Wander.
A travel app that breaks the cycle of homogenized tourism.
ROLE
Product Designer
Ideation Lead
COLLABORATORS
Reymart Gutierrez
Sydney Bernal
Mavis Lo
DURATION
3 day Designathon
SKILLS
Product Design
User Research
OVERVIEW
What if travelers could break away from trend-driven destinations and rediscover true exploration?
Today, travel discovery and planning happens through Google, travel apps, and social media where recommendations are influenced by ratings and algorithms. As a result, we only see the same popular locations. The unique local experiences remain hidden.
SOLUTION
A travel app that generates spontaneous, curated experiences beyond trend-driven destinations.
Set exploration distance.
Explore trusted picks or something new.
Generate itinerary instantly.
CONTEXT
There is no way to find new tourist sites and attractions without being influenced by trends and ratings.
Most travel platforms prioritize popularity, surfacing the same trending locations. While these spots are often popular for a reason, their visibility overshadows smaller local experiences. These trending locations become oversaturated and the smaller local experiences remain hidden.
UNDERSTANDING OUR USERS
Our users said this...
To really understand the issues of traveling, we looked at our users. After conducting indepth user interviews, a clear pattern emerged across all participants.
“Not what I expected”
Social media pictures and videos often left users disappointed with famous landmarks. It wasn’t to their expectations.
“I didn’t know where to start.”
When users wanted to experience local culture, they didn’t know where to start searching, or didnt want to read long articles and blogs.
Takeaway: Users are disappointed by overhyped destinations and lack a clear way to discover better alternatives.
DESIGN CHALLENGES
3 main challenges…
After gathering research on our users, we created a user flow diagram of their process for travel planning. Using these insights as our guide, we defined 3 main challenges to tackle:
Too many places with little relevance.
Travel websites have thousands of locations but the ones users sees are driven by popularity. These spots also spread across different areas which makes the recommendations feel random and disconnected.
So, we wanted a system that encourages discovery rather than just a list of trending locations.
Too much searching for little discovery.
Based on our interviews, most users plan trips by searching online, which often leads to long lists and overwhelming content. Even if users decide to read through the articles, they are still met with the same repetitive heavily reviewed locations.
So, we aimed to design a simpler interface that enables quick discovery without complex filters or settings.
Social media trend based recommendations.
Social media is full of trending travel locations that heavily influence where people decide to visit. As content gains more engagement, the destinations get pushed to larger audiences. Meanwhile, smaller local spots and hidden gems may offer equally valuable experiences, but receive little visibility because they appear insignificant compared to already popular locations.
So, we aimed to design a system that surfaces these places while maintaining trust and quality.
DESIGN PROCESS
Roadblock…
After hours of brainstorming, we struggled to find a strong direction because we were too focused on the perfect solution. To break out of this mindset, we used Crazy Eights, which led to a roulette-style randomizer concept.
At first, our group turned down the idea because it felt too unpredictable and disconnected from typical planning tools. But seeing potential in this idea, I pushed the team to explore it further.
With the issues defined above, we designed a new user flow…
Then we designed the screens…
FINAL SOLUTION
A travel experience designed to encourage spontaneous exploration beyond trends.
Our main solution was to generate an instant travel itinerary with controlled randomness. This introduces spontaneity, encouraging users to discover new and personalized experiences.
Exploration radius.
This feature lets users set a travel exploration distance which gives them control over how far they want to explore while keeping the experiences spontaneous.
Up and coming, tried and true.
To balance spontaneity with trust, we introduced Up and Coming and Tried and True modes, giving the user control over their experience.
Trip Overview.
This page allows users to view their full itinerary, including walking distances and estimated travel times. It also allows users to click into each location for more information.
Suggest Feature.
This feature allows users to suggest new locations which creates a community-driven system that helps hidden gems and smaller businesses gain exposure.
Discover.
This feature allows users to simply browse what's near them, if they don't want to create a trip just yet.