Last updated: August 2026
Who we are
This is the Privacy Policy for thetraveltom.com (“we”, “us”, “our”), a travel blog operated by Tomas Jalovik, based in Vilnius, Lithuania. This policy explains what personal data we collect from visitors, why we collect it, and what rights you have over it. If you have any questions, contact us at thetraveltom.com@gmail.com.
Personal data we collect
Comments
When you leave a comment, we collect the data shown in the comment form, plus your IP address and browser user agent string to help detect spam. An anonymised string created from your email address (a hash) may be sent to Gravatar to check whether you use that service — its privacy policy is available at automattic.com/privacy. After your comment is approved, your profile picture is visible to the public next to your comment.
Contact form
When you use our contact form, we collect your name, email address, inquiry type, and message, so we can reply to you. We only use this information to respond to your enquiry.
Newsletter
If you subscribe to our newsletter, we collect your email address in order to send you the updates you signed up for, using Hostinger Reach. You can unsubscribe at any time using the link included in every email we send.
Analytics
We use Google Analytics (via Site Kit by Google) to understand how visitors use this site, such as which pages are viewed and roughly how long for. This data is aggregated and does not directly identify you. Read more about how Google handles this data at policies.google.com/privacy, or opt out using the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on.
Cookies
This site uses standard WordPress cookies (comment cookies last one year; login and screen-option cookies follow WordPress defaults) plus analytics cookies from Google. If you visit our login page, a temporary cookie checks whether your browser accepts cookies. It contains no personal data and is discarded when you close your browser.
Embedded content
Articles on this site may include embedded content, such as YouTube videos or Instagram posts. Embedded content behaves exactly as if you had visited the other website directly. These sites may collect data about you, use cookies, and track your interaction with the embedded content, particularly if you are logged into that service.
Affiliate links
Some posts, such as our gear and packing guides, contain affiliate links, for example to Amazon. If you click through and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. This never affects which products we recommend. See our Disclosure page for details. Affiliate programmes do not give us access to your payment information.
Who we share data with
We share data with the service providers that run this site: Google (Analytics, via Site Kit), Hostinger (hosting and the Hostinger Reach newsletter tool), and Gravatar/Automattic (for comment avatars). We do not sell your personal data to anyone.
How long we keep your data
Comments and their metadata are kept indefinitely so we can recognise follow-up comments automatically. Contact form submissions are kept only as long as needed to handle your enquiry. Newsletter email addresses are kept until you unsubscribe. If you request a password reset, your IP address is included in the reset email.
Your rights (GDPR)
We are based in Lithuania and this site can be accessed from the EU, so you have the right to: request a copy of the personal data we hold about you; ask us to correct inaccurate data; ask us to delete your data; and object to or restrict certain processing. You can also lodge a complaint with the Lithuanian State Data Protection Inspectorate (Valstybinė duomenų apsaugos inspekcija, vdai.lrv.lt) or your own local supervisory authority. To exercise any of these rights, email thetraveltom.com@gmail.com.
Children’s privacy
This site is not directed at children under 16, and we do not knowingly collect personal data from children.
Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “last updated” date at the top of this page reflects the most recent revision.