For many UK and European tourists travelling through Europe, it can be tempting to simply rely on the EHIC card for insurance. There are however a number of reasons why it's best to take out dedicated travel insurance, even to destinations like France.

• The EHIC card isn't infallible - What many travellers fail to realise is that the value of the EHIC card can vary greatly from country to country. In France for instance, the EHIC card only entitles you to emergency medical care at a reduced cost, meaning you could still find yourself having to foot a large bill.
• Travel insurance covers more than just medical care - A proper travel insurance policy should cover all the bases. What happens if you lose your luggage in transit to France? What about if you drop your phone in the English channel on the ferry crossing? How about if you lose your passport of misplace a large sum of cash? In all of these situations, having a reliable travel insurance policy can quite literally save the day.

Travelling with gadgets?

Most travel insurance policies will also offer the option of adding gadget cover, which will protect your tech against loss, theft and accidental damage. At Holiday Extras, our Platinum level policy comes with gadget cover already included.

Extra sports activities

France is a destination that also attracts many adventure sports tourists. If you have some higher risk activities planned for your trip to France, it's important to choose a policy that will cover you for these. Take a look at our extra sports activities travel insurance page, for more information on cover.

Ski insurance for France

The French Alps are a popular destination for winter sports with millions of tourists visiting each year. If your trip to France involves skiing or some other form of winter sport, then you'll need to take out adequate insurance for this, as the Ehic card won't cover you for things like mountain rescue or repatriation back to the UK. Check out the winter sports add-on for more information on how you can get covered for skiing, snowboarding and other winter sports.

Travel insurance for Paris

With approximately 40,000,000 tourists visiting Paris in 2018, the city has enjoyed lasting popularity as 'romantic capital of the world'. Whether it's for a weekend get-away or longer stay, you'll want to be sure you have adequate travel insurance for Paris in place to cover for things like medical emergencies and personal possesions.

Now that you know why travel insurance is so important, you're probably wondering how you might book travel insurance for France. Here are the basic steps for finding and booking an appropriate travel insurance policy for your trip to France.

Step 1: Decide whether it's an Annual or a Single trip policy you want

If you know you'll be back in France again and are planning to make more than two trips in the year, then it may be cost effective to take out an annual multi-trip policy. Make sure to specify whether you want European wide or international cover when you buy, for obvious reasons. If you're not likely to be making more than one trip in the year, then it may be better to simply take out a single trip policy, specifying the start and end date.

Step 2: Pre-existing medical conditions?

If you have any pre-existing medical conditions, you'll need to declare these before buying the policy. With Holiday Extras, this easily done through our online screening process which takes only a couple of minutes to complete.

Step 3: Choose your level of cover

Most insurers will offer different grades of cover to suit the needs of the traveller. At Holiday Extras these are defines as Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum. All our levels of cover offer top level protection and assistance. The Platinum level policy also comes with some added features you may find useful such as free gadget and wedding cover. It's best to check out the benefits of each level of cover and decide exactly what you'll need.

Step 4: Make the payment and await your policy documentation

Once you've found a policy to your liking that meets your needs, follow the simple online payment process to purchase your cover. Please be sure to check over the policy documentation we send you, making sure that everything with your cover is in order before travelling. Then all that's left is to sit back, relax and look forward to your holiday.