07 June 2005 Gap Year travellers urged to insure
Gap year travellers from the UK are set to collectively spend around £500 million this year although research has found that this is not necessarily spent wisely.
Research carried out by volunteer travel specialist i-to-i has revealed that many of the 100,000 UK student travellers are scrimping on necessities like insurance and spending excessive amounts on non-essential luxuries.
The research revealed that up to a quarter of students about to embark on a gap year do not plan to take out travel insurance.
The founder of i-to-i Deirdre Bounds said: "We have found that the average 'gap' can cost anywhere from £2,000-£5,000. With many weird and wonderful country souvenirs, low prices and good exchange rates it is hard not to go a little crazy and splash out. However, this is often on items you don’t really need that will push your backpack and your credit card over the limit."
The research also showed that 31 per cent have been caught out by unexpected travel charges such as airport tax. More than three quarters of returned gap year travellers say they have been victims of overseas overcharging with transport charges being the most common.
© DeHavilland Information Servic
Archive Travel Insurance News Stories
Related Travel Insurance News
26 March 2008 Women 'confident' to travel alone
Women have become more confident to travel to traditional and emerging... [more]
26 March 2008 Paris and Bruges 'are emerging destinations for city breaks'
Paris and Bruges have been named as emerging destinations for city breaks in... [more]
26 March 2008 Princess takes birthday trip to traditional ski resort
Princess Eugenie, daughter of Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and the Duke of... [more]
26 March 2008 Snow falls across Europe
Snow has been falling across Europe in the past week, leaving many traditional... [more]
Get a travel insurance quote today from Travel Insurance Web, comprehensive cover at an amazingly low price.
