Wanderlust
UI Design, Brand Identity
A travel agency for content creators and content lovers.
This project was created during my Experience and Interaction class where we were prompted to create a travel service aimed towards young travelers. Growing up, I watched a lot of YouTube, specifically cinematic travel vlogs from popular creators such as Sam Kolder and TaylorCutFilms, whose filmmaking and storytelling abilities sparked my own personal interest in travel. With wanderlust, I merged my love for content creation with traveling to make discovering and booking trips easy for college students.
Role
Designer
Timeline
June 2022
Tools
Figma
Challenge
Many college students struggle to find affordable and enjoyable travel options that fit their limited budgets and personal interests.
How can we create a travel agency that caters specifically to the needs of college students who are more interested in experiences over luxury and tourist hotspots?
01 Research & Ideation
I researched three main competitors to familiarize myself with the features and information found on typical travel websites.
Takeaways
After my review, I concluded that many travel agencies contain excess information that overcomplicates traveling for teenagers. Text-heavy sections such as “shop” and “read” aren’t as relevant to younger audiences who mainly browse the internet to discover activities and attractions.
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My solution
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Aesthetically pleasing: colorful high-quality images, modern UI
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Organization: tags and filter systems to improve navigation
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Simplicity: condensed sitemap, less options is better
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Brainstorm
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Mix of Airbnb, Yelp, and Pinterest
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Choose your own adventure: What kind of traveler are you?
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Experience curated to the user’s identity: foodie, solo travel, study abroad
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Social Media aspect: share photos & travel maps with friends
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Collections: create plans; save and star locations
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Funds: money tracker; split trip price between friends
Sitemap
02 Ideation and Sketching
Lo-Fi Sketches
I started lo-fi sketches based on my sitemap and brainstorm above.
03 Design
The Moodboard
I wanted to be very purposeful with my design choices, so I researched the color psychology behind the popular content influencer combination of blue and orange tones, which I found inspire heightened activity and emotion. I then referred to my travel Pinterest board for more inspiration, which I felt accurately represented the aesthetic choices of my target audience, so I ended up choosing more muted earthy tones instead of the intense orange and blues.
Branding
Given the younger demographic of my audience, I named my travel agency after my favorite childhood phrase: wanderlust (n.), or a strong desire to travel. This was meant to give my brand a dreamy and trendy connotation to spark inspiration and excitement within the users. To further represent the emotional context portrayed in the project, I created four company values to define “wanderlust” as a brand.
Key Features
Homepage
Featured Creators
Popular Locations
Video Demos
Get Started Flow
Homepage Values
My Gallery Tags
Location Page
