Privacy Policy
Last updated: July 24, 2026
China Trekker ("we," "us," or "our") is committed to protecting your privacy. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal information when you visit our website (chinalocalhiking.com) or use our services, including guided tours, driver's license translation, custom trip planning, and related travel services.
By using our website or services, you agree to the practices described in this policy.
1. Information We Collect
Information You Provide Directly
- Contact details: Name, email address, phone number, and WhatsApp contact when you reach out for inquiries or bookings.
- Booking information: Travel dates, group size, nationality, passport details (for permit and translation services), dietary preferences, and special requests.
- Payment information: Credit/debit card details are handled securely by our payment processor (Stripe). We do not store your full card number on our servers.
- Communication records: Messages, emails, and chat transcripts between you and our team for service coordination.
Information Collected Automatically
- Usage data: Pages visited, time spent on pages, referring URLs, browser type, device type, and approximate location (country/city level) via analytics tools.
- Cookies: Small text files stored on your device to remember preferences and improve site performance.
- IP address: Collected for security, fraud prevention, and analytics purposes.
2. How We Use Your Information
- To provide and deliver the services you request (guided tours, translations, trip planning).
- To process payments securely through our payment processor.
- To communicate with you about your bookings, itineraries, and service updates.
- To respond to your inquiries and provide customer support.
- To improve our website, services, and user experience through analytics.
- To comply with legal obligations and prevent fraud.
- To send occasional travel tips or service updates (only if you opt in; you can unsubscribe anytime).
3. Legal Basis for Processing (GDPR)
For users in the European Economic Area (EEA), we process your personal data under the following legal bases:
- Contractual necessity: Processing your data to fulfill booking and service agreements.
- Consent: Processing data for marketing communications or non-essential cookies (you can withdraw consent anytime).
- Legal obligation: Complying with tax, immigration, or other regulatory requirements.
- Legitimate interest: Improving services, ensuring security, and preventing fraud.
4. Payment Data & Stripe
We use Stripe (stripe.com) as our payment processor. When you make a payment:
- Your card information is transmitted directly to Stripe via encrypted channels.
- We never see, store, or process your full card details on our servers.
- Stripe is PCI-DSS Level 1 certified (the highest security standard in the payment industry).
- For details on how Stripe handles your data, see the Stripe Privacy Policy.
Note: Passport and identification documents collected for driver's license translation and permit services are stored securely and deleted within 90 days after service completion, unless retention is required by law.
5. Cookies & Tracking Technologies
| Cookie Type |
Purpose |
Duration |
| Essential cookies |
Core site functionality (navigation, service worker for offline access) |
Session / persistent |
| Analytics cookies |
Understanding visitor behavior and site performance |
Up to 12 months |
| Preference cookies |
Remembering language and display preferences |
Up to 12 months |
You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling essential cookies may affect site functionality.
6. Data Sharing & Third Parties
We do not sell your personal data. We may share information with:
- Stripe: For processing payments (card data only).
- Cloudflare: For website security, performance optimization, and analytics.
- Trustpilot: If you are invited to leave a review after using our services (review content is public; personal data is handled per Trustpilot's policy).
- Service partners: Car rental companies, attractions, or hotels — only the information necessary to fulfill your specific booking (e.g., name and booking reference).
- Legal authorities: If required by law, court order, or government regulation.
7. Data Retention
- Booking records: Retained for 3 years for tax and legal compliance.
- Identity documents: Deleted within 90 days after service completion.
- Communication records: Retained for 2 years, then deleted.
- Analytics data: Aggregated and anonymized within 12 months.
8. Data Security
We implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect your data:
- HTTPS encryption (SSL/TLS) for all data transmitted between your browser and our servers.
- Cloudflare security suite (DDoS protection, WAF, bot mitigation).
- Access controls limiting data access to authorized personnel only.
- Regular security reviews and updates.
However, no method of transmission or storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security but commit to using industry-standard protections.
9. Your Rights
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the following rights:
- Access: Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
- Rectification: Request correction of inaccurate data.
- Erasure: Request deletion of your personal data (subject to legal retention requirements).
- Restriction: Request that we limit processing of your data.
- Portability: Receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format.
- Objection: Object to processing based on legitimate interest.
- Withdraw consent: Withdraw consent for processing that relied on your consent (e.g., marketing emails).
To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details below. We will respond within 30 days.
10. International Data Transfers
Your data may be processed in countries other than your own, including the United States (Stripe, Cloudflare) and China (our primary operations). We ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for cross-border data transfers, in compliance with applicable data protection laws.
11. Children's Privacy
Our services are not directed at children under 16. We do not knowingly collect personal information from minors. If you believe we have collected data from a child, please contact us immediately for deletion.
12. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes take effect upon posting to this page. We will note the updated date above. Material changes will be communicated via email or website notice when applicable.
13. Contact Us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or wish to exercise your data protection rights, please contact us: