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Data Privacy
1. Data Privacy at a Glance

General Information
The following information provides a simple overview of what happens to your personal data when you visit our website. Personal data refers to all data that can personally identify you. Detailed information on data privacy can be found in our privacy policy listed below this text.

Data Collection on Our Website Who is Responsible for Data Collection on this Website?
Data processing on this website is carried out by the website operator. You can find the operator’s contact details in the site’s legal notice (Impressum).

How do we collect your data?
Your data is collected when you provide it to us. This could, for example, be data you enter into a contact form.

Other data is automatically collected by our IT systems when you visit the website. This primarily includes technical data (e.g., internet browser, operating system, or time of page visit). This data is collected automatically as soon as you enter our website.

What do we use your data for?
Some of the data is collected to ensure the proper functioning of the website. Other data can be used to analyze how you use the site.

What rights do you have regarding your data?
You have the right to receive information about the origin, recipient, and purpose of your stored personal data free of charge at any time. You also have the right to request the correction, blocking, or deletion of this data. For this purpose, as well as for further questions regarding data privacy, you can contact us at any time using the address provided in the legal notice. Furthermore, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the relevant supervisory authority.

You also have the right, under certain circumstances, to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data. For details, please refer to the privacy policy under „Right to Restriction of Processing.“

2. General Information and Mandatory Information

Data Privacy
The operators of these pages take the protection of your personal data very seriously. We treat your personal data confidentially and in accordance with the statutory data protection regulations and this privacy policy.

When you use this website, various personal data is collected. Personal data is data that can personally identify you. This privacy policy explains what data we collect and what we use it for. It also explains how and for what purpose this happens.

We would like to point out that data transmission over the internet (e.g., communication by e-mail) can have security vulnerabilities. Complete protection of data against access by third parties is not possible.

Responsible Authority
The responsible authority for data processing on this website is:

Vijay Dhawan, Kamal Khanna, Banti Khanna, Sumesh Dhawan

Merkenicher Hauptstraße 150
50769 Köln
Germany
Phone: 0221 / 1700070
E-mail: info@hotelmerkenich.de

The responsible authority is the natural or legal person who, alone or jointly with others, decides on the purposes and means of processing personal data (e.g., names, e-mail addresses, etc.).

Withdrawal of Your Consent to Data Processing
Many data processing operations are only possible with your express consent. You can revoke consent you have already given at any time. An informal notification by e-mail to us is sufficient for this purpose. The legality of data processing carried out before the revocation remains unaffected by the revocation.

Right to Object to Data Collection in Special Cases and Against Direct Advertising (Art. 21 GDPR) If data processing is carried out on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. e or f GDPR, you have the right to object to the processing of your personal data for reasons that arise from your particular situation; this also applies to profiling based on these provisions. The respective legal basis on which processing is based can be found in this privacy policy. If you object, we will no longer process your affected personal data unless we can demonstrate compelling legitimate grounds for the processing that override your interests, rights, and freedoms or the processing serves to assert, exercise, or defend legal claims (objection under Art. 21 para. 1 GDPR).

If your personal data is processed for direct marketing purposes, you have the right to object at any time to the processing of personal data concerning you for the purpose of such advertising; this also applies to profiling, insofar as it is associated with such direct marketing. If you object, your personal data will subsequently no longer be used for the purpose of direct marketing (objection under Art. 21 para. 2 GDPR).

Right to Lodge a Complaint with the Supervisory Authority In the event of violations of the GDPR, data subjects have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority, in particular in the member state of their habitual residence, their place of work, or the place of the alleged violation. The right to lodge a complaint is without prejudice to other administrative or judicial remedies.

Right to Data Portability You have the right to have data that we process automatically based on your consent or in fulfillment of a contract handed over to you or to a third party in a common, machine-readable format. If you request the direct transfer of the data to another controller, this will only be done to the extent that it is technically feasible.

SSL or TLS Encryption This site uses SSL or TLS encryption for security reasons and to protect the transmission of confidential content, such as orders or inquiries that you send to us as the site operator. You can recognize an encrypted connection by the fact that the address line of the browser changes from „http://“ to „https://“ and by the lock symbol in your browser line.

When SSL or TLS encryption is activated, the data you transmit to us cannot be read by third parties.

Information, Blocking, Deletion, and Correction You have the right, within the framework of the applicable legal provisions, to obtain information free of charge at any time about your stored personal data, its origin and recipient, and the purpose of data processing and, if necessary, a right to correct, block or delete this data. For this purpose, as well as for further questions regarding personal data, you can contact us at any time using the address provided in the legal notice.

Right to Restriction of Processing

You have the right to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data. You can contact us at any time using the address provided in the legal notice. The right to restrict processing exists in the following cases:

If you contest the accuracy of your personal data stored by us, we usually need time to verify this. For the duration of the examination, you have the right to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data.
If the processing of your personal data is unlawful, you can request the restriction of data processing instead of deletion.
If we no longer need your personal data, but you need it to exercise, defend, or assert legal claims, you have the right to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data instead of deletion.
If you have lodged an objection pursuant to Art. 21 para. 1 GDPR, a balance must be struck between your interests and ours. As long as it is not yet clear whose interests prevail, you have the right to request the restriction of the processing of your personal data.
If you have restricted the processing of your personal data, this data – apart from its storage – may only be processed with your consent or for the assertion, exercise, or defense of legal claims or for the protection of

the rights of another natural or legal person or for reasons of important public interest of the European Union or a member state.

Objection to Promotional Emails The use of contact data published in the context of the legal notice requirement for the purpose of sending unsolicited advertising and information materials is hereby objected to. The operators of the pages expressly reserve the right to take legal action in the event of unsolicited advertising information, such as spam e-mails.

3. Data Collection on Our Website

Cookies
Some of the web pages use so-called cookies. Cookies do not cause any damage to your computer and do not contain viruses. Cookies serve to make our website more user-friendly, effective, and secure. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your computer and saved by your browser.

Most of the cookies we use are so-called „session cookies.“ They are automatically deleted after your visit. Other cookies remain in your device’s memory until you delete them. These cookies make it possible to recognize your browser when you next visit the site.

You can set your browser to inform you about the setting of cookies and to allow cookies only in individual cases, to exclude the acceptance of cookies for certain cases or in general, and to activate the automatic deletion of cookies when closing the browser. If cookies are deactivated, the functionality of this website may be limited.

Cookies that are required for the electronic communication process or for the provision of certain functions that you have requested (e.g., shopping cart function) are stored on the basis of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR. The website operator has a legitimate interest in storing cookies for the technically error-free and optimized provision of its services. If other cookies (e.g., cookies for analyzing your browsing behavior) are stored, they will be treated separately in this privacy policy.

Server Log Files
The provider of the pages automatically collects and stores information in so-called server log files, which your browser automatically transmits to us. These are:

Browser type and browser version
Operating system used
Referrer URL
Host name of the accessing computer
Time of the server request
IP address

These data will not be combined with data from other sources.

The basis for data processing is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR, which allows the processing of data for the fulfillment of a contract or pre-contractual measures.

Contact Form
If you send us inquiries via the contact form, your data from the inquiry form, including the contact details you provided there, will be stored by us for the purpose of processing the inquiry and in case of follow-up questions. We will not share this data without your consent.

The processing of the data entered in the contact form is therefore carried out exclusively based on your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR). You can revoke this consent at any time. An informal message by e-mail to us is sufficient for this purpose. The legality of the data processing operations carried out until the revocation remains unaffected by the revocation.

The data you enter in the contact form will remain with us until you ask us to delete it, revoke your consent to its storage, or the purpose for its storage no longer applies (e.g., after your request has been processed). Mandatory statutory provisions – especially retention periods – remain unaffected.

Processing of Data (Customer and Contract Data)

We collect, process, and use personal data only to the extent necessary for the establishment, content design, or change of the legal relationship (inventory data). This is done based on Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR, which permits the processing of data for the performance of a contract or pre-contractual measures. Personal data on the use of our website (usage data) will only be collected, processed, and used to the extent necessary to enable users to use the service or to bill them.

The customer data collected will be deleted after the order has been completed or the business relationship has ended. Statutory retention periods remain unaffected.

Data Transfer upon Contract Conclusion for Services and Digital Contents
We transmit personal data to third parties only if this is necessary within the scope of the contract, for example, to the bank responsible for processing payments.

Further data transfer does not take place or only if you have expressly consented to it. A transfer of your data to third parties without explicit consent, such as for advertising purposes, does not occur.

The basis for data processing is Art. 6 para. 1 lit. b GDPR, which permits the processing of data for the performance of a contract or pre-contractual measures.

4. Newsletter

Newsletter Data
If you would like to receive the newsletter offered on the website, we require an e-mail address from you as well as information that allows us to verify that you are the owner of the e-mail address provided and that you agree to receive the newsletter. Further data is not collected or is only collected on a voluntary basis. We use this data exclusively for sending the requested information and do not pass it on to third parties.

The processing of the data entered in the newsletter registration form is based exclusively on your consent (Art. 6 para. 1 lit. a GDPR). You can revoke your consent to the storage of data, the e-mail address, and its use for sending the newsletter at any time, for example via the „Unsubscribe“ link in the newsletter. The legality of the data processing operations that have already taken place remains unaffected by the revocation.

The data you provide to us for the purpose of subscribing to the newsletter will be stored by us until you unsubscribe from the newsletter and will be deleted after you unsubscribe from the newsletter. Data that has been stored by us for other purposes (e.g., e-mail addresses for the member area) remains unaffected by this.

5. Plugins and Tools

Google Web Fonts
This site uses so-called web fonts provided by Google for the uniform display of fonts. When you call up a page, your browser loads the required web fonts into your browser cache to display texts and fonts correctly.

For this purpose, the browser you are using must connect to Google’s servers. This gives Google knowledge that our website has been accessed via your IP address. The use of Google Web Fonts is in the interest of a consistent and attractive presentation of our online services. This represents a legitimate interest within the meaning of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR.

If your browser does not support web fonts, a standard font will be used by your computer.

Further information on Google Web Fonts can be found at https://developers.google.com/fonts/faq and in Google’s privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.

Google Maps

This page uses the Google Maps map service via an API. The provider is Google Inc., 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.

To use the functions of Google Maps, it is necessary to store your IP address.

This information is usually transmitted to a Google server in the USA and stored there. The provider of this site has no influence on this data transmission.

The use of Google Maps is in the interest of an attractive presentation of our online offers and an easy findability of the places we have indicated on the website. This represents a legitimate interest within the meaning of Art. 6 para. 1 lit. f GDPR.

More information on the handling of user data can be found in Google’s privacy policy: https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en.