Privacy Policy

Effective 2026-10-06 · Tour Us Travel LLC

Tour Us Travel helps travelers find people and recommendations nearby. This policy explains what personal information the app and this website collect, why, who we share it with, how long we keep it, and the choices you have. It applies to the Tour Us Travel apps for iPhone and Android and to this website.

Who we are

Tour Us Travel is operated by Tour Us Travel LLC ("we", "us"). For privacy questions or requests, email info@tourustravel.net.

Information we collect

• Browsing as a guest (optional): you can look around without an account. We keep only what the app needs: your confirmation that you’re 18 or older and agree to the Terms, your location while the app is open (to show spots near you), and any recommendations you add. Guests are never shown to other people. Your recommendations stay private until our team reviews them, or until you create an account. If you don’t use the app for 30 days, your guest account and anything not yet published are deleted.
• Invite links: when someone opens a member’s invite link, we record that it was opened, the type of device, and a scrambled (one-way hashed) form of their internet address. If they create an account from the same address within 48 hours, we credit the member who invited them and let that member know. The scrambled address is deleted after 48 hours; we never store the address itself.
• Account: your name, username, password (stored only as a one-way hash), and your email address. We confirm your email with a one-time code when you sign up, and use it only for sign-in codes, password resets and account or safety notices.
• Age confirmation: when you sign up you enter your date of birth so we can confirm you are 18 or older. We do not store your date of birth, only the fact that the check passed and when.
• Gender (optional): only if you choose to share it at sign-up or in Settings. It is private: it isn't shown on your profile or to anyone else, and you can change or remove it at any time.
• Sign in with Apple: if you use it, Apple shares your name and an email address with us (which can be an Apple "Hide My Email" address that forwards to you) and a private ID for your Apple account. We never see your Apple ID password. If you delete your account, we also tell Apple to end the connection.
• Profile: anything you add, such as a bio, live status, profile photo, traveler-type assessment answers and results, and whether your account is public or private.
• Location: while the app is open and location sharing is on, your device's precise location. We keep only your latest position (each update replaces the last one). Other people never see your coordinates: they see a rough distance ("less than 1 mi", or rounded to a tenth of a mile beyond that) and never which direction you are in. Turning off Share my location in Settings, or denying the permission, stops collection and immediately erases your stored location. Places you tag from Apple Maps are public pins at that business's listed location. If you tag a spot that isn't listed, only its name shows on your post; the location where you posted it is kept privately and never shown to anyone. If another person tags the same name nearby within 30 days, a public pin is placed between your two locations; otherwise that private location is deleted after 30 days.
• Content and activity: posts, replies, likes, place recommendations, "been here" / "want to go" marks, messages and group chats, follows, follow requests, blocks, and reports you submit.
• Push notifications: if you allow notifications, a push token for each of your devices, which lets us send alerts (new messages, invites, replies and the other notifications listed in the app) to your lock screen through Expo's push service, which passes them to Apple or Google for delivery. The alert includes the notification's text. Turn them off in Settings → Push notifications or in your phone's settings; signing out removes that device's token.
• Travel style assessment (optional): your answers about how you travel, the food and activities you enjoy, and your results. Your traveler type and shared interests (for example "You both love live music") can be seen by people who can see your profile. If you answer the optional dietary or accessibility questions, those answers are private: never shown on your profile or to anyone else, never used to rank or match you with people, and only used to suggest spots to you. You can retake the assessment or delete your account at any time.
• Trips you plan (optional): the destination, dates, trip type and who can see it. Trips are private (only you) unless you choose to share them with friends, or with friends and travelers going there the same week; those travelers see only your first name and "there that week", never your exact dates. We note when you arrive (to welcome you), which is never shared. You can delete a trip at any time. Trip details are deleted 12 months after the trip ends; we keep only anonymous weekly totals per city (for example "41 trips to Lisbon that week") to show travel trends, never anything that identifies you.
• Student verification (optional): if you verify you're a college student, we store your school email address, your school's name or email domain, and the date you verified. We email that address once with a verification link. Your school email is never shown to anyone, and your student status isn't shown on your profile or next to your name; only other verified students can tell, so they can invite you to student-only chats. Student status lasts a year, and you can remove it any time in Settings.
• Accounts from Tour Us Travel 1.x: if you had an account in the earlier app, we moved your email, name, username, password (only the same scrambled hash, never the password itself), bio, gender, city and profile photo into this version so you can keep using your account. We didn't move phone numbers, social media handles, verification selfies, age, chats, posts or subscription details.
• Technical data: your IP address and basic request information in our server logs; a record of each signed-in device (device type, when it was last used) so you can sign out other devices; and a sign-in key stored securely on your device (iOS Keychain / Android Keystore, or an HttpOnly cookie on the web). We store only a scrambled (hashed) version of sign-in keys and one-time codes. We also temporarily count failed sign-in attempts to protect accounts from password guessing.

We do not use advertising, analytics, or tracking SDKs, we do not track you across other companies' apps or websites, and we do not sell or "share" (as defined by California law) your personal information.

How we use it

• To run the service: show you nearby travelers, groups and recommendations, deliver messages and notifications (performance of our contract with you).
• To keep people safe: enforce our Terms and Community Guidelines, review reports, and prevent abuse (our legitimate interests and legal obligations).
• To use your location, which you control through your device's permission and the in-app setting (your consent).
• To send password-reset and important account or safety emails.

Who can see your information

• Other users see your name, username and photo. If your account is public they also see your bio, status, traveler type and posts; if it's private, only people you approve do. They see your distance only, never your coordinates.
• Service providers that process data for us under contract: DigitalOcean (servers and database hosting) and Google Workspace (sending sign-in codes and account emails).
• Apple Maps, when you search for a place to tag: we send Apple what you typed and your approximate area (rounded to about 7 miles) so results are relevant. Apple doesn't receive your name or account details.
• GIPHY, when you use GIFs in chats: your GIF searches go to GIPHY through our servers, without your name, account or location. The GIFs themselves load from GIPHY, which receives your device's IP address and basic device information under its own privacy policy.
• Maps: the map uses Apple Maps on iPhone and the Google Maps SDK on Android. Those providers receive the map area being displayed and device information under their own privacy policies (Apple, Google). We do not send them your account information.
• Legal and safety: when required by law, or to protect someone's safety.

Product analytics

To see which features help people connect (for example how often group chats are started or places are tagged), we record simple usage events on our own servers: the feature used, the screen, your device type and app version, and the time. We don't use third-party analytics or advertising SDKs, we never sell or share this data, and we don't use it to track you across other apps or websites. You can turn it off any time in Settings → Your data → Share usage analytics; turning it off also deletes the usage events we have for you.

How long we keep it

• Account, profile and content: until you delete them or delete your account.
• Live status: shown for 24 hours after you post it, then erased.
• Usage analytics: up to 13 months, or until you turn them off or delete your account.
• Location: only your latest position, erased when you turn sharing off, delete your account, or after 30 days without an update.
• Location of an unlisted spot you tagged: 30 days, or until it becomes a public pin.
• Notifications: 90 days. Server logs: 30 days. Push tokens: until you sign out, turn push off, or the device stops accepting notifications.
• Reports you submit are kept for up to 2 years for safety, with your identity removed if you delete your account.

Your rights and choices

• Access and correction: view and edit your profile in the app, or email us for a copy of your data.
• Deletion: delete your account in the app (Profile → Settings → Delete account) or on the web at /legal/delete-account. Deletion is permanent and removes your profile, posts, places, messages, assessment and location.
• Location: turn it off any time in Settings or your device settings.
• Email: every email has an unsubscribe link, and you can turn emails off in Settings.
• Privacy: make your account private in Settings; block or report anyone.
• Depending on where you live (for example the EU/UK under the GDPR, or California under the CCPA/CPRA), you may have additional rights to object, restrict processing, data portability, and to complain to your data-protection authority. We will not discriminate against you for using these rights. Email info@tourustravel.net; we respond within 30 days.

Children

Tour Us Travel is only for people aged 18 and over. We use a neutral age check at sign-up and do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18 (including children under 13). If we learn that we have, we delete it. If you believe a minor is using the app, contact info@tourustravel.net.

Security and transfers

Data is encrypted in transit (HTTPS), passwords are hashed, sign-ins are rate-limited and accounts lock temporarily after repeated failed attempts, and you can turn on two-step verification. When you choose a password, the app checks it against known data breaches using Have I Been Pwned's privacy-preserving method: only the first five characters of a scrambled version of the password are sent, never the password itself. Access to data is limited to people who need it. Our servers may be located outside your country; where required we use appropriate safeguards such as standard contractual clauses.

Changes

If we make material changes we will update the effective date above and ask you to review and accept them in the app.

Contact

Tour Us Travel LLC · info@tourustravel.net