Privacy Policy.

What we collect.

Monthly Travel Guide (the "Site," "we," "us," "our") collects three categories of information:

(a) Information you give us directly

• Email address — when you subscribe to our newsletter, leave a comment, or contact us through a form.
• Name and contact details — when you write to us, comment under an article, or pitch a destination.
• Billing information — when you purchase a digital product. Payment details (card number, expiry, CVC) are handled directly by our payment processors (Stripe, via Payhip) and never reach our servers.
• Any content you submit voluntarily — comments, pitches, photos, or messages.

(b) Information collected automatically

• Device and browser data — browser type and version, operating system, screen resolution, language preference.
• Connection data — IP address (used for security and approximate geographic location), referring URL, the time and date of your visit.
• Usage data — which pages you read, how long you stay, what you click, your scroll depth, and the path you take through the Site.

(c) Information from third parties

• Payment confirmation data from Payhip / Stripe (the fact of a successful purchase, the amount, the order reference — not your full payment details).
• Aggregated analytics from Google Analytics and Google AdSense about visitor behavior across the Site.
• Affiliate referral data from third-party programs when a reader you referred completes a booking or purchase.

We do not knowingly collect "special category" personal data (health, religion, political views, sexual orientation, biometric data) and we ask that you do not send any such information to us through forms or emails.

How we use your information.

We use the information described in Section 01 for the following purposes:

• To deliver the Site and our products — including processing purchases, delivering digital downloads, and providing customer support.
• To communicate with you — responding to your inquiries, sending order confirmations, and sending newsletters and updates if you have subscribed.
• To improve the Site — analyzing how readers use our content so we can make it better, more useful, and faster.
• To serve relevant advertising — through Google AdSense and related ad networks. See Section 04 for full detail on advertising cookies.
• To protect the Site — detecting fraud, abuse, and security threats; preventing spam; and enforcing our Terms of Service.
• To comply with legal obligations — including tax record-keeping, responding to lawful requests from authorities, and resolving disputes.

We will not use your information for any purpose that is materially different from the purposes listed above without first asking your consent.

Legal basis for processing.

If you are located in the European Economic Area, the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, our processing of your personal data is justified under the following legal bases of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR):

• Consent (Article 6(1)(a)) — for newsletter subscriptions, non-essential cookies, and marketing communications. You may withdraw your consent at any time without affecting the lawfulness of prior processing.
• Performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b)) — when processing is necessary to deliver a digital product you have purchased or to respond to a request you have made.
• Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f)) — for site analytics, security, fraud prevention, and the general improvement of our service, where these interests are not overridden by your fundamental rights.
• Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c)) — for tax record-keeping, responses to lawful authority requests, and similar compliance matters.

Where we rely on legitimate interests, you have the right to object — see Section 06.

Cookies and similar technologies.

A cookie is a small text file that a website stores on your device to remember information about you or your visit. We use cookies and similar technologies (pixel tags, web beacons, local storage) for the following purposes:

Strictly necessary

Required for the Site to function — for example, to remember the items in your cart at checkout, to keep you logged in if you have an account, or to remember your cookie preferences. These cannot be disabled.

Analytics and performance

We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how visitors interact with the Site (which pages are read, how long people stay, where they click). IP addresses are anonymized where supported. You can opt out by installing the Google Analytics Opt-Out Browser Add-on.

Advertising

We use Google AdSense to display advertisements on the Site.

We may also use the Meta Pixel (Facebook / Instagram) to measure and improve the effectiveness of our advertising and content distribution on Meta platforms.

Affiliate tracking

When you click an affiliate link on the Site (for example, a link to Booking.com, Stay22, Amazon, SafetyWing, Airalo, GetYourGuide, or Viator), the third party may place a cookie on your device to credit Monthly Travel Guide with the referral if you subsequently complete a purchase. These cookies are governed by the third party's own privacy policy.

Managing cookies

On your first visit you will see a cookie consent banner that lets you accept or refuse non-essential cookies. You can change your preferences at any time through the cookie settings link in the Site footer.

You can also control cookies through your browser settings — most browsers allow you to refuse or delete cookies. Disabling all cookies may affect the functionality of the Site.

Third-party services and recipients.

We do not sell your personal data. We share it only with the providers that help us operate the Site, deliver our products, and serve our content — each of whom is bound by their own privacy obligations and applicable data-processing agreements.

Service providers we use

• Hosting and infrastructure — our hosting provider, which stores and serves the Site.
• Payhip — our digital-product checkout and delivery platform. See Payhip's Privacy Policy.
• Stripe — payment processing on behalf of Payhip. See Stripe's Privacy Policy.
• PayPal — alternative payment option at checkout. See PayPal's Privacy Policy.
• MailerLite — our newsletter and email delivery provider. See MailerLite's Privacy Policy.
• Google LLC — for Analytics, AdSense, Search Console, and Site Kit. See Google's Privacy Policy.
• Meta Platforms, Inc. — for the Meta Pixel and related advertising and analytics. See Meta's Privacy Policy.
• Affiliate program partners — Booking.com, Stay22, Amazon, SafetyWing, Heymondo, Airalo, GetYourGuide, Viator, and similar referral programs.

Legal disclosures

We may disclose your personal information where required to do so by law or in response to a valid request by a public authority (court order, subpoena, regulatory request), to enforce our Terms of Service, to protect our rights, property, or safety, or to protect the rights, property, or safety of others.

Business transfers

If Monthly Travel Guide is involved in a merger, acquisition, sale of assets, or transfer of operations, your personal data may be transferred to the successor entity, subject to the protections of this Privacy Policy.

Your rights and choices.

You have meaningful control over the personal data we hold about you. The specific rights available to you depend on where you live.

Everyone

• Unsubscribe from emails — every newsletter contains a one-click unsubscribe link in the footer.
• Update or correct your information — email us with the change.
• Request deletion — email us and we will delete your data, subject to the retention obligations in Section 08.
• Manage cookies — through the cookie consent banner, the cookie settings link in the footer, and your browser settings.
• Opt out of personalized advertising — through Google Ads Settings and aboutads.info/choices.

European Economic Area, United Kingdom, Switzerland (GDPR / UK-GDPR)

You have the right to:

• Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you.
• Rectification — ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data.
• Erasure — ask us to delete your personal data ("right to be forgotten").
• Restriction of processing — ask us to limit how we use your data.
• Data portability — receive your data in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format.
• Object to processing — particularly to processing based on legitimate interests, or for direct marketing.
• Withdraw consent — at any time, where processing is based on your consent.
• Lodge a complaint with your national data protection supervisory authority. You can find yours at edpb.europa.eu.

California residents (CCPA / CPRA)

You have the right to:

• Know what categories of personal information we have collected about you, the sources, the purposes, and the categories of third parties with whom we share it.
• Delete personal information we have collected from you, subject to certain exceptions.
• Correct inaccurate personal information.
• Opt out of the "sale" or "sharing" of personal information. We do not sell personal information. We may, however, "share" personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising as defined by California law, and you may opt out by adjusting your cookie preferences and Google Ads Settings.
• Non-discrimination — we will not deny you service, charge you more, or provide a lower quality of service because you exercise these rights.

How to exercise your rights

Email us at contact@monthlytravelguide.com from the email address associated with your account or subscription, with a clear description of your request. We may need to verify your identity before fulfilling the request. We will respond within 30 days (or within the timeframe required by applicable law).

Security of your information.

We implement commercially reasonable technical and organizational measures designed to protect your personal information against unauthorized access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. These include:

• HTTPS encryption (TLS) on every page of the Site.
• Reputable hosting infrastructure with industry-standard security controls.
• Payment processing handled exclusively by PCI-DSS compliant providers (Stripe via Payhip); we do not store full payment card details on our own servers.
• Restricted access to personal data — only authorized personnel with a legitimate operational need.
• Regular software updates, security plugin coverage, and automated backups.

That said: no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security. If a breach occurs that affects your personal data, we will notify you and the relevant supervisory authorities where required to do so by law.

How long we keep your data.

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfill the purposes for which it was collected, satisfy legal or regulatory requirements, resolve disputes, and enforce our agreements. Indicative retention periods:

After the relevant retention period ends, your data is securely deleted or fully anonymized.

International data transfers.

Monthly Travel Guide operates online and uses service providers based in multiple jurisdictions, including the United States. This means that your personal data may be transferred to, stored in, or processed in countries outside your country of residence — including countries that may not provide the same level of data protection as your home jurisdiction.

Where personal data of EEA, UK, or Swiss residents is transferred to a country that has not received an adequacy decision from the European Commission, we rely on appropriate safeguards — typically the European Commission's Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) or equivalent mechanisms — as the basis for the transfer.

By using the Site or providing us with your personal data, you acknowledge this international transfer and processing.

Children's privacy.

The Site is not directed to, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from, children under the age of 13 (or under the age of 16 in jurisdictions where that is the applicable threshold under data protection law).

If you are a parent or guardian and you believe that your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us at contact@monthlytravelguide.com and we will take prompt steps to delete the information from our records.

Links to third-party sites.

The Site contains links to external websites operated by third parties — including hotel booking platforms, tour operators, retailers, and other publications. These third-party sites have their own privacy policies and data-processing practices, and Monthly Travel Guide has no responsibility or liability for the content, practices, or policies of those sites.

We encourage you to read the privacy policy of any third-party site you visit before providing personal information to it.

Changes to this Privacy Policy.

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time — to reflect changes in our practices, in the services we use, or in applicable law. When we do:

• The "Last updated" date at the top of this page will be revised.
• Material changes will be flagged on the Site for at least 14 days (for example, through a homepage banner or newsletter notice).
• If a change materially affects the way we process data for which you have provided consent, we will seek your renewed consent before the change applies to your data.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of the Site after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Policy.

Contact.

For any question concerning this Privacy Policy, to exercise any of the rights described in Section 06, or to report a privacy concern:

Email: contact@monthlytravelguide.com

We aim to respond within three business days, and in any event within the timeframe required by applicable law (typically 30 days for formal data-subject requests).

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may lodge a complaint with the data protection supervisory authority in your country.