# Lonely Planet — Privacy Policy
**Effective Date:** July 29, 2026
Lonely Planet ("we", "our", or "us") operates the Lonely Planet mobile application (the "App"). This Privacy Policy describes how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard information when you use our App.
By downloading, installing, or using Lonely Planet, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, please do not use the App.
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## 1. Nature of the Application — Travel Guide App
Lonely Planet is a travel guide and informational application intended to help users discover destinations, read curated travel content, and organise personal trip plans for reference purposes only.
The App provides destination guides organised by country and category, including reference information about attractions, suggested hotels, restaurants, shopping areas, maps, weather summaries, and travel tips.
**Important:** Lonely Planet is NOT a travel agency, booking platform, or tour operator.
**What this App provides:**
- Digital travel guides and destination information
- Personal trip planning tools (favourites, itineraries, budgets, packing lists)
- Reference suggestions for hotels, food, and places of interest
- Map links and general weather information
- Free access supported by advertisements
**What this App does NOT provide:**
- Flight, hotel, transport, or tour bookings
- Payment processing for travel services
- Guaranteed prices, availability, or accuracy of third-party listings
- Professional travel advice, visas, or insurance services
All content is provided for general information and planning assistance only. Users must independently verify all travel details, prices, opening hours, and availability with official providers before making any travel decision or purchase.
Lonely Planet is an independent application and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any hotel, airline, restaurant, tourism board, or travel brand mentioned within the App unless explicitly stated.
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## 2. Information We Collect
Lonely Planet is designed to work without requiring user registration. Most data is stored locally on your device. We may collect or process the following categories of information:
**2.1 Information You Provide**
- Favourite destinations and saved places
- Trip names, travel dates, and number of travellers
- Personal itineraries, notes, and packing checklists
- Travel budget entries and expense records
- App preferences (theme, currency, and similar settings)
**2.2 Device and Technical Information**
- Device model, operating system version, and app version
- Language and regional settings
- Crash logs and diagnostic data to improve stability
- General usage patterns within the App (e.g. screens viewed)
**2.3 Location Information**
- Precise or approximate location — only if you grant location permission
- Used solely for map and navigation features when you choose to use them
- Location data is not required to browse guides or plan trips offline on your device
**2.4 Advertising Identifiers**
- Google Advertising ID (GAID) / Android Advertising ID
- Device identifiers used by Google AdMob for ad delivery and measurement
- IP address (collected by ad networks, not stored by us directly)
- Ad interaction data (impressions, clicks) processed by Google AdMob
We do not knowingly collect sensitive personal information such as government ID numbers, financial account details, or health information.
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## 3. How We Use Your Information
We use collected information strictly to operate and improve the App:
- Deliver travel guide content and destination information
- Save and display your personal trip data on your device
- Provide map and location features when permission is granted
- Display and measure advertisements through Google AdMob
- Diagnose crashes and improve App performance
- Comply with applicable legal obligations
We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes.
We do not use your data for purposes unrelated to operating this travel guide application without providing notice where required by law.
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## 4. Advertising Policy
Lonely Planet is a free travel guide app supported by advertising. We use Google AdMob, a service provided by Google LLC, to display advertisements within the App.
This section explains how advertising works in our App and your choices regarding ads.
**4.1 Types of Advertisements**
- Banner advertisements — displayed at the bottom of certain screens
- Interstitial advertisements — full-screen ads shown at natural transition points (e.g. when opening a destination)
- Rewarded advertisements — optional video ads that unlock features (e.g. navigation)
**4.2 Data Collected for Advertising**
Google AdMob and its advertising partners may automatically collect:
- Device advertising identifier (GAID)
- IP address and general location (country/region level)
- Device type, OS version, and language
- Ad interaction data (views, clicks, completions)
- App activity related to ad display
**4.3 How Ad Data Is Used**
- Serve relevant advertisements within the App
- Measure ad performance and prevent ad fraud
- Limit the number of times you see the same ad
- Comply with advertising industry standards
**4.4 Your Advertising Choices**
- Reset your Advertising ID: Settings → Google → Ads → Reset advertising ID
- Opt out of personalised ads: Settings → Google → Ads → Opt out of Ads Personalisation
- On Android 12+: Settings → Privacy → Ads
- Learn how Google uses data: https://policies.google.com/privacy
- Google AdMob partner information: https://support.google.com/admob/answer/9012904
We do not control the content of third-party advertisements displayed through Google AdMob. If you believe an ad is inappropriate, please report it through Google Play or contact us.
Children under 13 must not use ad-supported features without parental supervision. See Section 9 (Children's Privacy) for details.
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## 5. Third-Party Services
Lonely Planet integrates with third-party services to provide guide content and functionality. These services operate under their own privacy policies:
- Google AdMob & Google Mobile Ads SDK — advertising (see Section 4)
- Google Maps — when you tap "Open in Maps" or "Start Navigation"
- Wikimedia Commons — destination images loaded from public sources
- Android system services — device storage, notifications, and permissions
We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party services. We encourage you to review their respective privacy policies before using features that connect to external services.
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## 6. Data Storage and Security
Your trip data, favourites, budgets, and preferences are stored locally on your device using Android's secure app storage mechanisms.
We implement reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect information processed through the App.
However, no method of electronic storage or transmission over the internet is 100% secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security.
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## 7. Data Retention
Locally stored data (trips, favourites, preferences) remains on your device until you delete it within the App, clear app data, or uninstall the application.
Advertising data is retained by Google AdMob according to Google's data retention policies.
We do not maintain separate server-side accounts or profiles for guest users.
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## 8. Your Rights and Choices
Depending on your location, you may have the following rights regarding your information:
- **Access** — review data stored in the App on your device
- **Deletion** — remove trips, favourites, and clear all app data
- **Opt-out of personalised advertising** — via device ad settings (see Section 4.4)
- **Location control** — enable or disable location permission in device settings
- **Uninstall** — remove all locally stored App data by uninstalling
To exercise any rights not available directly in the App, please contact us using the details in Section 12.
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## 9. Children's Privacy Policy
Lonely Planet is intended for a general audience and is NOT specifically directed at children under the age of 13 (or the applicable age of digital consent in your country).
We comply with the U.S. Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) and Google Play's Families Policy requirements.
**9.1 Our Commitment Regarding Children**
- We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13
- We do not knowingly show behaviourally targeted advertisements to children
- The App does not require children to submit personal information to use guide features
- We do not create user accounts specifically for children
**9.2 Parental Guidance**
- Parents and guardians should supervise children's use of the App
- We recommend enabling parental controls on the device to manage ad personalisation
- Parents can reset the device Advertising ID and opt out of personalised ads (see Section 4.4)
- Parents may uninstall the App to remove all locally stored data
**9.3 If We Learn of Child Data Collection**
- If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal information from a child under 13 without verified parental consent, we will take prompt steps to delete that information
- If you are a parent or guardian and believe your child has provided us with personal information, please contact us immediately (see Section 12)
Users between 13 and 17 should review this Privacy Policy with a parent or guardian before using the App.
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## 10. International Users
Lonely Planet is available internationally. By using the App, you consent to the processing of information as described in this Privacy Policy.
If you are located in the European Economic Area (EEA), United Kingdom, or other regions with data protection laws, you may have additional rights under GDPR or similar regulations. Contact us to exercise those rights.
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## 11. Changes to This Privacy Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, the App, or applicable law.
When we make material changes, we will update the "Effective Date" at the top of this policy.
Your continued use of the App after any update constitutes acceptance of the revised Privacy Policy.
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## 12. Contact Us
If you have questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy, our advertising practices, or children's privacy, please contact us: