Privacy Policy

1. Information We Collect

Personal Data

When you create an account or make a booking through The Travel Center, we collect information you provide directly, including:

• Full name, email address, phone number, and date of birth
• Passport or government-issued identification details (as required for flight bookings)
• Billing and payment information (processed securely via our payment partners)
• Postal address and nationality

Booking Data

We collect details related to your travel bookings, including:

• Flight itineraries, travel dates, cabin class preferences, and seat selections
• Frequent flyer numbers and loyalty programme details
• Special service requests (dietary requirements, accessibility needs, etc.)
• Booking confirmation numbers and ticket references

Usage Data

We automatically collect certain information when you access our platform:

• IP address, browser type, device information, and operating system
• Pages viewed, search queries, and interaction patterns
• Referring URLs, session duration, and click data
• Geolocation data (with your consent)

Cookies & Similar Technologies

We use cookies, web beacons, and similar tracking technologies to enhance your experience, analyse usage patterns, and personalise content. For full details, please see our Cookie Policy.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use the information we collect for the following purposes:

Booking Processing

• Processing and managing your flight reservations and bookings
• Issuing tickets and sending booking confirmations
• Facilitating payment transactions securely
• Providing customer support related to your bookings

Communication

• Sending booking confirmations, itinerary updates, and flight status notifications
• Responding to your enquiries and support requests
• Sending marketing communications (with your consent), including newsletters and promotional offers

Service Improvement

• Analysing usage patterns to improve our platform and services
• Personalising your search results and recommendations
• Conducting research and analytics to enhance user experience

Legal Compliance

• Complying with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes
• Preventing fraud, security threats, and unauthorised activities
• Enforcing our terms of service and protecting our rights

3. Data Sharing

We do not sell your personal data to third parties. We may share your information with the following categories of recipients, only as necessary to provide our services:

Airlines & Travel Partners

We share the booking and passenger information required by airlines to process your reservations, issue tickets, and fulfil your travel itinerary. This includes your name, contact details, passport information, and any special service requests.

Payment Processors

Your payment information is securely transmitted to our PCI DSS-compliant payment processing partners to complete transactions. We do not store your full credit card details on our servers.

Legal Requirements

We may disclose your information when required by law, court order, or governmental regulation, or when we believe disclosure is necessary to protect our rights, your safety, or the safety of others.

Service Providers

We engage trusted third-party service providers who assist us with hosting, analytics, customer support, and email delivery. These providers are contractually bound to protect your data and use it only for the purposes we specify.

4. Data Security

We take the security of your personal data seriously and implement industry-standard measures to protect it:

• Encryption: All data transmitted between your browser and our servers is encrypted using TLS/SSL (256-bit encryption). Sensitive data at rest is also encrypted.
• Secure Servers: Our infrastructure is hosted on enterprise-grade servers with firewalls, intrusion detection systems, and regular security audits.
• Access Controls: Access to personal data is strictly limited to authorised personnel who require it to perform their duties, and is protected by multi-factor authentication.
• Regular Audits: We conduct periodic security assessments and penetration testing to identify and address potential vulnerabilities.

While we strive to protect your personal data, no method of transmission over the Internet or electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but are committed to taking all reasonable steps to safeguard your information.

5. Your Rights

Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and applicable data protection laws, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

• Right of Access: You may request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Right to Rectification: You may request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
• Right to Erasure: You may request the deletion of your personal data, subject to legal and contractual obligations.
• Right to Data Portability: You may request your personal data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format for transfer to another provider.
• Right to Object: You may object to the processing of your personal data for direct marketing purposes or where processing is based on legitimate interests.
• Right to Restrict Processing: You may request that we restrict the processing of your data in certain circumstances.
• Right to Withdraw Consent: Where we rely on your consent to process data, you may withdraw it at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact our Data Protection Officer at dpo@travelcenter.us. We will respond to your request within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

6. Cookies & Tracking

We use cookies and similar technologies on our platform. Cookies are small text files stored on your device that help us provide and improve our services.

Types of Cookies We Use

• Essential Cookies: Required for the platform to function correctly (e.g., session management, security tokens, shopping cart functionality).
• Functional Cookies: Remember your preferences such as language, currency, and search settings to enhance your experience.
• Analytics Cookies: Help us understand how visitors interact with our platform, which pages are most popular, and how to improve performance.
• Marketing Cookies: Used to deliver relevant advertisements and track the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns.

Managing Cookies

You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings. Most browsers allow you to block or delete cookies, though this may affect the functionality of our platform. For more information, please see our Cookie Policy.

7. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected:

• Account Data: Retained for the duration of your account and for up to 3 years after account closure.
• Booking Data: Retained for up to 7 years after the travel date to comply with tax, accounting, and legal obligations.
• Payment Records: Retained for up to 10 years in compliance with financial regulations.
• Usage Data: Generally retained for up to 26 months for analytics purposes.
• Marketing Preferences: Retained until you withdraw consent or unsubscribe.

When retention periods expire, your data is securely deleted or anonymised so that it can no longer be associated with you.

8. International Transfers

As a travel booking platform operating globally, your personal data may be transferred to and processed in countries outside the European Economic Area (EEA). When such transfers occur, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place:

• Transfers to countries with an EU adequacy decision
• Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) approved by the European Commission
• Binding Corporate Rules where applicable
• Your explicit consent for specific transfers (e.g., when booking flights to non-EEA destinations)

Airline partners and travel service providers may process your data in the country of departure or destination as required to fulfil your booking. This transfer is necessary for the performance of your travel contract.

9. Children's Privacy

The Travel Center is not intended for use by individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 18 years of age. If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal information without your consent, please contact us immediately at dpo@travelcenter.us.

If we become aware that we have collected personal data from a child under 18, we will take steps to delete that information as promptly as possible.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, technology, legal requirements, or other factors. When we make material changes, we will:

• Update the "Effective Date" at the top of this page
• Notify you via email (if you have an account) or by placing a prominent notice on our platform
• Where required by law, seek your consent to the updated terms

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we protect your information.

11. Contact Us

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