My travel insurance for Japan paid for my typhoon expenses 🌀 natural disaster coverage 🌀 Backpacking Japan Asia

Hi there!

 

The thing about travel insurance in general is that you really never know if you’ll be covered until you submit that claim.

The other thing about insurance is that you buy it hoping you never have to use it during your trip!

But if the unfortunate time comes that you DO have to use it… you will probably be glad that you did buy it!

 

 

Because just knowing that you bought it may help to relieve some stress during an otherwise stressful situation. (Since it’s probably only because of a stressful situation that arises that you’d have to use it!)

There was one time I was in Japan and a typhoon came through that shut down a major international airport.

For DAYS this airport that I had a scheduled flight out of was closed.

This typhoon happened on the day I was supposed to fly out of Japan.

My travel insurance for this natural disaster covered my food, accommodation, and transport when I had to go to another airport to fly out! More on this in a bit.

 

 

The biggest “danger” or “safety” risk in Japan?

Travel insurance coverage for natural disasters

News report: Typhoon damage closes one of Japan’s largest airports indefinitely

 

In terms of safety in Japan, the biggest risk or “threat” is probably a natural disaster.

Hopefully this won’t make you cancel your trip to Japan, but there’s actually a prediction that Japan is due for a MASSIVE earthquake in the coming years. (If it makes you feel any better, I’ve heard that being said about California too, although I think the threat for Japan is greater.)

 

Earthquakes and typhoons in Japan

Earthquakes are one form of natural disasters that aren’t uncommon in Japan, and typhoons (aka hurricanes or cyclones in other parts of the world) are another form of natural disasters that aren’t uncommon.

In fact, when I was in Japan in summer 2018, there were 2 typhoons that came through in the area I was (Kyoto and Osaka) in a short 2 or 3 week period!

Both led to the cancellation of public transportation including the ever-important local trains and shinkansen bullet trains.

 

 

The first typhoon didn’t have too much of an impact on me other than not being able to do any activities because the local transportation was cancelled.

The second typhoon resulted in my flight back to the US being canceled with no new flight immediately scheduled.

There was also a major earthquake that happened when I was in Japan (near Sapporo, Hokkaido), but I wasn’t anywhere near there.

And less likely, but still a risk in Japan is the chance of volcano eruptions interrupting your travel plans.

So, natural disasters DO happen in Japan.

Again, hopefully this doesn’t make you want to cancel your trip!

Travel insurance is about assessing your risk, and unfortunately, natural disasters are one of the risks to think about for your trip to Japan.

 

When is typhoon season in Japan?

 

While earthquakes can happen at any time, typhoons can at least be a little more predictable based on time of year.

Typhoon season is officially said to be from around June to November, although the greatest typhoon activity is generally in August and September.

 

 

So you may also consider that there may be an increased risk of travel delays during this time, even if you are not in the direct path of a typhoon.

You can think of it as being a similar risk of flying in the winter in the US – you never know when a blizzard is going to hit that will lead to flight delays or flight cancellations.

Similarly, you don’t know exactly when a typhoon will hit that could potentially lead to delays and cancellations at the airport.

 

 

Your airline will likely provide an alternate flight for you with no extra cost to you if your flight changes due to a natural disaster.

 

 

But if you are forced to stay overnight in that city because of that delayed flight, that’s when travel insurance can come in handy!

Accommodation and food can be covered, as can any associated transportation costs, like getting to an alternate airport that’s further away.

 

 

Making stressful travel in a foreign country less stressful

 

When an unexpected issue strikes when you’re traveling, you might be scrambling to figure out what to do.

If you have travel insurance, at least you can be a little less stressed knowing you probably won’t be paying out of pocket for all of the sudden extra expenses that you’re forced to incur!

 

I know I was happy to know when I was forced to stay in Japan for a few extra days that all expenses occurred would be covered! (Well actually, since you never know if claims will be approved, I was still a little nervous, but it definitely made me feel much better knowing that I probably wouldn’t be paying out of pocket!)

 

So my flight was scheduled for the same day a major typhoon was going to be passing through the area.

This led to basically ALL forms of public transportation being canceled.

And I never did make it to Kansai airport KIX that day.

 

There’s a bridge to the airport and they blocked off all access.

 

But I tried to make it to the airport.

And so did everyone else. 😉

 

 

Everyone was trying to get to the airport before the typhoon hit, but well, failure. 😉

 

 

It was better that way, since the airport ended up becoming non-operational after the typhoon!

 

But I did make it to the LAST train station before the airport. So a 20 minute train ride from the airport. So close yet so far… 😉

And the Izumisano train station is where I rode out Typhoon Jebi with a TON of foreign tourists.

 

 

And then power went out at one part of the train station.

 

 

After the typhoon passed, we were told that the airport was damaged and that the airport is going to remain closed.

On top of that, there was no timetable for when public transportation was going to resume from the train station we were at.

So, what to do?!

This is when it’s very helpful to be with a TON of other tourists!

 

We were provided (presumably by the local government) with transportation to a nearby mall.

 

 

There, we were given some food, emergency blankets, and… floor space to sleep. 😉

 

 

The next day, we were taken back to the train station where we came from.

 

It’s kind of a big deal when a major international airport shuts down and tons of tourists are stranded at the train station. News reporters were here!

 

It took a few hours, but eventually the trains started running again.

And then… I took a train to Namba station in Osaka, and I stayed in Osaka for a few days waiting for my flight back to the US!

 

In a few days, my airline eventually offered a flight out of a different airport – Nagoya airport.

In the meantime, I spent money on accommodation, food, and transportation for the extra days I was in Japan – and I’m happy to say that all of these expenses were reimbursed by my travel insurance with a claim! (You’ll want to make sure you have receipts for everything!)

 

HAPPY JAPAN TRIP PLANNING!