Privacy Policy

Last Updated: January 2025

Welcome to Riq to Link Tours and Travels. This privacy policy ("Policy") outlines how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you engage with our services. By using our website, you agree to the practices described in this Policy.

Outline

• 1. What personal information we collect from you ▼
• 2. How we use your personal information ▼
• 3. Who shares your personal information ▼
• 4. Retention of data ▼
• 5. Security ▼
• 6. Consent and Your Rights ▼
• 7. Changes to this privacy policy ▼

1. What personal information we collect from you

When you book a tour or inquire about our services, we may collect personal details such as your name, contact information, and travel preferences. Additional information such as passport details, dietary restrictions, or health considerations may be required for certain packages.

When You Book a Tour or Inquire About a Tour:
When you inquire about booking a tour with us, we collect the following personal details to facilitate your request:

• Basic Information: First and last name, phone number, address, email address, and date of birth.

Once you have booked a tour, we require additional information to prepare for your adventure, as part of our “Good-to-Go” process. This ensures we can verify your identity, assess your suitability for the tour, provide you with important notices and updates, and process your payment.

• Good-to-Go Process:
  • Gender, next of kin, travel insurance details, residency, emergency contact information, ISIC details (if applicable), payment information, dietary preferences, passport details (including scanned copy where applicable), visa application information.
  • Health and Medical Information: Including pre-existing conditions, vaccination status, and any special medical needs that may affect your participation in the tour.

We may also collect information about your co-travelers if you provide their details on their behalf during the booking process. By sharing their information, you confirm that you have their permission to do so and that they understand how their information will be used.

When You Contact Us:
If you call us to inquire about a tour, ask questions, or resolve any issues, we may record or monitor the call for quality control, training, and customer service purposes. During this process, we may collect:

• Call details such as the identity of the caller, date and time of the call, and the subject matter discussed.

When You Visit Our Website or Use Our Mobile App:
We may collect the following data points when you use our website or mobile app:

• Geo-location Information: This includes precise or approximate location data gathered from your IP address or your mobile device’s GPS. This may be collected even when you're not actively using the app, depending on your settings or permissions.
• Usage Information: Pages you view, search queries, tours you're interested in, and actions taken on the website or app.
• Log Data and Device Information: Details about how you use the website or app, including the devices you use, browser type, hardware and software details, crash reports, and visited pages.
• Payment Transaction Information: Includes payment method, transaction amount, billing address, and other payment-related details.
• Cookies: Our website uses cookies for better user experience. You can learn more about how we use them in our Cookie Policy.

Photos and Videos During the Tour:
While on a tour, photos and videos may be taken by other travelers or our staff, which may include your likeness and be considered personal information. Here's how we handle this:

• Travel Photos and Videos: We may capture photos or videos for internal use, but we will not use them for promotional purposes without your explicit permission.
• Professional Photography: In some cases, a professional photographer may be scheduled for promotional purposes. If this occurs, you will be presented with a consent form to opt-in or decline prior to the tour departure.

2. How We Use Your Personal Information

Your data helps us provide tailored travel experiences, communicate updates, and ensure compliance with regulations. We do not sell your data to third parties.

At Riq to Link Tours and Travels, we collect and use your personal information to offer you a tailored, seamless experience. Your privacy is important to us, and we handle your data in line with your preferences and relevant laws. Here’s how we put your information to good use:

To Provide, Enhance, and Personalize Your Tours and Services

Your personal details help us curate the best possible travel experience for you. We use your information to:

• Organize and manage your bookings: All the details we collect allow us to present accurate and timely booking information in your account on our website or mobile app.
• Personalize your journey: Our website’s “Tree-for-days” features, if applicable, adapt to your preferences, ensuring a more personalized experience on your Riq to Link Tours and Travels account.
• Create unique identifiers: We generate personal identifiers to distinguish you from other travelers, ensuring you receive the services and notifications that matter to you.
• Enhance communication: Whether it’s chat functionality, notifications, or updates about your tour, we use your information to keep you informed and engaged.
• Support our team: The details we gather help our staff provide smooth and efficient service, ensuring you get the most from your adventure.
• Optimize our services: We use analytics to ensure our technology (website, app) functions smoothly, providing you with uninterrupted access and improving your experience.
• Stay in touch: We send you important updates, security alerts, and notifications about your tours, ensuring you never miss an important detail.
• Offer continuous support: From resolving issues to answering your questions, we’re here to support you throughout your entire journey.

To Meet Legal Requirements and Run Our Business Smoothly

In some situations, we are obligated by law to use your personal information. This could include complying with local laws in the destinations you visit. Additionally, your information helps us manage the business internally, such as keeping our financial records in order.

To Tailor and Improve Our Marketing and Advertising

We want to keep you informed about exciting new tours, special offers, and other services that might interest you. Using your information, we personalize and improve our marketing efforts:

• Relevant updates: We send promotional messages based on your preferences and engage you through social media advertising on platforms you use.
• Personalized experiences: Your data helps us personalize the content and measure how well our marketing resonates with you.
• Exciting opportunities: We may invite you to participate in referral programs, rewards, surveys, sweepstakes, or special contests to enhance your Riq to Link Tours and Travels experience.
• Exclusive events: Be among the first to know about events and other unique opportunities tailored just for you.

3. How We Share Your Personal Information

There are certain situations where we may share your personal information with third parties. However, we always prioritize your privacy and take careful measures to ensure that any third parties we work with treat your information with the same level of care and security as we do. Rest assured, we will never sell, distribute, or share your personal details without your explicit consent, unless required or permitted by law. We may share your information under the following circumstances:

With Your Consent or Direction

When you grant us permission, we may share your information as outlined at the time of consent. This can include instances like authorizing a third-party application to access your account, using a third-party payment processor for transactions, or participating in promotions related to Riq to Link Tours and Travels.

With Service Providers for Tour Operations

To ensure we deliver the services you’ve requested, we may share your personal information with both affiliated and non-affiliated service providers. These providers assist with various aspects of your tour, such as:

• Accommodations: Booking and confirming lodging arrangements.
• Transportation: Coordinating travel logistics.
• Activities: Arranging and booking activities during the tour.
• Sales and Confirmations: Assisting with the booking and confirmation of your tour, including through travel agencies or our branded partners.

We also share necessary details with our internal staff and contractors, such as Chief Experience Officers (CEOs), to help us provide exceptional service. All third-party providers are contractually obligated to keep your personal information confidential and secure, and to use it only for the purposes we’ve specified. In certain cases, your information may be shared with government authorities, such as for visa or border crossing requirements.

With IT and Support Services

To help us operate, maintain, and enhance our services, we collaborate with various third-party providers who assist with technical functions, such as:

• Website and App Development: Ensuring the functionality of our platforms.
• Hosting and Storage: Managing technology infrastructure, backups, and data storage.
• Payment Processing: Facilitating secure payment transactions.

Additionally, we partner with marketing affiliates and service providers who help promote our tours, send promotional materials, generate leads, and assist with the sale of our services. These partners play a key role in reaching new customers and enhancing the visibility of our offerings.

Service Providers & Business Partners

Service providers and business partners that process personal information on our behalf do so exclusively for our purposes and must agree to certain privacy obligations in their contracts with us. These obligations include:

• Complying with Privacy Laws: Ensuring compliance with applicable privacy regulations.
• Safeguarding Personal Information: Taking measures to protect the security and confidentiality of your data.
• Processing Under Our Direction: Only processing personal information as directed by us and for the permitted purposes.

4. Retention of Data

Your personal information is stored securely and retained only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this Privacy Policy. If required by law, we will retain your data for a longer period, including any statutory claim limitation periods where your information may be relevant to potential legal obligations or liabilities. Once your information is no longer needed for business or legal purposes, we ensure it is securely disposed of.

If you would like more information on our data retention practices or have specific questions regarding the duration for which we keep your personal information, please contact our Privacy Officer using the details provided above.

How We Ensure Your Data is Protected

We take your privacy seriously and implement a variety of security measures to safeguard your personal information. This includes the use of encryption, secure servers, and strict access controls to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction of your data.

Your Rights Regarding Your Data

Depending on your location, you may have certain rights over your personal data, including the ability to:

• Request access to the personal information we hold about you.
• Request corrections or updates to your personal information if it is inaccurate or incomplete.
• Request the deletion of your personal information, subject to certain conditions.
• Object to the processing of your data or request restrictions on its processing in certain circumstances.
• Withdraw your consent at any time if we are relying on your consent to process your data.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, or if you have concerns regarding how we handle your personal data, please contact us as described above.

5. Security

Data Protection and Security Statement

At Riq to Link Tours and Travels, we are committed to safeguarding your personal information. We implement robust security measures designed to protect the personal data in our custody and control. These measures include a combination of administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to prevent unauthorized access, use, modification, or disclosure of your personal information.

In the event of an actual or suspected data breach, we have established procedures to address the situation promptly. We will notify you and any applicable regulatory authorities, if required by law. While we make every effort to ensure the security of your information, it's important to note that no method of transmitting data over the internet or through other publicly accessible networks is guaranteed to be 100% secure. As such, we cannot fully guarantee the security of any data transmitted through such channels.

6. Consent and Your Rights

As a resident of Kenya, you have the right to access, update, and correct any inaccuracies in your personal information that we hold, subject to certain legal exceptions. Below is a summary of the rights you can exercise:

• You have the right to request that we correct any inaccurate, incomplete, or outdated information that we hold about you.
• You may ask us to provide a copy of the personal information we hold about you, or request that we transfer your data to another service provider.
• You can request that we stop processing or using your personal information.
• You may request that we delete any or all of the information we hold about you.
• You may withdraw your consent for any processing we are conducting based on your previous consent.

As a Kenyan resident and non-resident, you also have the right to:

• Request to know what personal information we collect, use, and disclose, including information regarding the purposes of processing.
• Request that we stop using your information for direct marketing purposes.
• Object to the processing of your information if it is based on legitimate interests, and request that we restrict its use in such cases.

If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please contact our Privacy Officer using the method described below. We will take appropriate steps to address your request unless doing so would violate legal obligations or compromise our security interests or the rights of others.

Please note that exercising these rights may impact our ability to provide you with the services you have contracted for. We will inform you of any such consequences before proceeding with your request, or provide written reasons for any refusal.

7. Changes to this privacy policy

We may update this Policy periodically. Any changes will be posted on this page. Please review it regularly to stay informed.