Terms & Conditions

1. Acceptance of Terms

These Terms & Conditions ("Terms") are an agreement between you and zhakura studio GmbH, a company registered in Switzerland (commercial register no. CHE-248.204.588) with its registered office at Winzerhalde 109, 8049 Zürich, Switzerland ("tripcode", "we", "us", or "our"), which operates the tripcode mobile application and website (the "Service"). By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree to these Terms, you may not access or use the Service.

We reserve the right to update these Terms at any time. Continued use of the Service after changes are posted constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

2. Description of Service

tripcode is a social travel platform that enables users to discover trips, find travel companions, collaboratively plan itineraries, track shared expenses, communicate via in-app chat, and share trip memories through photos and reviews.

tripcode is a platform for connecting travellers. We are not a travel agency, tour operator, or travel insurance provider. We do not organise, operate, or guarantee any trips listed on the platform.

3. Beta Service

tripcode is currently offered as a beta service while we finalise the platform. By using the beta you acknowledge and accept the following:

• No service-level agreement. We do not guarantee uptime, performance, or availability. The Service may be unavailable, slow, or partially functional at any time.
• Bugs are expected. Features may behave incorrectly, crash, or be removed without notice. Please report issues through the in-app feedback channel.
• Data may be migrated. We may migrate or restructure user data as the platform evolves. We will not intentionally delete your user-generated content — profiles, trips, photos, chat history, reviews, and itineraries — without first notifying you by email or in-app message; routine schema or infrastructure changes that do not affect your content may be made without prior notice.
• Breaking changes. The Service may introduce backwards-incompatible updates that require you to install a new version of the app. Older versions may stop working without prior notice.
• Paid features. Some paid features — including subscriptions (tripcode Premium and Pro) and paid tripcodes — may be enabled during the beta. Where they are, the payment terms in Section 8 apply. Features, plans, and prices may change on notice while the Service is in beta.

These beta-specific provisions sit alongside, and do not replace, the rest of these Terms.

4. Account Registration & Eligibility

• Age: You must be at least 18 years old to create an account and use the Service. We collect your date of birth during account setup to verify you meet this requirement and to match you with trips that have a host-set age range. Your age is hidden from other users by default; you can choose to display it on your public profile via Settings. See our Privacy Policy for full details.
• You must provide accurate, current, and complete information during registration and keep your profile information up to date.
• You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activities that occur under your account.
• You may only maintain one account per person.
• You must notify us immediately of any unauthorised use of your account.

5. User Conduct

You agree not to use the Service to:

• Harass, threaten, intimidate, or abuse other users
• Post false, misleading, or fraudulent trip listings or profile information
• Impersonate any person or entity
• Engage in any illegal activity or solicit others to do so
• Send spam, unsolicited advertising, or commercial solicitations
• Upload content that is offensive, obscene, defamatory, or infringes on the rights of others
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to other user accounts or our systems
• Interfere with or disrupt the Service or its infrastructure

We reserve the right to remove content and suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms, at our sole discretion.

6. User-Generated Content

Ownership

You retain ownership of the content you create and share on the Service, including trip listings, reviews, chat messages, and photos.

Licence to tripcode

By posting content on the Service, you grant tripcode a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, display, reproduce, and distribute your content within the Service for the purpose of operating and improving the platform.

For trips whose visibility you have set to public, this licence also extends to displaying the trip's textual metadata — title, destination, dates, and your anonymised first-letter avatar — on tripcode's public marketing surfaces, including tripcode.io. Trip metadata of this kind contains no third-party personal data, and the avatar shows only a single letter rather than a name.

Your uploaded cover image is treated separately because it may depict identifiable people. We display your cover image on tripcode's marketing surfaces only when you have separately and explicitly opted in by enabling the "Feature my cover image on tripcode.io" toggle on the trip. When you have not opted in, we may substitute a stock photograph (e.g. licensed via Unsplash) representative of the destination instead. You can revoke the cover-image opt-in at any time by disabling the toggle or deleting the trip; your image will be removed from the marketing surfaces on the next deploy.

Representations & Warranties

When you upload content to the Service — including trip cover images, album photos, and any other media that depicts identifiable persons — you represent and warrant that (a) you have the right to upload, display, reproduce, and (where you have opted in) feature that content on tripcode's public marketing surfaces, including tripcode.io; (b) you have obtained any consents required from any identifiable third parties depicted in the content for the uses set out in these Terms and our Privacy Policy; and (c) the content does not infringe any third party's intellectual property, privacy, publicity, or other rights. You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold tripcode harmless from any claim, loss, liability, or expense (including reasonable legal fees) arising from a breach of these representations.

Content Removal

We reserve the right to remove any content that violates these Terms or that we deem harmful to the community, without prior notice. You may delete your own content at any time through the app, subject to any limitations of the platform's functionality. Anyone — whether or not they hold a tripcode account — can request removal of content depicting them from our public marketing surfaces by emailing hello@tripcode.io. See the Content removal section of our help page for the full process.

7. Trips & Travel

• tripcode provides a platform for users to connect around travel. We do not vet, endorse, or guarantee any trip, host, or participant.
• You are solely responsible for your own travel decisions, including obtaining necessary visas, travel insurance, vaccinations, and complying with local laws and regulations.
• You acknowledge that travel carries inherent risks. tripcode is not liable for any injury, loss, damage, or expense arising from trips arranged through the platform.
• Reviews and reputation scores on the platform are user-generated and are not independently verified by tripcode.
• You are responsible for conducting your own due diligence before joining or hosting a trip.

8. Payments, Subscriptions & Expenses

Subscriptions (tripcode Premium & Pro)

tripcode offers optional paid subscriptions ("Premium" and "Pro") that unlock additional features. Subscriptions are sold as in-app purchases through the Apple App Store or Google Play and are managed on our behalf by RevenueCat. Payment is charged to your App Store or Google Play account, and prices are shown in the app before you purchase.

Subscriptions renew automatically for the same period (monthly or yearly) at the then-current price until you cancel. You can manage or cancel a subscription at any time in your Apple or Google account settings; cancellation takes effect at the end of the current billing period.

Refunds for in-app purchases are handled by Apple or Google under their respective policies, not by tripcode. To request a refund, contact the App Store or Google Play.

Right of withdrawal (EU/EEA consumers). Where you would otherwise have a statutory right of withdrawal for a digital purchase, you expressly request that we begin providing the digital content or service immediately upon purchase, and you acknowledge that you thereby lose that right of withdrawal once performance has begun. This does not affect any refund rights available to you under the app store's policies or under mandatory law.

Paid tripcodes and creator payouts

Users may buy and sell paid tripcodes (shareable trip blueprints). The applicable payment method is shown at the point of purchase — this may be an in-app purchase through the App Store or Google Play, or another supported payment provider. Where you publish a tripcode for sale as a creator and are eligible to receive payouts, those payouts are processed through Stripe Connect into your own connected Stripe account. As a creator you are responsible for the accuracy of what you publish and for any taxes due on your earnings. tripcode is the platform and technology provider and is not the seller of your tripcode.

Expense tracking between users

The expense tracking feature within tripcode is a planning and record-keeping tool. tripcode does not process, facilitate, or guarantee any payments between users. Users are solely responsible for settling expenses among themselves, and tripcode is not liable for any financial disputes between users arising from trips or expense arrangements.

9. Intellectual Property

The tripcode name, logo, design, source code, and all related intellectual property are owned by zhakura studio GmbH (trading as tripcode) and are protected by applicable intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, sell, or create derivative works based on our intellectual property without our prior written consent.

10. Privacy

Your use of the Service is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which describes how we collect, use, and protect your personal information. By using the Service, you consent to the practices described in the Privacy Policy.

11. Disclaimers

The Service is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without any warranties of any kind, whether express or implied. We do not warrant that:

• The Service will be available at all times or without interruption
• The Service will be free of errors, bugs, or security vulnerabilities
• Any information provided through the Service is accurate, reliable, or complete
• The Service will meet your specific requirements or expectations

tripcode is not responsible for the actions, behaviour, or conduct of any users, whether online or offline, in connection with trips arranged through the platform.

12. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, tripcode and its directors and agents shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, including but not limited to loss of profits, data, goodwill, or other intangible losses, arising out of or in connection with:

• Your use of or inability to use the Service
• Any interactions or disputes between users
• Any travel activities, injuries, or losses arising from trips arranged through the platform
• Unauthorised access to or alteration of your data
• Any third-party conduct or content on the Service

Our total liability for any claims arising from or relating to the Service shall not exceed the amount you have paid to tripcode, if any, in the twelve (12) months preceding the claim.

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits our liability where it cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law — including liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or under any mandatory consumer-protection law that applies to you.

13. Account Termination

You may delete your account at any time through the app settings. Upon deletion, your personal data will be removed in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

We may suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, if we believe you have violated these Terms or if your use of the Service poses a risk to other users or the platform.

Upon termination, your right to use the Service ceases immediately. Provisions that by their nature should survive termination (including disclaimers, limitation of liability, and intellectual property) shall remain in effect.

14. Modifications to Terms

We may revise these Terms at any time by posting the updated version on this page and updating the "Effective date" above. Material changes will be communicated through the Service or via email. Your continued use of the Service after any changes constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.

15. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Switzerland, and any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Service are subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Zürich, Switzerland. If you are a consumer, this choice of law and jurisdiction does not deprive you of the protection of the mandatory consumer-protection provisions of the law of your country of habitual residence, and you may be entitled to bring proceedings in the courts of that country where applicable law so provides.

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Terms & Conditions, please contact us at:

zhakura studio GmbH
Winzerhalde 109
8049 Zürich, Switzerland
hello@tripcode.io