Cookie Policy

1. What Are Cookies

Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device (computer, tablet, or mobile phone) when you visit a website. They contain information about your browsing habits and preferences, and are retrieved when you return to the website. Cookies serve many functions, including remembering login information, storing preferences, and tracking how you interact with websites. Each cookie typically has an expiration date, after which it is automatically deleted from your device.

2. Why We Use Cookies

Harbor Fog Retreat uses cookies to improve your experience on our website, understand how you use our services, personalize content and recommendations, remember your login information, and analyze site traffic patterns. Cookies allow us to recognize returning visitors, maintain security, provide customer support, and measure marketing effectiveness. By analyzing cookie data, we can identify popular content, understand user behavior, and make informed decisions about improving our website and services.

3. Types of Cookies We Use

We use four main categories of cookies: essential cookies (required for basic site functionality), analytics cookies (to understand how you use our site), marketing cookies (for targeted advertising and personalization), and preference cookies (to remember your settings). Each category serves a distinct purpose, and you can customize which non-essential categories you consent to use through our cookie banner on every page.

4. Essential Cookies

Essential cookies are necessary for the website to function properly. These cookies are automatically set and cannot be declined without preventing website functionality. Essential cookies enable core functions such as security, network management, load balancing, and access to authenticated content. They store session information and CSRF tokens to protect your account from unauthorized access. Examples include login status, shopping cart contents, and security tokens. These cookies do not track you across third-party websites.

5. Analytics Cookies

Analytics cookies help us understand how visitors interact with our website. These cookies collect information such as which pages you visit, how long you stay on each page, what you click on, and how you arrived at our site. We use this information to identify usage trends, measure page performance, debug errors, and enhance user experience. Analytics data is anonymized and aggregated; we do not use these cookies to identify you personally. You can decline analytics cookies, though this may limit our ability to optimize the website for your experience.

6. Marketing Cookies

Marketing cookies are used to deliver targeted content and advertisements based on your interests and browsing history. These cookies track your activity across multiple websites to create a profile of your interests. This allows us to show you relevant retreat packages and wellness content both on our site and across partner sites. Marketing cookies also measure the effectiveness of our advertising campaigns and help us understand which messages resonate with different audiences. You can decline marketing cookies if you prefer not to receive targeted content.

7. Preference Cookies

Preference cookies store your personal preferences and settings, such as your language choice, font size preferences, theme selection, and other customizable features. These cookies enable us to remember your choices so that you don't need to reconfigure settings each time you visit. Preference cookies enhance convenience and personalization. They do not track your activity across websites or identify you personally. Declining preference cookies will not affect site functionality but may require you to reset preferences on each visit.

8. Third-Party Cookies

Third-party cookies are set by domains other than the one you are visiting, typically by advertising networks, analytics providers, and social media platforms. We may use third-party services such as Google Analytics, Facebook Pixel, and advertising partners who place cookies on your device. These cookies allow third-party service providers to recognize you and track your behavior across the internet. We do not control third-party cookies, and their use is governed by their privacy policies. You can manage third-party cookies through your browser settings or by opting out on individual third-party websites.

9. Managing Your Cookies

You have full control over cookie preferences on Harbor Fog Retreat. Our cookie banner, displayed on every page, allows you to Accept All, Reject All, or Customize your cookie preferences. The Customize option lets you choose which non-essential categories to enable while keeping essential cookies active. Your choice is saved in localStorage and persists across sessions, so you won't be asked repeatedly. You can change your preferences at any time by interacting with the cookie banner again or by adjusting your browser settings.

10. Declining Cookies

If you decline non-essential cookies through our banner, we will not set analytics, marketing, or preference cookies on your device. Only essential cookies required for site functionality will be active. You can still browse the website normally, though some features (such as remembering preferences or displaying personalized content) may not function. Declining cookies will not affect your ability to book retreats or access core website functions. However, you may need to provide information again if your browser clears cookies or you use a different device.

11. Other Tracking Technologies

In addition to cookies, we use other tracking technologies such as web beacons, pixels, and local storage. Web beacons are small, invisible images embedded in web pages that track whether a page has been viewed. Pixel tags work similarly and help measure advertising effectiveness. Local storage (sessionStorage and localStorage) allows us to store larger amounts of data on your device, including preferences and analytics data. These technologies serve similar purposes to cookies and can be managed through browser settings. Some tracking technologies may persist even if you decline cookies, so browser privacy settings provide additional control.

12. Cookie Retention

Essential cookies typically expire at the end of your browsing session or when you log out. Analytics and preference cookies are retained for up to two years to track long-term trends and remember your settings. Marketing cookies may persist for up to one year. Our cookie preference settings are stored in localStorage and remain active until you clear your browser data or manually delete localStorage. You can check cookie expiration dates in your browser settings. Expired cookies are automatically deleted from your device and cannot be recovered.

13. Do Not Track

Some browsers include a Do Not Track (DNT) feature that signals websites not to track your activity. However, there is no universal standard for DNT implementation, and most websites, including Harbor Fog Retreat, do not currently respond to DNT signals. If your browser sends a DNT signal, we will continue to use cookies as described in this policy, though you can manually decline non-essential cookies through our cookie banner. To limit tracking, we recommend adjusting your browser privacy settings and using the cookie preferences on our website.

14. Changes to This Policy

Harbor Fog Retreat may update this Cookie Policy to reflect changes in our practices, new technologies, legal requirements, or user feedback. We will update the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page. Material changes will be communicated via email to users with active bookings or through prominent notification on our website. Continued use of our website after changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated policy. We encourage you to review this policy regularly to stay informed about how we use cookies.

15. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Cookie Policy, concerns about our cookie practices, or wish to exercise your rights regarding cookies and tracking, please contact us:

Harbor Fog Retreat
Data Protection & Privacy
2514-3 Toyoteru, Chuo Ward
Niigata 951-8033, Japan
Phone: +81-25-228-7453
Email: privacy@harborfogretreat.com