Not a formality
The nearest hospital may be a flight away
Which makes medical evacuation the one line on the policy that genuinely matters.
Medical evacuation first
On a remote safari you may be several hours from a road and considerably further from a hospital that can do anything serious. Evacuation is by air, and it is the expensive part.
This is not a box to tick. It is the reason to have a policy at all.
Then check it covers what you booked
A great many standard policies exclude the exact activities a good honeymoon is built around.
| Activity | Frequently excluded because |
|---|---|
| Gorilla trekking | Classed as an expedition, or as trekking above an altitude limit |
| Walking safaris | Proximity to dangerous animals |
| Riding | Standard hazardous-activity exclusion |
| Microlight or balloon flights | Aviation exclusions beyond scheduled carriers |
| Diving, if the coast is in the plan | Depth limits and certification requirements |
| Light aircraft transfers | Usually covered, occasionally not — worth confirming |
Trip interruption
Worth having for one specific reason on this kind of trip: gorilla permits are generally non-refundable and non-transferable, and they are a large number.
If one of you is ill on the morning of the trek — and you should say so rather than trek with a cold, because gorillas catch human respiratory illnesses — the permit is usually gone. Insurance sometimes covers it. Check before, not after.
The clause that voids everything
An undeclared pre-existing condition. Declaring one usually costs a little more and occasionally costs nothing; not declaring one can invalidate the entire policy at the moment you need it.
This is the single most consequential box on the form.
Practical notes
- Buy it when you pay the deposit, not before you fly — cancellation cover only works if it predates the reason to cancel
- Check the per-person medical limit, not just the headline number
- Carry the policy number and the emergency line, on paper as well as on a phone
- Send the details to us so the camps have them too
- Two separate policies is fine; one joint policy is fine. A policy that covers only one of you is not.
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