Planning
Travel insurance for Saudi Arabia
Your eVisa already includes medical insurance. It does not cover the things that most often go wrong on a trip.
Updated · by Daniel
What the visa insurance covers
The mandatory policy bundled with the eVisa is aimed at emergency medical treatment inside Saudi Arabia. It is a floor, not a travel policy.
What it usually leaves out
- Trip cancellation and curtailment, which matters with expensive non-refundable resorts
- Missed connections and flight delays
- Lost or delayed baggage, and valuables
- Adventure activities: scuba diving, dune bashing, off-road driving, hot-air balloons
- Repatriation to your home country
Build a policy around your trip
EKTA lets you add activity cover for diving and desert sports, and buy a policy for just the days you travel.
What to check before you buy
- Activities: scuba to your certified depth, quad bikes and buggies, 4x4 passengers.
- Hire car excess: separate excess cover is usually far cheaper than the desk upgrade.
- Pre-existing conditions: declare them, or claims can be refused.
- Summer heat: heat illness is the most common medical issue for visitors from May to September.
If a flight is delayed or cancelled, you may also be owed compensation from the airline itself. Check with AirHelp
Visa insurance vs a full travel policy
- Emergency medical in Saudi Arabia
- Visa insurance: yes (basic) · Travel policy: yes, usually higher limits
- Medical repatriation home
- Visa insurance: limited or none · Travel policy: yes
- Trip cancellation
- Visa insurance: no · Travel policy: yes
- Delays and missed connections
- Visa insurance: no · Travel policy: yes
- Lost or delayed baggage
- Visa insurance: no · Travel policy: yes
- Diving, dune bashing, quad bikes
- Visa insurance: no · Travel policy: with an activity add-on
- Hire car excess
- Visa insurance: no · Travel policy: sometimes, or buy separately
Buying the right policy in five minutes
Buy as soon as you book
Cancellation cover only protects you from the date you buy. Resorts in AlUla and the Red Sea are often non-refundable, so this matters.
Match the trip dates exactly
Single-trip policies are priced by day. Add a day either side in case of delays.
Add activities you will actually do
Scuba (to your certified depth), 4x4 desert drives, quad bikes, hot-air balloons at AlUla. If it is not listed, assume it is not covered.
Declare pre-existing conditions
Undeclared conditions are the most common reason claims are refused.
Save the policy offline
Keep the PDF and the 24-hour assistance number on your phone and in your email.
What medical care costs in Saudi Arabia
Private hospitals in Riyadh and Jeddah are modern and English is widely spoken by medical staff, but private treatment is expensive for visitors. An emergency visit with tests can run to hundreds of pounds; an admission, thousands. Outside the big cities, serious cases are transferred, sometimes by air. This is exactly what the visa’s basic cover and a proper travel policy are for.
The most common problems for visitors are heat exhaustion (especially May to September), stomach upsets and minor injuries on hikes such as Edge of the World. Carry water, electrolytes and sunscreen.
Flight delayed or cancelled? Claim from the airline too
Insurance pays for your costs. Separately, if your flight departs the UK or EU, or is on a UK/EU airline arriving there, you may be owed fixed compensation of up to €600 (or £520) from the airline for long delays and cancellations. Claim services handle the paperwork for a share of the payout.
Questions travellers ask
Is travel insurance mandatory for Saudi Arabia?
Basic medical insurance is mandatory and is included in the eVisa fee. Wider travel insurance is optional but strongly recommended.
Does travel insurance cover diving in the Red Sea?
Only if the policy includes scuba cover to your certified depth. Many standard policies exclude it, so check before you book a liveaboard.
How much is travel insurance for Saudi Arabia?
It depends on age, trip length and add-ons. A one-week single-trip policy for a healthy adult is typically a modest fraction of a flight’s cost; diving and winter-sports style add-ons increase it. Get a quote with your exact dates.
Does the visa insurance cover COVID or illness-related cancellation?
No. It is a medical policy only. Cancellation for any reason needs a separate travel policy.
Do I need insurance if I have a UK GHIC or EHIC?
Yes. GHIC and EHIC are not valid in Saudi Arabia.
Keep planning
Planning
Saudi tourist visa
Who qualifies, how to apply, and what the visa does and does not cover.
Red Sea
Diving the Red Sea
Day boats from Jeddah, resort house reefs and the Farasan Banks.
Plan your trip
Saudi trip checklist
Visa, insurance, eSIM, flights, cars, transfers and tickets, in the right order.