Privacy Policy

1. Summary

• We do not require registration or login to use the core map (web or iOS). Favourites and appearance preferences on iOS stay on your device.
• We do not sell personal information or share the newsletter list for advertising without separate consent.
• We do not use your data to build advertising profiles or for cross-app / cross-site behavioural ads. The iOS app is not designed for tracking in the App Store sense and does not use App Tracking Transparency (IDFA) for advertising.
• Core map usage relies on anonymous / technical information needed to operate the service.
• Preferences such as language may be stored on your device, not in a personal account on our servers.
• Optional features — including newsletter signup, Contact Us, Trip Co-pilot, Journey Planner, SkiBase, resort suggestions, and (on iOS) location, ski track recording, camera photos on a track, and Apple Health workout import — are opt-in and process data only when you choose to use them.
• We email newsletters only to people who asked (opt-in consent). Every newsletter includes an unsubscribe option. You can also ask us to delete your subscriber record.

2. Who we are

SnowWatcher is the operator of the website and iOS app and, for GDPR / UK GDPR purposes, the controller of personal data processed in connection with the service. For contact details, see Contact below.

3. Website and iOS app (App Store privacy)

This policy covers:

• The SnowWatcher website at snowwatcher.com (and related pages such as Newsletter, Privacy, Contact)
• The SnowWatcher iOS app distributed via the Apple App Store

App Store App Privacy alignment. The iOS app is built so that ordinary map use does not require an account and is not used for advertising tracking across other companies’ apps or websites. We do not use Apple’s App Tracking Transparency for cross-app advertising tracking, and we do not sell or share personal information from the app for that purpose.

Email and the iOS app. The SnowWatcher iOS app does not collect your email address through a dedicated in-app “collect email” API for advertising or profiling. If you choose to contact us or request a newsletter from the app, that typically happens by opening the system Mail app (or a similar compose flow) so you send a message, and/or by using our website newsletter or contact process. Once we receive that request, our website / email operations handle subscription, consent records, and sending — as described in section 8. The personal data (name and email) is processed in that backend workflow, not harvested silently from the app for ads.

iOS app — optional features. Beyond ordinary map browsing, the SnowWatcher iOS app (version 1.2.0 and later) offers optional features that use device permissions only when you start them: showing your position on the map, Near Me / SkiBase around GPS, ski track GPS recording (including while the phone is locked), camera photos attached to a track, and read-only import of ski workouts from Apple Health. Saved tracks, photos, and imported Health routes stay on your iPhone in the current App Store app. Details are in section 7 (subsections 7.6–7.10).

App Store App Privacy — data types. For ordinary map use, data is processed for app functionality, not tracking. When you use optional iOS features, the app may process the following (all for functionality, not advertising tracking):

• Precise location — when you locate yourself on the map, use Near Me / SkiBase, record a ski track, or geotag a track photo. Stored on your phone. Not sent to SnowWatcher servers in the current App Store app. Not used for ads.
• Coarse location — same features and network routing as above. Stored on device in the same way.
• Photos — when you take a camera photo while recording a track. Stored in the app sandbox with that track on your phone.
• Fitness (HealthKit workouts and GPS routes) — only when you tap to import a ski / snowboard / cross-country ski workout from Apple Health. Stored on your phone like a recorded track.
• Contact information (name, email) — only if you sign up for the newsletter, contact us, or use a SnowWatcher members profile on the website.

In the current App Store app, location, photos, and Health data are not linked to your identity on our servers — they remain on your iPhone unless you delete them in the app. On-device data is still processed by the app on your phone. We do not use location, photos, or Health data for advertising, do not sell them, and do not share them with other companies’ apps for cross-app tracking.

Revoking permissions and deleting data (iOS). You can change or remove permissions at any time: iPhone Settings → SnowWatcher → Location (While Using or Always, or Off); Settings → Privacy & Security → Camera; Settings → Privacy & Security → Health → Data Access → SnowWatcher. Delete saved tracks (and their photos) in the app. For members account data, newsletter records, or other requests, email hello@snowwatcher.com.

4. No personal data by default

For ordinary browsing of the map, resort lists, snow reports, SkiBase map layers, and similar features, we do not collect names, email addresses, phone numbers, postal addresses, payment details, precise government identifiers, or similar personal information.

We do not ask you to create a user profile to use the map. If you later sign up to the newsletter or contact us, we will hold the personal data described in section 8 and section 7 so we can provide that service.

5. Anonymous & technical data (including analytics)

Like most online services, our servers and infrastructure may process limited technical information that is typically considered anonymous or not reasonably identifiable on its own, for example:

• Approximate location derived from network routing (for example country or region level), not your GPS position unless you choose to share it for a feature.
• Browser or app type, device type, operating system, screen size, language settings, and similar diagnostics.
• Pages or features visited, load times, and error logs.
• Truncated or hashed network addresses and timestamps used for security, rate-limiting, and abuse prevention.

Where we use analytics on the website, we aim to use anonymous or aggregated metrics so we can improve SnowWatcher. We do not use analytics to identify you as an individual or to target personal advertising.

Depending on configuration, website analytics may be provided by our hosting environment or Google Analytics. Google Analytics cookies are optional and are only loaded after you choose Accept on our cookie banner. If you choose Reject, analytics scripts are not loaded. Where cookies or similar technologies are strictly necessary for the site to function (for example remembering desktop vs mobile view), they are used for that purpose only.

6. Information stored on your device

SnowWatcher may store small amounts of data in your browser’s local storage or on-device app storage so the product remembers your choices on that device only. Examples include:

• Language preference
• Map display preferences (for example terrain on/off)
• UI preferences (for example panel size)
• A temporary “compare resorts” or favourites selection
• Cookie consent choice on the website (accept / reject analytics)
• On the iOS app: favourites, appearance preferences, and cached resort catalog / amenity data (stored in on-device app storage such as UserDefaults and local files)
• On the iOS app: saved ski tracks, GPS points (latitude, longitude, altitude, time, and speed or course when available), and camera photos attached to those tracks — all stored in the app sandbox on your phone until you delete them in the app

This information stays on your device unless you clear browser data, reinstall / reset the app, or delete tracks in the app. We do not receive a copy of on-device preferences or saved tracks from the iOS app on our servers.

7. Optional features you choose to use

Some features are optional. If you do not use them, the related processing does not occur.

7.1 Trip Co-pilot / Holiday Explorer

If you use AI-assisted holiday recommendations or the co-pilot chat, the text you enter (for example preferences or questions) is sent to our servers and then to our AI processing provider so a response can be generated. We do not use these prompts to sell advertising or to create a marketing identity for you.

If you download a PDF report, any name you enter for personalisation is used on your device to generate the file. We designed that flow so the name is not emailed and not stored by SnowWatcher as part of a user account.

7.2 Journey Planner

Routes are calculated using mapping and routing services (for example OpenStreetMap-based geocoding and routing). Addresses or places you search are processed to return results and draw a route. PDF exports are generated in your browser or on your device.

7.3 SkiBase (OpenStreetMap points of interest)

When you load nearby amenities, we query OpenStreetMap-related services around a chosen origin (a selected resort, or — if you allow it — your approximate location). Links to Google Maps or OpenStreetMap that you click open those third-party sites under their own privacy policies.

7.4 Suggest a resort

If you voluntarily submit a resort suggestion, the details you provide (for example resort name and links) are stored so we can review the suggestion, and may be emailed to our team. Please do not include unnecessary personal information in free-text fields.

7.5 Contact Us

If you use the Contact Us form (or email us), we collect the name, email address, subject, and message you submit (and anti-abuse checks such as Turnstile may run on the website). We use this information to reply to your enquiry and to keep a record of the correspondence for support and abuse prevention. Contact messages are not added to the newsletter list unless you also complete a separate newsletter signup (or clearly ask us to subscribe you).

7.6 Location and ski track recording (iOS app)

Location on iOS is optional and user-initiated. SnowWatcher does not access GPS in the background for ordinary map browsing.

While Using the App. If you allow location access “While Using the App”, SnowWatcher may use precise GPS to: show your position on the map; power Near Me and SkiBase queries around your location; and start a ski track recording.

Always (background location). If you start ski track recording, the app may ask for Always location permission so GPS can continue while the phone is locked or in a pocket. Background location is enabled only while a recording is in progress. It stops when you press Stop or Cancel, or if you force-close the app. Locking the phone or switching to another app does not stop an active recording if Always permission has been granted.

What we store. Precise GPS points (latitude, longitude, altitude, timestamp, and speed or course when available) are saved on your phone with the track. They are not sent to SnowWatcher servers in the current App Store app.

Location is used for these features only. We do not use it for advertising, do not sell it, do not build advertising profiles from it, and do not share it with other companies’ apps for cross-app tracking.

7.7 Camera and track photos (iOS app)

The camera is optional. While a track is recording (or paused), you may take a photo. The app saves a JPEG in its sandbox, attached to that track, with GPS coordinates when location is available.

SnowWatcher does not write these photos to the system Photos library. Photos stay on your phone in the app sandbox with that track.

7.8 Apple Health import (iOS app)

Apple Health (HealthKit) access is optional, read-only, and user-initiated. If you tap to import a workout, SnowWatcher requests read access to Workouts and workout routes so you can bring in a ski, snowboard, or cross-country ski session — typically one recorded on Apple Watch with Apple’s Workout app.

SnowWatcher does not write to Health, does not read clinical health records, and does not use heart rate or other Health types beyond workouts and their GPS routes for this import. There is no SnowWatcher Apple Watch app.

Imported GPS routes are stored on your phone like a recorded track. We do not harvest Apple Health data in the background.

7.9 Members account and on-device tracks (iOS app)

Connecting a members account and uploading tracks is not available in the current App Store app. Tracks, photos, and imported Health routes stay on your iPhone.

SnowWatcher members accounts (for example at members.snowwatcher.com) are used on the website only. Core map browsing, favourites, and catalog use on iOS do not require a members account. To request access to or deletion of website members account data, email hello@snowwatcher.com.

7.10 Local recording notification (iOS app)

While a ski track is recording, the app may show a local lock-screen notice that recording is in progress. This is not push marketing and does not require remote push notifications. It disappears when recording stops.

8. Newsletter — what we collect, why, how long, and how to leave

SnowWatcher newsletters (for example the weekly snow roundup and/or monthly outlook) are opt-in marketing emails. We only email people who have asked to receive them.

8.1 What we collect

• First name
• Email address
• The newsletter(s) you select
• Optional countries and resorts you choose to follow, so we can personalise content
• Consent confirmation (that you asked to receive emails), plus technical metadata such as signup time and source (for example website signup)

8.2 Why we collect it

• To send the emails you requested (newsletter content matching your choices)
• To administer the list (updates, bounce handling, unsubscribe, and preventing accidental re-mailing after you leave)
• To notify our team of new signups where configured for operations

Legal basis (EU/UK): consent (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR / UK GDPR), together with applicable ePrivacy / PECR rules for electronic marketing. You may withdraw consent at any time.

8.3 How we record that you consented

Signup is opt-in only. On the website you must tick the consent box, and a link to this Privacy Policy is shown at signup. We store a consent flag and timestamp with your subscriber record. Where configured, our systems also send an inbound notification email to our team when someone signs up; that message (together with the stored consent record) is evidence that you asked to be added. We do not add people from Contact Us, Suggest a resort, or map browsing alone.

8.4 How long we keep it

• While you remain subscribed — we keep your name, email, preferences, and consent record so we can send the newsletters you chose.
• After you unsubscribe — we stop marketing emails promptly. We may keep a minimal suppression record (for example email address, unsubscribe / consent status, and relevant dates) for a reasonable period (typically up to 24 months, or longer if needed for legal claims or compliance) so we do not email you again by mistake.
• Deletion — you can ask us to delete your subscriber data (subject to any minimal record we must keep to honour an opt-out or legal obligation). Email hello@snowwatcher.com with subject “Delete my newsletter data”.

8.5 Unsubscribe and stop emails

You can stop marketing emails at any time by:

• Using the Unsubscribe link included in every SnowWatcher newsletter email (required for marketing email in the EU/UK), or
• Emailing hello@snowwatcher.com and asking to unsubscribe

Unsubscribing stops marketing emails. It is separate from asking us to delete all records (see above).

8.6 Sharing — we do not use the list for ads without separate consent

We do not sell your email address. We do not share or rent the newsletter list to third parties for their own advertising without your separate, clear consent. We use email delivery providers only as needed to send the messages you requested (processors acting on our instructions).

8.7 Where signup happens (website vs iOS)

Newsletter personal data is processed through our website and email operations (including our subscriber database when you use the web signup form). The iOS app does not silently scrape your email for marketing. If you start a signup or contact request from the app via Mail, you are sending that information yourself; we then handle the request under this section.

9. Third-party services

SnowWatcher relies on specialised providers to display maps, weather, snow intelligence, host data, send operational and newsletter email, and (where enabled) AI answers. These providers process the technical requests needed to deliver the feature you asked for. They may act as independent controllers or as processors depending on the service and configuration.

Examples of categories of providers include:

• Map tiles and map styling (for example MapTiler; map data includes OpenStreetMap contributors)
• OpenStreetMap ecosystem services (tiles, geocoding, routing, Overpass) — including Near Me / SkiBase queries and any SnowWatcher proxy in front of Overpass
• Weather data providers (for example OpenWeather for resort weather cards)
• Snow / resort catalog and intelligence (SnowWatcher and SnowSure servers)
• AI inference providers for Trip Co-pilot (when configured)
• Hosting, content delivery, databases, and security infrastructure
• Email delivery / transactional mail (for contact replies, suggestions, and newsletter operations when configured)
• Bot protection / CAPTCHA (for example Cloudflare Turnstile on website forms)
• Apple (App Store distribution, iOS location, camera, HealthKit, and local notifications for the iOS app)
• members.snowwatcher.com when you sign in to a SnowWatcher members account on the website

When you leave SnowWatcher (for example by opening an official resort website, webcam, Google Maps, or an Amazon WinterStuff link), that third party’s privacy policy applies. WinterStuff links may be affiliate links, as disclosed in our App Store listing.

10. European Union / EEA / United Kingdom (GDPR)

If you are in the EU/EEA or the UK GDPR regime applies, the following applies to personal data that may be processed:

10.1 Legal bases

• Legitimate interests — operating a secure service, preventing abuse, and understanding anonymous aggregate usage to improve the product (Art. 6(1)(f) GDPR), balanced against your rights.
• Consent — for non-essential cookies / analytics (website cookie banner), for newsletter / marketing emails when you opt in (Art. 6(1)(a) GDPR, together with applicable ePrivacy / PECR rules), and for optional iOS permissions and features where you grant system permission and start the feature (location including background recording, camera photos on a track, Apple Health workout import). You may withdraw consent at any time without affecting prior lawful processing. Withdrawing newsletter consent is done by unsubscribing or contacting us; withdrawing iOS permissions is done in iPhone Settings as described in section 3.
• Contract / requested service — processing strictly necessary to provide an optional feature you actively request (Art. 6(1)(b)), for example generating an AI reply, calculating a route, responding to a Contact Us message, or recording a ski track on iOS that stays on your device.

10.2 Your rights

Subject to legal limits, you may have the right to:

• Access your personal data
• Rectify inaccurate data
• Erase data (“right to be forgotten”)
• Restrict or object to certain processing
• Data portability
• Withdraw consent (where processing is based on consent)
• Lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority

For ordinary map browsing without signup or contact forms, we typically do not hold an identifiable personal profile, so many of these rights may not apply in practice. If you are a newsletter subscriber, have a SnowWatcher members account on the website, have sent a contact message, or believe we hold other personal data about you, email hello@snowwatcher.com and we will help identify and action the relevant records (including access, correction, deletion, or unsubscribe).

10.3 International transfers

Some providers may process data outside the EEA / UK. Where required, we rely on appropriate safeguards (such as Standard Contractual Clauses) or the provider’s equivalent transfer mechanisms.

10.4 Retention

• Technical logs and anonymous analytics — kept only as long as needed for security, operations, and aggregate insights, then deleted or irreversibly aggregated.
• Contact messages and resort suggestions — kept while useful for review and support, then deleted or anonymised.
• Newsletter subscribers — see section 8.4 (kept while subscribed; after unsubscribe, minimal suppression record typically up to 24 months unless you request deletion where the law allows).
• Members account profile (website) — kept while your account is active; delete on request via hello@snowwatcher.com.

11. United States

If you are a US resident, we provide the following disclosures. SnowWatcher does not sell personal information and does not share personal information for cross-context behavioural advertising as those terms are commonly defined under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) / CPRA. We do not share the newsletter list for advertising without separate consent.

11.1 Categories

Depending on how you use SnowWatcher, we may process:

• Internet / technical activity and device information (often anonymous or not reasonably linkable to you)
• Identifiers and contact information you provide (for example name and email for newsletter, Contact Us, or a SnowWatcher members profile)
• Preferences you select (for example newsletter cadence, countries, or resorts)
• Location — precise or coarse GPS when you allow it on iOS for map position, Near Me / SkiBase, ski track recording (including background while recording), or photo geotagging; stored on your iPhone only in the current App Store app
• Photos — camera images you attach to a track on iOS; stored on your iPhone only
• Fitness / Health — workout and route data you import from Apple Health on iOS; stored on your iPhone only
• Other content you voluntarily submit in optional tools

11.2 California (CCPA/CPRA) rights

If the CCPA/CPRA applies to you, you may have the right to:

• Know what personal information is collected
• Delete personal information
• Correct inaccurate personal information
• Opt out of sale / sharing (we do not sell or share for behavioural advertising)
• Non-discrimination for exercising your rights

To submit a request, use the contact details below. We will verify requests to the extent reasonable. Newsletter subscribers can also unsubscribe using the link in our emails.

11.3 “Do Not Track”

There is no consistent industry standard for DNT browser signals. Our practices are described in this policy; we do not track you across third-party sites or apps for advertising.

11.4 Other US state laws

Residents of states with consumer privacy laws (for example Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, Utah, and others) may have similar rights to access, delete, or opt out of certain processing. Contact us to exercise applicable rights.

12. Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures appropriate to a public web and mobile application (for example HTTPS in production and access controls on server configuration). No method of transmission or storage is completely secure; please use the service accordingly.

13. Children

SnowWatcher is intended for a general audience interested in ski travel and is not directed at children under 16 (EU/UK) or under 13 (USA / COPPA). We do not knowingly collect personal information from children. If you believe a child has provided personal information to us (including via newsletter signup), contact us and we will delete it where applicable.

14. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The “Last updated” date at the top will change when we do. Continued use of SnowWatcher after an update means you acknowledge the revised policy. If we make material changes to how we use newsletter data, we will update this page and, where appropriate, provide additional notice to subscribers.

15. Contact

For privacy questions or requests (including GDPR / UK GDPR or CCPA requests, newsletter unsubscribe, or members account access or deletion on the website), contact:

SnowWatcher — Privacy
Email: hello@snowwatcher.com

This page is provided for transparency and does not constitute legal advice. If you need advice for your organisation, consult a qualified lawyer in your jurisdiction.