Overseas travelers are 2.7 times more likely to get sick than those taking domestic trips, a think tank report said Saturday.
Hyundai Marine & Fire's Traffic, Climate & Environment Research Institute said that from January 2014 through August of this year, 27.6 percent of all South Korean nationals got sick while in a foreign country. This number is far higher than the 10.4 percent for domestic travelers.
The findings were based on assessments of all people who took out travelers insurance on their trips.
By type of sickness, 21.8 percent they got a cold, with indigestion and enteritis coming in second at 16.8 percent, and allergic reactions at 6.7 percent.
The research institute said that while many people did get sick on foreign trips, only 38.7 percent said they brought medicine with them, with 14.7 percent saying they only carried emergency medication for their children.
The traffic and environment institute, meanwhile, said that the No. 1 complaint among travelers was damage to their belongings, such as mobile phones, luggage and cameras. It said 40 percent complained of damage to their belongings, with theft following at 21.3 percent.
It added that despite the inherent risks, the percentage of people taking trips abroad covered by travelers insurance stood at just 67 percent.
"There is a need for more people to take out travelers insurance and take emergency medicine on trips," it said. (Yonhap)