Privacy Policy

Effective Date: 29th of April, 2026

Website: https://africanbluetours.com/

African Blue Tours respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, disclose and protect personal information when you visit our website, contact us, submit an enquiry, request a tailor-made journey, book travel services, interact with us on social media, or otherwise communicate with us.

This Privacy Policy has been prepared with reference to the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 of South Africa (“POPIA”), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 (“ECTA”), and, where applicable, international privacy principles including the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) for visitors and travellers from the European Union, United Kingdom and other jurisdictions.

1. Who We Are

African Blue Tours is a boutique private tour operator based in Cape Town, South Africa. We create private, tailor-made travel experiences, tours and safaris in South Africa and, where applicable, surrounding Southern African destinations.

For the purposes of POPIA, African Blue Tours is generally the “Responsible Party” in respect of the personal information we determine the purpose and means of processing.

Business Name: African Blue Tours
Website: https://africanbluetours.com/
Reservations Office: Cape Town, South Africa
Email: info@africanbluetours.com
Telephone: +27 82 321 6175

2. Scope of This Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy applies to personal information collected through:

our website;
our contact forms and journey planning forms;
email, telephone, WhatsApp or other direct communications;
booking, itinerary planning and travel administration;
newsletter, marketing or promotional communications;
reviews, testimonials and social media interactions;
analytics, cookies and similar website technologies; and
communications with travel suppliers, accommodation providers, guides, transport providers and other service providers involved in your journey.

3. Personal Information We Collect

The personal information we collect depends on how you interact with us and the services you request. We only aim to collect information that is reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it is processed.

3.1 Information You Provide Directly

When you contact us or submit an enquiry, we may collect:

your name and surname;
email address;
telephone or mobile number;
country of residence;
preferred method of communication;
approximate travel dates;
number of travellers;
ages of travellers, where relevant for planning purposes;
preferred destinations, travel style and interests;
budget range or travel preferences;
accessibility requirements or mobility considerations;
dietary requirements, allergies or health-related travel preferences where you choose to provide them;
special occasions such as birthdays, anniversaries or family celebrations;
passport, identity or travel document information, where required for bookings or travel arrangements;
emergency contact information, where relevant;
payment, billing or invoicing details where applicable; and
any other information you voluntarily provide to us.

3.2 Information Collected Automatically

When you visit our website, we may automatically collect technical and usage information, including:

IP address;
browser type and version;
device type;
operating system;
pages visited;
date and time of visits;
referring website or search engine;
general location information based on IP address; and
website interaction data, such as clicks, scrolling and form submissions.

3.3 Information from Third Parties

We may receive limited personal information from third parties, including:

travel agents or referral partners;
family members or group leaders making enquiries on behalf of other travellers;
hotels, lodges, airlines, transfer providers, guides or activity providers;
payment processors or booking platforms;
review platforms; and
social media platforms where you interact with us.

4. Special Personal Information

In some cases, you may voluntarily provide information that may be considered “special personal information” under POPIA or sensitive personal data under other privacy laws. This may include health, accessibility, allergy, dietary, religious or mobility-related information.

We will only process this type of information where necessary to plan, arrange or deliver your travel experience, where you have provided it voluntarily, where you have consented to the processing, or where the processing is otherwise permitted by law.

5. Children’s Personal Information

We may process children’s personal information where a parent, guardian or authorised adult provides it to us for family travel planning, safety, accommodation, transport or activity arrangements.

We do not knowingly collect personal information directly from children without appropriate consent from a parent or legal guardian. If you believe that a child has provided us with personal information without appropriate consent, please contact us.

6. How We Use Personal Information

We may use personal information for the following purposes:

to respond to enquiries and communicate with you;
to design tailor-made itineraries, tours and safari experiences;
to provide quotes, proposals and travel recommendations;
to make reservations with accommodation providers, lodges, guides, transport providers and activity operators;
to manage bookings, amendments, cancellations and travel logistics;
to arrange accessible travel, dietary needs, mobility assistance or other special requests;
to provide customer support before, during and after your journey;
to process invoices, payments and refunds where applicable;
to comply with legal, tax, accounting, insurance and regulatory obligations;
to manage reviews, testimonials and feedback;
to improve our website, services and customer experience;
to send marketing communications where permitted by law or where you have consented;
to protect our rights, property, staff, guests and service providers;
to detect, prevent and respond to fraud, misuse, security threats or unlawful activity; and
to keep appropriate business records.

7. Legal Basis for Processing

We process personal information in accordance with applicable law. Depending on the circumstances, our lawful grounds may include:

Consent: where you have given us permission to process your personal information for a specific purpose.
Contract: where processing is necessary to provide travel planning, booking or related services requested by you.
Legal obligation: where we are required to process or retain information by law.
Legitimate interests: where processing is necessary for our legitimate business interests, provided your rights do not override those interests.
Protection of a legitimate interest of the data subject: where processing is necessary to protect your interests, including safety, emergency support or travel assistance.

8. Sharing Personal Information

We do not sell your personal information. However, we may share personal information where reasonably necessary to provide our services, operate our business, comply with the law or protect our rights.

We may share information with:

hotels, guest houses, lodges and accommodation providers;
tour guides, private guides and destination specialists;
transport, transfer and chauffeur providers;
activity providers and excursion operators;
restaurants, venues and special experience providers;
travel insurance providers, where applicable;
payment processors, banks and accounting service providers;
IT, hosting, website maintenance, email and security providers;
analytics and marketing service providers;
professional advisers, including legal, accounting and insurance advisers;
government authorities, regulators, law enforcement agencies or courts where required by law; and
other third parties where you have authorised us to do so.

9. International Transfers of Personal Information

Because we arrange travel for international guests and may work with travel suppliers, platforms and service providers located outside South Africa, your personal information may be transferred to, stored in, or accessed from countries outside South Africa.

Where we transfer personal information outside South Africa, we will take reasonable steps to ensure that the recipient is subject to appropriate confidentiality, privacy and security safeguards, or that another lawful basis for the transfer applies.

International transfers may be necessary to confirm bookings, provide itinerary services, process communications, support website functionality, manage payments, or deliver services requested by you.

10. Cookies and Similar Technologies

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to improve functionality, analyse website usage, remember preferences, improve performance and support marketing activities.

Cookies may include:

Essential cookies: required for the website to function properly.
Performance and analytics cookies: used to understand how visitors interact with the website.
Functionality cookies: used to remember preferences or improve your browsing experience.
Marketing cookies: used to support advertising, remarketing or campaign measurement where applicable.

You can manage or disable cookies through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect website functionality.

11. Analytics, Advertising and Tracking

We may use analytics tools, such as Google Analytics or similar services, to understand website traffic, visitor behaviour and marketing performance. These tools may collect information such as your IP address, device information, browser information and website activity.

We may also use advertising or remarketing tools from platforms such as Google, Meta, Instagram, Facebook or other online platforms. These platforms may use cookies, pixels or similar technologies according to their own privacy policies.

12. Embedded Content and Third-Party Websites

Our website may include links to, or embedded content from, third-party websites and platforms, such as videos, maps, images, social media feeds, review platforms or booking-related services.

Embedded content from other websites behaves in the same way as if you visited that website directly. These third-party websites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional tracking and monitor your interaction with the embedded content.

We are not responsible for the privacy practices, content or security of third-party websites. We recommend that you review the privacy policies of any third-party websites you visit.

13. Comments, Reviews and Testimonials

If our website allows comments, reviews or testimonials, we may collect the information shown in the comment or review form, together with your IP address and browser user agent string to assist with spam detection and website security.

If you provide a testimonial, review, photo or feedback, we may ask for your permission to use it on our website, social media, marketing materials or travel communications. We may display your first name, country, travel details or review content where you have consented or where the information has already been published by you on a public review platform.

14. Media and Photographs

If you submit images, videos or other media to us, you should avoid sending files that contain embedded location data unless you are comfortable sharing that information.

We will not use traveller photographs for promotional purposes without appropriate permission, unless the content has already been made public by you or is otherwise permitted by law.

15. Direct Marketing

We may send you marketing communications about tours, travel inspiration, special offers or updates where:

you have consented to receive such communications;
you are an existing customer and the communication relates to similar services; or
we are otherwise permitted by applicable law to do so.

You may opt out of marketing communications at any time by using the unsubscribe link in our emails or by contacting us directly at info@africanbluetours.com.

We will not sell your contact details to third parties for their own direct marketing purposes.

16. Security of Personal Information

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, disclosure, alteration or destruction.

These measures may include:

secure website hosting and maintenance practices;
access controls and password protection;
limiting access to personal information on a need-to-know basis;
secure communication and storage practices where reasonably possible;
regular website updates and security monitoring;
confidentiality obligations for staff, contractors and service providers; and
reasonable steps to select reputable service providers.

However, no method of transmission over the internet or electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we will continue to take reasonable steps to protect your personal information.

17. Data Retention

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, unless a longer retention period is required or permitted by law.

Retention periods may depend on:

the nature of your enquiry or booking;
whether you become a customer;
tax, accounting, legal or insurance requirements;
the need to resolve disputes or enforce agreements;
legitimate business record-keeping requirements; and
your consent to receive future communications.

Where personal information is no longer required, we will take reasonable steps to delete, destroy, de-identify or anonymise it.

18. Your Privacy Rights

Subject to applicable law, you may have the right to:

ask what personal information we hold about you;
request access to your personal information;
request correction or updating of inaccurate, incomplete or outdated information;
object to certain processing of your personal information;
withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;
request deletion or restriction of personal information where legally permitted;
object to direct marketing;
request information about third parties with whom your personal information has been shared; and
submit a complaint to the relevant privacy regulator.

To exercise your rights, please contact us at info@africanbluetours.com. We may need to verify your identity before processing your request.

19. GDPR Notice for EU and UK Visitors

If you are located in the European Union, European Economic Area or United Kingdom, additional privacy rights may apply to you under applicable data protection laws.

Depending on the circumstances, you may have rights including access, rectification, erasure, restriction, portability, objection and rights relating to automated decision-making. We do not use your personal information for fully automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects.

Where we rely on consent, you may withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawal of consent will not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before withdrawal.

20. POPIA Complaints

If you believe that we have processed your personal information unlawfully or contrary to this Privacy Policy, please contact us first so that we can attempt to resolve your concern.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the South African Information Regulator.

Information Regulator of South Africa
Website: https://inforegulator.org.za/
Complaints email: POPIAComplaints@inforegulator.org.za

21. Accuracy of Information

Please ensure that any personal information you provide to us is accurate, complete and up to date. This is especially important for travel planning, bookings, emergency support, dietary needs, accessibility requirements and other arrangements.

If your information changes, please notify us as soon as reasonably possible.

22. Providing Information About Other Travellers

If you provide personal information about another traveller, family member, child, colleague or group member, you confirm that you are authorised to provide that information and, where necessary, have obtained their consent.

You also agree to make this Privacy Policy available to those individuals so they understand how their personal information may be processed.

23. Payment Information

Where payments are required, payment details may be processed by banks, payment gateways or financial service providers. We do not intend to store full card details on our website unless this is specifically disclosed and securely handled by an authorised payment provider.

Payment providers process information according to their own terms and privacy policies.

24. Business Transfers

If African Blue Tours is involved in a business restructuring, merger, sale, transfer or similar transaction, personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction, provided that appropriate privacy safeguards are applied.

25. Legal Disclosure

We may disclose personal information where required or permitted by law, including to comply with legal processes, court orders, regulatory requests, tax obligations, insurance requirements, law enforcement enquiries, or to protect our rights, guests, staff, suppliers or property.

26. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our business, website, legal obligations, technology or privacy practices.

The updated version will be posted on this page with a revised effective date. Your continued use of our website or services after the updated Privacy Policy is posted will indicate your acceptance of the updated terms, where permitted by law.

27. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we process personal information, please contact us:

African Blue Tours
Cape Town, South Africa
Email: info@africanbluetours.com
Telephone: +27 82 321 6175
Website: https://africanbluetours.com/

Last updated: 9th of July, 2026