Taking Valuables on your Gap Year

The Gap Year traveller essentially carries everything they own on their back, so it is advisable that what they’re carrying doesn’t make them more vulnerable than they already might be in a new strange country that speaks a language they don’t understand.

Over the course of a backpacking adventure, the traveller will end up staying in some cheap, low-budget, hostel-type accommodation. The idea of slumming it is part of the whole package and gap year travels seem to be about ‘roughing’ it in the more gritty and downmarket corners of the world. Living on the cheap however, also means sharing with a number of people you don’t know, which mean things could get stolen.

Of course, with the right kind of travel insurance, the backpacker can be reimbursed, but it’s a good idea to stick to the essentials and not carry anything that means too much. Basically, try and keep as much disposable as possible. A good backpacker’s insurance package should certainly be healthy enough to compensate for a fair amount. However, budgets only go so far and it’s an ill-advised move to pack possessions that your insurance package cannot cover.

Think about where it is you’re going and what’s you’ll need to take. One of the objectives of the gap year journey is that you can feel liberated from all that junk you carry back home and it’ll allow you to relax into your trip more if you can dump your belongings in a room and not worry about them. If they do go missing you have the peace of mind that your pre-planned insurance package will cover it. Items like camera film are probably more precious than anything else - having logged your journey - so why not post your film home as your go or in this digital age, download them onto a computer and email them to yourself.

You should make getting a good insurance policy your priority and ensure that it accounts for a loss of baggage and possessions and personal liabilities. You might want to surf the net for the best deals, and it seems the best offers are found online and not at the travel agent’s. Go Travel have good backpacker’s travel insurance as do AA Travel Insurance – they have a single trip travel insurance package that also covers the requirements of a backpacker. Fill on their online forms with the destination and duration of your stay to pick up prices.