Privacy Policy

Vhana Expeditions, including Vhana Indonesia Expeditions and Vhana Polar (together, "Vhana," "we," "us," or "our") respect your privacy and are committed to handling your personal information responsibly. This Privacy Policy explains what information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the choices available to you.

By visiting our website, contacting us, or booking a trip with us, you agree to the terms described below. If you do not agree with this policy, please do not share personal information with us or use our services.

Questions about this policy can be sent to privacy@vhanaexpeditions.com.

1. Information We Collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

• Identity & contact details — name, date of birth, address, phone number, email, nationality, and passport information
• Travel-specific details — health or dietary needs relevant to your trip, travel insurance details, flight and accommodation preferences, and information about travel companions
• Payment information — credit card or other payment details needed to process bookings
• Your communications with us — inquiries, feedback, trip reviews, and any photos or journal entries you choose to share
• Website activity — IP address, browser type, pages viewed, and referring sites, gathered automatically through cookies and similar tools

If you are a travel advisor or partner agency working with us, we also collect professional details such as your business name, contact information, and booking credentials so we can process reservations and issue commissions correctly.

If you apply for a role with Vhana, we collect the information included in your application — such as your resume, cover letter, and relevant background — solely to evaluate your candidacy.

2. How We Use Your Information

We use personal information to:

• Respond to inquiries and prepare trip proposals
• Process bookings and coordinate with hotels, cruise operators, airlines, guides, and other suppliers on your behalf
• Send trip documentation, updates, and important travel notifications
• Improve our services, offerings, and website experience
• Send marketing communications, where you've agreed to receive them
• Meet our legal, accounting, and regulatory obligations
• Protect the safety of our travelers, staff, and partners

We only use your information for purposes consistent with why it was collected, unless we have your consent to do otherwise or are required by law.

3. Who We Share Information With

Planning and running an expedition requires coordination with outside partners. We may share relevant personal information with:

• Small ship operators and cruise lines
• Hotels, lodges, and accommodation providers
• Airlines and ground transportation providers
• Local guides, outfitters, and tour operators
• Travel insurance providers
• Payment processors and financial institutions
• Marketing, analytics, and IT service providers who support our operations

These partners receive only the information necessary to deliver your trip or the specific service involved, and they are subject to their own privacy practices, which we encourage you to review.

We may also disclose information where required by law, to protect the rights and safety of our travelers or staff, or in connection with a business transfer such as a merger or acquisition. If a change of ownership meaningfully affects how your data is used, we will notify you.

4. Cookies & Website Data

Vhana Indonesia Expeditions uses cookies and similar tools on this site to help things run smoothly and to understand how our site is used. Some of these tools are essential for the site to function properly. Others help us personalize your experience, measure how our pages perform, and where you've given consent show you content and offers relevant to your interests.

Information collected this way may include details about your browsing activity, the device you're using, and cookie identifiers linked to your visit. Except for cookies required for basic site functionality (and, in some cases, essential traffic measurement), we'll only use these technologies with your permission.

You're in control. You can change your preferences at any time using our cookie settings tool, available in the footer of every page under "Privacy Settings." If you choose not to consent, we'll treat that as an objection to all optional cookie use, including uses some partners may otherwise consider a legitimate business interest. Please note that declining cookies may limit certain features of the site or affect how well it performs for you.

We and our service partners may use data for:

• Site functionality and security
• Performance and analytics
• Marketing communications
• Personalized content and advertising
• Measuring the effectiveness of ads and content
• Audience insights and service improvement
• General or precise location data, where enabled
• Location-based marketing and research

To review or change your preferences, visit Privacy Settings at the bottom of any page, or read this Privacy Policy for more on how your information is used and how to object to specific processing. The same policy is published on Vhana Expeditions.

5. Data Security

We use administrative, technical, and physical safeguards — including encryption, secure servers, and restricted access — to protect the personal information we hold. Access is limited to Vhana staff and partners who need it to deliver your travel services.

No system can be guaranteed 100% secure, and we cannot promise absolute protection against unauthorized access, but we continually review and update our security practices.

6. Data Retention

We retain personal information only as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes described in this policy, complete your travel arrangements, or comply with legal and accounting obligations. Once your trip is complete, we retain information related to marketing communications only until you opt out or request deletion. Job applicant records are kept for up to one year unless otherwise required.

7. Your Rights & Choices

You may:

• Manage cookies — open Privacy Settings in the footer of any page to accept, reject, or change optional cookies
• Unsubscribe from marketing emails at any time using the link in any newsletter, or by emailing unsubscribe@vhanaexpeditions.com
• Request access, correction, or deletion of your personal information by contacting privacy@vhanaexpeditions.com
• Ask how your information is shared, consistent with applicable law in your place of residence
• Request a copy of your data, or ask that we restrict certain uses of it, where local law provides this right

If you booked through an independent travel advisor rather than directly with us, please contact them first regarding changes to your personal information, as they may hold the primary record.

8. SMS Communications

If you opt in to receive text messages from Vhana, you consent to receive trip reminders, booking updates, and travel notifications by SMS. We do not share your phone number with third parties for marketing purposes. Message and data rates may apply, and frequency may vary. Reply STOP to opt out or HELP for assistance at any time.

9. Children's Privacy

Our services are intended for adults arranging travel. We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children, though information about minors traveling with a family group may be provided by a parent or guardian for booking purposes.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy periodically to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. The effective date at the top of this page indicates when it was last revised. Continued use of our services after an update constitutes acceptance of the revised policy.

11. Contact Us

Vhana Expeditions
Email: privacy@vhanaexpeditions.com
Phone: +1 786 591 9700

If you have concerns about how we've handled your information, we'll aim to respond within a reasonable time. If you're not satisfied with our response, you may be entitled to contact your local data protection authority.