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⚡ Quick Answer
For Australian families travelling internationally, Cover-More is our go-to. They’re backed by Zurich Insurance, have strong medical coverage limits, include kids on family policies, and offer genuinely helpful customer service. Use them as your starting point, then compare on the things that matter for your trip.
Key takeaways:
- Always prioritise unlimited overseas medical cover — especially for USA travel
- Declare pre-existing conditions before signing up — don’t leave it to the last minute
- Check independent claims reviews on ProductReview.com.au before buying
- Get a Cover-More quote: Cover-More
Travelling internationally with a toddler changes how you think about family travel insurance in Australia. When it was just Jomana and me, we’d shop around, pick something reasonable and move on. When we started planning our first overseas trip as a family — Hawaii with a one-year-old Kailani — the stakes felt different.
What if Kailani got sick? What if one of us ended up in a US hospital? What if our flights got cancelled and we were stuck in an airport hotel with a baby for three days?
Suddenly, the cheapest option didn’t feel so attractive.
This is what we looked for, what we found, and why we ended up with Cover-More for that trip. I’ll also be upfront: we didn’t need to make a claim on that trip, and claims handling is ultimately where travel insurance proves its worth. I’ll point you to where you can check that independently.
The Mistake I Made With Cheap Travel Insurance 20 Years Ago
Before I get into what we look for now, a quick story from my solo travel days.
Twenty years ago, I was the guy who bought the cheapest travel insurance available. It seemed logical — you probably won’t need it, so why spend more than necessary?
I learned the hard way that cheap travel insurance often means poor in-country support, a claims process designed to wear you down, and exclusions buried in the fine print that only matter when something goes wrong.
Since Jomana and I started travelling together, we’ve never had a bad insurance experience. Partly luck, partly the fact that we stopped buying the cheapest option and started buying the right option. Now that we’re searching for the best family travel insurance Australia has to offer, cutting corners isn’t something we’re willing to do — especially with a toddler in the mix.
What We Actually Check Before Buying Family Travel Insurance
When Jomana started researching for our Hawaii trip, these were the non-negotiables:
1. Overseas Medical Coverage Limits
This is the big one, especially for the United States. American healthcare costs are extraordinary — a single night in a US hospital can run into tens of thousands of dollars. You want unlimited or very high overseas medical coverage. Don’t accept anything under $5 million, and unlimited is better.
2. Pre-Existing Medical Conditions
This one caught us slightly off guard. At the time of booking, I was undergoing routine testing — a mannitol challenge test as part of an unrelated employment assessment — to check whether I had asthma. Turns out I don’t, which was good news both medically and for our insurance application.
Most insurers ask you to declare pre-existing medical conditions before issuing a policy. If you’re mid-testing for something, you may need to wait for results before applying. Cover-More were straightforward about this process, and we held off until we had the all-clear.
The lesson: don’t leave insurance to the last minute, especially if anyone in your family has ongoing health conditions. Give yourself time to get it sorted properly.
3. Children Covered Under the Family Policy
Check explicitly how children are covered. Most family policies include dependent children at no extra cost, but the age limit, number of children covered, and exact conditions vary between insurers. For Cover-More, Kailani was covered under our family policy without a separate premium — but always verify this for your specific policy.
4. Cancellation and Trip Interruption Cover
What happens if you have to cancel before you leave, or cut the trip short? This matters more with kids — illnesses, family emergencies, and unexpected situations happen more often when you have young children. Check the cancellation limit and what events are covered.
5. Luggage and Personal Effects Limits
Travelling with a toddler means travelling with a lot of gear. Check the per-item limits carefully — many policies have low sub-limits on individual items like cameras, laptops or phones. If you’re travelling with a pram, car seat or other expensive baby gear, make sure the luggage limits are adequate.
6. Accommodation and Travel Delay Cover
If your flights are cancelled and you’re stuck somewhere with a baby, you’ll want cover for accommodation and meals while you wait. Check what the daily limit is and how long the cover applies.
7. In-Country Emergency Assistance — 24/7
When something goes wrong overseas, you need to be able to call someone who can actually help — organise medical treatment, coordinate evacuations, arrange alternative accommodation. Check that your insurer has a genuine 24/7 emergency line, not just a message service. Cover-More’s emergency assistance is delivered through its global network, backed by Zurich Insurance, which gives us confidence that there’s real infrastructure behind the product.
Why We Chose Cover-More for Hawaii
Jomana did most of the research for our Hawaii trip and was happy with Cover-More’s inclusions and the initial quote for a family policy. The coverage limits were strong, the price was fair, and the quote process was straightforward.
There was also a moment during the process that stuck with us. When Jomana called their customer service line, the representative she spoke to was based in the Philippines, where Jomana is originally from. Her English was perfect, but knowing she could switch to Tagalog if needed was a genuinely warm surprise. It’s a small thing, but it said something about Cover-More’s team.
We haven’t needed to make a claim, and I’ll be honest about that. The rubber meets the road when things go wrong, and we’ve been fortunate. For independent claims reviews, I’d recommend checking Cover-More’s reviews on ProductReview.com.au, where real customers share real claims experiences.
What About Domestic Travel Insurance?
We don’t currently buy domestic travel insurance for our trips within Australia. That’s a deliberate choice based on our own risk assessment — we’ve had a great run with Jetstar and other family-friendly Australian airlines, we’re not usually booking expensive non-refundable accommodation packages, and the financial exposure on a domestic trip is much lower than on an international one. If you’re curious about how we approach a domestic trip, check out our Tasmania travel guides to see how we plan without the safety net.
That said, many people recommend domestic travel insurance, and there are good reasons to have it — particularly if you’re booking expensive trips with high non-refundable costs, travelling to remote areas of Australia where medical evacuation could be costly, or if anyone in your family has medical conditions that might require unexpected treatment. It’s a personal call.
Family Travel Insurance Australia: Checklist
Before you click buy, run through this:
✅ Pre-Purchase Checklist
- Unlimited or very high overseas medical cover (especially for the USA, Canada, Japan)
- Pre-existing conditions declared and accepted by the insurer
- Children covered under the family policy — check age limits and number of kids
- Cancellation cover is adequate for your total non-refundable trip cost
- Luggage limits are sufficient for your gear, including baby equipment
- 24/7 emergency assistance with real in-country support
- COVID-19 cover included
- Destination coverage confirmed for your specific destination
- Activity coverage checked if doing anything adventurous
- Claims reviews are checked on ProductReview.com.au before buying
The Biggest Mistake Families Make With Travel Insurance
Going with the cheapest option.
The cheapest policy often has the lowest medical limits, the most restrictive claims process, the weakest in-country support, and the most exclusions. The second biggest mistake is not checking whether the insurance actually covers the country or region you’re travelling to. Some budget policies have geographic exclusions that aren’t obvious until you read the fine print.
A policy that saves you $50 upfront but leaves you with a $200,000 medical bill is not a good deal.
FAQ: Best Family Travel Insurance Australia
Do children need their own travel insurance policy?
Usually not — most family policies include dependent children under a certain age at no extra cost. Check the specific age limit and conditions in your policy before assuming this applies.
When should I buy travel insurance?
As early as possible after booking your trip. Buying early means cancellation cover kicks in immediately — if something happens before you travel, you’re protected from the moment you purchase.
Does travel insurance cover pre-existing medical conditions?
It depends on the insurer and the condition. Many insurers, including Cover-More, cover a wide range of pre-existing conditions either automatically or after a medical assessment. Declare everything honestly — non-disclosure can void a claim.
Is domestic travel insurance worth it for Australian families?
It depends on your trip. For expensive, non-refundable packages or travel to remote areas, it’s worth considering. For a standard domestic weekend away, probably not essential — but that’s a personal call.
What’s the difference between single-trip and annual multi-trip cover?
Single-trip covers one specific trip. Annual multi-trip covers unlimited trips within a 12-month period up to a maximum trip duration (usually 30-60 days per trip). If you travel internationally more than twice a year, an annual multi-trip usually works out better value.
Our Recommendation
When it comes to the best family travel insurance Australia offers, Cover-More is our starting point. They’re backed by Zurich Insurance, have strong coverage limits, include children on family policies, and have genuine 24/7 emergency support. The purchase process is straightforward, and their customer service has been excellent in our experience.
Get a quote for your next trip: Cover-More
And before you buy anything, check the reviews on ProductReview.com.au. Real claims experiences from real Australian families are the best indicator of how an insurer actually performs when it matters.
Murray is the co-founder of Really Traveling and a self-confessed gear obsessive who never buys anything without testing it first. He travels with his wife Jomana and daughter Kailani, and has dragged the family across everything from Tasmanian wilderness trails to long-haul flights with a toddler. If he recommends it, it’s because it survived real family travel — not just a weekend test run.
