Privacy Policy

Last updated: [26/10/2026]

Welcome to The Beach Muse (https://thebeachmuse.com/) – your go-to destination for travel inspiration and Mediterranean escapes. Your privacy is important to me. This Privacy Policy explains how I collect, use, and protect your personal data when you visit my website.

1. Who runs this website

The Beach Muse (thebeachmuse.com) is run by Sophie Dupau, based in Switzerland. I am responsible for your personal data on this website.

Contact for any privacy question: hello@thebeachmuse.com

2. What data I collect

  • Data you give me: your email address and first name when you join the newsletter, and your name, email and message when you write to me.
  • Data collected when you browse: pages viewed, time on page, the site you came from, device and browser type, approximate location (country or city) and IP address. Most of it is collected through cookies, only if you accept them.
  • Data linked to affiliate links: when you click an affiliate link, the partner records the click and, if you book or buy, that a purchase was made. I never see your name or payment details.

3. Why I use it, and with which tools

  • Sending the newsletter (Klaviyo): your email, first name, and whether you open and click the emails. Legal basis: your consent.
  • Audience statistics (Google Analytics): browsing data. Legal basis: your consent.
  • Search performance (Google Search Console): searches and clicks from Google, grouped, with no cookie on your device. Legal basis: legitimate interest.
  • Advertising (Journey by Mediavine (Grow) and its advertising partners): cookies, advertising identifiers, IP address and device. Legal basis: your consent.
  • Affiliate links and booking widgets (Travelpayouts, Stay22, Amazon Associates, rewardStyle (LTK), Ferryhopper): clicks, cookie identifiers and purchase confirmation. Legal basis: your consent.
  • Running and securing the site, remembering your language (Hostinger, WordPress, WPML): IP address, technical logs and language preference. Legal basis: legitimate interest; strictly necessary.

4. Cookies

Cookies are small files stored on your device. This site uses four kinds:

  • Strictly necessary: they make the site work and remember your language and cookie choices. They cannot be turned off.
  • Statistics: they help me understand which articles are useful (Google Analytics).
  • Advertising: they show ads, measure them and, if you agree, personalise them (Journey by Mediavine and its partners).
  • Affiliate: they let partners know a booking came from my site, so I receive a commission.

Only strictly necessary cookies are set before you choose. The banner shown on your first visit lets you accept, refuse or choose by category. You can change your choice at any time through the cookie settings link at the bottom of every page, or delete cookies in your browser settings.

5. Affiliate links

Some links on this site are affiliate links. If you book or buy through them, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. The partner sets a cookie to attribute the booking to my site. Your booking or purchase itself is handled by the partner under its own privacy policy. I only receive general reports, never your name or payment details.

6. Who receives your data

I never sell your personal data. It is shared only with the service providers listed above, which process it for the purposes described.

Some of them, such as Google, Klaviyo, Amazon and advertising partners, store data outside Switzerland and the European Union, mainly in the United States. These transfers are protected by recognised safeguards: the Swiss-U.S. and EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework where the provider is certified, or the European Commission’s Standard Contractual Clauses.

Under some US state laws, such as California’s, showing personalised ads can count as “sharing” personal data. You can opt out at any time by refusing advertising cookies in the cookie settings.

7. How long I keep it

  • Newsletter: until you unsubscribe (using the link in every email).
  • Statistics: 14 months at most.
  • Emails you send me: I keep our exchanges and your contact details so I can get back to you, until you ask me to delete them.
  • Cookies: for the duration shown in the cookie settings, at most 13 months for consent-based cookies.

8. Your rights

Wherever you live, you can ask me to:

  • tell you what data I hold about you and send you a copy;
  • correct or delete it;
  • limit how it is used, or object to its use;
  • send it to you in a reusable format;
  • withdraw your consent at any time, for the newsletter or cookies, without affecting what was done before.

Write to hello@thebeachmuse.com. I will answer within 30 days. Using your rights will never be held against you.

You can also file a complaint with a data protection authority: in Switzerland, the Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner (FDPIC); in the European Union, the authority of your country; elsewhere, your local authority.

9. Children

This website is not intended for children under 16, and I do not knowingly collect their data.

10. Security

I take reasonable measures to protect your data, such as a secure connection (HTTPS) and limited access to accounts. No transmission over the internet is completely secure, though.

11. Changes

I may update this policy when the site or the law changes. The date at the top shows the latest version.