Itinera

A comprehensive, high efficient, and highly customizable automatic traveling itinerary planning system using generative AI

TIMELINE

Fall 2023

4 Weeks

YEAR

2023

FOCUSING AREAS

UI Design

Market Research

User Research

TOOLS

Figma

Sketch

Photoshop

Overview

Itinera is a comprehensive, high efficient, and highly customizable automatic itinerary planning system using generative AI. It enables users to set destinations, prioritize needs like lodging quality, budget, and food, and automatically generate a highly comprehensive and customized travel plan. For users who don’t want to spend too much on preparing, itinera also provides quick itinerary creation which can create an itinerary within seconds while still keeping it personalized. In addition to that, the app also adjusts itineraries dynamically in case of delays, ensuring an efficient, user-friendly, and highly personalized travel experience.

OBSERVATION

As tourism grows in popularity, an increasing number of people are venturing into travel as a means of relax from overwhelming work or study and a way to learn more different culture. Yet, the intricacies of travel planning remain a significant hurdle. The process requires a meticulous consideration of various factors, demanding a substantial investment of time to strike a balance among the trip's elements. Consequently, this complexity has led some individuals to resist the task of detailed travel planning before embarking on their journeys.

Research: Interview

User Interview

To make sure the interviewees can represent most of users, I chose following interviewees. Gen Zs and Gen X, based on the research, are the biggest user group in worldwide scale.

Oliver

Gen Z

Gender: Male

Budget: Average

Background

Oliver is a university student major in computer science and programming. He is about to graduate and have very limited chance to travel. Therefore he wants to make every trip as worthwhile as possible.

Fuhao

Gen Z

Gender: Male

Budget: Below Average

Background

Fu Hao, an art college student major in animation. He holds the view that each journey should be a relaxing experience, as he sees traveling primarily as a means to unwind. Planing is time consuming for him.

Alice Hu

Gen X

Gender: Female

Budget: Average

Background

Alice, a working mother with a nearly adult child, travels only during holidays. She prioritizes a high budget for these trips to ensure exceptional experiences each time because every trip is a rare opportunity.

Stakeholder interview

Interviewed Stakeholders

After research on different traveling apps, I find out that the stakeholder of traveling app can be briefly classified into following groups: Hotel owners, restaurants, Scenic spot Car rental / online car-hailing, Entertainment venue. Therefore, I chose following two stakeholder as my interviewees.

Staff in restaurant (Confidential)

Industry: Catering industry

Entered platform: Ctrip, Qunar, baidu map

Owner of a residential hostel

Industry: Hotel

Entered platform: Ctrip, Qunar, Mafengwo

After the interview, I identified the following areas that have potential for further development:

Personalization

From interview, most traveler would like to create a complete new itinerary that fits their needs instead of just using other’s plan.

Personalization

From interview, most traveler would like to create a complete new itinerary that fits their needs instead of just using other’s plan.

Personalization

From interview, most traveler would like to create a complete new itinerary that fits their needs instead of just using other’s plan.

High Efficiency

Some traveler may create traveling plan even just one night before the trip, therefore, they need the planning process to be quick.

High Efficiency

Some traveler may create traveling plan even just one night before the trip, therefore, they need the planning process to be quick.

High Efficiency

Some traveler may create traveling plan even just one night before the trip, therefore, they need the planning process to be quick.

Unexpected

During the trip, some unexpected accident may happen, which may cause delay and force travelers to change their following plan.

Unexpected

During the trip, some unexpected accident may happen, which may cause delay and force travelers to change their following plan.

Unexpected

During the trip, some unexpected accident may happen, which may cause delay and force travelers to change their following plan.

Different Focus

Different users may have completely different focus areas(like budget, accommodation, etc.) on trip and prioritize them in a different order.

Different Focus

Different users may have completely different focus areas(like budget, accommodation, etc.) on trip and prioritize them in a different order.

Different Focus

Different users may have completely different focus areas(like budget, accommodation, etc.) on trip and prioritize them in a different order.

One-Stop

Process

Most of users tend to finish all the preparation on just on app or platform instead of switching in between.

One-Stop

Process

Most of users tend to finish all the preparation on just on app or platform instead of switching in between.

One-Stop Process

Most of users tend to finish all the preparation on just on app or platform instead of switching in between.

Hotel Choices

Choosing hotels can be hard for most of users as they need to balance different aspects like budget, location, facilities etc.

Hotel Choices

Choosing hotels can be hard for most of users as they need to balance different aspects like budget, location, facilities etc.

Hotel Choices

Choosing hotels can be hard for most of users as they need to balance different aspects like budget, location, facilities etc.

Research: Market Analysis

Competitor Analysis

Positioning Matrix

Conclusion

After analyzing our competitors and creating a positioning matrix, we identified potential areas for innovation to distinguish our product from the competition.

Our analysis indicates that most travel tools focus on providing comprehensive functions, such as hotel bookings, ticket reservations, and dining options. These features offer users convenient one-stop solutions, eliminating the need to switch between different apps. However, these platforms offer limited personalization. For example, Tuniu offers "products" that bundle hotels, transport, and tickets, simplifying logistics for users. Ctrip, on the other hand, lets travelers share itineraries on their community platfom for others to use as templates or adopt wholesale.

There is an evident gap: none of these services offer users an easy way to tailor a travel itinerary that is perfectly suited to their individual preferences. This presents an opportunity to develop a unique offering that facilitates a highly efficient and easy to use high level of personalization in travel planning.

Personas & Journey Map

Problem Statement

HMW create a tool for users to easily and efficiently create a traveling plan without compromising the personalization of the plan?

HMW create a dynamic planning system to respond to changes in plans due to unexpected circumstances during the trip?

HMW integrate a map and traffic planning system to automatically plan a perfect route?

HMW enable users to quickly identify the most suitable travel routes that align with their budget and time constraints?

HMW design a smart planning system where users can defined the priority of destinations?

HMW design a budget evaluation system to help users better understand the spend of the trip?

HMW design a one-step last minute automatic planning system?

Designing an intuitive travel planning tool to address the need for creating flexible, highly personalized itineraries quickly and efficiently, while accommodating multiple considerations, constraints and the possibility of unexpected changes.

User Flows

Creating a New Customized Itinerary

Creating a Quick Itinerary

Creating Itinerary with Description

Dynamic Rearranging

App Information Architecture

KeyFeature

Generate the plan based on different needs and priority

Our platform allows users to set final destination, different conditions, requirements, priority, specific attractions and more controlled variables to generate the plan, then in the following process, the system will generate itinerary and suggestions based on the variables users have set.

Streamlined planning process

Pipelined planning process

Upon establishing user preferences and priorities, our system will autonomously create a preliminary itinerary. This suggested plan acts as a starting point, guiding users through an interactive review process where they can scrutinize and modify the daily agenda to better fit their individual needs.

Quick Itinerary

Our system also include a “quick planning” feature which allows users to create a suitable plan even just one night before the trip. To use quick itinerary function, users only need to set a starting point and a destination. Then users will be ask to prioritize the considerations of the trip (e.g. budget, accommodation, etc.). Based on that, the system will quickly generate an detailed personalized and editable itinerary.

Dynamic Rearranging and Adapting

During the trip, unexpected accidents always happens such as like sudden snowstorms, roadblocks, or congested traffic, prompting on-the-fly itinerary changes. Our system offers a flexible planning tool that lets users easily modify their plans. It intelligently recalibrates the itinerary, taking into account various factors such as distance, pre-set priorities, travel time, and more, to ensure a seamless adjustment to any unexpected events.

Low Fidelity Wireframe

High Fidelity Interfaces

Design System

Pipelined Itinerary Planning Process

Quick Itinerary Planning

Dynamic Rearranging and Adapting

Usability Test

Readability

A significant issue with the high-fidelity prototype involves its readability. User feedback highlighted difficulties in reading text on certain pages, attributing this to inadequate contrast between the button background and the text. To address this issue, I revised the prototype by altering the colors of both the button and the text to enhance visual contrast, thereby improving readability.

Text Overloading

Another prominent issue identified by users relates to text overload. On the following screen, the text within each button is excessively lengthy, making it challenging and time-consuming for users to read and comprehend, leading to information overload. In response to this feedback, I have condensed the wording used to describe each function while ensuring it remains clear and understandable.

Next Step

Finalize “creating with description” feature.

Creating features based on more using scenarios like creating itinerary during half of the trip, etc.

Develop desktop version as some of users prefer to create and review itineraries on a larger screen for better information readability.
Now we have created a smart travel itinerary planing tool, considering how we can extend this tool to the fields beyond traveling.

Finalize “creating with description” feature.

Creating features based on more using scenarios like creating itinerary during half of the trip, etc.

Develop desktop version as some of users prefer to create and review itineraries on a larger screen for better information readability.
Now we have created a smart travel itinerary planing tool, considering how we can extend this tool to the fields beyond traveling.

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