Simplifying travel planning for foreigners in Iran

Tourgo

Overview

Main problem: There are a lack of platforms for foreign individuals to reserve, find, plan, and compare tours for locations within Iran, and Tourgo is an application designed to address this need.

What was the solution?

  • Develop search and compare tours 
  • Add the option to plan a trip manually or use app suggestions

Role

User research
User experience design
User interface design

Tools

Figma, FigJam, Photoshop, Google meet, Illustrator

Team

  • 1 UX Designer(me)
  • 1 Product Manager
  • 1 Backend Developer
  • 1 Front End Developer

Benchmarking

To gain more knowledge regarding the current market I listed some competitors and studied them in detail. I found a list of features on which we can work.

I started searching for reviews on the Play Store to understand their best features, how they attract and retain users.

Required list

  • Search and reserve tours
  • Rate, review, and comment on tours
  • Plan trip manually or get app suggestions
  • See different tours suggestions for one location

User research

I conducted user interviews, ranging from frequent travelers to infrequent users, to understand their requirements.

User needs

  • User-friendly interface, seamless booking, and good tours.
  • Personalized recommendations.
  • Information on authentic local experiences.
  • Collaboration features for involving family members and sharing itineraries.
  • Information on safety measures during travel.
  • Trip planning and get suggested plan.
  • Secure payment flow.

User flow and taxonomy

I created a user flow aimed at eliminating as many issues as possible. Defining a taxonomy for each page helped us understand the fields present in each page and flow.

Assumptions

In order to work on this app, I felt it was necessary to make a few assumptions and set a few constraints.

  • Tourgo currently is active for locations only in Iran.
  • The Tourgo team has partnered with a group of travel agencies to comprehensively cover Iran’s vacation destinations and offer a variety of tours.

We will review the assumptions I have made in this case study. Without any further ado let’s get started with the design.

Wireframe

Wireframes serve as the foundational representation of a product. Following an analysis of references, competitor apps, and collected data, I drafted layouts and initiated the design of low-fidelity screens (wireframes). This process enabled me to concentrate on essential functions, elements, and actions before advancing to the high-fidelity (hi-fi) designs.

Feature Screens

I have designed various pages to address users’ problems.

Plan trip automatically

The described flow was highly stimulating and challenging, encompassing multiple iterations of screens, interconnecting flows, various assumptions, and a deep understanding of user behavior to optimize the design. I divided the entire flow into sections and plans to explain each one individually.


Users can access trip planning by tapping “Plan Your Trip” at the top of the home page or in the bottom navigation’s plan tab, leading them to a new screen for organizing their trip.

Select location and dates

If a new user or a user who has logged out of this app attempts to create an itinerary, he will be asked to Sign up or Sign in first and then be proceeded to the create itinerary screens.

Plan trip manually

One of the prime functionalities of this app is that users can either create their itineraries from scratch. So I had to design a space for users where they could save items from multiple tours for their trip. Users should be logged in to access this flow.

If a user had a prearranged trip in the past, the ‘Plan’ page will be change.

Users can select a date after choosing their tours. Within the itinerary page, users can sort their plans according to dates.

Add a tour to spacific day

Users can add a tour to a specific day. In the modal, they will see a list of unplanned tours to choose from.

Buy a tour

A user can check tour availability for a specific day, explore various tour options with distinct features for a particular location from a specific agency, and select the number of participants for the tour before making a purchase.

Users can add the date and number of participants.

What I learned

• While working on this case study, I came across several micro-challenges, which made the whole project even more interesting. I learned how to resolve those challenges without compromising on the primary design solution.

• Iterations — Forget about the number of iterations; learning how to create various iterations was an important skill to acquire.

• Great design is not just about visuals; it’s a comprehensive blend of logical user behavior, visuals, and extensive thought and iteration in the design process.

• Try not to strive for perfection, but aim to grow and learn because no project is flawless.

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