Effective May 14, 2026
HillCountry.ai is part of the HillCountry.ai network, operated by Backroads Hill Country (Bandera, Texas). This page explains what information we collect, why, and how we use it.
We collect only what's necessary to provide the service and respond to your inquiries:
We use a small number of third-party services to operate the site:
Each town in the HillCountry.ai network has its own AI travel guide. Here's how the AI chat works and what you should know:
Which AI providers we use. These AI guides are powered primarily by Anthropic's Claude. The broader HillCountry.ai network may also incorporate large language models from other AI providers — including but not limited to OpenAI, Google, Meta, Mistral, xAI, and comparable services — for related functions such as content generation, search, recommendations, or other supporting tasks across the network. The specific provider used for any given feature may change over time as the technology evolves. When we make material changes to which providers we use for chat, we'll update this page.
What gets sent. Your typed messages and the context of your conversation are sent to the AI provider's servers for processing and reply generation. Standard request metadata (timestamps, technical headers) is sent along with each message.
What doesn't get sent. We don't tie chat conversations to your identity, email, name, or any other personal information unless you voluntarily provide it in the chat itself (which we recommend against — see below).
What's retained. AI providers may temporarily retain chat data on their own servers according to their respective data retention policies — typically for short periods (e.g., up to 30 days) for abuse monitoring and service quality, before deletion. We don't retain identifiable chat logs on our own servers. Basic operational logs (timestamps, system errors, aggregate usage counts) may exist temporarily for service health. We do not authorize AI providers to use this chat data to train their models.
What you should not share. Don't share sensitive personal information in chat — full credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, passwords, government IDs, medical details, or anything similar. For booking details, account-specific information, or anything sensitive, contact us directly by email or phone (see Contact below).
What these guides are and are not for. They are AI guides for travel and area information. They are not a substitute for emergency services, professional medical or legal advice, real-time conditions, or guaranteed bookings. Verify time-sensitive details (business hours, prices, event schedules) with the business directly before relying on them.
This site does not use tracking cookies. Any cookies set are strictly functional (e.g., session preferences) and contain no personally identifiable information.
If you've submitted your email to us and want it removed from our records, email [contact email] and we'll remove it.
This site is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect information from children, including through the AI chat feature.
We may update this policy as the service evolves — including when we add or change AI providers, add new features, or refine how we handle data. The effective date above will be updated to reflect any changes. Material changes will be noted on this page.
Questions about this policy or your data: [contact email]