1. What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files that a website stores on your device. They help a site remember your actions and preferences — such as your language, region or whether you have already seen a notice — over time. “Similar technologies” include local storage, pixels and software development kits, which work in comparable ways.
Cookies are not programs and cannot run code or access other information on your device. Some are set by the site you are visiting (“first-party” cookies); others are set by third parties whose services the site uses.
2. How we use cookies
We keep our use of cookies to a minimum and group them into four categories. We only set non-essential cookies with your consent where the law requires it. Our aim is always to serve the reader, never to profile individuals for unrelated advertising.
3. Types of cookies we use
| Category | Examples | Purpose | Typical duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strictly necessary | qiinn_session, csrf_token | Keep the site secure and working, and remember form state during a visit. | Session |
| Preferences | qiinn_prefs, qiinn_region | Remember choices such as your region and display settings so the collection feels consistent. | 12 months |
| Analytics | qiinn_analytics, qiinn_ga | Understand, in aggregate, which hotels and articles readers spend time with, so we can improve the collection. | 24 months |
| Marketing | qiinn_campaign | Only with your consent: measure the performance of a clearly-labelled campaign. Never used to build unrelated profiles. | 6 months |
4. How to manage cookies
You are in control. You can:
- accept or reject non-essential cookies when a cookie notice is shown, and change your choice later;
- delete cookies already stored on your device through your browser settings;
- block cookies for the yearn site, or for all sites, in your browser;
- use a private or incognito window, which clears cookies when you close it.
Most browsers explain how to manage cookies in their help pages — look for “privacy”, “security” or “clear browsing data”. If you block strictly necessary cookies, some parts of the site, such as forms, may not work correctly.
5. Third-party cookies
Some cookies are set by the services we use to run the site — for example, a hosting provider, an analytics service or a newsletter platform. These providers may set cookies when you use the relevant feature. We choose providers carefully and limit what they can do with the data, but their own privacy and cookie policies also apply to the information they process.
6. Do Not Track
Some browsers can send a “Do Not Track” signal. There is still no common standard for how sites should respond to it. Rather than rely on it, we ask for your consent for non-essential cookies, so your preference is explicit.
7. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy when our use of cookies changes or when the law requires. When we do, we will update the effective date at the top of the page and, where the change is significant, highlight it on the site.
8. How to contact us
If you have a question about our use of cookies, please use our Contact us page. For more on how we handle personal information generally, see our Privacy policy.