Travelling Europe is exciting, and stressful.
Safety concerns, language barriers and adapting to local life add friction for young travellers on short trips.
← All work
Case study 04 · September 2024 · Design thinking
Travel Mates
A social travel-planning app that helps young travellers plan Europe trips with confidence, using plans shared by people like them.
The problem
Travellers trust other travellers.
Interviewees planned through Instagram, TikTok and peer tips, and wanted one place for everything.
A social travel-planning network.
Share and explore itineraries, plan by budget and dates, and get packing lists and safety tips in one app.
What 6 travellers told me
The problem: the overall holiday experience of young people travelling to Europe.
I ran 6 in-depth online interviews of 30–35 minutes with travellers aged 18–45: frequent Europe travellers, white-collar professionals and budget-conscious people who prioritise safety, comfort and time. I synthesised them into an empathy map, personas and journey maps.
6interviews
30–35min each
18–45age range
3trip phases
Limitations. Six interviews are a small, qualitative sample. The findings guided the concept rather than measuring how common each need is.
- 01
Before the trip
Trips are planned around work and limited time off, so spontaneous decisions are common. Location, cleanliness and reviews decide where to stay, and social media is essential.
- 02
During the trip
Travellers want rich experiences in a short time. Language barriers are handled with translation apps, and local experiences are preferred over tourist crowds.
- 03
After the trip
They want more organised, stress-free trips next time, and are motivated to share what they learned to inspire others.
Can’s journey
The journey of “The Spontaneous Traveler”, from deciding to go to coming home.
Key decisions
The storyboard, turned into screens.
5-step onboarding
Preferences, last trip, budget and expectations shape every suggestion.
Plan by date and budget
Dates, stay type and a budget limit set the frame before browsing.
A plan that fits
Flights, hotels, itinerary, days within budget and a weather-aware packing list.
Help while you’re there
Rain at 14:00? The plan swaps itself. Spend, next stop and a phrase in the local language sit on one screen.
How it evolved
Step 1 · Empathy map
What travellers think, hear, say, see and do
The interviews, organised by what people feel and do: stress about language and budgets, inspiration from social media.
Step 2 · Ideate
From Crazy 8’s to four concepts
Eight quick ideas narrowed to four concepts. The social planning network was chosen to develop.
Step 3 · Storyboard
Aysu plans a trip
Aysu finds the app on Instagram, completes a 5-step onboarding and gets a plan within her ₺20,000 budget.
The case study
Scroll inside the frame to read the full document.
What I’d do next
- 01
Usability sessions
Test onboarding and planning by budget with young travellers.
- 02
Trust in shared plans
Check whether people trust itineraries from strangers, and what signals would help, such as reviews or similar profiles.
- 03
In-trip support
Develop the in-trip screen (weather changes, spending, local phrases) into a full flow.