Cookie Policy

Introduction

Welcome to carbarcelon.com, your local-guide resource for vehicle rental in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. This Cookie Policy explains what cookies are, how we use them on this website, what types of information they collect, and what choices you have regarding their use.

By using our website - whether you are searching for a compact city car to navigate the streets of El Born, comparing weekly hire deals before a road trip to Costa Brava, or checking airport pickup availability at El Prat - you agree to the placement of cookies on your device in accordance with this policy. If you do not agree, you may adjust your settings at any time using the methods described below.

This policy applies solely to cookies set or used by carbarcelon.com. It does not cover cookies placed by third-party websites that may be linked from our pages. We encourage you to review the privacy and cookie policies of any external sites you visit.

What Are Cookies

Cookies are small text files placed on your browser or device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites function properly, work more efficiently, and provide information to the owners of the site. Cookies do not contain executable code and cannot carry viruses or install software on your device.

In addition to traditional cookies, we may use similar technologies such as web beacons, pixel tags, local storage, and session storage. Throughout this policy, all such technologies are referred to collectively as "cookies" for simplicity.

Cookies can be either session cookies - which expire when you close your browser - or persistent cookies, which remain on your device for a set period or until you delete them manually.

Why We Use Cookies on Our Barcelona Vehicle Rental Website

carbarcelon.com uses cookies for a number of legitimate purposes directly related to providing you with a reliable and relevant experience when searching for vehicle hire in Barcelona and the wider Catalonia region. Specifically, cookies help us:

• Keep our booking search tool and availability widget functioning correctly across your browsing session
• Remember your language, currency, and other display preferences so you do not have to re-enter them each time you visit
• Understand how visitors discover and navigate our site, so we can improve the pages most relevant to travellers seeking car hire near Barcelona airport, the city centre, or Port Vell
• Deliver relevant advertising and retargeting for visitors who have shown interest in vehicle rental, airport transfers, or specific car categories
• Maintain the security of your session and protect against fraudulent activity

Types of Cookies We Use

Essential Cookies

These cookies are strictly necessary for the website to function. Without them, core features such as the availability search, booking session management, and page navigation cannot operate. Essential cookies do not collect any personally identifiable information beyond what is technically required for the service. They cannot be disabled without seriously impairing site functionality.

Examples include session identifiers that maintain your search state as you move between the vehicle list and checkout pages, and security tokens that protect form submissions from cross-site request forgery.

Analytics and Performance Cookies

We use analytics cookies to collect aggregated, anonymised data about how visitors use carbarcelon.com. This information helps us understand which pages receive the most traffic, how long visitors spend reviewing our fleet options, and where users drop off during the booking journey. No individual visitor is identified through analytics data.

Typical data points include the pages viewed, referring websites, approximate geographic region (for example, distinguishing visitors from within Barcelona versus international arrivals), device type, and browser version. This insight directly informs improvements to our site - for instance, optimising the airport pickup section for mobile users arriving from abroad.

Functional Cookies

Functional cookies allow us to remember choices you make when using the site. This includes your preferred language, selected currency (EUR), chosen pickup location - such as Barcelona El Prat Airport, Passeig de Gracia, or Sants railway station - and any display preferences you have set. Without these cookies, you may be asked to re-enter your preferences on each visit.

These cookies may also support embedded functionality from trusted partners, such as interactive maps showing rental pickup points around Barcelona's Eixample district or along the Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes.

Marketing and Targeting Cookies

Marketing cookies are used to deliver advertisements that are relevant to your interests. If you have browsed our pages for SUV hire, weekly rental deals, or airport transfer options, marketing cookies may be used to show you related offers when you visit other websites or social media platforms.

These cookies may track your visit across multiple sites and build a profile of your interests. They are set either by carbarcelon.com directly or by third-party advertising partners. You can opt out of marketing cookies via our cookie consent banner or through the third-party opt-out tools described further below.

Third-Party Cookies on carbarcelon.com

Some cookies on our website are placed by third parties whose services we use to operate and improve the site. These third parties have their own privacy and cookie policies, which we encourage you to review. We do not control the cookies set by these providers.

Third-party services that may set cookies on our site include:

• Analytics providers - tools that measure site traffic, session duration, and user behaviour in anonymised form to help us refine content and booking flows
• Booking and availability partners - technology providers that power the vehicle search and reservation widget, which requires its own session and preference management cookies to function correctly
• Advertising networks - platforms that serve interest-based advertising to past visitors, allowing us to reach travellers who previously searched for car hire in Barcelona or related services
• Social media platforms - if you interact with any social sharing features on our pages, the relevant platform may set cookies on your device
• Map and location services - used to display pickup and drop-off points around Barcelona, including the airport terminal at El Prat and popular neighbourhood locations

We periodically review our third-party integrations and update this list when new services are added or existing ones removed.

How to Manage and Control Cookies

Our Cookie Consent Banner

When you first visit carbarcelon.com, a cookie consent notice is displayed at the bottom of your screen. You may accept all cookies, decline non-essential cookies, or review the specific categories before making a choice. You can revisit and update your preferences at any time. Withdrawing consent does not affect the lawfulness of any processing already carried out before withdrawal.

Browser Settings

Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can configure your browser to block all cookies, block only third-party cookies, or delete cookies when you close the browser. Please note that disabling essential cookies will prevent parts of carbarcelon.com - including the availability search and booking tool - from working correctly.

Instructions for managing cookies in common browsers can typically be found in the browser's help section. The settings are usually located under Privacy, Security, or Site Settings menus.

Device Settings

On mobile and tablet devices, your operating system may provide additional controls for advertising identifiers and tracking. On iOS devices, this is available under Settings - Privacy - Tracking. On Android devices, options are generally found within Settings - Google - Ads.

Advertising Industry Opt-Out Tools

If you wish to opt out of interest-based advertising from participating networks, you may use the opt-out tools provided by industry bodies such as the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance (EDAA) at youronlinechoices.eu, or the Digital Advertising Alliance at optout.aboutads.info. Note that opting out does not prevent all advertising - it prevents personalised targeting based on your browsing behaviour.

Data Retention - How Long Cookies Last

The duration for which cookies remain on your device depends on whether they are session or persistent cookies and the specific purpose they serve.

• Session cookies - expire automatically when you close your browser. These are primarily used for maintaining your booking search state and security tokens.
• Functional preference cookies - typically persist for 30 days to 12 months, so your language and pickup location preferences are remembered on your next visit.
• Analytics cookies - generally retained for 13 months in anonymised form, after which data is aggregated and the individual cookie record is deleted.
• Marketing and retargeting cookies - typically valid for 30 to 90 days, depending on the advertising partner and campaign configuration.
• Consent record cookies - stored for up to 12 months to record that you have already responded to our cookie banner, so you are not shown it on every visit.

You may delete cookies at any time via your browser settings, which will reset these retention periods upon your next visit.

Updates to This Cookie Policy

carbarcelon.com may update this Cookie Policy periodically to reflect changes in the technologies we use, updates to applicable law including the Spanish data protection framework and EU ePrivacy regulations, or changes to our third-party service providers.

When material changes are made, we will update the effective date noted at the bottom of this page. Where required by law, we will also notify users through a prominent notice on the website or by other appropriate means. We encourage you to review this policy from time to time to stay informed about how we use cookies.

Continued use of carbarcelon.com after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated Cookie Policy.

Contact Us About Cookies

If you have any questions about this Cookie Policy, wish to exercise your rights regarding data collected through cookies, or want to raise a concern about our use of tracking technologies, please contact us directly:

• Email: info@carbarcelon.com
• Phone: +34 614 877 351
• Address: Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain

We aim to respond to all cookie-related enquiries within 10 working days. If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Spanish data protection authority, the Agencia Espanola de Proteccion de Datos (AEPD), at aepd.es.

Last updated: July 2025