Privacy Policy & Data Retention Policy

Svanir Wilderness Ecostay
Last updated: August 2026

At Svanir, we believe hospitality begins with trust.

When you make a booking, contact us, stay with us or take part in one of our community-based experiences, you may share some personal information with us. This policy explains what information we collect, why we need it, how we use it and how long we generally keep it.

We are a small, family-run homestay, and we do not believe in collecting information simply because technology allows us to. We collect what we reasonably need to operate Svanir, look after our guests and meet our legal obligations.

This policy applies to information collected through our website, email, telephone, WhatsApp, booking enquiries, direct bookings and during your stay at Svanir Wilderness Ecostay.

1. Who We Are

Svanir Wilderness Ecostay
Bhubaneswar, Odisha, India

Website: www.svanir.com

Email: visit.svanir.com
Phone: +91 9818480486

For questions about your personal information, please contact us using the details above.

2. Information We May Collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect some or all of the following:

Information you provide to us

This may include:

  • your name;

  • telephone number;

  • email address;

  • postal or billing address, where required;

  • names of accompanying guests;

  • arrival and departure dates;

  • booking and accommodation preferences;

  • dietary requirements;

  • food allergies voluntarily disclosed to us;

  • accessibility or mobility requirements voluntarily disclosed to us;

  • information required for guest registration or identification;

  • payment and transaction details;

  • correspondence and enquiries sent to us;

  • feedback or reviews you choose to provide.

Information collected during your stay

We may maintain records relating to:

  • your booking;

  • meals and additional services requested;

  • activities or excursions arranged through us;

  • payments and invoices;

  • complaints or service issues;

  • incidents involving property, safety or security.

We do not ordinarily collect sensitive personal information unless you voluntarily provide it because it is relevant to your stay or because we are required to collect it for a lawful purpose.

3. Identification Information

Indian tourism and other applicable regulations may require accommodation providers to collect or maintain identification and guest-registration information.

Where required, we may therefore ask for identification documents or information relating to guests staying with us.

We use such information for legitimate purposes including:

  • guest registration;

  • compliance with applicable laws and tourism requirements;

  • security;

  • responding to lawful requests from government or regulatory authorities.

We do not use identification documents for advertising or unrelated marketing purposes.

Where possible, we will collect only the information reasonably necessary for the applicable purpose.

4. Why We Use Your Information

We may use your personal information to:

  • respond to enquiries;

  • make and manage your reservation;

  • confirm payments;

  • communicate with you before, during and after your stay;

  • arrange meals and dietary requirements;

  • arrange transport or activities requested by you;

  • comply with guest-registration and other legal requirements;

  • issue invoices and maintain financial records;

  • handle cancellations, refunds and changes to reservations;

  • respond to complaints or requests;

  • protect the safety and security of guests, staff and property;

  • improve our hospitality and guest experience;

  • send marketing communication where you have chosen to receive it;

  • comply with applicable laws and lawful government requests.

We will not use your information for purposes that are unrelated to these purposes without an appropriate legal basis or, where required, your consent.

5. Information We Do Not Sell

We do not sell, rent or trade our guests' personal information.

Svanir is not in the business of selling guest data.

We may, however, share limited information with service providers when this is reasonably necessary to provide a service you have requested or to operate our business.

6. When We May Share Your Information

We may share relevant information with trusted third parties where reasonably necessary.

For example:

Payment providers and banks

Payment information may be processed by banks, payment gateways or other financial service providers.

We do not normally have access to your complete card details when payment is processed through an external payment provider.

Transport providers

If you ask us to arrange a taxi, private vehicle, boat or other transport, we may need to share your name, contact number, pickup details or other information necessary for the arrangement.

Activity and experience providers

For community-based tours, village walks, craft experiences, boat rides or other activities, we may share limited information with the relevant guide, artisan, driver or activity provider where necessary to organise the experience.

Professional and business service providers

We may share appropriate information with accountants, auditors, legal advisers, technology providers, booking platforms or other professional service providers where reasonably necessary for operating Svanir.

Government and regulatory authorities

We may disclose information where required by law, regulation, court order or a lawful request from an authorised government or regulatory authority.

We aim to share only the information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.

7. WhatsApp, Email & Telephone

Because Svanir is a small, family-run property, much of our guest communication may take place through email, telephone or messaging services such as WhatsApp.

When you contact us through these services, the information you send to us may be stored in our communication records.

These third-party services have their own privacy policies and terms, and their handling of data is outside Svanir's control.

Please avoid sending unnecessary sensitive information through messaging services.

8. Website & Cookies

Our website may use cookies or similar technologies to ensure that the website functions correctly and, where applicable, to understand how visitors use our website.

Cookies may help us with things such as:

  • remembering basic website preferences;

  • improving website performance;

  • understanding visitor behaviour;

  • measuring the effectiveness of our website or marketing.

Where third-party analytics, advertising or other technologies are used, the relevant provider may process information in accordance with its own privacy policy.

We do not use cookies to collect information that we do not reasonably need.

Where applicable, visitors may manage cookie preferences through their browser or available website controls.

9. Marketing Communication

We may occasionally send guests information about:

  • Svanir's new experiences;

  • seasonal activities;

  • special offers;

  • festivals and events;

  • new stories or articles;

  • cultural experiences and destinations around Odisha.

We will send promotional communication where you have voluntarily opted in or where otherwise permitted by applicable law.

You may unsubscribe from marketing communication at any time.

If you unsubscribe, we may still contact you regarding an existing reservation, payment, cancellation, enquiry or other necessary service communication.

10. Photography & Guest Images

Svanir is a place where people come to slow down, explore nature and experience local communities.

We sometimes photograph the property, experiences and activities for our website, social media, editorial stories and other promotional purposes.

We respect the privacy of our guests.

We will not deliberately use an identifiable photograph of a guest for promotional purposes without appropriate permission.

If you do not wish to appear in photographs taken during a Svanir activity or event, please let us know.

Community photography

Our community-based experiences involve real people, homes, artisans, villages, rituals and workplaces.

We ask guests to seek permission before photographing or recording individuals, particularly children, private homes, religious activities or culturally sensitive situations.

We also expect our own photographers and representatives to follow the same principle.

11. Children's Information

Children are welcome at Svanir, but we recognise that information relating to children requires additional care.

Where information about a child is required for a booking, registration, meal, safety or other legitimate purpose, we generally collect it from the parent or legal guardian.

We do not knowingly use children's personal information for direct marketing.

Where applicable, we will follow the requirements relating to children's personal data under India's data-protection framework, including requirements concerning verifiable parental consent as and when the relevant provisions apply. The DPDP Rules, 2025 specifically address verifiable consent for processing children's personal data.

12. Data Security

We take reasonable measures to protect personal information against:

  • unauthorised access;

  • accidental loss;

  • misuse;

  • unauthorised disclosure;

  • alteration or destruction.

Because Svanir is a small business, not every record is held in a sophisticated automated system. Some information may be maintained in email, booking records, accounting systems or other business records.

Where personal information is no longer required, we aim to securely delete, destroy or anonymise it, subject to applicable legal and operational requirements.

No method of storing or transmitting information can be guaranteed to be completely secure.

13. How Long We Keep Your Information

We follow a simple principle:

We keep personal information only for as long as we reasonably need it for the purpose for which it was collected, or for as long as applicable law requires us to keep it.

Different information may therefore be retained for different periods.

Booking records

Booking information may generally be retained for up to 3 years after the date of the guest's last interaction with us, unless it is required for another legitimate purpose.

Financial & accounting records

Invoices, payment records, transaction information and related financial records may generally be retained for up to 7 years, or longer where required by applicable tax, accounting or other laws.

Guest registration & identification records

Guest-registration and identification information will be retained for the period required by applicable law, tourism regulations, security requirements or other lawful obligations.

Where no continuing legal requirement exists, such information will be securely deleted or destroyed when it is no longer reasonably necessary.

Guest communications

Routine emails, enquiries and other correspondence may generally be retained for up to 3 years from the last meaningful interaction.

This helps us respond to follow-up questions, resolve disputes and maintain reasonable business records.

Dietary, accessibility & other guest preferences

Information voluntarily provided to help us accommodate a guest may generally be retained only for as long as reasonably necessary for the relevant stay and immediate follow-up.

Where a guest has asked us to remember a preference for future visits, we may retain it until the guest asks us to remove it.

We will avoid retaining information that is no longer useful.

Marketing information

If you have opted into marketing communication, we may retain your contact information for this purpose until:

  • you unsubscribe;

  • you ask us to delete it;

  • or we otherwise determine that it is no longer necessary.

Complaints, disputes & legal matters

Where information is relevant to a complaint, dispute, claim, investigation or legal proceeding, we may retain it for as long as reasonably necessary to resolve or defend the matter.

Security & technical records

Certain website, system or security records may be retained for a limited period for security, fraud prevention, troubleshooting and operational purposes.

14. Deletion & Erasure

When personal information is no longer required for the purpose for which it was collected, and there is no legal or legitimate reason to retain it, we will take reasonable steps to:

  • delete it;

  • securely destroy it; or

  • anonymise it so that it can no longer reasonably be associated with an identifiable individual.

The DPDP framework recognises the principle that personal data should not be retained indefinitely once the relevant purpose has been fulfilled, subject to applicable legal requirements and other permitted purposes.

Some information may therefore remain in our records after a deletion request where we are legally required or otherwise lawfully permitted to retain it.

15. Your Rights

Subject to applicable law and the relevant provisions coming into force, you may have rights concerning your personal information, including the ability to:

  • ask what personal information we hold about you;

  • request correction of inaccurate information;

  • request deletion or erasure where applicable;

  • withdraw consent where processing is based on consent;

  • request information about how your personal information is being used;

  • raise a concern or complaint regarding our handling of your information.

Requests may be subject to reasonable verification of identity to ensure that we do not disclose or modify information belonging to someone else.

Some requests may not be capable of being fulfilled where we are legally required to retain the information or where another lawful exception applies.

16. How to Make a Privacy Request

If you would like to:

  • access your personal information;

  • correct information;

  • withdraw a consent;

  • unsubscribe from marketing;

  • request deletion;

  • ask a question about our data practices; or

  • raise a privacy concern,

please contact:

Privacy Contact — Svanir Wilderness Ecostay

Email: soumya_mukherji@yahoo,com
Phone: +91 9818480486

Please include enough information for us to understand your request and identify the relevant booking or interaction.

We will make reasonable efforts to respond within the period required by applicable law.

17. Third-Party Websites

Our website or communications may contain links to external websites, including tourism organisations, booking platforms, activity providers, payment services and social media platforms.

Once you leave the Svanir website, the privacy practices of that third party apply.

We recommend reviewing the privacy policy of any external website before providing personal information.

18. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect:

  • changes to our services;

  • changes in how we process information;

  • changes to technology;

  • changes in applicable law or regulation.

The latest version will be published on our website.

Where a change materially affects the way we use personal information, we will take reasonable steps to provide appropriate notice where required.

19. Applicable Law

This Privacy Policy is governed by the laws of India.

Svanir intends to handle personal data in accordance with applicable Indian privacy and data-protection requirements, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and the Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025, to the extent and from the dates that their respective provisions apply. The Rules were notified on 14 November 2025 and provide for a phased commencement of different provisions.

20. A Note From Us

We are a small homestay.

We do not have a large marketing department, a call centre or a database of thousands of guests. Most of the people who contact Svanir speak directly to someone from our family.

We collect your information because we need it to make your stay possible, to comply with regulations, to arrange the experiences you ask us for and, when you choose to hear from us again, to stay in touch.

We don't believe your personal information should become a product.

We will therefore make a conscious effort to collect less, use it responsibly and remove it when we no longer need it.

Thank you for trusting us with your information — and, more importantly, for trusting us with your holiday.

Team Svanir

Last updated: August 2026