Frequently Asked Questions

Gap Year Tracker is a dedicated platform designed specifically for gap year travelers to document, share, and preserve their journey experiences. It's perfect for:

• Students taking a gap year before or during college
• Young adults exploring the world independently
• Anyone on an extended travel or volunteer journey
• Families who want to stay connected with their traveling loved ones

Creating an account is simple:

1. Click "Get Started" or "Log In" on our homepage
2. Choose "Create New Account"
3. Enter your name, email, and create a secure password
4. Verify your email address
5. Set up your profile and emergency contacts

Yes! Gap Year Tracker is completely free to use. We believe every gap year experience deserves to be documented and preserved, regardless of budget. All core features including journaling, photo/video uploads, location tracking, and safety features are available at no cost.

Gap Year Tracker is a combination of web portal and mobile apps on Android and iOS. You can access your journal from any device - use the mobile apps for documenting your journey on the go, or the web portal for a full-featured experience on your computer or tablet.

Each journal entry can include:

• Written content: Your thoughts, experiences, and reflections
• Photos: Unlimited photo uploads with captions
• Videos: Capture moving moments and experiences
• Location: Tag your entries with where you were

The travel map automatically plots your journey based on the locations you add to your journal entries. You can see your complete route, click on any location to view related entries, and watch your adventure unfold geographically over time. It's a beautiful way to visualize your entire gap year journey!

While you need an internet connection to save your entries to our servers, you can always write in a notes app or document when offline and copy it into Gap Year Tracker when you have connectivity. We recommend taking photos and jotting down quick notes throughout the day, then creating your full entry when you have Wi-Fi.

We believe your gap year memories shouldn't be limited by storage constraints. You can upload unlimited photos and reasonable-sized videos to document your entire journey. If you're planning to upload very large video files regularly, please contact us to discuss your needs.

The SOS button is designed for genuine emergencies:

1. Click the SOS button to activate it
2. A 10-second countdown begins, giving you time to cancel if pressed accidentally
3. If not cancelled, your current GPS location is immediately sent to all your emergency contacts
4. Your emergency contacts are notified of the emergency alert

Important: This feature should only be used for real emergencies. In life-threatening situations, always call local emergency services first.

Safety check-ins are automated reminders to let your family know you're safe:

• You can set check-in frequency (daily, every few days, weekly)
• You receive a gentle reminder to check in
• A simple "I'm safe" button sends an update to your emergency contacts
• If you miss a check-in, your contacts are notified to follow up with you

This gives your family peace of mind without being intrusive to your independence.

Choose emergency contacts who:

• Are likely to be reachable at any time
• Live in your home country (for easier coordination)
• Know your travel plans and timeline
• Are capable of taking action in an emergency

We recommend adding 2-3 contacts: typically parents/guardians, a close friend, or a responsible family member. Make sure they know they're listed as your emergency contacts!

Absolutely! Location sharing is completely optional and under your control. You can choose to share your location with specific trusted contacts, share it only during certain times, or turn it off entirely. You can also manually add locations to journal entries without enabling automatic location tracking.

You have complete control over who sees your content:

• Private: Only you can see these entries
• Family & Friends: People you specifically invite can see these entries
• Public: Other Gap Year Tracker users can see these entries (if you choose to make any public)

By default, all entries are private. You choose what to share and with whom for each individual entry.

Yes! You can change the privacy settings for any entry at any time. You can make a private entry public, move a shared entry back to private, or adjust who has access to your content. Your privacy settings are always under your control.

Absolutely not! We never sell, rent, or share your personal information with third parties. Your data belongs to you. We only use your information to provide and improve our service. For complete details, please read our Privacy Policy.

When you delete your account, all your personal data is permanently removed from our servers within 30 days. This includes your journal entries, photos, videos, and account information. We recommend downloading any content you want to keep before deleting your account, as this process cannot be undone.

Absolutely! While we're designed specifically for gap year travelers, our platform works great for any extended travel experience - study abroad, work exchanges, volunteering trips, or any meaningful journey you want to document and share with loved ones.

Inviting others is easy:

1. Go to your account settings
2. Click "Invite Family & Friends"
3. Enter their email addresses
4. They'll receive an invitation to view your shared content
5. They can follow your journey without needing their own account

We're here to help! If you're experiencing technical issues:

1. Try refreshing your browser or clearing your cache
2. Check if you have a stable internet connection
3. Try using a different browser or device
4. Contact our support team at support@gapyeartracker.com

Include details about what you were trying to do and any error messages you received.

We love hearing from our users! Send your suggestions, feature requests, or feedback to feedback@gapyeartracker.com or use our contact form. Every suggestion is read and considered as we continue to improve Gap Year Tracker.