Privacy Policy

Last reviewed on 12 May 2026.

Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how Touraine.net ("we," "our," "us") collects, uses, and shares information when you visit touraine.net. It also explains how third-party services we rely on — including Google AdSense, Google Analytics, and embedded map tiles — process information about your visit.

If you do not agree with this policy, please do not use the site.

Who we are

Touraine.net is an independent online travel publication covering châteaux, wine, cycling, and gastronomy in the Touraine region of France's Loire Valley. The site operates from the European Union; the governing jurisdiction for this policy is [Jurisdiction].

Privacy contact: [email protected].

Information we collect

Information you provide

If you contact us by email, we receive whatever information you choose to include in your message — typically your email address, name (if you sign your message), and the content of the message itself. We do not run sign-up forms, newsletters, accounts, or e-commerce on this site.

Information collected automatically

When you visit the site, certain information is collected automatically by our hosting infrastructure and the third-party services described below. This typically includes:

  • IP address (often truncated by analytics for privacy)
  • Browser type and version, operating system, device type and screen size
  • Pages viewed on this site and the order you viewed them in
  • Date, time, and approximate location of your visit (typically at the country/region level)
  • Referring website or search term, where the browser provides this

This information is used to operate and improve the site, understand which content readers find useful, and — where you have not opted out — to display relevant advertising.

Cookies and similar technologies

We and our service providers use cookies and similar technologies (local storage, pixels) to operate the site and to measure traffic. The categories in use are:

  • Essential cookies — required for the site to load correctly, remember interface choices, and provide basic security. These cannot be switched off in our settings.
  • Analytics cookies — used by Google Analytics to count visits and traffic sources so we can understand how the site is used.
  • Advertising cookies — used by Google AdSense and its partners to serve advertising, including personalised advertising where you have consented, and to limit how often you see the same ad.

You can manage cookies through your browser settings (block, delete, or restrict). You can manage advertising cookies specifically through the controls described below.

See our Cookie Policy for a more detailed breakdown of cookie categories, opt-out tools, and links to the relevant browser settings.

Advertising — Google AdSense

This site displays advertising delivered by Google AdSense. Google is a third-party vendor and uses cookies to serve ads based on your prior visits to this and other websites.

  • Third-party vendors, including Google, use cookies to serve ads based on a user's prior visits to this website or other websites.
  • Google's use of advertising cookies enables it and its partners to serve ads to users based on their visits to this and other sites.
  • Users may opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google Ads Settings.
  • Users may also opt out of a third-party vendor's use of cookies for personalised advertising by visiting www.aboutads.info or, for European visitors, www.youronlinechoices.eu.
  • Google's advertising policies are described at policies.google.com/technologies/ads.

Where required by law, you will be asked for consent to non-essential cookies (including those used for personalised advertising) before they are set, and you can change your choice at any time.

Analytics

We use Google Analytics (measurement ID G-W9KFZF53V8) to understand aggregate traffic to the site — which pages readers reach, which routes through the site they take, and where they come from. IP addresses are processed by Google on our behalf; we do not attempt to combine this data with any other information that would identify individual readers.

You can prevent Google Analytics from processing your visit by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, or by declining analytics cookies where a consent banner is shown.

Third-party services and embedded content

Beyond advertising and analytics, the site relies on a small number of third parties:

  • Map tiles and routing — the interactive maps on some pages load tiles and JavaScript from third-party providers (such as OpenStreetMap and Leaflet's CDN). These providers see your IP address and basic browser information when the map loads.
  • Fonts — typography is loaded from Google Fonts, which receives basic browser information when fonts are fetched.
  • External links — this site links to châteaux, wine estates, transport providers, and other external websites. Their privacy practices are governed by their own policies, not by ours.

How we use information

Information is used to:

  • Operate, secure, and improve the site
  • Understand which content is useful and where to invest editorial attention
  • Display advertising, including personalised advertising where you have consented
  • Respond to emails you send us
  • Comply with legal obligations and respond to lawful requests

We do not sell personal information. We do not build advertising profiles ourselves; that is performed by Google AdSense under its own terms.

Legal basis (GDPR)

If you are located in the European Economic Area or the United Kingdom, our legal bases for processing personal information are:

  • Legitimate interest — for operating the site, security, anti-fraud, and aggregate analytics where local rules allow.
  • Consent — for non-essential cookies (analytics and advertising) and for any personalised advertising.
  • Legal obligation — where we must process information to meet a legal requirement.

Your rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

  • Access the personal information we hold about you
  • Correct inaccurate or incomplete information
  • Delete personal information ("right to erasure")
  • Restrict or object to certain processing
  • Withdraw consent at any time, where processing is based on consent
  • Data portability — receive your information in a portable format

To exercise any of these rights, email [email protected]. We will respond within the time limit required by applicable law. If you are in the EU/EEA, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.

If you are a California resident, you have similar rights under the CCPA/CPRA, including the right to know what categories of personal information are collected and the right to opt out of "sale" or "sharing" of personal information for cross-context behavioural advertising. We do not sell personal information for money; opting out of personalised advertising via the AdSense controls described above also opts you out of "sharing" for this purpose.

Data retention

Emails sent to us are kept for as long as needed to handle the correspondence and any reasonable follow-up, then deleted. Analytics data is retained according to the configuration of the analytics service (typically 14 months for event-level data). Server logs are retained for a short operational period (typically up to 30 days) for security and troubleshooting.

International transfers

The third parties we use (notably Google) operate globally and may process information outside your country of residence, including in the United States. Where applicable, these transfers rely on the standard contractual clauses and other safeguards published by those providers.

Children

This site is not directed at children under 13 (or 16 in some jurisdictions), and we do not knowingly collect personal information from them. If you believe a child has provided personal information, please contact [email protected] so we can remove it.

Security

We implement reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect information processed on this site. No method of transmission over the internet is fully secure, however, and we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes are effective when posted; the "Last reviewed" date at the top of the page is updated accordingly. For substantive changes, we will make the update visible on the site for a reasonable period.