With the frigid temperatures covering much of the country, a trip to warm locale just might be in order. Travel, whether for business or pleasure, has grown in popularity and Generali Global Assistance's Travel Insurance division recently shared insights on the trends it observed in 2018.

Travelers spent approximately 5% more on the cost of an average trip, coming in at $1,976.83 last year. For those who wanted to insure their trips against the unexpected, the average premium remained the same as in 2017 – $139 per trip. Travelers spent an average of nine days on their trips, which has remained the same for the last three years.

Multiple factors can affect a planned trip, and consumers are seeing the benefits to protecting their travel with insurance. “Natural disasters continued to dominate headlines in 2018, disrupting travel on a global scale,” said Chris Carnicelli, CEO of Generali Global Assistance in a press release. “As these types of events proliferate, consumers will continue to look for ways to help protect their valuable travel investments.”

When it comes to vacations, travelers saw slight increases in the cost of vacation home rentals, which rose 1.4% over 2017 to $1,878. The average vacation lasted six days.

For those with a little more time and cash, cruises were a primary choice, rising in popularity by 1,211% in 2018. Insured trips by air rose 43% and the average vacation insurance premium increased 1.5% to $80.16.

What were the top travel destinations? Based on the number of bookings compiled by Generali Global Assistance they were: the U.S., Europe, Alaska, Mexico, Italy, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Bahamas, Asia and Hawaii.

“The significant rise in both insured cruise and air travel is encouraging, as it is an indication that consumers are gaining a fuller understanding of the need to insure their trips,” added Carnicelli. “We will continue to work diligently to educate consumers to not only explain the benefits of travel insurance, but how it works. There are still misconceptions about travel insurance in general and through greater transparency, we are striving to clear those up.”

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