Stray Along The Way is an online service that provides recommendations for accommodation, activity operators, and travel destinations. More details about Stray Along The Way can be found below under “How you can contact us.”
We understand that providing information online involves a great deal of trust on your part. We take this trust very seriously, and make it a high priority to ensure the security and confidentiality of the personal information you provide to us.
Before submitting your personal information to our Web site, please read this Policy carefully to learn about our privacy practices. By visiting Stray Along The Way’s Web site, www.strayalongtheway.com, you are accepting the practices described herein.
What information we collect from you:
In General.
We receive and store any information you enter on our Web site or give us in any other way. This includes information that can identify you (“personal information”), including your first and last name, telephone number, postal and e-mail addresses, user name and password. We may also request information about your travel plans, style, and preferences. You can choose not to provide information to us, but in general some information about you is required in order for you to enjoy the benefits of being a registered member. In addition, some information is also required in order for you to ask us a question or initiate other transactions on our site.
Information about others
You will have the opportunity to provide contact information for other people through our Web site. You should obtain the consent of other individuals prior to providing Stray Along The Way with their personal information.
Information from other sources
We also may periodically obtain both personal and non-personal information about you from affiliated entities, business partners and other independent third-party sources and add it to other information about you. For example, if you visit Stray Along The Way by “clicking-through” from a site operated by one of our business partners, and you have registered with that partner, then information about you that you have provided to that partner may be shared with us, such as contact information and demographic information. As another example, if you access third party services, such as social media services, through our Web site or before coming to our Website, we may collect information such as your user name, password, and other information made available to us through those services in order to improve and personalize your use of our Web site.
We have partnered with Facebook to provide Instant Personalization on Stray Along The Way for members of Facebook. If you have Instant Personalization set to “enabled” in your Facebook privacy settings and you are logged into Facebook, then Stray Along The Way will be personalized for you when you visit the Web site, even if you are a first-time user of Stray Along The Way’s Web site. For example, we will show you reviews that your Facebook friends have posted on Stray Along The Way and places they have visited. In order to provide you with this personalized experience, Facebook provides us with information that you have chosen to make available pursuant to your Facebook privacy settings. That information may include your name, profile picture, gender, friend lists and any other information you have chosen to make available.
Automatic information
We automatically collect some information about your computer when you visit Stray Along The Way. For example, we will collect session data, including your IP address, Web browser software, and referring Web site. We also may collect information about your online activity, such as content viewed and pages visited. One of our goals in collecting this automatic information is to help us understand the interests of our users and customize your user experience.
Cookies and other web technologies
Cookies are small data text files and can be stored on your computer’s hard drive (if your Web browser permits). strayalongtheway.com and its affiliated websites use cookies for the following general purposes:
To help us recognize your browser as a previous visitor and save and remember any preferences that may have been set while your browser was visiting our site. For example, if you register on our site, we may use cookies to remember your registration information, so you do not need to log into our site each time you visit. We also may record your password in a cookie, if you checked the box entitled “Save this password for automatic sign-in.” Please note that member IDs, passwords, and any other account-related data included in such cookies are encrypted for security purposes.
To help us customize the content, website experience, and advertisements provided to you on our websites and on other websites across the Internet. For example, when you access a web page, a cookie is automatically set by us, our service providers, or our partners to recognize your browser as you navigate on the Internet and to present you with information and advertising based on your apparent interests. See Display of Advertising/Your Choices for more information about our online advertising practices and your choices.
To help measure and research the effectiveness of our website features and offerings, advertisements, and e-mail communications (by determining which e-mails you open and act upon).
The Help portion of the toolbar on most browsers should tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable most types of cookies. Please note that if you refuse to accept cookies, you may not be able to access many of the travel tools offered on our sites.
Our sites also may use Web beacons (also known as clear gifs, pixel tags or Web bugs), which are tiny graphics with a unique identifier, similar in function to cookies, that are placed in the code of a Web page. We use Web beacons to monitor the traffic patterns of users from one page within our sites to another, to deliver or communicate with cookies, to understand whether you have come to our site from an online advertisement displayed on a third-party Web site, and to improve site performance. We also may allow our service providers to use Web beacons to help us understand which emails have been opened by recipients and to track the visitor traffic and actions on our site. This helps us measure the effectiveness of our content and other offerings.
Third party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user’s prior visits to your website or other websites.
Google’s use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to your users based on their visit to your sites and/or other sites on the Internet.
Users may opt out of personalized advertising by visiting Ads Settings. (Alternatively, you can direct users to opt out of a third-party vendor’s use of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting www.aboutads.info.)
If you have not opted out of third-party ad serving, the cookies of other third-party vendors or ad networks may also be used to serve ads on your site. You can opt out of some third-party vendors’ uses of cookies for personalized advertising by visiting www.aboutads.info
Display of Advertising/Your Choices
Data collected to serve you with relevant advertising
Stray Along The Way and its affiliated websites are committed to providing you with relevant content and information across our sites. To do this, we may collect information about your travel-related searches, such as whether you are looking accommodation or activity operators, and use this information to serve you with ads on our sites or elsewhere online that match your apparent interests. So, for example, if you search for accommodation in Durban on strayalongtheway.com, you may see an ad for a Durban travel package on strayalongtheway.com or on another website you visit.
We do not share your personal information (such as email addresses) with unaffiliated third parties so they can serve you with advertisements.
Data collected by business partners and ad networks to serve you with relevant advertising
Many of the advertisements you see on the strayalongtheway.com family of sites are served by strayalongtheway.com or its service providers. But we also allow third parties to collect information about your online activities through cookies and other technologies. These third parties include (1) business partners, who collect information when you view or interact with one of their advertisements on our sites, and (2) advertising networks, which collect information about your interests when you view or interact with one of the advertisements they place on many different Web sites on the Internet. The information gathered by these third parties is used to make predictions about your characteristics, interests or preferences and to display advertisements on our sites and across the Internet tailored to your apparent interests.
Please note that we do not have access to or control over cookies or other technologies these third parties may use to collect information about your interests, and the information practices of these third parties are not covered by this Privacy Policy.
How we use your information
Stray Along The Way uses the information we collect about you for the following general purposes: for registration and to manage your account, including to facilitate your access to and use of our site; to communicate with you in general, including to provide information about Stray Along The Way and invitations from the Stray Along The Way community; to enable us to publish your comments, forum posts, and other content to the Stray Along The Way community; to respond to your questions and comments; to measure interest in and improve our products, services, and Web site; to notify you about special offers and products or services available from us or our partners that may be of interest to you; to otherwise customize your experience with Stray Along The Way; to solicit information from you, including through surveys; to resolve disputes or troubleshoot problems; to prevent potentially prohibited or illegal activities; to enforce our Terms of Use; and as otherwise described to you at the point of collection.
With whom we share your information
Stray Along The Way may share your information with the following entities:
Third-party vendors who provide services or functions on our behalf, including business analytics, customer service, marketing, distribution of surveys or sweepstakes programs, and fraud prevention. We may also authorize third-party vendors to collect information on our behalf, including as necessary to operate features of our website or to facilitate the delivery of online advertising tailored to your interests. Third-party vendors have access to and may collect information only as needed to perform their functions and are not permitted to share or use the information for any other purpose.
Business partners with whom we may offer products or services in conjunction. You can tell when a third party is involved in a product or service you have requested because their name will appear either with ours or separately. If you choose to access these optional services, we may share information about you, including your personal information, with those partners. Please note that we do not control the privacy practices of these third-party business partners.
Referring Web sites. If you were referred to Stray Along The Way from another Web site, we may share your registration information, such as your name, email address, mailing address, telephone number and travel preferences, about you with that referring Web site. We have not placed limitations on the referring Web sites’ use of personal information and we encourage you to review the privacy policies of any Web site that referred you to Stray Along The Way.
Social Media Services. You can choose to access certain third party social media Web sites and services through our site (such as Facebook). When you do so, you are sharing information with those sites, and the information you share will be governed by their privacy policies. You may also be able to modify your privacy settings with these third party social media web sites.
Companies within our corporate family. We may share your personal information within the Stray Along The Way Group, as well as with our parent companies and domestic and international corporate affiliate companies and websites. This sharing enables us to provide you with information about products and services, both travel-related and other, which might interest you. To the extent that our parent company and corporate affiliates have access to your information, they will follow practices that are at least as restrictive as the practices described in this Privacy Policy. They also will comply with applicable laws governing the transmission of promotional communications and, at a minimum, give you an opportunity in any commercial e-mail they send to choose not to receive such e-mail messages in the future.
We also may share your information:
In response to subpoenas, court orders, or other legal process; to establish or exercise our legal rights; to defend against legal claims; or as otherwise required by law. In such cases we reserve the right to raise or waive any legal objection or right available to us.
When we believe it is necessary to investigate, prevent, or take action regarding illegal or suspected illegal activities; to protect and defend the rights, property, or safety of Stray Along The Way, our customers, or others; and in connection with our Terms of Service and other agreements.
In connection with a corporate transaction, such as a divestiture, merger, consolidation, or asset sale, or in the unlikely event of bankruptcy.
If you choose to create a profile on Stray Along The Way, certain information in your profile will be publicly viewable and identifiable via your screen name. You will have the ability to view your profile as members of the public will see it. Additionally, if you choose to participate in our member-to-member communications programs, other Stray Along The Way members may contact you by using Stray Along The Way as an intermediary; however, Stray Along The Way will not share your email address with any other members nor display it any public manner. All Stray Along The Way members have the option to turn off the member-to-member communication features at any time.
Other than as set out above, you will be notified when personal information about you will be shared with third parties, and you will have an opportunity to choose not to have us share such information.
We also may share aggregate or anonymous information with third parties, including advertisers and investors. For example, we may tell our advertisers the number of visitors our Web site receives or the most popular accommodation. This information does not contain any personal information and is used to develop content and services we hope you will find of interest.
How you can access your information
We take reasonable steps to ensure that your information is relevant to its intended use, accurate, and complete. You can access and update your contact information by visiting the Member Profile page on the Stray Along The Way Web site. You can close your Stray Along The Way account by contacting us at the email address listed below, or by deactivating your account in the Account Settings area. We will send you an e-mail to confirm your request. Please note that after you close an account, you will not be able to sign in or access any of your personal information. However, you can open a new account at any time. Please also note that we may retain certain information associated with your account in our archives, including for analytical purposes as well as for recordkeeping integrity.
Your choices with respect to the collection and use of your information
As discussed above, you can choose not to provide us with any information, although it may be needed to take advantage of certain features offered on Stray Along The Way.
You also can add or update information and close your account as described above.
As a registered Stray Along The Way member, you can modify your e-mail subscription choices at any time on the Member Profile page. Whether registered as a Stray Along The Way member or not, you also will be given the opportunity to unsubscribe from promotional messages in any such e-mail we send. Please note that we reserve the right to send you other communications, including service announcements, administrative messages, and surveys relating either to your Stray Along The Way account, without offering you the opportunity to opt out of receiving them.
Email Communications. strayalongtheway.com wants to make it easy for you to take advantage of travel-related opportunities on our Web site. One way we do this is by sending you e-mail messages that contain information about your apparent travel-related interests. For example, if you search for accommodation in Durban, or Durban Activities or reviews on strayalongtheway.com, we may send you an email message reminding you about special offers in Durban. Similarly, if you receive an email about Durban travel and demonstrate an interest in Durban accommodation, activities, or local travel reviews by affirmatively clicking on a link about Durban accommodation in the email, you may receive an email about Durban food and beverages offers. We believe these email messages will provide you with useful information about travel-related special offers available through our sites. Please note that you will have the opportunity to choose not to receive these email messages in any such email we send.
The Help portion of the toolbar on most browsers will tell you how to prevent your browser from accepting new cookies, how to have the browser notify you when you receive a new cookie, or how to disable cookies altogether. Please note that if you refuse to accept cookies from Stray Along The Way, you will not be able to access portions of our site.
How we protect your information
We want you to feel confident about using Stray Along The Way, and we are committed to protecting the information we collect. While no Web site can guarantee security, we have implemented appropriate administrative, technical, and physical security procedures to help protect the personal information you provide to us. For example, only authorized employees are permitted to access personal information, and they only may do so for permitted business functions. In addition, we use encryption when transmitting your personal information between your system and ours, and we employ firewalls and intrusion detection systems to help prevent unauthorized persons from gaining access to your information.
Children’s privacy
Stray Along The Way is a general audience site and does not offer services directed to children. Should an individual whom we know to be a child under age 13 send personal information to us, we will delete or destroy such information as soon as reasonably possible.
External links
If any part of the Stray Along The Way Web site links you to other Web sites, those external Web sites do not operate under this Privacy Policy. We recommend that you examine the privacy statements posted on those other Web sites to understand their procedures for collecting, using, and disclosing personal information.
Visiting our Web sites from outside South Africa
If you are visiting our Web site from outside South Africa, please be aware that your information may be transferred to, stored, and processed in South Africa where our servers are located and our central database is operated. The data protection and other laws of South Africa and other countries might not be as comprehensive as those in your country, but please be assured that Stray Along The Way does take steps pursuant to laws in South Africa to ensure that your privacy is protected. By using our services, you understand that your information may be transferred to our facilities and those third parties with whom we share it as described in this Policy.
Changes to this Privacy Policy
Stray Along The Way may update this Privacy Policy in the future. We will notify our members about material changes to this Privacy Policy by either sending a notice to the e-mail address you provided to us or by placing a prominent notice on our Web site.
How you can contact us
If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at:
Email: adming[at]strayalongtheway.com