I decided to take a leave of absence from work to travel for an extended period of time. Beforoe this trip, I have never purchased travel insurance, but I also have never traveled for a long period. So, is travel insurance worth it? I did question if I needed it but I figured it was better to play it safe. I’m grateful I did get it because I did run into some travel hiccups like unexpected hospital visits, pickpocketing, and my friend’s passport was stolen (well, wish my friend had insurance then). Luckily, I got some refunds back with the insurance.

I did some research on various travel insurance companies and ended up with World Nomads. You can see some of the pros / cons I listed out for the companies I researched, but I recommend doing some more research and picking the plan best for your trip. 
World Nomads

• Pros: Great coverage for trips and medical, easy to file claims and extend coverage while traveling, helpful customer service (I had to go to the doctor’s during my trip and they sent me a list of nearby hospitals and called the next day to follow-up) covers long trips (over 90 days), easy to use site, and extremely fair when providing a refund
• Cons: A bit more expensive, but still one of the cheaper options, compared to other companies
• Verdict: I highly recommend this for either short or long trips (especially since it is one of the few companies that covers trips beyond 90 days). I would use World Nomads again.

CSA Travel Protection

• Pros: Has some of the best plans for trips and medical coverage, good reviews and seems like a fair refund process, easy to use site, and affordable 
• Cons: Only for US and Canadian citizens and does not cover trips over 90 days
• Verdict: This was my first option, but unfortunately they didn’t cover trips beyond 90 days

Travelex

• Pros: Great coverage for trips and medical, great reviews online, offers some plans that cover long trips, and is very comparable to World Nomads
• Cons: Was more expensive than World Nomads 
• Verdict: I would have went with them, but World Nomads beat them on price

Allianz 

• Pros: One of the most inexpensive options and has pretty good trip and medical coverage 
• Cons: Based on reviews, it seems hard to get a refund
• Verdict: I passed on this option given the bad reviews online (seems difficult / near impossible to get a refund)