Legal
Privacy Policy
Last updated: July 7, 2026
Highland Adventures Inc. (“Highland Adventures,” “we,” “us,” or “our”) operates machupicchu.com (the “Site”). This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use the Site, its planning tools, and the AI trip specialist. By using the Site, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.
Information we collect
Information you provide
- Trip inquiries and planning details: name, email address, phone number (optional), travel dates or windows, party size, budget range, trip style, and any preferences or messages you submit through our inquiry forms, Trip Planner, or the AI trip specialist.
- Access and health-related notes you choose to share: if you tell us about mobility limits, fitness level, altitude concerns, or dietary or medical considerations so we can plan an appropriate trip, we store that information solely for trip planning. Share only what you are comfortable sharing; it is never required to use the Site.
- Alert subscriptions: your email address and the trip criteria you subscribe to (for example a trek, month, and party size for permit-release alerts).
- AI trip specialist conversations: the messages you send in the chat, and the structured summary created if you ask to be handed to our human team.
- Correspondence: the contents of emails and messages you exchange with our team.
Information collected automatically
- Technical logs: IP address, browser type, request logs, and diagnostic data needed to operate, secure, and rate-limit the Site.
The AI trip specialist
The AI trip specialist is an automated assistant, and it says so at the start of every conversation. Messages you send to it are processed by Anthropic (our AI provider) to generate responses. We do not use your conversations to train AI models, and Anthropic does not train its models on this data either. If you ask the assistant to connect you with our team, it writes a summary of your trip details into our planning records so a human can follow up. Please do not share passport numbers, payment details, or other sensitive identifiers in the chat; they are never needed there.
How we use your information
We use the information we collect to:
- Respond to your inquiries and plan trips you ask us to plan
- Send the alerts you subscribed to (permit releases, rule changes, availability). Every alert email includes a one-click unsubscribe.
- Send transactional messages about your inquiry or trip (confirmations and follow-ups from our team)
- Send marketing communications only if you explicitly opted in; opting out never stops transactional messages you still need
- Operate, secure, and improve the Site, and prevent fraud and abuse
- Comply with legal obligations
We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use the information you submit to train AI or machine-learning models.
Information sharing and service providers
We share information only as needed to operate the Site and arrange the trips you request:
- Service providers: Railway (hosting and database, United States), Resend (transactional email delivery), Anthropic (AI trip specialist processing), and our business email provider. Each is contractually required to protect your data and use it only to provide services to us.
- Licensed local trip operators: when you engage us to plan a trip, we share the details necessary to arrange your services (names, dates, party details, and relevant constraints) with the vetted, licensed operators and suppliers who deliver parts of your trip. We share only what a supplier needs for its part of the trip.
- Legal requirements: we may disclose information when required by law, court order, or valid government request, or to protect our rights or the safety of our users or the public.
- Business transfers: in a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, your information may be transferred as part of that transaction; we will notify you of any change in control.
- With your consent: for any other purpose you explicitly agree to.
Cookies and tracking
The Site currently uses no advertising, analytics, or cross-site tracking cookies, and there is no third-party ad tech on it. If we add analytics or marketing cookies in the future, we will update this policy and ask for your consent first where the law requires it.
Data retention
- Inquiries and planning records: retained while we are actively helping you and afterwards as business records, unless you request earlier deletion.
- Alert subscriptions: retained until you unsubscribe; unsubscribing takes one click and stops the associated emails.
- Technical logs: retained for up to 12 months for security and operational purposes.
- Booking and financial records: retained for 7 years where required by tax and accounting obligations.
You may request deletion of your data at any time, subject to legal retention requirements.
Data security
We protect your information with encryption in transit (TLS), encryption at rest by our infrastructure providers, and production access restricted to authorized personnel. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure; while we work to protect your information, we cannot guarantee absolute security.
Your rights and choices
Depending on your jurisdiction, you may have the right to access, correct, delete, or receive a copy of the personal data we hold about you, to restrict or object to certain processing, and to opt out of marketing at any time. To exercise any of these rights, email info@machupicchu.com. We respond within the timeframe required by applicable law (typically 30 days or less).
California residents (CCPA/CPRA): you additionally have the right to know what personal information we collect and disclose, to request deletion or correction, and to non-discrimination for exercising your rights. We do not sell or share personal information for cross-context behavioral advertising.
EEA, UK, and Swiss residents (GDPR): Highland Adventures Inc. is the data controller for personal information processed through the Site. We process your data to respond to your requests (contract and consent), to secure and improve the Site (legitimate interests), and to meet legal obligations. You may withdraw consent at any time and may lodge a complaint with your local data protection authority.
International transfers
We are based in the United States, and your information is processed in the United States and in the countries where our service providers and local trip operators (for example, in Peru) operate. Where required by law, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as Standard Contractual Clauses for these transfers.
Children’s privacy
The Site is not directed to children under 18, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children. Trip details for minors traveling with your party are provided by you as the responsible adult. If you believe we have collected information directly from a child, contact us and we will delete it.
Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Material changes will be posted on this page with a new “Last updated” date, and where we have your email for an active inquiry or subscription, we will notify you of significant changes.
Contact us
Highland Adventures Inc.
Privacy: info@machupicchu.com
Website: machupicchu.com