Privacy policy

WorldStrides Privacy Policy

Last Updated: January 2024

This Privacy Policy describes how Lakeland Tours, LLC, d/b/a WorldStrides and all its group companies doing business under the WorldStrides name collect, use, disclose, and otherwise process information about you. WorldStrides and all its group companies will have access to information on individuals covered by this Policy. These group companies include: Lakeland Tours, LLC, WorldStrides Canada Inc., Heritage Education & Festivals, Explorica Inc., Explorica Canada, Les Tours Jumpstreet, Inc., WorldStrides PTY Ltd., International Studies Abroad (ISA), Casterbridge Tours Ltd., Oxbridge Academic Resources, Leadership Platform Acquisition Corporation (Envision), WorldStrides Travel Information Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., and all related subsidiaries (collectively, “WorldStrides,” “we,” or “us”). This Privacy Policy applies to information we collect when you access or use our websites, mobile applications, and other online products and services that link to this Privacy Policy (collectively, our “Services”), or when you otherwise interact with us, such as through our customer support channels or on social media pages. We may provide different or additional notices of our privacy practices with respect to certain products, services, or activities, in which case those notices will supplement or replace the disclosures in this Privacy Policy.

WorldStrides believes that educational traveling can be a lifelong adventure and seeks to establish relationships with travelers that last beyond their first or fiftieth trip.  For that reason, when you share information with WorldStrides, we will retain it and continue to offer you educational travel opportunities as your needs grow and change.  If you no longer wish for WorldStrides to retain your data, please see the section below on Your Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information.

We may change this Privacy Policy from time to time. If we make changes, we will notify you by revising the date at the top of this policy. We may also provide you with additional notice (such as by adding a statement to the Services or sending you a notification), such as in connection with making material changes to this Privacy Policy. We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy regularly to stay informed about our information practices and the choices available to you.\

CONTENTS

Collection of Personal Information
Use of Information
Disclosures of Information
Targeted Advertising and Analytics
Your Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information
Data Retention
Disclosures for California Residents
Your California & Virginia Privacy Rights & Choices
Additional Disclosures for Individuals in Europe
Additional Disclosures for WorldStrides Employment Applicants
Transfer of Information to the United States and Other Countries
Contact Us

COLLECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION

The information we collect about you depends on how you interact with us or use our Services. In this section, we describe the categories of information we collect and the sources of this information.

Information You Provide to Us

We collect information you provide directly to us. For example, we collect information directly from you when you create an account, fill out a form, submit or post content through our Services, make a purchase, communicate with us via third-party platforms, participate in a promotion, contest, or scholarship competition, request customer support, or otherwise communicate with us. The types of information that we collect may include, for example, your name, email address, postal address, phone number, biographical information (such as date of birth), gender, passport number, government identification number, insurance information, medications and allergies, medical coverage options, and any other information you provide. If you make a purchase from us, we work with a third-party payment processor to collect and process your payment information.

We may also request information regarding your insurance and medical coverage options, hotel room preferences, etc. You can choose not to provide personal information to us, but, in general some personal information about you is required in order for you to: register for our programs; book travel; complete a program profile; participate in a survey contest or sweepstakes; ask us a question; or initiate other transactions with WorldStrides.

You may also provide us with special categories of personal information, including information about any relevant medical conditions, diseases, or disabilities you may have and which we need to enable us to meet your particular needs in relation to the booking. If you participate in our diversity and inclusion scholarships and other programming, we may collect sensitive information from you, such as your race or immigration status. We will only collect and use these special categories of personal information with your explicit consent and for limited purposes which will be explained to you.

Information We Collect Automatically

We automatically collect certain information about your interactions with us or our Services, including:

• Activity Information: We collect information about your activity on our Services, such as internet traffic data, website access times, website pages viewed, links clicked, logs, and other communication data, date/time stamps, number of clicks.
• Transactional Information: When you make a purchase or return, we collect information about the transaction, such as product details, purchase price, and the date and location of the transaction.
• Device and Usage Information: We collect information about how you access our Services, including data about the device and network you use, such as your hardware model, operating system version, mobile network, IP address, unique device identifiers, browser type, and app version. We also collect information about your activity on our Services, such as access times, pages viewed, links clicked, and the page you visited before navigating to our Services.
• Location Information: In accordance with your device permissions, we may collect information about the precise location of your device. You may stop the collection of precise location information at any time (see the Your Choices section below for details).
• Information Collected by Cookies and Similar Tracking Technologies: We use tracking technologies, such as cookies and web beacons, to collect information about your interactions with the Services as well as your visits to third-party platforms or websites that display our ads or content. Cookies are small data files stored on your hard drive or in device memory that help us improve our Services and your experience, see which areas and features of our Services are popular, and count visits.  In our mobile app(s), we use similar technology like SDKs to achieve these same purposes. Web beacons (also known as “pixel tags” or “clear GIFs”) are electronic images that we use on our Services and in our emails to help deliver cookies, count visits, and understand usage and campaign effectiveness, such as email opens.

Information We Collect from Other Sources

We obtain information from other sources. For example, we may collect information from identity verification services, advertising networks, data analytics providers, and mailing list providers. This information includes, but is not limited to, name, educational institution, travel dates, flight information, email address, history of purchases, demographic information, or unique individual or device identifiers. Additionally, if you create or log into your WorldStrides account through a third-party platform (such as Facebook or Google) or link your WorldStrides account to a third-party platform, we will have access to certain information from that platform, such as your name, email address, profile picture, gender, location, list of friends, educational institution and other information, in accordance with the authorization procedures determined by such platform.

Information We Derive

We may derive information or draw inferences about you based on the information we collect. For example, we may make inferences about your approximate location based on your IP address or infer that you are looking to purchase certain products based on your browsing behavior and past purchases.

USE OF INFORMATION

We use the categories of information we collect to deliver the services you purchase, administer your account, and customize your experience with us. We also use the information we collect to:

• Provide, maintain, and improve our products and services, including to debug and repair errors in our Services.
• Personalize your experience with us;
• Send you technical notices, security alerts, support messages and other transactional or relationship messages;
• Communicate with you about products, services, and events offered by WorldStrides and others and provide news and information that we think will interest you (see the Your Choices section below for information about how to opt out of these communications at any time);
• Contact you to provide information on becoming a WorldStrides Program Leader if you fill out a request form to lead a WorldStrides program;
• When you submit information about another educator for our “Refer a Friend” program, we may contact that individual regarding leading a WorldStrides program. When you refer a friend, information may be requested about that individual. You should obtain the consent of other individuals prior to providing us with their information;
• Provide and administer our scholarship programs;
• Monitor and analyze trends, usage, and activities in connection with our products and services;
• Personalize the advertisements you see on third-party platforms and websites (for more information and to opt out, see the Targeted Advertising and Analytics section below);
• Facilitate contests, sweepstakes, and promotions and process and deliver entries and rewards;
• Detect, investigate, and help prevent security incidents and other malicious, deceptive, fraudulent, or illegal activity and help protect the rights and property of WorldStrides and others;
• Comply with our legal and financial obligations;
• Carry out internal operations that are reasonable in the context of your relationship with us;
• Create de-identified, anonymized or aggregated information; and
• Carry out any other purpose described to you at the time the information was collected.
   

DISCLOSURES OF INFORMATION

In certain circumstances, we disclose (or permit others to directly collect) information about you. The list below describes when and to whom we disclose the categories of personal information described above in the Collection of Personal Information section:

• We disclose personal information to vendors, service providers, contractors, and consultants that need this information to provide services to us, such as companies that assist us with web hosting, travel planning, payment processing, fraud prevention, customer service, sweepstakes and survey management, business analytics, and marketing and advertising.  Please note that third party vendors, such as hotels, airlines, and other travel partners, may have access to and collect your personal information to perform their own functions and deliver their own services. We do not control these additional practices of third party vendors – please refer to the third parties own privacy notices for information about how they treat your personal information.
• By enrolling in our programs, through any platform, you are authorizing us to disclose to our suppliers the information required to complete the program requested and fulfill related requirements such as insurance and medical coverage.   We do not control the privacy practices of suppliers.
• If you provide a product review or otherwise post content on our Services, others will be able to see this information.
  We disclose personal information if we believe that disclosure is in accordance with, or required by, any applicable law or legal process, including lawful requests by public authorities to meet national security or law enforcement requirements.
• We disclose personal information if we believe that your actions are inconsistent with our user agreements or policies, if we believe that you have violated the law, or if we believe it is necessary to protect the rights, property, and safety of WorldStrides, our users, the public, or others.
• If you are referred to our Platforms from another Platform, an advertising site, a blog, a social media site, etc., we may collect information about you from the referring Platform or site.  Also, we may share some information about you with the referring Platform or site.  We do not control the privacy practices of referring websites.  We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any referring Platform.
• We disclose personal information to our lawyers and other professional advisors where necessary to obtain advice or otherwise protect and manage our business interests.
• We disclose personal information in connection with, or during negotiations of certain corporate transactions, including the merger, sale of company assets, financing, or acquisition of all or a portion of our business by another company.
  Personal information is disclosed between and among WorldStrides and our parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, and other companies under common control and ownership.
• We disclose personal information when we have your consent or you direct us to do so. For example, if you decide to participate in certain interactive areas or features of our Services, such as posting content related to your travel or posting reviews, you consent to the disclosure of this information to other users of our Services.
• We may jointly offer products or services with business partners.  In such instances, the identity of the business partner will appear at the time the product or service you have requested is presented, either alone or with our name. Use of these products and services are completely optional, and if you choose to access these optional services, we may share your personal information with such partners; however, telephone numbers and SMS opt-in consent are not shared. WorldStrides does not control the privacy practices of such business partners, and this Privacy Policy does not apply to the processing of your information by such partners.
• We also disclose aggregated or de-identified information that cannot reasonably be used to identify you. WorldStrides processes, maintains, and uses this information only in a de-identified fashion and will not attempt to re-identify such information, except as permitted by law.
   

TARGETED ADVERTISING AND ANALYTICS

Targeted Advertising

We engage others to provide targeted advertisements and related services across the web and in mobile apps. These entities may use cookies, web beacons, SDKs, device identifiers, and other technologies to collect information about your use of our Services and other websites and applications, including your IP address, web browser, mobile network information, pages viewed, time spent on pages or in mobile apps, links clicked, and conversion information. This information may be used  to, among other things, analyze and track data, determine the popularity of certain content, deliver advertising and content targeted to your interests on our Services and on other companies’ sites or mobile apps, and better understand your online activity.

Some of the activities described in this section may constitute “targeted advertising,” “sharing,” or “selling” under certain laws. You can opt out of having your personal information used or disclosed for these purposes via cookies and similar technologies on our website by reviewing Your Choices below.

We also work with third parties to serve ads to you as part of customized campaigns on third-party platforms (such as Facebook and Instagram). As part of these ad campaigns, we or the third-party platforms may convert information about you, such as your email address and phone number, into a unique value that can be matched with a user account on these platforms to allow us to learn about your interests and serve you advertising that is customized to your interests. Note that the third-party platforms may offer you choices about whether you see these types of customized ads.

We also use analytics tools and personal information shared across WorldStrides and its affiliates, as well as personal information acquired from third parties, to understand your likes and interests and deliver content and products that may be of interest to you now and as you grow. To learn more about the choices available to you with respect to these practices, see Your Choices below.

For more information about interest-based ads, or to opt out of having your web browsing information used for behavioral advertising purposes by companies that participate in the Digital Advertising Alliance, please visit www.aboutads.info/choices.

Analytics

We allow others to provide analytics services on our behalf across the web. These entities may use cookies, web beacons, device identifiers, and other technologies to collect information about your use of our Services and other websites and applications, including your IP address, web browser, mobile network information, pages viewed, time spent on pages or in mobile apps, links clicked, and conversion information. This information may be used by WorldStrides and others to, among other things, analyze and track data, determine the popularity of certain content, customize or personalize the Services shown to you on our website, and better understand your online activity. You can opt out of having your personal information used or disclosed for these purposes via cookies and similar technologies on our website by reviewing Your Choices below.

YOUR CHOICES ABOUT HOW WE USE AND DISCLOSE YOUR INFORMATION

Access, Correction, Deletion, and Opt-Outs

Depending on where you reside and other legal limitations, you may have certain rights with respect to your personal information, including the right to (1) request to know more about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we collect, use, disclose, and access it in a portable format, (2) request deletion of your personal information, (3) request correction of inaccurate personal information, and (4) opt out “of certain processing activities, such as sharing, targeted advertising, processing of certain sensitive personal information, or profiling. We will not discriminate against you for exercising your privacy rights.

We may verify your request by asking you to provide information related to your recent interactions with us, such as your e-mail address or mailing address.

To request access, correction, or deletion of your personal information, e-mail opt-out@worldstrides.com. To opt out of sharing, targeted advertising, or certain uses or disclosures of sensitive personal information, e-mail opt-out@worldstrides.com.

Location Information

When you first launch any of our mobile apps that collect precise location information, you will be asked to consent to the app’s collection of this information. If you initially consent to our collection of such location information, you can subsequently stop the collection of this information at any time by changing the preferences on your mobile device. You may also stop our collection of this location information by following the standard uninstall process to remove all of our mobile apps from your device.

Cookies

Most web browsers are set to accept cookies by default. If you prefer, you can usually adjust your browser settings to remove or reject browser cookies. Please note that removing or rejecting cookies could affect the availability and functionality of our Services.

Do Not Track Signals

Some browsers have a Do Not Track (“DNT”) feature that lets you tell websites that you do not want to have your online activities tracked. When you choose to turn on the DNT setting in your browser, your browser sends a special signal to websites, analytics companies, ad networks, plug in providers, and other web services you encounter while browsing to stop tracking your activity via cookies or other tracking technologies.  For information regarding DNT and how to enable this setting, if available, on your devices please see https://allaboutdnt.com.  Our Platforms do not respond to DNT signals at this time.

Communications Preferences

By opting in to receive email and/or text messages from WorldStrides, you expressly consent to receive email and/or text messages from WorldStrides at the email address and/or mobile number you provide. Messages may include transactional, informational, operational, and/or marketing content related to WorldStrides’s products, services, programs, or offerings. You may opt out of receiving text messages by replying STOP, and you may opt-out of promotional emails from WorldStrides by following the instructions in those communications or by e-mailing opt-out@worldstrides.com or contacting us at WorldStrides, 701 E. Water Street, Suite 200, Charlottesville, VA 22902. If you opt out, we may still send you non-promotional emails, such as those about your account or our ongoing business relations. For more information on message frequency, rates, and assistance, please review our Terms & Conditions.

Mobile Push Notifications

With your permission, we may send push notifications to your mobile device. You can deactivate these messages at any time by changing the notification settings on your mobile device.

DATA RETENTION

We store personal data associated with your account for as long as your account remains active. We store personal data for as long as necessary to carry out the purposes for which we originally collected it and for other business purposes explained in this Privacy Policy.

DISCLOSURES FOR CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS

California’s “Shine the Light” law (Civil Code Section § 1798.83) permits users of our website that are California residents to request certain information regarding our disclosure of personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes. We DO NOT disclose your personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes.

The California Consumer Privacy Act, as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.100 et seq.) affords California residents certain rights with respect to their personal information. If you are a California resident, this section applies to you.

Additional Disclosures

In the preceding 12 months, we have collected the following categories of personal information and sensitive personal information: identifiers, commercial information, Internet or other electronic network activity information, biometric information, geolocation information, education information, characteristics of protected classifications under California or federal law, and professional or employment related information, and inferences drawn from any of the information identified in this subdivision to create a profile about a consumer reflecting the consumer’s preferences, characteristics, psychological trends, predispositions, behavior, attitudes, intelligence, abilities, and aptitudes. For details about the precise data points we collect and the categories of sources of such collection, please see the Collection of Personal Information section above. We collect personal information for the business and commercial purposes described in the Use of Information section above.

In the preceding 12 months, we have disclosed personal information for business purposes. We have made the disclosures to the following categories of recipients:

WorldStrides Sharing & Selling Disclosure

We do not provide your name, phone number, address, email address or other personally identifiable information to third parties in exchange for money. However, under certain state privacy laws, sharing information for advertising purposes may be considered a “sale” or “sharing” of “personal information.” “Sale,” broadly means scenarios in which we have disclosed personal information with partners in exchange for valuable consideration. “Sharing” means that we make available or otherwise disclose your information to third parties for cross-contextual behavioral advertising, such as targeting advertising to you based on your personal information obtained from your activity across businesses, websites, apps, and services other than our Services. We do not knowingly sell or share personal information about consumers under the age of 16.

Various state laws and regulations, including the CPRA require companies to disclose whether the following categories of information have been “shared” or “sold”, as those terms are defined in the state laws, in the past twelve (12) months and the categories of third parties with whom the information has been shared.  Note that while a category may be marked, that does not necessarily mean that we have information in that category about you.

In the preceding 12 months, we have used cookies and other tracking technologies and allow our advertising partners to use similar technologies, so we can, among other things, show you ads promoting WorldStrides on other sites and services.  These activities may be considered “sharing”, “sales”, or “targeted advertising” under applicable laws.  The following categories of personal information have been shared with the following categories of third parties:

 *While we do not exchange personal information for money, we do engage in behavioral advertising.
  

YOUR CALIFORNIA & VIRGINIA PRIVACY RIGHTS & CHOICES

If you are a California or Virginia resident, you may have certain data rights under the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) or the Virginia Consumer Data Protection Act (VCDPA), including the right to (1) request to know more about the categories and specific pieces of personal information we collect, use, and disclose and access your personal information, including in a portable format, (2) request deletion of your personal information, (3) request correction of inaccurate personal information, (4) opt out of any “sales” of your personal information that may be occurring; and (5) not be discriminated against for exercising these rights.

Please see the Your Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information section above for more information about your privacy rights and how to exercise them.

If we receive a rights request from an authorized agent who does not provide a valid power of attorney, we may ask the authorized agent to provide proof that you gave the agent signed permission to submit the request to exercise rights on your behalf. In the absence of a valid power of attorney, we may also require you to verify your own identity directly with us or confirm to us that you otherwise provided the authorized agent permission to submit the request. If you are an authorized agent seeking to make a request, please contact us using the methods set forth in the Your Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information section above.

You may also have the right to appeal the denial of any of these rights by submitting a form that will be provided to you if we deny a data request. Depending on your data choices, certain services may be limited or unavailable.

ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES FOR INDIVIDUALS IN EUROPE

If you are located in the European Economic Area (“EEA”), the United Kingdom, or Switzerland, you have certain rights and protections under the law regarding the processing of your personal data, and this section applies to you.

Legal Basis for Processing

When we process your personal data, we will do so in reliance on the following lawful bases:  

• To perform our responsibilities under our contract with you (e.g., processing payments for and providing the products and services you requested).
• When we have a legitimate interest in processing your personal data to operate our business or protect our interests (e.g., to provide, maintain, and improve our products and services, conduct data analytics, and communicate with you).
• To comply with our legal obligations (e.g., to maintain a record of your consents and track those who have opted out of marketing communications).
• When we have your consent to do so (e.g., when you opt in to receive marketing communications from us). When consent is the legal basis for our processing your personal data, you may withdraw such consent at any time.

Additional Rights

In addition to the Privacy Rights described above and subject to certain limitations, you have the right to object to certain processing, withdraw your consent where we process your information on that basis, and the right to request we restrict certain processing. To exercise any of these rights, please use the methods enumerated in the Your Choices About How We Use and Disclose Your Information section above.

If you have a concern about our processing of personal data that we are not able to resolve, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Data Protection Authority where you reside. Contact details for your Data Protection Authority can be found using the links below:

For individuals in the EEA: https://edpb.europa.eu/about-edpb/board/members_en

For individuals in the UK: https://ico.org.uk/global/contact-us/

For individuals in Switzerland: https://www.edoeb.admin.ch/edoeb/en/home/the-fdpic/contact.html

ADDITIONAL DISCLOSURES FOR WORLDSTRIDES EMPLOYMENT APPLICANTS

This section of the Privacy Policy explains what personal information WorldStrides collects, uses, discloses, and otherwise processes about you as an as an applicant or potential job candidate (“Candidate Information”) to WorldStrides.  This section does not apply to you as a current or former employee of WorldStrides. This section provides additional information for employment applicants only.  Other sections of this Privacy Policy may also apply.

In addition to the personal information discussed above in the Collection of Personal Information section, WorldStrides also collects Candidate Information provide directly to us, information that we obtain from third parties including references, and information about you that we develop during our interaction with you such as through background check providers, recruitment consultants or professional recruitment agencies.  We may also derive Candidate Information by creating a profile reflecting your employment preferences, characteristics, behavior, intelligence, abilities, aptitudes, such as through notes taken as part of the interview process. Some of this information is collected automatically, and other information you may choose to provide to us. The types of personal information we may collect or develop include:

• Identifiers, such as your name, mailing address, email address, phone number, driver’s license or passport number, social security number, visas and work authorizations.
• Demographic information, when required by law or to support our diverse workplace initiatives, such as your gender, racial or ethnic origin, veteran status, and disability status if you voluntarily submit such information as part of your application.
• Biometric and health information.
• Audio, visual or similar information, such as cameras and CCTV we install in our premises for security or safety and audio recordings we make of customer service calls.
• Professional or employment-related information, such as your resume or CV, cover letter, work history, educational information, professional licenses, and other experience, as well as contact information for both references and your current employer, employment application, information provided by references, background checks, our assessment of recruitment information.
• Social Networking and Similar Information, to the extent permitted by law, such as social media and public profile information, including URLs related to your LinkedIn, Twitter, and your personal website.
• Other information that you submit, including additional information provided in an application form, cover letter, or other work product.
• If and to the extent relevant for a specific role, information necessary to run a background check, such as information obtained either from you or through reference and background checks, subject to any further permissions or notifications required and/or permitted by applicable law

Sensitive Personal Information: In some cases, we may collect sensitive personal information about you, which requires a higher level of protection. Please note that, where permitted by law, we may collect, store, and use sensitive personal information about you, including race, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, gender, age, marital status, and health and medical conditions. We collect this information for specific purposes, such as to accommodate a disability or illness, provide benefits, comply with legal obligations, protect the health and safety of our employees, and facilitate internal programs relating to diversity, inclusion, and anti-discrimination. Please be assured that we will only use such sensitive information to process your application and evaluate your candidacy as reasonably expected by an average person — and in accordance with applicable law.

In addition to the uses of personal information discussed above in the Use of Information section, WorldStrides uses personal information to comply with statutory obligations we have in relation to your application, including confirming your eligibility to work in a given location. These purposes include:

• Administering and processing your application, including verifying your identification, experience and other information you submit and, if your application progresses, any interview information and background check information.
• Communicating with you about your application.
• Assessing and evaluating your suitability for the role for which you have applied or for other vacancies.
• Conducting reference and background checks, including criminal records checks.
• Complying with applicable laws and employment-related requirements, including verifying identification information and information required to initiate employment, for purposes such as confirming ability to legally work in a specific location, setting up payroll, withholdings and benefits, and complying with statutory reporting requirements.
• For other notified purposes with your consent.

In addition to the retention policies discussed in the Data Retention section, please note that if you accept employment with WorldStrides, your Candidate Information will become part of your employment record and will be used for employment purposes in accordance with applicable law and any applicable Employee Privacy Notice. If you are not accepted for a role, however, we may still keep your application, including relevant Candidate Information, to allow us to consider you for other career opportunities with WorldStrides and provided that, if required by applicable laws, we obtained your prior consent for such longer retention of your personal data.

TRANSFER OF INFORMATION TO THE UNITED STATES AND OTHER COUNTRIES

WorldStrides is headquartered in the United States and we have operations and vendors in the United States and other countries. Therefore, we and those that perform work for us may transfer your personal information to, or store or access it in, jurisdictions that may not provide levels of data protection that are equivalent to those of your home jurisdiction. Where required by law, we provide adequate protection for the transfer of personal data in accordance with applicable law, such as by obtaining your consent, relying on the European Commission’s adequacy decisions, or executing Standard Contractual Clauses.

CONTACT US  

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at opt-out@worldstrides.com or contact us at our toll-free customer service line at 1-800-468-5899.