Location Data Policy

Finding Horizons never requires you to share your location. All core features — saving places, managing trips, browsing collections — work without location access.

We never request location permission on app launch or page load. Permission is only requested at the moment you trigger a feature that benefits from it.

Location access is requested only when you explicitly trigger one of the following:

• Nearby places: Tapping "Near me" on the map to find saved points close to your current position
• Nearby events: Finding events happening near you in the Explore tab
• Mini Quests / Free Roam: Location-based missions that activate near real-world places
• Navigation handoff: Opening a saved place in Google Maps or Apple Maps from within the app

In all cases, you will see a standard OS permission dialog before any location data is accessed.

• Approximate location: Used for nearby events and place suggestions (city/neighbourhood level)
• Precise location: Used only for Mini Quest proximity checks and turn-by-turn navigation handoff. Precision is not stored beyond the active session.
• We do not store your raw GPS coordinates persistently. City-level grouping (e.g., "currently in Tokyo") may be stored to power city-based features.

• Track your location in the background without your knowledge
• Share your precise location with other users without your explicit consent
• Sell or share your location data with advertisers or data brokers
• Store a continuous location history
• Request location permission before you trigger a relevant feature

A future version of Finding Horizons may allow you to optionally share your city/neighbourhood presence with other travellers (nomad mode). If implemented:

• City-level visibility only by default — precise location is never auto-shared
• You can enable or disable sharing at any time from Settings
• Other users see only that you are "in Tokyo" — not your exact address or neighbourhood
• Precise location sharing (if ever offered) requires a separate explicit opt-in

When you use map features, the app sends place queries (search terms, place IDs) to Google Maps/Places API. These queries are routed through our server to protect API keys — your location coordinates are not automatically included in these requests unless you have enabled location and triggered a nearby search.

Navigation handoffs (opening a place in Google Maps or Apple Maps) open a third-party app, which then operates under that app's own location and privacy policies.

You can revoke location permission at any time from your device's app settings (iOS: Settings → Finding Horizons → Location; Android: Settings → Apps → Finding Horizons → Permissions). Revoking location access does not affect your saved places, trips, or other app data.

Location data questions: privacy@findinghorizons.ca