Online travel insurance is always an option for the growing number of American students deciding to take a gap year.
Dailycamera.com reports that more students in the US are opting to take extended overseas trips and internships as they follow the lead of their British counterparts, many of whom could buy
worldwide travel insurance.
More students are also gravitating towards regions of the world which are further removed from better known tourist hotspots, making local cultures easier to absorb and sometimes even leading to a culture shock upon a return to America.
Devon Taylor, a student studying journalism and art at the University of Colorado, took some time off to backpack through South America and told the website: "Overall, it's really great to see a different perspective on life and then realise how we can use that when we return home."
He added that the global downturn smiles on budget travellers through reduced rates and special offers.
More than 30 per cent of UK holidaymakers are responding to the downturn by arranging shorter holidays, rather than cancelling altogether, according to internet travel firm On the Beach.
Downunder - the market leaders in online
backpacker travel insurance.