If your trip crosses borders, you face this choice. There is a simple way to decide, and three traps worth knowing.
The arithmetic
Take the regional plan price and divide it by the number of countries you will genuinely spend time in. Compare that with the single-country plans added together.
Note the words "genuinely spend time in". A two-hour layover is not a country you need coverage for.
- One country: single-country plan wins almost every time.
- Two countries: usually close; work it out.
- Three or more: the regional plan normally wins.
Three traps with regional plans
Trap 1: the country you need is not in the list. Regional plans are named after regions, but they cover a specific list of countries. Europe plans often exclude Switzerland. Asia plans vary enormously in which countries they include. Always read the coverage list, never the region name.
Trap 2: coverage within a country may be thinner. A regional plan sometimes runs on fewer operators in a given country than a dedicated plan for that country. In cities you will not notice; in rural areas you might.
Trap 3: paying for countries you never visit. A plan covering 30 countries sounds like value, but if you visit three of them you are paying for 27 you will not use. Value comes from the countries you actually need.
When a regional plan is clearly right
- Three or more countries.
- Short stops in each — a few days here, a few days there.
- Travelling overland, where border crossings are frequent.
- You want one install and no switching mid-trip.
When separate plans are better
- Two countries with a long stay in each.
- One country is far cheaper on its own — common for Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia.
- A country you need is missing from the regional coverage list.
What experienced travellers actually do
A common pattern: buy the regional plan for the leg with many short stops, and a separate single-country plan for the country where you will spend most of the trip. Two installs, but often cheaper and with better coverage where it matters.
Before you buy
Open the plan page and read the country list. Check every country on your itinerary against it — including the one you are flying home through, if you plan to leave the airport.