Graduation Project: Enhancing a Smart Travel Experience
Graduation Project: Enhancing a Smart Travel Experience
Designing a mobile app to simplify how travelers document, collaborate and share their experiences, from concept to prototype.
Designing a mobile app to simplify how travelers document, collaborate and share their experiences, from concept to prototype.
Role
Product Designer
Role
Product Designer
Platform
Mobile Design
Platform
Mobile Design
Industry
Travel & Hospitality
Industry
Travel & Hospitality
Duration
3 months
Duration
3 months
Social Experience Design
Social Experience Design
Information Architecture
Information Architecture
Visual Storytelling
Visual Storytelling
Overview
Overview
Travelogue is a mobile-first travel app designed to simplify trip planning and enhance the travel experience. The platform enables real-time collaborative planning, social storytelling, and gamification to keep users engaged. With features like curated experiences and offline access, the app makes both solo and group travel more seamless, social, and rewarding.
Travelogue is a mobile-first travel app designed to simplify trip planning and enhance the travel experience. The platform enables real-time collaborative planning, social storytelling, and gamification to keep users engaged. With features like curated experiences and offline access, the app makes both solo and group travel more seamless, social, and rewarding.
My Role
My Role
Collaborated with a multidisciplinary design team to create solutions that streamlined collaborative planning and enhanced user engagement, aiming to make the trip-planning experience user intuitive.
Took the lead on crafting the Branding Guide and Design System.
Collaborated with a multidisciplinary design team to create solutions that streamlined collaborative planning and enhanced user engagement, aiming to make the trip-planning experience user intuitive.
Took the lead on crafting the Branding Guide and Design System.
Problem Statement
Problem Statement
How can a technology-based solution enable users to collaboratively plan itineraries and share experiences in real time—while leveraging offline accessibility and gamified rewards to motivate exploration without feeling intrusive?
How can a technology-based solution enable users to collaboratively plan itineraries and share experiences in real time—while leveraging offline accessibility and gamified rewards to motivate exploration without feeling intrusive?
Research Process
Research Process
Unified features = Smooth Execution
Unified features = Smooth Execution
We conducted user interviews with 11 participants(aged 18-35) within our target demographic who were frequent users of multiple travel apps. The interview was aimed to uncover major pain points and emotions felt through the process of executing a whole trip - solo or group. Here's what we discovered:
We conducted user interviews with 11 participants(aged 18-35) within our target demographic who were frequent users of multiple travel apps. The interview was aimed to uncover major pain points and emotions felt through the process of executing a whole trip - solo or group. Here's what we discovered:
Competition vs Focus
Competition vs Focus
What's the competition like?
What's the competition like?
Initial research revealed several existing players in the travel app space. However, the majority of these tools prioritize itinerary cataloging or travel journaling in isolation, often neglecting the collaborative and social aspects that make travel inherently shared and interactive.
Initial research revealed several existing players in the travel app space. However, the majority of these tools prioritize itinerary cataloging or travel journaling in isolation, often neglecting the collaborative and social aspects that make travel inherently shared and interactive.
Our focus:
Real-time Itinerary Collaboration
Real-time Itinerary Collaboration
Real-time Itinerary Collaboration
Storytelling and social interaction
Storytelling and social interaction
Storytelling and social interaction
Offline Accessibility for Maps & Travel Content
Offline Accessibility for Maps & Travel Content
Offline Accessibility for Maps & Travel Content
Designing Travelogue
Designing Travelogue
The goal with Travelogue wasn't to replicate the entire travel ecosystem, but rather to refine the most collaborative and often chaotic part of the journey: trip planning and coordination. Alternative to overcrowding the platform with booking engines or external hotel listings, we chose to prioritize clarity and usability by focusing on real user frustrations - the difficulty of getting everyone on the same page, the lack of offline access during travel, and the absence of a fun yet functional space to co-plan trips. By grounding our design in these insights, Travelogue was shaped as an intuitive space where social engagement, organization, and exploration could coexist - without overwhelming the user.
The goal with Travelogue wasn't to replicate the entire travel ecosystem, but rather to refine the most collaborative and often chaotic part of the journey: trip planning and coordination. Alternative to overcrowding the platform with booking engines or external hotel listings, we chose to prioritize clarity and usability by focusing on real user frustrations - the difficulty of getting everyone on the same page, the lack of offline access during travel, and the absence of a fun yet functional space to co-plan trips. By grounding our design in these insights, Travelogue was shaped as an intuitive space where social engagement, organization, and exploration could coexist - without overwhelming the user.
Smart Suggestions That Simplify Planning
Smart Suggestions That Simplify Planning
A Personal Travel Journal for eternity
A Personal Travel Journal for eternity
Centralized details, no delays
Centralized details, no delays
Travelogue Visuals
Travelogue Visuals
What I Took Away
What I Took Away
🔁 Effort Compounds Through Iteration - From usability testing to feature trade-offs, consistent collective effort and feedback cycles are what ultimately drove this product toward maturity.
🔁 Effort Compounds Through Iteration - From usability testing to feature trade-offs, consistent collective effort and feedback cycles are what ultimately drove this product toward maturity.
🌍 Inclusive Design is Never ‘Done’ - Our research surfaced the need for stronger accessibility and localization - a reminder that global usability is an evolving, iterative responsibility.
🌍 Inclusive Design is Never ‘Done’ - Our research surfaced the need for stronger accessibility and localization - a reminder that global usability is an evolving, iterative responsibility.
🪜Team Effort - Iterating on the workflows required tight coordination between design, research, and testing-proving how aligned teamwork can elevate first-time user experience.
🪜Team Effort - Iterating on the workflows required tight coordination between design, research, and testing-proving how aligned teamwork can elevate first-time user experience.
Copyright © Eshani Somwanshi 2026
Copyright © Eshani Somwanshi 2026
Copyright © Eshani Somwanshi 2026