Although long-distance journeys are not a priority right now, many people tend to associate them with exotic places, entertainment, and exciting experiences. Given a fact that there is an existence of internet, in a few clicks, we are able make an arrangement that includes airplane flight, hotel and other services. In order to allow their passengers to stay as comfortable as possible, specialized companies also provide additional information to overcome language and cultural barriers. Nevertheless, passengers who are supposed to arrive at a destination are rarely satisfied with different legal frameworks and primarily with regard to the protection of personal data.
What should travelers know and what theycould do to avoid complications and so that their rights are not challenged by different laws?
Suppose that, a particular arrangement consists of the services of a tourist agency, hotel and airline, and in such a case each of them is a separate controller, responsible for its own personal data processing.
What does this mean for us as a passenger (subject)?
Today, we all know that non-EU businesses providing goods and services to EU citizens should operate in accordance with the rules of the GDPR. If that is not the case, we will not be able to exercise our rights under the General Regulations. This means that we may not be able to find out which third parties our personal data are passed on or we will not be able to exercise the right to have our personal data deleted. In order to avoid or reduce it to a minimum, it is important to look into the privacy rules of the agency, airlines and hotels, in order to understand the necessary information regarding our personal data and the exercise of rights in relation to them.
An example.
For instance, a family and children arrived to an exotic island and are located in a hotel that does not operate under the GDPR, which is performed by video surveillance of the interior and the exterier. Since it does not comply with the GDPR and does not have such a legal obligation, you do not know what appears to be with the video recordngs or how long will be stored and you have been recorded as a family sunbathing at the hotel pool. You don't pay attention to that at that time, and you think that this information isn't particularly important because you're on vacation, and you want to relax. On the way home, after a while you see a commercial for that hotel that includes a photo of your underage children in a bathing suit playing by the pool with you and your wife who's in a bikini. We believe that no one would want to see themselves and their family on a commercial without knowing and without the possibility of protecting their personal data and exercising their rights under the GDPR. Of course, there are always other means of achieving the desired (litigation or similar).
Of course, there are always some other means to achieve the desired (disputes or other), however, what has now become quite normal for us to know who and in what way processes our personal data and to exercise rights in this regard, so for example to challenge that kind of processing would be lacking. So the most beautiful experience in the exotic part of the world can be overshadowed by various inconveniences.
Informing about the protection of your personal data can contribute to the safety of your holiday.
