Privacy policy
Last updated: 9 November 2026
This policy explains what information the Travel Idea app ("the app") collects, why, where it is stored and the choices you have. Travel Idea is published by Vikaranet (Pty) Ltd, a company registered in Botswana (BW00010041782), Gaborone, Botswana ("we", "us"). Contact: contact@vikaranet.com.
1. Information we collect
| What | When | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Account details: name, email address, profile photo and a unique user ID from Google | Only if you choose "Sign in with Google" | To identify you, sync your trips and let people you travel with find and invite you |
| Trip content: trip names, destinations, dates, travellers, checklists, itineraries, bookings you import, reminders, budgets and expenses | When you are signed in | To back up your trips and show them on your other devices |
| Group trip content: the same trip content, plus who is in the group, who brings which item, and who paid what | When you create or join a group trip | So everyone in the group sees the same, live plan |
| Organiser rosters: names, roles, guardian names and phone numbers, emergency contacts, seat/room, fees and notes that an organiser enters for other travellers | When you use the Group organiser | To run excursions (roll call, consent, payments, emergency sheet) |
| Border queue reports: border post, waiting time, direction, time, and your user ID | When you choose to report a queue | To show other travellers current waiting times; your user ID prevents abuse and is not shown to others |
| Purchase status: whether you own Travel Idea Pro | When you buy or restore Pro | To unlock Pro features. Payments are handled by Google Play — we never see your card details |
| Crash and diagnostic data: device model, OS version, app version and technical details of crashes | If the app crashes | To find and fix bugs (Firebase Crashlytics) |
2. Information that stays on your phone
- Document wallet (passport, visa, ticket, insurance photos and PDFs), trip photos and journal, and your emergency card (blood type, allergies, next of kin, insurance) are stored only on your device. We never upload or receive them.
- If you don't sign in, all your trips stay on your device.
- Location: the app only reads your location when you tap "Send my location" in the Safety screen, to create a map link that you then choose to send (for example by WhatsApp). We do not store or track your location.
- Reminders are scheduled on your phone; we do not send them from a server.
3. AI features (Claude AI)
Some features — Plan with Claude AI, Ask Claude AI, booking import, visa guidance, local tips, typical weather, place suggestions and exchange rates — send the information needed for that request (for example your destination, dates, passport nationality, your question, or the booking text or screenshot you choose to import) through our server to Anthropic, which provides the Claude AI model, to generate an answer. These requests are tied to your signed-in account only to apply fair-use limits. We do not use them for advertising. AI answers are guidance only — always confirm visa, health and entry rules with official sources.
4. Service providers and where data is stored
- Google Firebase (Authentication, Cloud Firestore, Crashlytics) — trip data is stored in Google Cloud's Johannesburg, South Africa (africa-south1) region.
- Cloudflare — runs our server that passes AI requests and serves these pages.
- Anthropic — processes AI requests as described above.
- Google Play — app distribution, purchases and in-app reviews.
These providers process data on our behalf under their own security and privacy commitments. Some processing may take place outside Botswana.
5. Sharing
- We do not sell personal information and do not show ads.
- Group trip content is visible to the members of that group trip.
- Your name and profile photo can be found by other signed-in Travel Idea users when they search for people to invite.
- Border queue reports are shown to other users without your name.
- We may disclose information if required by law.
6. Organisers and information about other people
If you enter information about other people (for example learners, parents or staff in the Group organiser), you are responsible for having their permission — and a parent's or guardian's permission for children — and for keeping it accurate. Roster data is stored with your trip and shared only with co-organisers you add to that trip.
7. How long we keep data
- Trips are kept until you delete them or delete your account.
- Border queue reports are only shown for 12 hours and may be removed after that.
- Crash reports are kept for up to 90 days.
8. Your choices and rights
- Use without an account — everything except sync, group trips and AI features works offline on your phone.
- Delete a trip — removes it from our servers (for group trips you own, for everyone).
- Delete your account — in the app go to Settings → Account → Delete my account, or see how to delete your account. This removes your profile and synced trips.
- Sign out — removes synced trips from that phone.
- You may ask for a copy of, or correction to, your information by emailing contact@vikaranet.com. We respond within 30 days.
9. Security
Data is encrypted in transit (HTTPS) and at rest by our providers. Access to cloud data is limited by security rules so that only you — and members of your group trips — can read your trips. No method of storage is 100% secure, so keep your phone locked.
10. Children
Travel Idea is not directed at children under 13, and children under 13 should not create an account. Organisers may record information about learners as described in section 6.
11. Changes to this policy
We will post any changes on this page and update the "Last updated" date. Significant changes will also be shown in the app.
12. Contact
Vikaranet (Pty) Ltd, Gaborone, Botswana · contact@vikaranet.com