Authored By : Chetan Vasudeva, Senior Vice President – Business Development at Elephant.in, Alliance Insurance Brokers.
Year-end holiday season is a time, when travel surges across the world, and the industry of travel insurance reaches its critical juncture. The holiday season countdown has begun with bags packed, passports in hand, flight notifications beeping, and WhatsApp groups buzzing with Bali, Paris, Dubai, Goa itineraries. However, with the year-end travel plans for national and international destination, travel insurance is as important as taking the boarding pass during a flight.
India Is Travelling Like Never Before
After years of pent-up demand, India’s outbound travel has erupted. According to the Ministry of Tourism, over 30.8 million Indians travelled abroad in 2024, and that number is projected to cross 35 million in 2025, on track toward 50 million by 2030. The country’s outbound tourism market, valued at INR 2.14 trillion in 2023, is expected to soar to INR 5.01 trillion by 2030, growing at a 14.27% CAGR. Indian travellers are shelling out more than ever. Their international trip now averages over ₹3 lakh per individual, fueled by higher air fares, luxury accommodations, and experiential itineraries. However, as expenditure goes up, the risk exposure to a single foreign hospital bill can cost up to ₹8–10 lakh. 2025 has experienced an 18.9% jump in travel insurance purchasing, with record growth for both individual and group coverages.
From Checkbox to Confidence Booster
The Indian traveller today is digital, discerning, and destination-aware. This is compelling insurers to make travel insurance a genuine travel companion. Contemporary travel insurance no longer stops at flight delays and lost luggage. Policies are being redefined around real-world interruptions from bad weather disruptions and missed cruise connections to visa-delay cancellations, global political challenges and emergency evacuations.
Single-trip, multi-trip, or yearly worldwide covers can be purchased by travellers; adventure-sport protection can be added or coverage can be extended during the course of a trip using digital today. High-flying businesspeople and far-flung remote-working digital nomads increasingly prefer round-the-year worldwide coverage plans that enable limitless travel on the same policy.
The Digital Push
Travel insurance for Indians has also turned digital-first. Purchase of policies, filing of claims, and 24×7 emergency assistance all run like clockwork through apps. As per recent data, around 85% of Indian travellers now intend to buy travel insurance, of whom 43% want to buy from travel websites and another 18% directly from the insurer.
Embedded insurance is now the standard built into flight or hotel reservations. In one click on checkout, travellers can buy coverage, tailored to their health profile, trip duration, and destination. This seamless process has especially attracted Millennial and Gen Z travellers, who now represent over 55% of all new policy purchases.
Travel Insurance Trends in 2025
Indian travellers have been wiser and more discerning. Low-cost premiums no longer get the nod, relevance does. The key add-on coverage these days are cancel-for-any-reason clauses, adventure and sports coverage, and trip interruption protection for unexpected emergencies.
Health coverage is still the most important aspect, encapsulating more than 60% of all worldwide travel insurance claims in 2024. Since foreign medical treatment can be as high as ten times more expensive than in India, many tourists are increasingly choosing higher health limits and cashless international treatment benefits.
India’s travel insurance industry totalled USD 1.33 billion as of 2024 and is expected to increase at 17.3% CAGR to USD 6.55 billion by the year 2033. The market is growing by almost 20% y-o-y as of 2025 alone, surpassing global standards. Private players and brokers are responding with tailor-made covers for families, students, business travellers, and even destination-specific packages. Moreover, the government’s 2025 GST waiver on travel insurance premiums reducing GST to nil has made protection more affordable than ever.
