Imagine you've just arrived in Spain for your week in the sun. You check into your hotel, spend an hour or so by the pool and then decide you're going to take a trip to the waterfront, watch the sunset and grab a bite to eat. You pack your money and travellers cheques into a bag and make the short walk. After a walk on the beach and a short rest in the sand to witness the setting sun, you decamp to the nearest restaurant, where you settle down for a relaxing meal in the cool Spanish evening.

Here is where your holiday takes a turn for the worst. Your bag, containing a significant amount of money as well as the camera that you used to get some shots of the beach, was left hanging on the back of a chair. As you relax and enjoy your meal, the bag vanishes. In this situation, two scenarios could develop, totally dependent on whether or not you purchased travel insurance before going on your holiday.

Scenario 1: Without Travel Insurance
Upon noticing the missing bag and being unable to locate it, a panic ensues. Before the holiday you had taken the decision to save some money by not getting travel insurance, as you had never had any problems when you had paid the extra money to be insured. In the bag was most of your holiday money, the traveler's cheques you had for emergencies and also your passports. You are out of money, and all that remains to do is make the largely fruitless trip to the local police station to report the theft and go about the difficult task of obtaining replacement passports. An argument takes place, both over who decided insurance was unnecessary and who was in charge of the bag, and the waiter is angry that you cannot pay for your meal.

Scenario 2: With Travel Insurance
The loss is irritating and you are forced to waste some of your precious holiday reporting the theft to the police and procuring new passports for your journey home. But, because you decided not to gamble with your holiday and purchased travel insurance before you left home, the loss is not as great as it could have been. The lost funds will be replaced, and there is no need for any arguments in the opening hours of your holiday. Nobody is claiming that having a bag stolen is a painless experience, but you prepared for the possibility in advance and minimized the blow. The holiday can carry on as planned.

All holidays have the potential to be ruined by any number of events, be it loss of possessions, personal injury or even extreme weather. By purchasing travel insurance you are making sure that if the worst does happen you are covered. Visit Go Travel find travel insurance deals that suit you. AA Travel also provide travel insurance that you should compare to your other quote.