Privacy Policy

1. Who is responsible for your information

Thandolwami Bushlodge is the responsible party for personal information collected through this website and in direct lodge enquiries. The lodge operates in Hoedspruit, South Africa. You can contact us at info@thandolwami-bushlodge.com or +27 686972687.

Where a booking, payment, or other service is provided directly by a named third party, that provider may also be independently responsible for the information it collects under its own privacy notice.

2. Information we process

Depending on how you interact with us, we may process:

• contact details and correspondence, including your name, email address, telephone number, message, and communication history;
• enquiry and booking details, such as requested dates, group size, accommodation, dietary or accessibility needs, and selected activities;
• event-registration details submitted through your email application, including your payment preference and, where relevant, local plot number;
• transaction and booking-reference information supplied to us by a booking or payment provider, but not full payment-card details;
• limited technical and security information, such as request timestamps, browser type, referring page, and security logs produced by our hosting provider; and
• anonymous, aggregated website statistics described in our Cookie Policy.

Please do not send passport copies, health records, payment-card numbers, or other sensitive information through the website forms. We will request additional information through an appropriate channel only when it is necessary for your booking or safety.

3. Why and on what basis we use information

We use personal information only where reasonably necessary to:

• answer enquiries and take steps toward a booking or other agreement;
• manage stays, activities, events, payments, and guest requests;
• meet accounting, tax, safety, insurance, and other legal obligations;
• operate, secure, troubleshoot, and improve the website and our services;
• prevent fraud, misuse, and unauthorised access; and
• send marketing only where permitted by law and with any consent that is required. You can opt out at any time.

These purposes rely, as applicable, on performance of or steps toward a contract, compliance with law, your consent, and our legitimate interest in operating a safe and effective lodge business. Providing enquiry details is voluntary, but we may not be able to answer or complete a booking without the information reasonably required for it.

4. When information is shared

We do not sell personal information. We disclose only what is reasonably needed to staff and service providers who help us deliver the requested service, subject to suitable confidentiality and security arrangements. Current website-related providers may include:

Their own notices provide further detail: Vercel, NightsBridge, Google, and Stripe.

We may also disclose information where required by law, to establish or defend legal claims, to protect a person’s safety, or as part of a legitimate business reorganisation with appropriate safeguards.

5. International data transfers

The lodge is based in South Africa, while some guests, team members, and technology providers are located in other countries. Information may therefore be processed outside your country. Where required, we use contractual, organisational, or other lawful safeguards intended to provide an appropriate level of protection for cross-border processing.

6. Retention and security

We keep personal information only for as long as it is reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected, an active relationship, dispute handling, and applicable legal, tax, accounting, insurance, or safety requirements. Retention periods vary by record type; records are deleted, anonymised, or securely archived when no longer required.

We use proportionate technical and organisational measures designed to protect information against loss, misuse, alteration, and unauthorised access. These include encrypted transport, restricted administrative access, secure cookies for protected preview access, protective browser headers, and minimised collection. No internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed completely secure.

More detail about website safeguards and responsible vulnerability reporting is available on our Security page.

7. Your privacy rights

Subject to applicable law, including South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPIA), you may ask us to:

• confirm whether we hold personal information about you;
• provide access to or a copy of that information;
• correct, complete, delete, or restrict information where appropriate;
• explain or object to certain processing, including direct marketing; or
• withdraw consent for future processing that depends on consent.

Email info@thandolwami-bushlodge.com with “Privacy request” in the subject line. We may need to verify your identity and may retain information where the law permits or requires it.

You may also lodge a POPIA complaint with the Information Regulator of South Africa. We would appreciate the opportunity to address your concern first.

8. Children and young people

This website is not intended to collect personal information directly from a child without the involvement of a parent or legal guardian. A parent or guardian should make enquiries and bookings for anyone under 18 and should not submit sensitive information through the public forms. Additional consent and safety documentation may be required before a young person participates in a stay, riding activity, or programme.

9. Changes and contact

We may update this notice when our services, providers, or legal obligations change. The latest version and its update date will remain on this page. Questions and privacy requests can be sent to info@thandolwami-bushlodge.com.