceed those ceilings several times over. Treat your health plan as a complement to worldwide travel insurance, never a substitute.

Annual worldwide travel insurance is worth it from the third trip of the year: Safe World costs €269.50 a year for a 40-year-old, with €500,000 of medical cover, cancellation up to €12,000 per trip and the same price whether or not you visit the USA. Against a €113.30 single-trip quote for a fortnight in the USA it pays for itself from the third trip; against Go Protect's €43.12 you need more than six.

Go Annual is the alternative at €310.20, with no upper age limit and cancellation up to €7,000; a family of four pays €1,078 for the year with Safe World. The Department of Foreign Affairs itself suggests a multi-trip policy if you travel more than once a year, and our annual travel insurance guide for Ireland compares the two plans in detail.

• What is worldwide travel insurance?

  It is a policy valid in every destination, sold to Irish residents in two tiers: worldwide excluding the USA and Canada, and worldwide including them (some insurers also carve out Mexico and the Caribbean). It covers emergency medical costs, repatriation, assistance, baggage and personal liability, and suits multi-stop or round-the-world trips.

• What does worldwide excluding the USA and Canada mean?

  It is the standard Irish zone system: those two countries carry the highest medical costs, so insurers price them separately. In our comparison the same plan costs 20% to 107% more once the USA is included, for example €46.89 against €65.34 for WorldSecure Platinum over 14 days, or €79.20 against €163.90 for World Travel.

• How much does worldwide travel insurance cost in Ireland?

  From €2.32 a day: €32.45 buys a fortnight outside North America with WorldSecure Basic (under-40s), while two weeks in the USA start at €43.12 with Go Protect at any age. A family of four pays from €90.18 for a fortnight in the USA, and an annual worldwide policy costs €269.50. Prices rise with age, duration and the including-USA tier.

• Does worldwide travel insurance cover the USA?

  Yes, if you pick travel insurance worldwide including USA and Canada, the higher tier. Check the medical ceiling before the price: our USA risk data and Insurance Ireland both recommend around €1,000,000, and the strongest plans open to Irish residents reach €500,000 (Go Protect outside Europe, Go Explore +) or €700,000 (World Travel in the USA and Canada) with repatriation at actual cost and direct hospital billing.

• Which countries are not covered by worldwide travel insurance?

  Policy wordings void cover in territories under UN or EU sanctions and exclude war zones. Go Protect names Russia, Ukraine and North Korea; Safe Care and SafeTrip Tourism name North Korea, Cuba, Iran, Sudan, Syria and Crimea. Your own country of residence is also outside the scope: a worldwide policy protects you abroad, not at home in Ireland.

• Is there an age limit for worldwide travel insurance?

  Yes, and it varies widely: WorldSecure Basic and Safe Nomad stop at 39, Safe Extreme at 49, Safe Care at 64, WorldSecure Platinum at 65, Safe Start at 69, Safe World at 79 and World Travel at 84. Go Explore and Go Explore + accept under-80s outside North America but only under-65s with the USA or Canada. Go Protect, Go Annual and SafeTrip Tourism have no practical limit.

• Can I insure a round-the-world trip or gap year from Ireland?

  Yes. A 30-day itinerary through Thailand, Australia and the USA at age 25 costs from €53.24 with Go Protect, which stops at 90 days per trip. For longer, WorldSecure Basic (€60.50 for the same trip, under-40s) and WorldSecure Platinum (€82.28, cancellation and extreme sports included) run up to 12 months, and Go Explore + covers a full year to age 80 outside North America.

• Is an annual worldwide travel insurance policy worth it?

  Safe World, the cheapest annual worldwide plan in our Irish comparison, costs €269.50 a year at age 40 with cancellation up to €12,000 per trip and a €500,000 medical ceiling, USA included at no extra cost. Against €113.30 for a single two-week USA trip, it pays for itself from the third trip of the year.

• Is the EHIC enough instead of worldwide travel insurance?

  No. The European Health Insurance Card only covers medically necessary public healthcare in the EU, the EEA and Switzerland, on the same terms as residents. The Department of Foreign Affairs confirms it pays nothing towards repatriation, private treatment or non-urgent care, and it has no value across most of the world.

• Does my Vhi or Laya health insurance cover me worldwide?

  Only for emergencies, and within limits: Vhi plans pay up to €65,000 or €100,000 for emergency in-patient treatment abroad approved in advance, and Laya covers sudden emergencies with medical transport up to €2 million. Neither covers cancellation, baggage or liability, and a serious hospital stay in the USA can exceed those ceilings. Health insurance complements worldwide travel insurance; it does not replace it.

• How does direct hospital billing work on a worldwide policy?

  With direct billing the insurer settles the bill with the hospital itself, so you never advance the money. Every plan in our Irish worldwide shortlist includes it, provided you call the assistance line before admission. It matters most in the USA, where hospitals commonly ask for immediate payment or a guarantee before treating you.