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Whirlwind
Whirlwind is a smart travel companion designed to help you make the most of short city visits with curated recommendations and efficient, personalized itineraries.
Services
UI/UX App Design
Year
2023
Whirlwind, is the ultimate travel companion. In a world where brief visits to unfamiliar cities present a common challenge, Whirlwind steps in as your solution. Say goodbye to aimless wandering and hello to tailored recommendations and efficient itineraries designed to make every moment count.
Whether you're squeezing in a quick business trip or embarking on a whirlwind adventure, Whirlwind ensures a fulfilling experience by guiding you through the best attractions, eateries, and hidden gems with ease and precision. Say hello to seamless exploration and bid farewell to missed opportunities with Whirlwind.
Case Study
Problem Statement
How to make the most of a brief visit to an unfamiliar city poses a common challenge. Navigating limited time requires tailored recommendations and efficient itineraries for a fulfilling experience.
Objective & Goals
Address Time Constraints
Enhance Cultural Immersion
Provide Flexibility
Improve Visitor Experiences
Make Travel Simpler
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Background research
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User personas
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Competitive analysis
Discover
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Feature prioritization
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Storyboarding
Define
The Process
Develop
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Sketching
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Wire-frames
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Prototype
Deliver
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User testing
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User feedback analysis
Google Travel
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Google Travel, a global service by Google for travelers.
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Platform for flights, hotels, vacation packages, and trip planning.
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Generates revenue through advertising for travel-related businesses.
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Access via website, Google Search, and Maps apps for convenience.
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Available for years, with continuous feature evolution, re-branded in 2019.
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Aims to simplify travel planning with tools and comprehensive information.
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Strengths: Google Travel consolidates info, integrates features, and offers map functionality.
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Weakness: It lacks curated, personalized city recommendations, focusing on aggregation.
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Opportunity: Improve personalization with user preferences, feedback, and tailored suggestions.
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Threats: Rising competition may decrease market share and user engagement.
Personas
" Travel, for me, is the canvas upon which I paint the vibrant tapestry of life. It's the ultimate school where I learn and the endless adventure that fuels my soul. "
Sakshi
Background
Introducing Sakshi, our time-conscious traveler. Sakshi frequently embarks on adventures to new destinations, but her stays are often brief. She thrives on the thrill of discovering new places, cultures, and experiences in a limited time frame. Sakshi is driven by the desire to make every moment count during her travels. Her goal is to be a master of efficiency, ensuring she extracts the most value and enriching experiences from her short stays while exploring the world.
Attitudes
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Adventurous
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Efficient
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Curious
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Resourceful
Goals
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Exploration
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Immersion Cultural
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Efficiency
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Memorable
Noah
" History serves as my guiding compass in travel, unveiling the often overlooked narratives that enrich our world with untold stories and profound cultural insights. "
Background
Meet Noah, our history-loving traveler. Noah's passion for the past drives his explorations worldwide. He immerses himself in historical sites, engaging with every artifact and sparking discussions with locals and fellow travelers. His goal is to deepen his historical knowledge and share his discoveries with others, making every trip an educational adventure.
Attitudes
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Curious
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Passionate
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Adventurous
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Inquisitive
Goals
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Exploration
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Education
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Immersion
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Discovery
Competitive Analysis
Visit A City
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Google Travel, a global service by Google for travelers.
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Platform for flights, hotels, vacation packages, and trip planning.
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Generates revenue through advertising for travel-related businesses.
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Access via website, Google Search, and Maps apps for convenience.
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Available for years, with continuous feature evolution, re-branded in 2019.
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Aims to simplify travel planning with tools and comprehensive information.
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Strength: Visit a City excels in offering curated, customizable itineraries for efficient travel planning.
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Weakness: Lack real-time info, relying on periodic updates and user contributions.
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Opportunity: Enhance travel experiences, drive revenue through ads and premium subscriptions.
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Threats: Increased competition may decrease user adoption and engagement.
SideKix
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Sidekix, a navigation app for urban explorers and pedestrians.
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Offers personalized walking routes based on user interests like shopping and dining.
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Business model involves partnerships for advertising and affiliate marketing.
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Users input interests, and Sidekix generates walking routes with points of interest.
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Launched in 2016, used globally by travelers and locals.
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Enhances urban exploration by suggesting routes tailored to user preferences.
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Strength: Sidekix excels in providing personalized walking routes for enhanced exploration.
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Weakness: Less effective in less touristy or densely populated areas, limiting accuracy.
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Opportunity: Capitalize on the demand for personalized urban experiences through partnerships.
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Threats: Competition from established mapping apps like Google Maps poses a risk.
Storyboarding
Short Timeline
Instructions
Sign-up
Map
Steps
Start
Question 1
Question 2
Time
Long Timeline
Instructions
Login
Map
Steps
Wire-framing
Recent Trips
Recent Trip 1
Recent Trip 2
Recent Trip 3
Recent Trip 4
Recent Trip 5
On the map pages there is a scrolling menu at the bottom of the screen.
Prototyping
How the Map Cards Work
The way it functions is that each are tied to the next one by clicking on the arrows on the sides of the Map Cards.
To get to the more information pages are tied to their expanded version by just clicking on the map card overall.
Above are the Map Card for the Short Timeline Option.
Above are the Map Card for the Long Timeline Option.
User Testing
Crafting observations, insights, and action items
Observation
Almost all users use their phone the most frequently, especially when it comes to travel on the go related things, and googling options of where to go.
They seemed to not have any issues running the app until they got to the map, then were confused at all the different features that surround the map. The bottom info card clicking function, none of them got it. They figured out it did click up. They liked the steps function under the hamburger menu but feel like it’s not the right icon for the job.
Missed the place icon in the upper corner. But when they figured it out, they enjoyed the way you could see your recent trips.
Insight
The overall flow had mixed options two found the flow/navigation confusing, the other two didn’t have any issues.
They found it easy to navigate overall.
They thought each logo location had enough information but wanted an option for more information and things to do at each location.
They tried to click on the actual location option on the map to see the information about that location and didn’t try at the bottom at the icon card. Then when they realized it wasn’t a click they tried to swipe at the info card to swipe through.
Action Items
The button that shows recent trips.
Make the info card a swipe not a click through more visible
Change the hamburger menu into a different option or make it an actual hamburger menu..
In the info card on the map make there an option for each location to have a more info option for each and a things to do… could be a page for each of them to give more information.
A more complicated want is to make it so that you can click on a location on the map and the info card to match
What’s Next
Make it so that when you click on a icon on the map it changes the card at the bottom of the page.
Expand the information on each place to have their own page that opens when you click a more information button.
Expanding out the recent trip feature.
An upcoming trip feature.
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Make it so that when you click on a icon on the map it changes the card at the bottom of the page.
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Expand the information on each place to have their own page that opens when you click a more information button.
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Expanding out the recent trip feature.
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An upcoming trip feature.
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