OVERVIEW
Problem Statement
Travelers go through many struggles while searching for a travel companion. Despite their willingness to take charge and host the trip, their friends often cancel/refuse to tag along. They are forever unsuccessful in search of reliable and like-minded travel buddies. Similarly, a lot of enthusiasts are waiting for someone to host a trip so they can join.
How might we create a platform that connects like-minded travelers and hosts to achieve a better shared travel experience?
Solution
Frustrated by this common experience, we created Companino - an app designed to help people connect, find travel companions, and transform travel dreams into actual trips. Users can join trips that are listed on the platform, allowing them to connect and travel with like-minded travelers. They can also choose to host, create their detailed trip, and invite other travelers to join.
Team
Project Manager
2 Designers
1 Front-end Developer
2 Back-end Developer
My Role
UI/UX Design Lead
Researcher
Interaction Design
User Testing
Tools
Figma
Adobe After Effects
Trello
Jira
Slack
Visual Studio
Seamless Journey Planning Experience
Navigate Your Journey from Start to Finish: Explore Trip Insights That Transform Travel Planning
With just a few taps, you'll explore detailed trip information, stunning photos, and get to know your potential travel companions. We break down everything you need to know - from trip costs to group dynamics - making your travel planning simple and fun.
Secure & Thoughtful Payments
Unlock the 'Pay Now' button only after your request is accepted
Our unique payment process gives travelers and organizers time to connect before money changes hands. This ensures the right fit, more secure, and considered travel experience for everyone.
Organize & Share Your Journey
Love planning trips? Now you can share your expertise with others.
Create your own unique experience in four simple steps, from selecting the perfect location to gathering your dream team of travel buddies.
Our Process
Research
Interviews
Affinity Mapping
Persona
Design
Brainstorming
Wireframes
User Feedback
High Fidelity Design
Evaluate
Usability Testing
Design Iterations
My contribution
As the Lead UX Designer and Researcher on the team, I conducted user interviews, and brainstorming sessions before arriving at solutions.


​
I led all the research & design activities with other engineers and the client, created wireframes, high-fidelity designs, and interactive prototypes for the client, user feedback & testing. 


RESEARCH
Interviews
We interviewed 12 participants and asked them some open-ended questions about their travel planning experiences.
​
We received responses similar to those in the Reddit thread above.
-
The interviewee had planned a group trip but ultimately ended up traveling alone.
-
The respondent found that trips involving activities like skiing and hiking were most enjoyable with friends and groups. They joined a Facebook group to find travel companions, but this only facilitated short trips.
-
One participant recounted dragging two friends on a trip, where they had to cover the majority of the expenses. While the trip was enjoyable, it turned out to be significantly more expensive than initially anticipated.
-
Another interviewee expressed a desire to watch the Le Mans 24-hour race in France during their twenties. However, they were unable to do so because no one in their social circle shared this interest, and they were apprehensive about traveling alone to a foreign country.
To brainstorm solutions, I invited the whole team to participate in an affinity mapping session with us.
Persona
Based on the results from the interview, I came up with user personas which helped us guide our design decisions better.
DESIGN
Ideation
After the research findings and user persona, the team and I started brainstorming solutions together. We came up with many ideas regardless of the feasibility.
After writing down the ideas, we discussed their implementation, eventually selecting those that were feasible and could be implemented within the required time frame.
Wireframes
After brainstorming, discussing implementation, and narrowing down feasible ideas and functionalities from the research above, I created rough pen-and-paper wireframes highlighting the agreed-upon functionalities. These wireframes serve as a source of reference for all future designs for the app.
Furthermore, creating low-fidelity wireframes along with the prototype on Figma which was then presented to the team and the client. Upon agreement, we took the prototype to our potential users for feedback.
Feedback
The user appreciated the "other members traveling with you" feature, which created a sense of transparency among the users. The users also liked one of our main features: the 4-step trip creation process which they found to be straightforward, and convenient.
Connecting with like-minded travel enthusiasts
Users were skeptical about joining the trips listed and questioned us "How can they understand if they are a good fit and share similar interests just based on their bio?" which made sense.
​
To better achieve our goal, we added one step that allowed potential travelers to "apply" to a trip instead of directly paying and a new chat feature. With these features, travelers and organizers get more time to interact and know each other before making any decision. ​
Revisiting Design Goals
We revisited our MVP design goals and refined them to match better the features we created during the design process.
Help individuals connect with like-minded groups and not be let down by their friends and family anymore
-
Easy apply to any of the trips the traveler​ intends to
-
Giving users the choice to decide between adventurous ​and non-adventurous trips
-
Trip recommendations based on user's interests and location
-
​Communicating with the organizer, making sure the user has found the right fit
Empower and encourage experienced travelers to organize trips on the platform
-
Easy 4-step trip organizing process
-
​Allow photo uploads from their previous experiences
-
Allow the organizer to invite from outside the platform​
Promote transparency and make travel safer
-
Allowing users to check their profile
-
Rating and database of previous trips completed by the users
-
Detailed destination-based cost breakdown and travelling information
-
Contracts and verified badge by Companino
To create a community of travelers
-
Space that actively brings users together with a shared purpose and encourage interaction
-
Platform that clear community guidelines
We designed the app to create an inclusive space for all types of travelers. We don't expect the app to gain traction immediately, but rather to gradually increase its user base, indicating that it is being well accepted. With this MVP, we hope users will learn the App and that we can gather as much information as possible to begin working on new features and improvements for the full version of the app.
High-Fidelity Designs
The primary goal of the designs was to help all types of users feel more confident, make informed decisions, and feel comfortable interacting with others using the app, as well as learn the basics of travel planning. Following the high-fidelity designs, we will conduct usability testing to identify and make the necessary improvements.
Trip application request flow
Organize trip flow
Other screens
EVALUATE
User Feedback and Design Iterations
After completing the high-fidelity designs, I approached 7 users for user testing. An introduction about the app was given to them, followed by the scenario and then were asked to use the app.
Activities included on the trip
While browsing through the home screen, users were having difficulty knowing about the activities included in the trip. Many users expected some information about the activities on the home screen. Since the information was important, I decided to add the activity icons to the home screen. ​
Message to the Organizer
During testing, many users kept the message box empty while applying for a trip. This behavior made it difficult for the organizer to know about the users and their interest in the trip. The user assigned to the organizer's job complained and assumed that no efforts were made by the travelers to be a part of the trip. As a result, we decided to make the message box a mandatory field. This could also serve as an icebreaker.​
Trip Request Cancellation
A user ​changed their mind and wanted to cancel the request for the applied trip. Since we added a step in the flow that restricted the users to directly pay but instead "apply" and pushed them to check their compatibility with the group before securing a spot, we forgot to add a "cancel trip" button. Cancellation for free until the user has paid for the trip. To deal with this we added a cancellation button.
Outcomes
As the Lead UX Designer and Researcher for the six-month MVP design project, I was instrumental in developing the Companino app. I conducted user interviews and led brainstorming sessions to create a user-friendly solution based on our findings. My work included creating wireframes, high-fidelity designs, and interactive prototypes for client feedback and testing. By focusing on user-centered design principles, we ensured that the app met real user needs. This collaborative effort with engineers and stakeholders strengthened our teamwork and improved our problem-solving skills. Overall, this project not only produced a promising MVP but also provided valuable insights into user behavior and mental health considerations related to travel.
