Terms, Privacy and fine print

Visitor Terms

1. The service and these Terms

Asheville GPT and 828-590-CHAT are free visitor-information services operated by Blonde Bear Media LLC (the Company). They offer automated answers about Asheville and the surrounding mountains through this website and text messaging. These Terms apply to visitors.

2. Acceptance and your choices

Before starting a website chat, review these Terms and the Privacy Policy, check the unchecked agreement box and tap Sounds good, let's chat. If you do not agree, chat stays off and you can continue browsing. Text messaging keeps its current welcome notice, STOP and HELP handling; no new reply-AGREE requirement is enabled. Separate permission is required for optional location sharing, sending a photo or itinerary by email, a reminder, or passing a request to a business. Accepting these Terms is not consent to marketing or to all optional sharing.

Microphone Use And Conversation Records

Microphone use is optional. When you tap the microphone and allow access, your browser turns your speech into text and sends that text to Blonde Bear Media LLC so the Bear can answer. Your browser or device speech service may process your microphone audio under its own privacy practices. The website does not currently upload or save your microphone audio on Blonde Bear Media LLC servers. We save the written conversation, including words recognized from speech and the Bear's answers, and authorized staff may review it to run and improve the service. Spoken answers are generated audio, not a recording of a person. We may store that generated audio for playback. Voice recognition can get words wrong, and spoken answers can be wrong too. You can type instead. Microphone access starts only when you choose it, and you can stop or revoke access in your browser settings. Do not capture another person's speech without any permission required by law, and avoid sharing sensitive information.

Permission To Use Submitted Content

You keep ownership of content you submit. By submitting content, including messages, speech transcripts, photos, feedback and any recordings you choose to provide, you give Blonde Bear Media LLC ongoing, worldwide, nonexclusive permission, without payment to you, to store, copy, review, edit, adapt, combine, publish, display, distribute and use it to operate, improve, develop and promote the service and related content. We may let service providers do this work for us. This permission is subject to the Privacy Policy, your legal rights and applicable law. It does not permit us to sell your personal information or publish information that identifies you without your separate permission. Only submit content you have the right to share.

3. Use at your own risk; verify important information

You use the service and rely on its answers at your own risk, subject to rights that applicable law does not allow you to waive. Answers may be inaccurate, incomplete, outdated, misleading or entirely fabricated, sometimes called hallucinations. The Bear's homegrown intelligence produces automated answers; it is not a human professional or an official source. Verify information that matters with the relevant business, organizer, public authority or other reliable source before acting. This includes hours, prices, discounts, reservations, event dates, travel plans, road and trail conditions, weather and safety. Do not use an answer to decide whether a cliff, swimming area, trail or other activity is safe. Use official emergency services for emergencies.

4. As-is and as-available; no professional advice

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the service and all answers are provided AS IS and AS AVAILABLE, without warranties of any kind, express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, accuracy, completeness, safety, availability or reliability. The Company does not promise uninterrupted access or error-free answers. Answers are general information, not legal, medical, financial or other professional advice. Consult a qualified professional where appropriate. Nothing here excludes a warranty or right that cannot lawfully be excluded.

5. No offers or binding commitments

The Bear has no authority to bind the Company, an advertiser, a merchant, hotel, organizer, public authority or any other person to a contract, promotion, commercial term, refund, price adjustment, reservation or legal obligation. A conversational statement is not a binding offer, confirmed discount or booking. A commitment is effective only through the applicable authorized human confirmation or the actual business's separate confirmed transaction, under its own terms. Do not rely on an automated promise as proof that a reservation, payment or other action occurred. The service cannot guarantee prices, availability, admission, results or a merchant's performance.

6. Liability limits

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Company and its affiliates, officers, employees and service partners are not liable for direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary or punitive loss arising from the service or reliance on an answer, including missed reservations, incorrect hours or prices, lost time, lost profits, property damage or personal injury. This applies regardless of the legal theory and even if the possibility of loss was known. This clause does not exclude or limit liability that cannot legally be excluded or limited, including any non-waivable consumer rights. No promise is made that this clause will prevent a claim or eliminate liability.

7. Visitor indemnity

To the fullest extent permitted by law, you agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the Company and its affiliates, officers and employees against third-party claims, damages, liabilities and reasonable legal expenses arising from your unlawful misuse of the service or your material breach of these Terms. This does not require you to indemnify the Company merely for asking a question, exercising a legal right or bringing a good-faith claim, or for the Company's conduct to the extent applicable law prohibits shifting that responsibility.

8. Text messages, cost, STOP and HELP

You initiate contact by texting 828-590-CHAT. The service is free, but message and data rates may apply. Message frequency varies with your requests. Reply STOP to stop texts and HELP for help. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. Contact bear@ashevillegpt.com for help. A separately requested and confirmed reminder may result in that reminder; a conversation is not general permission for promotional texts. Do not send another person's number without their permission.

9. Information and optional sharing

The Privacy Policy describes the information used to answer you, operate the service and retain records. Ordinary processing by contracted service providers is necessary to deliver chat and texts; it is different from sending your details to an advertiser or business for its own purposes. Sending your contact details or request to a business requires a separate affirmative approval of the destination, fields and purpose. The Company will not treat a recommendation, an offer of directions or acceptance of these Terms as approval for that disclosure. Optional features remain unavailable until their specific consent and delivery steps are implemented and tested.

10. Outside businesses, links and activities

Businesses and linked websites have their own terms, prices, policies and privacy practices. The Company does not control their services. A listing, advertisement, link or recommendation is not a guarantee or endorsement of safety, quality or current availability. Confirm any listed deal directly. Approximate straight-line distances are not walking routes, road access or travel times.

11. Acceptable use and changes

Do not use the service unlawfully, impersonate another person, submit information you have no right to share, harass others or interfere with the service. The Company may restrict misuse and change or discontinue features. Material changes to these Terms require renewed website acceptance. A silent website edit is not fresh consent. Version: 2026-10-31-v2. Effective October 31, 2026. Questions: bear@ashevillegpt.com.

Privacy

This page explains what we collect when you text 828-590-CHAT or use this site, what we do with it, and how to ask us to delete it. Texting rules like STOP and HELP are in our Terms.

What we collect

Your phone number, the messages you send us and the answers we send back, plus basic carrier details such as the time of each message.

Voice And Written Conversation Records

For voice input, we receive the text recognized from your speech, not your microphone audio. That text is stored with your conversation and may be reviewed by authorized staff. Your browser or device speech service may process microphone audio under its own privacy practices. Blonde Bear Media LLC does not currently upload or save microphone audio on its servers. Generated spoken answers may be stored for playback. Revoking microphone access stops future microphone use, but does not delete existing written conversations. To request deletion, contact bear@ashevillegpt.com. We do not promise a fixed deletion period.

Website visits

We count visits to each page of this site as one daily number. The counter sets no cookies and records no names, phone numbers or locations, only that a page was viewed. We use the number to see what people find useful.

Photos, postcards and email

When you send a selfie or postcard, we use the email addresses you enter to deliver it and save them with a record of the send. Every email has an unsubscribe link that stops all Bear emails and photo sends to that address. When you unsubscribe, we keep the address on a do-not-send list so the block keeps working, and you can email bear@ashevillegpt.com to have it deleted entirely.

Location

For the nearby-places feature on the home and chat pages, location sharing is optional. If you allow it, your browser receives your precise location, accuracy and update time while the page is open. For each location-aware chat turn, the browser sends your precise coordinates to the chat server. The server uses them in memory to rank nearby places or request a route, and does not save the coordinates. If a live route lookup is available, Google receives the starting point and destination to calculate it. The Bear's conversation receives nearby place details, estimated distances, accuracy and update time. Those details are linked to your chat session and may remain in your chat history. Turn location off using the location control, or close the page, to stop updates. We try to clear the current location receipt from the chat service when you turn it off or leave the page. If that request cannot connect, the receipt expires within two minutes of its last update. This does not erase nearby details already saved in your conversation. Your browser may pause updates in the background. Opening Directions sends your chosen destination to a separate map service, which may ask for your location under its own privacy policy. On the self guided walking tours page, if you tap Start This Tour and allow location, your browser uses your precise location to show your dot and center the map. This feature does not send your raw coordinates to the Bear's chat service or save them on our server. The map provider receives map-tile requests for the area displayed, along with ordinary connection information, and may infer the area you are viewing. You may also type a place in chat; that message becomes part of your conversation.

Usage data

We collect usage data from the site and chat, such as pages viewed, questions asked and answers given. Conversations and location-derived nearby details can be stored as individual records, not only as aggregate counts. We use aggregate reports for later analysis without releasing identifying information.

How we use it

To answer your questions, run the service, fix problems and make the answers better. We read some conversations for that. We do not sell your personal information, and mobile information, including your phone number and text messages, is not shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.

Who handles it

The companies that carry your texts, power the answers and host this site handle your information for us, only to run the service.

How long we keep it

We store conversations. They may include places you type and nearby place details, distances and accuracy shared with the chat service. These details can reveal or help infer where you are or were. Turning off location stops new updates; it does not erase your existing conversation history.

Tips and suggestions

If you send a tip or suggestion through the box on this site, we receive what you type through our website host. Please do not include your name, email or phone number. We read every tip before using any of it, and we never publish anything that identifies you.

Your choices

Reply STOP to stop texts. To delete your conversations, email bear@ashevillegpt.com from the address or text from the number you used. This service is for adults and is not directed to children under 13.

Questions

Email bear@ashevillegpt.com . Asheville GPT is operated by Blonde Bear Media LLC.

P1. When information is passed on

Messages, phone numbers or chat identifiers, answers and technical delivery information are processed by service providers acting for the Company to carry messages, generate answers, host the site, store records and investigate failures. This processing occurs when you use the service; it is not a new permission to send your details to a local business. Authorized staff may review conversations to operate and improve the service. Do not submit sensitive information that is not needed for your request.

P2. Business disclosure opt-in

Before the Company sends your contact information or request to a business or advertiser, separate approval must cover who will receive it, the exact information to be sent and why. This feature remains unavailable until its specific approval and delivery steps are implemented and tested. You must actively approve that disclosure. Declining does not authorize a different destination. Acceptance of general Terms, a location permission or a request for recommendations does not approve this sharing. Once an approved recipient receives information, its own privacy practices may apply; the Company cannot promise to retrieve a message already delivered.

P3. Separate optional features

Location, emailed photos or postcards, emailed PDF itineraries and event reminders have separate choices. Entering an email address for one requested delivery does not sign you up for unrelated marketing. Sending to another person's address requires your authority to do so and does not enroll that person in marketing. Mobile phone information, text-message consent and opt-in records are not shared with third parties or affiliates for their own marketing or promotional purposes. An emailed itinerary feature is not currently available.

P4. Website acceptance records

The website records the notice and policy version, the time the notice was displayed as reported by the browser, the server time of agreement, the page and the unchecked-box-and-accept-button method. A random receipt identifier is stored in a secure browser cookie and restricted service storage, allowing the browser to remember acceptance for up to 30 days. This acceptance receipt is not a verified identity and is not proof that you read every word. Expired records are not treated as valid acceptance. No fixed deletion period is promised. Acceptance is separate from delivery, marketing or disclosure consent.

P5. Current location choice

Optional location sharing uses the current live flow described below. For each location-aware chat turn, your precise coordinates go to the chat server, which uses them in memory to find nearby places or request a route and does not save the coordinates. Google receives the starting point and destination when a live route is requested. Nearby place details, estimated distances, accuracy and update time may remain in chat. Turning location off stops new updates and clears current context where the connection succeeds; it does not erase prior conversation records. Location sharing stays optional and can be turned off.

Fine print and your choices

Starting a website chat is voluntary. The agreement box is unchecked. If you choose Maybe later, chat stays off and you can keep browsing.

Location sharing, emails, reminders and sharing with a business remain separate choices. General acceptance does not opt you into marketing.

The text service is unchanged. No new reply-AGREE requirement is enabled. Reply STOP to stop texts and HELP for help.