1. Purpose and scope
This Privacy Policy explains how Himalayan Locals collects, uses, shares, stores and protects personal information when you visit https://www.himalayanlocals.com, enquire about a trip, communicate with us on WhatsApp, submit a contact form, make a booking or complete a payment.
The policy is written in a GDPR-style structure so travellers, payment gateways and service partners can understand the purpose, lawful basis, retention approach and rights attached to each category of personal data.
2. Who we are
- Brand: Himalayan Locals
- Business type: Premium adventure travel company offering motorcycle expeditions, SUV tours, trekking experiences, cultural journeys and community-based tourism across Ladakh, Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir and other Himalayan regions.
- Website: https://www.himalayanlocals.com
- Email: team@himalayanlocals.com
- Phone / WhatsApp: +91 95015 09591
3. Data we collect
Identity and contact data
- Name, email address, phone number, city, country and preferred contact channel.
- Emergency contact details where required for expedition safety.
Enquiry and booking data
- Trip selected, travel dates, group size, package tier, pickup/drop preferences and rooming requests.
- Dietary preferences, fitness notes, medical declarations and special assistance requests relevant to safe trip operation.
Payment and transaction data
- Payment amount, order ID, payment status, transaction reference, invoice details and payment gateway confirmation.
- We do not store full card numbers, CVV, UPI PINs or net-banking credentials. These are processed by secure third-party payment providers.
Technical and usage data
- IP address, browser type, device type, pages viewed, referral source, approximate location, cookies and analytics events.
- Website logs used for security, troubleshooting and performance improvement.
4. Contact forms, WhatsApp and phone enquiries
When you submit a contact form, click a WhatsApp enquiry button, call us or message our team, we collect the information you choose to share so we can respond, suggest suitable trips, prepare quotes and follow up on bookings.
WhatsApp messages and call notes may include travel preferences, questions, payment status updates and operational details. These are used only for enquiry handling, booking support, service delivery and customer care.
5. How we use your information
- To respond to enquiries and send trip recommendations, quotes and itineraries.
- To create booking records, confirm seats, issue payment links and send confirmations.
- To coordinate stays, transport, guides, permits, emergency support and operational logistics.
- To process payments, invoices, refunds, credit notes and accounting records.
- To send essential trip updates through email, phone, SMS or WhatsApp.
- To improve website performance, user experience, fraud prevention and customer support.
- To comply with tax, accounting, legal, safety and government requirements.
6. Lawful basis for processing
Contract
- We process booking, payment and travel details to provide the trip or service you requested.
Consent
- We use consent for optional marketing communications, non-essential cookies and voluntary medical or preference disclosures.
Legitimate interest
- We use limited data for enquiry follow-up, service improvement, security monitoring and fraud prevention.
Legal obligation
- We retain invoices, tax records and transaction details where required by Indian law or lawful authority requests.
7. Payment processing
Online payments are processed through secure third-party payment gateways and banking partners. Card, UPI and net-banking credentials are entered directly on the payment provider's secure environment and are not stored by Himalayan Locals.
We receive only the information needed to reconcile your booking, such as transaction status, payment ID, amount, timestamp and refund status.
8. Cookies and analytics
We use cookies and similar technologies to keep the website functional, remember preferences, understand traffic, measure campaign performance and improve trip discovery. You can disable cookies through your browser settings, though some website features may not work as expected.
- Essential cookies: required for core website and booking flow functionality.
- Analytics cookies: help us understand how visitors use pages and improve content.
- Marketing cookies: may be used only where enabled for campaign measurement or remarketing.
9. Third-party integrations
We may share limited information with trusted service providers only where necessary.
We do not sell personal data. Partners receive only the information needed for their role in the service.
- Payment gateways and banking partners for payment collection, refunds and fraud checks.
- Email, SMS, WhatsApp or CRM tools for enquiry and booking communication.
- Hotels, homestays, transport providers, guides and permit coordinators for trip delivery.
- Analytics, hosting, security and website performance providers.
- Government authorities, insurers or emergency responders when legally required or safety-critical.
10. Email and phone usage
We use your email address and phone number to respond to enquiries, share itineraries, send payment links, confirm bookings, provide pre-trip instructions, coordinate during the trip and resolve post-trip support issues.
Marketing messages are sent only where permitted or where you have shown interest in our services. You may opt out by asking us on email or WhatsApp.
11. Data retention
- Enquiry data is normally retained for up to 24 months unless you request deletion earlier or a booking is created.
- Booking, payment, invoice and tax records may be retained for the period required under applicable Indian laws and accounting rules.
- Medical, fitness and emergency information is kept only for the trip lifecycle and a reasonable safety/dispute-resolution period.
- Website analytics may be retained in aggregated or pseudonymised form for performance analysis.
12. Security measures
- SSL/HTTPS encryption across the website.
- Role-based access to booking and customer information.
- Use of secure payment gateway infrastructure for online transactions.
- Internal controls to limit data access to staff or partners who need it for service delivery.
13. Your rights
Subject to applicable law, you may request:
To exercise these rights, contact team@himalayanlocals.com. We may verify your identity before acting on a request.
- Access to the personal data we hold about you.
- Correction of inaccurate or incomplete data.
- Deletion of data that is no longer required, except where retention is legally necessary.
- Restriction or objection to certain processing activities.
- Withdrawal of consent for optional communications or non-essential processing.
- A copy of key booking or payment data in a reasonable format.
14. International travellers
If you are located outside India, you understand that your information may be processed in India and by technology providers in other jurisdictions. We use reasonable contractual and technical safeguards when working with such providers.
15. Updates and contact
We may update this Privacy Policy as our website, payment flow, integrations or legal obligations change. The latest version will always be published on this page.
- Email: team@himalayanlocals.com
- Phone / WhatsApp: +91 95015 09591