Privacy Policy

We collect various types of information to provide and improve our travel services:

A. Information You Provide Directly

The only information you provide directly through this website is what you type into a request form on the site. Those forms ask for:

• Your name.
• Your phone number.
• Your email address.
• A destination or service selection from a drop-down list.
• An optional free-text message describing your travel plans.

Some pages also ask for the number of passengers, a departure city, and approximate travel dates. Nothing else is requested by the website.

This website never asks for and never collects payment card details, passport numbers, dates of birth, or government-issued identification. There is no payment form and no document upload anywhere on this site.

When you go on to book travel, we do need some of that information — passport details for international itineraries, dates of birth where an airline or cruise line requires them, and payment details to pay a supplier. We collect those separately, by phone, email, text message, or in person, and never through this website.

B. Booking and Travel Information

• Flight details, hotel reservations, cruise bookings, tour arrangements.
• Travel dates, destinations, passenger manifests.
• Loyalty program memberships and frequent flyer numbers.

C. Payment Information

• Payment card details are never entered on this website. They are taken by your advisor, or entered by you directly into a supplier's or payment processor's own secure system.
• Billing address and payment confirmation details are handled the same way.
• We do not store complete payment card information on our servers.

D. Information Collected Automatically

• Device Information: IP address, browser type, operating system, device identifiers.
• Usage Data: Pages visited, time spent on site, click patterns, referring URLs.
• Location Data: General geographic location based on IP address.

E. Communications

• Records of emails, phone calls, chat messages, and other correspondence.
• Customer service inquiries and support tickets.
• Feedback, reviews, and survey responses.

F. Information About Other Travelers

• When booking for others, you provide their personal information and represent that you have authorization to do so.
• We collect the same categories of information for all travelers in your party.

A. Direct Collection

• Information you provide through website forms, phone calls, emails, or in-person consultations.
• Data entered during the booking process or account registration.

B. Automated Technologies

• Cookies: Small data files stored on your device to enhance user experience and track usage.
• Web Beacons: Electronic images that help us count users and track email opens.
• Analytics Tools: Third-party services like Google Analytics to understand website traffic.

C. Third-Party Sources

• Travel Providers (airlines, hotels, cruise lines) with whom you have existing relationships.
• Business partners and affiliate programs.
• Publicly available sources for verification purposes.

A. To Provide Travel Services

• Process bookings, reservations, and payments.
• Communicate booking confirmations, itinerary changes, and travel updates.
• Arrange special requests and accessibility accommodations.

B. For Payment Processing

• Charge for travel services and process refunds.
• Verify payment information and prevent fraud.

C. To Communicate With You

• Send travel documents, boarding passes, and vouchers.
• Provide customer support and respond to inquiries.
• Send service-related notifications (not marketing).

D. For Marketing (With Consent)

• Send promotional offers, travel deals, and newsletters (only if you opt in).
• Personalize marketing communications based on your travel preferences.

E. To Improve Our Website and Services

• Analyze usage patterns to enhance user experience.
• Develop new features and service offerings.
• Troubleshoot technical issues.

F. For Security and Legal Compliance

• Protect against fraud, unauthorized transactions, and security breaches.
• Comply with legal obligations, court orders, and regulatory requirements.
• Enforce our Terms and Conditions.

We process your personal information based on the following legal grounds:

• Performance of Contract: Processing necessary to fulfill your travel bookings.
• Consent: Where you have explicitly agreed to specific uses (e.g., marketing communications).
• Legal Obligation: Compliance with laws requiring data retention or disclosure.
• Legitimate Interests: Business operations, fraud prevention, and service improvement, balanced against your privacy rights.

Uses of Cookies

• Remember your preferences and settings.
• Authenticate users and maintain secure sessions.
• Analyze website traffic and user behavior.
• Deliver relevant advertising (with consent).

Types of Cookies We Use

• Essential Cookies: Required for website functionality; cannot be disabled.
• Performance Cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our website.
• Functional Cookies: Enable enhanced features and personalization.
• Targeting Cookies: Used for advertising and marketing purposes.

You can manage cookie preferences through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may affect website functionality.

SMS Disclosures

• You consent to receive text messages from us only by checking the SMS consent box on our website forms; providing your phone number alone does not enroll you in text messaging. Consented messages may include updates about your travel requests, bookings, flights, and travel alerts.
• Message frequency varies based on your travel activity.
• Message and data rates may apply according to your carrier plan.
• No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.

Opt-Out Instructions

You can stop all text messages from us at any time by replying STOP to any message. You may receive one final message confirming that you have opted out; after that, we will send no further text messages to your number unless you opt back in. If you have an active booking, we will send any essential updates by email or phone instead. Text HELP at any time for assistance.

SMS/Text Messaging Privacy

• We collect phone numbers only when voluntarily provided through our website forms with explicit consent (checkbox).
• Phone numbers and SMS consent are used solely to communicate about travel requests, bookings, payments, trip updates, and — where separately consented — promotional offers.
• SMS consent is not shared with third parties or affiliates. All other categories of information described in this Privacy Policy exclude text messaging originator opt-in data and consent; this information will not be shared with any third parties.
• Opt out any time by replying STOP; text HELP for assistance.

SMS opt-in data is never shared. No mobile information will be shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes. All sharing categories described in this section exclude text messaging originator opt-in data and consent; this information will not be shared with any third parties.

A. Travel Suppliers

• Airlines, hotels, cruise lines, tour operators, and car rental companies require passenger information to fulfill bookings.
• Shared information includes name, contact details, passport information, and travel preferences.

B. Payment Processors

• Secure third-party processors handle all payment transactions.
• Your full credit card number is never stored on our servers.

C. Service Providers

• IT infrastructure, data hosting, customer support platforms, and analytics providers.
• All service providers are contractually bound to protect your information.

D. Advertising Partners

• With your consent, we may share limited data for targeted advertising. This never includes phone numbers, SMS opt-in data, or consent.
• You can opt out of targeted advertising through industry opt-out tools.

E. Legal and Regulatory Disclosure

• When required by law, court order, or government request.
• To protect our rights, property, or safety, or that of our customers.
• In connection with fraud prevention and investigation.

F. Business Transfers

If Piccola Travel is involved in a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction. You will be notified of any such change in ownership.

Sharing for advertising, and how to prevent it. Under the California Privacy Rights Act and similar state laws, letting an advertising company observe your activity on our website counts as "sharing" your personal information, even when no money changes hands.

One tool on this site does that: the Meta Pixel. If you click Accept on our cookie banner, the pixel loads and tells Meta which pages you viewed on this site, so that we can measure and target advertising. That is sharing, and we disclose it here.

If you click Decline, the pixel is never loaded and nothing about your visit is shared with Meta. Declining is the complete opt-out — there is no separate form to submit. Your choice is stored in your own browser and you can change it at any time by clearing this site's data, which brings the banner back.

We do not sell your personal information, and we do not share the contents of your form submissions with advertisers.

Piccola Travel utilizes AI and automated technologies to enhance service delivery:

• Data Organization: Automated tools categorize and organize booking information for efficient processing.
• Processing Efficiencies: Workflow automation streamlines routine tasks and document generation.
• Web Customization: AI-powered personalization tailors website content and recommendations.
• Human Oversight: All significant travel decisions, itinerary validations, and rate assignments are reviewed and approved by qualified travel advisors.

We do not use automated decision-making that produces legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affects you without human intervention.

We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your personal information:

• Encryption: SSL/TLS encryption for data transmission; encryption at rest for stored data.
• Access Controls: Role-based access limitations and multi-factor authentication for staff.
• Regular Audits: Security assessments and vulnerability testing conducted periodically.
• Incident Response: Established procedures for detecting, responding to, and reporting security breaches.
• Staff Training: Regular privacy and security training for all employees handling personal data.

No method of transmission over the internet is 100% secure. While we strive to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Your information may be transferred to and processed in countries other than your country of residence:

• Travel bookings often require data sharing with international suppliers (airlines, hotels) in your destination countries.
• We use service providers that may store data in various global locations.
• When transferring data internationally, we implement appropriate safeguards including:
• Standard Contractual Clauses approved by relevant authorities.
• Adequacy decisions where applicable jurisdictions are recognized.

By using our services and booking international travel, you consent to such transfers necessary to fulfill your travel arrangements.

Our services are not directed to children under 16 years of age, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children:

• If we discover that a child under 16 has provided us with personal information, we will promptly delete it.
• Children may travel as part of family bookings; their information is collected only as necessary for travel arrangements with parental consent.
• Parents or guardians may contact us to review, correct, or request deletion of information related to their children.

We retain your personal information for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes outlined in this policy:

• Active Bookings: Duration of travel plus any post-travel support period.
• Legal Requirements: Retention periods required by tax, accounting, and travel industry regulations.
• Business Needs: Reasonable periods for resolving disputes, enforcing agreements, and improving services.
• Marketing Consent: Until you withdraw consent or we cease marketing activities.

When information is no longer needed, we securely delete or anonymize it in accordance with our data retention schedule.

Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your personal information:

• Access: Request copies of the personal information we hold about you.
• Correction: Request that we correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
• Deletion: Request deletion of your personal information in certain circumstances.
• Portability: Request transfer of your data to another service provider.
• Restriction: Request limitation of how we process your information.
• Objection: Object to certain processing activities, including marketing.
• Withdraw Consent: Withdraw previously given consent at any time.

How to Exercise Your Rights

Contact us using the information in Section 16. We will respond within applicable legal timeframes. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

Our website and services may contain links to third-party websites and services:

• Travel Provider websites (airlines, hotels, cruise lines) operate independently with their own privacy policies.
• Social media platforms and sharing features are governed by their respective privacy terms.
• We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites or services.

We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit through our platform.

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements:

• The "Last Updated" date at the top of this policy indicates the most recent revision.
• Material changes will be communicated via email or website notice.
• Continued use of our services after policy changes constitutes acceptance of the revised terms.

We encourage you to review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we protect your information.

If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data practices, please contact us: