How much is travel insurance to Ireland?

Ireland is an easy, familiar destination for Ontario travellers — English-speaking, well connected, with modern hospitals. That familiarity leads some people to assume they don’t need insurance. They do, just for different reasons than in the United States.

Why coverage still matters

Ireland’s public health system exists for its residents, not for visitors. As a Canadian you have no automatic right to free care, and if you turn up at an Irish hospital you are treated as a private, paying patient. Routine care costs far less than in the US, but the figure that can get large is repatriation — if you are seriously ill or injured and need a medically supervised flight back to Canada, that transport alone can run into tens of thousands of dollars. Emergency medical insurance is really about that rare, expensive event, not the everyday GP visit.

What drives the premium

Four things set the price: your age, the length of the trip, the coverage amount you choose, and your health, including any pre-existing conditions. A healthy traveller on a one- or two-week trip pays only a small daily rate. Older travellers, longer stays and higher limits cost more. If you tour Ireland as part of a wider European trip, one policy covers the whole itinerary — you don’t insure each country separately.

The OHIP gap

OHIP covers almost nothing outside Canada and never pays a foreign hospital up front. Ontario ended most out-of-country medical coverage in 2020, so any reimbursement is a small fraction of your costs, and the hospital will still expect payment from you directly. Emergency medical travel insurance fills that gap, and our 24/7 assistance can coordinate care and payment so you are not negotiating with a hospital while unwell.

Keeping the cost reasonable

Match your policy to your exact dates, choose a deductible you’re comfortable with, and compare a Multi-Trip Annual plan if you travel to Europe or elsewhere more than once or twice a year. The coverage amount is the one place not to cut, since the large repatriation or hospital bill is what the policy is designed for.

Activities to flag

Coastal walks, cycling and golf are gentle, but if you add surfing on the Atlantic coast, horse riding or climbing, check whether our optional Sports & Activities coverage applies to your plans.

Single trip vs annual plan

If Ireland is a one-off, a single-trip policy sized to your exact dates is usually the cheapest route. If you expect to travel more than once or twice in a year — to Europe, the US or anywhere else — a TripCovered Multi-Trip Annual plan can cost less than buying separate policies each time. One detail to check: annual plans cap the length of each individual trip, so confirm that cap is longer than your longest planned stay. Since Ireland doesn’t involve the United States, an Excl-USA plan may be cheaper than a Worldwide one, provided your routing doesn’t connect through a US airport.

Pre-existing conditions

If you manage an ongoing condition, coverage usually depends on it being stable for a set period before departure. There’s no age limit and no medical questions under 60; travellers 60 and over complete a Medical Questionnaire that sets the premium, not eligibility. Declare your health accurately to keep your coverage solid.

Get a quote for your exact age and dates to see a real number, and consider an annual plan if more trips are likely this year.