Privacy policy
Last updated: October 25, 2026
Cheap Stay Finder is operated by Knockout Digital. This policy explains how information is handled when you use Cheap Stay Finder to plan a hotel search.
Search information
The destination, travel dates, number of adults, number of rooms and any child ages you enter are used in your browser to prepare your search. When you press Search hotels, your destination, dates, adult/child counts, room count and child ages are included in a KAYAK affiliate link. Searches open in two tabs where possible: KAYAK opens in a new tab and the original tab opens momondo.com or hotelscombined.com, chosen at random (both are KAYAK companies, using the same affiliate account; our hosting provider tells us your approximate country so the matching regional site can open, and we do not store it). Both requests use the destination, dates and supported guest details, with separate click identifiers. If your browser blocks the new tab, or the second site cannot open the search, we open KAYAK in the current tab instead and do not open a second site. Dedicated partner links may instead send the search to a single booking site, including Priceline.com. That link carries the destination and dates, a unique click ID that the network uses to attribute a possible referral and, where the partner supports it, guest details. URLs may also be recorded in your browser history and by the receiving services.
Site storage and hosting
Ordinary searches are prepared in your browser. If you opt into our mailing list, we store your email address, subscription type and consent date in our hosted database. If you join the price-alert waiting list, we also store your destination, travel dates and guest and room counts. We do not store child ages with subscriptions or request payment details or account passwords. Price monitoring and automatic email delivery are not active yet. Advertising measurement is described below. The hosting service may process technical request information, such as IP address, browser details and requested pages, to deliver and secure the website. To keep the search experience consistent, we keep a randomly assigned single/dual flow label and a separate default-date label in session storage for the tab. When measurement is enabled, the tab also keeps a random test identifier (not linked to your name or contact details) that is stored with its visits and partner clicks so we can compare the two flows. Explicit test links may override them. When advertising measurement is enabled, the selected variant is included in the campaign records described below.
Advertising measurement and sharing with Meta (Facebook)
We use Meta Pixel (ID 1630910692162348) to measure the effectiveness of our advertising on Facebook and Instagram. When advertising tracking is enabled, your browser sends PageView, Search and successful email-signup (Lead) events to Meta. Information shared may include your IP address, browser and operating-system information, visited page URL, cookie identifiers and the destination searched. We do not include child ages or guest counts in Pixel event parameters. We use Meta’s automatic advanced matching for email addresses: when you submit your email address in our newsletter or price-alert form, the Meta Pixel may read it, convert it in your browser into a one-way hashed value (SHA-256) and send that hashed value to Meta with the related events, so that Meta can match the visit to a Meta account for advertising measurement. Meta does not receive the email address in readable form from us. This only happens when advertising tracking is enabled, so not after an opt-out or when your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal.
Advertising tracking is enabled by default on this US-focused website unless you have opted out in this browser or your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal. Use Your Privacy Choices / Do Not Sell or Share in the footer to opt out or change your preference. We store this preference in local storage. An opt-out prevents future site campaign tracking and Pixel events in this browser; it does not automatically delete information already collected or sent. Contact info@cheapstayfinder.com to request deletion of records we hold. Meta processes information it receives under Meta’s privacy policy.
Advertising measurement and sharing with Pinterest
We use the Pinterest Tag (ID 2613573731380) to measure the effectiveness of our advertising on Pinterest. It follows the same choice as Meta Pixel: it is enabled by default on this US-focused website unless you have opted out in this browser or your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal. When enabled, your browser sends page-visit, search and successful email-signup (lead) events to Pinterest. Information shared may include your IP address, browser and operating-system information, visited page URL, cookie identifiers and the destination searched. We do not send your email address to Pinterest. An opt-out also stops future Pinterest Tag events in this browser and removes Pinterest cookies set on this website. Pinterest processes information it receives under Pinterest’s privacy policy.
Campaign and hotel-search records
When advertising tracking is enabled, we record hotel-search page visits and requests to continue to KAYAK, including campaign URL parameters (UTM tags and campaign, ad-set and ad identifiers when present), Facebook click identifiers, a random session identifier, landing-page path, the host name of the website that referred you when your browser provides it (for example google.com or l.facebook.com; never the page address or search words) and timestamps. The site operator can mark their own browsers as internal test traffic with a first-party cookie named csf_team so that internal KAYAK traffic is excluded from performance summaries and is not sent to Meta; raw records remain available for review, and dedicated partner referral reports may still include internal clicks; visitors do not receive this cookie. For KAYAK outbound searches, we record the entered search text, resolved destination and its identifier, country, travel dates, adult and child counts and room count. When you choose a partner booking route, we always store a minimal referral record containing the partner name, a random click ID, the time of the referral and the partner CityID when available. This limited record is needed to match a later booking notice to the referral and is stored even if advertising measurement is off or your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal. In that case we do not store your typed search text, destination name, travel dates, UTM/campaign details or session identifier in the partner click record. When advertising measurement is enabled, we also store those campaign and search details for partner referrals. If a partner reports a confirmed booking, we store its click ID, booking ID, sale amount and commission for reconciliation. Where supplied, the report may include a campaign ID, city or property ID/name, booking dates, number of nights and guest count. Partner booking notices may arrive several hours after a reservation; cancellation or modification updates may not be sent to us. If you type in the destination box but do not find a suggestion, or leave without searching, we record the text you typed (up to 120 characters) and whether a suggestion was shown only when advertising measurement is enabled. We do not record child ages or email addresses in these campaign records. A session lasts up to 30 minutes in a browser tab; a new campaign link starts a new session. Session storage keeps attribution details together. When measurement is enabled, up to five unconfirmed KAYAK outbound records may also be held in local storage for retry. Each includes the original click and campaign identifiers, search details, variant and referring host; it does not include child ages. Records are eligible for retry for ten minutes and are removed after acknowledgement, on opt-out, or during subsequent cleanup when expired.
For outbound KAYAK searches, we additionally store Meta cookie identifiers (_fbp and _fbc, when available), your IP address and browser user-agent information in our hosted database to support advertising attribution. These additional details are not included in the standard Raw Events CSV export. Outbound records measure navigation requests, not confirmed arrivals at KAYAK or completed bookings.
Server-side Meta measurement
The site operator can upload a KAYAK commission report to the protected administration area and match it to recorded outbound searches using the affiliate click identifier. Previewing the report does not send it to Meta. If the operator chooses to send matched positive-commission rows through Meta’s Conversions API, Meta receives a server-side event currently named Purchase, with the commission amount in USD, an event identifier and timestamp, the landing-page URL and destination, and available matching information such as Meta cookie or Facebook click identifiers, IP address and browser user-agent. The value represents our affiliate commission, not the price of a hotel reservation. A commission row alone does not establish that the visitor completed a booking. These sends support advertising measurement.
Server-side campaign sessions
When advertising measurement is enabled, we store the campaign, ad set, ad, placement and available click identifiers in a server-side session. A first-party Secure, HttpOnly cookie named __Host-csf-session links subsequent site requests to that session for up to 30 minutes. Untagged requests do not erase the recorded attribution. A new tagged ad arrival starts a separate attribution snapshot. Active session data expires after 30 minutes; expired rows are periodically removed. Event and referral snapshots remain under the campaign-record retention described above. The session is not created when measurement is disabled or Global Privacy Control is active. Opting out clears the current session cookie and requests deletion of its active session record. If you arrive from a tagged ad while measurement is enabled, a second first-party Secure, HttpOnly cookie named __Host-csf-touch stores a reference to that ad click (campaign, ad set, ad, placement and click identifier) for up to 7 days, so that a later visit without campaign tags within that period can be attributed to the most recent ad click. A newer ad click replaces it; opting out or enabling Global Privacy Control deletes it.
The seven-day window ends at the original first-seen time, including during an active session. Reopening a URL with the same Facebook click identifier does not restart it. To recognize repeated click identifiers, we retain a SHA-256 hash of the identifier and first-seen/expiry timestamps for up to 90 days, with expired entries removed periodically when new measured arrivals occur. This table does not contain search details or campaign names. Opting out stops its use and new measurement writes; contact us to request deletion of previously collected records. Without a click identifier, repeated links can only be recognized while the matching browser reference remains available. This is our internal reporting model; advertising platforms apply their own attribution rules.
Retention of campaign records
Campaign records and send logs remain until the operator deletes them. An automated task runs daily and deletes stored IP addresses and browser user-agent information from campaign records older than 30 days. Other campaign and matching identifiers are not covered by this deletion. For retention questions or deletion requests, contact info@cheapstayfinder.com.
Travel partners
Depending on the selected flow, your search is sent to KAYAK alone, to both KAYAK and Expedia.com or Hotels.com in separate tabs through an affiliate network, or to a dedicated partner such as Priceline.com. We may receive affiliate commission from qualifying referrals or bookings. KAYAK, the affiliate network and the booking partner operate their own services and may process the search URL, click ID, device or browser information under their own policies. See KAYAK’s privacy policy, Expedia’s privacy statement, Hotels.com’s privacy statement and Priceline’s privacy policy.
Children’s ages
Optional child ages are entered by the adult planning the trip and passed in the search links to KAYAK and, where supported, to the partner hotel booking site, so those services can return suitable room occupancy. We do not ask for children’s names or birth dates, and child ages are not stored in our campaign or partner click records.
Email subscriptions
Knockout Digital uses subscription information to manage the mailing list and, when connected, deliver the travel updates or price alerts you requested. We retain it until you withdraw consent or the list is discontinued. Access is restricted to the site operator, our hosting service and our email delivery service provider, which stores your address and sign-up choices to send the emails you requested. Future marketing emails will include an unsubscribe link. When advertising tracking is enabled, a hashed version of the email address you submit may also be shared with Meta, as described in the Meta Pixel section. To withdraw email consent or request access to or deletion of your subscription information, email info@cheapstayfinder.com.
Your choices
You can change your search details before submitting or leave without submitting them. Manage third-party cookies through your browser and the controls provided by those websites.
Changes and questions
This policy will be updated if the site’s data handling changes. See our Contact page for support information.