Design Thinking
This is where my Design Thinking process begins.
I immersed myself deeply in the world of travelers and local providers.
Empathize
User Research
User Interviews
Competitor Analysis
Define
User Personas
Empathy Map
User Journey
Ideate
User Flow
Infromation Architecture
Prototype
Wireframes
Styleguide
Test
Usability Testing
Insight and next Steps
The Problem
❌ Problem
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Travelers find it difficult to discover authentic & sustainable experiences.
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Many platforms promote mass tourism, leading to overcrowding of popular spots.
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There is no central solution to directly interact with local providers & guides.
✅ Possible Solution
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A platform that offers curated & culturally valuable experiences.
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Direct booking & chat feature with verified local guides.
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Hidden gems to guide tourism in a responsible way.
UX Research Methods
I conducted both qualitative and quantitative UX research methods to analyze user needs and behaviors.
Methods
🗣️ Qualitative Methods: User interviews.
📊 Quantitative Methods: Surveys, competitor analysis.
User Interviews
I conducted qualitative interviews with 6 travelers by asking open-ended questions about their experiences, challenges, and desires.
📌 Authenticity is key – 80% of participants avoid tourist traps and seek real, local experiences.
📌 Difficult planning – Many spend hours researching to find insider tips.
📌 Price vs. quality – 80% of travelers prefer to invest more for something special.
📌 Trust is a must – Recommendations from locals are more credible than online reviews.
Surveys
I conducted a survey with 100 participants to quantify travel behavior, preferences, and challenges.
Key Insights
67% Book experiences spontaneously
80% Struggle with tourist traps
58% Use social media for planning
72% Prefer individual experiences
Konkurrenzanalyse
What do today’s platforms really offer—and what’s missing? The analysis shows there are many offerings. But often what’s missing is what travelers truly seek—connection, trust, and cultural depth.
Platform
Strengths
Weaknesses
Airbnb
Experiences
Global trust, Many local options
Quality depends on host, Commercialized
GetYourGuide
Easy booking, Wide activity range
Mainstream focus
Viator
Many guided tours, Detailed reviews
Many guided tours, Detailed reviews
Many guided tours, Detailed reviews
Expensive, Low focus on culture
Insights & Personas - Tour Guide
Tom Weber (Tour Guide)
Age : 38 years
Location : Lissabon, Switzerland
Occupation : Tourguide
Situation
Lives in Lisbon, originally from Zurich. Has been working as a tour guide for five years and knows many hidden spots.
Goal
Difficult client acquisition, many tourists book standard tours, and platforms charge high commissions.
Frustration
Make client acquisition easier, attract more bookings for unique tours, and avoid high commissions from platforms.
Insights & Persona – Tourist
Jenny Müller (Tourist)
Age : 34 years
Location : Hamburg, Germany
Occupation: Marketing
Situation
Full-time job, little free time. She loves to travel but hardly has time for hours of planning.
Goal
Authentic, local experiences – without tourist crowds and without stress during planning.
Frustration
Too many overcrowded places, hard to find real insider tips – trips often end up in mainstream tourism.
Emathy Map
What does she feel?
What does she hear?
What does she see?
What does she see?
What does she do?
User Journey
Stage
Awareness
Consideration
Decision
Engagement
Advocacy
Touchpoints
Social media, influencers,
partnerships
Awarness
Website, reviews,
chatbot, guides
Consideration
Booking system, payment,
trip planning
Decision
In-app tips, local guide contact
Engagement
Referral program, user content, social sharing
Advocady
Action
Website, reviews, chatbot, guides
Awarness
Jenny finds Native Getaway
She explores options & reviews
Consideration
She books a 7-day Peru trip
Decision
Uses tips and gives feedback
Engagement
Shares trip, gets discount
Advocady
Emotions
🧐 Curious and interested
Awarness
🤔 Excited but unsure
Consideration
✅ Confident and excited
Decision
✨ Enthusiastic and connected
Engagement
😍 Inspired and shares experience
Advocady
Userflow Traveler
Users enter their travel preferences and get personalized, authentic trip suggestions. They explore, book directly, and connect with local hosts. During the trip, they receive tips and cultural insights. Afterward, they share feedback and invite others.
Information Architecture
Based on my insights, I developed a clear and user-centered information architecture to ensure intuitive navigation and a smooth user flow.
Wireframe Midfidelity
Initial Sketches (Beta Version)
Low-fidelity wireframes serve as simple visual representations of the app’s core structure and user guidance.
Wireframes
High Fidelity
High-fidelity designs translate the structure into a realistic and interactive interface, focusing on visual details, usability, and the overall user experience.
High-Fidelity Wireframes (Beta Version)
These detailed, visually refined designs represent the final look and feel of the app, including color schemes, typography, and interactive elements.
Color Style
The colors of Native Getaway represent nature, adventure, and authenticity. Beige, green, gray, and anthracite reflect earth, forest, culture, and depth.
#F2E2B9
#657A59
#FAF6EB
#E0D1AA
#526348
#FAF9F6
#DECFA7
#44523C
#E4DFD3
#C9BC99
#35402F
#D1CDC2
Typoghraphy
Light
Lexend
Aa
Heading 1
Heading 2
Heading 3
Lexend
Lexend
Aa
Heading 1
Heading 2
Heading 3
Bold
Lexend
Aa
Heading 1
Heading 2
Heading 3
Space Grotesk
Aa
Light
Subtitle
Body Text
Space Grotesk
Aa
Regular
Subtitle
Body Text
Space Grotesk
Aa
Bold
Subtitle
Body Text
Logo Concept
A tour guide meets the “N” for Native. This creates our logo – a local guide showing the way. It stands for connection, authentic encounters, and discovery beyond the mainstream.
Usability Testing
To analyze the user-friendliness of the platform, tests were conducted that reflect typical usage scenarios. The focus was on identifying potential hurdles in navigation and interaction with travel bookings in order to derive targeted improvements.
4 test users with different travel experiences (backpacker, luxury traveler, sustainable tourist, first-time user)
Methods: Remote usability tests & task-based testing
Duration 30 minutes per day
Goal Optimization of user guidance & interactions
Usability Testing Erkentnisse
👤 Testperson 1
✅ Immediately understood the navigation and found the icons well placed.
❌ Was unsure whether the filter options were active or still visible after making a selection.
🔹 Aktive Filter durch eine Markierung oder ein "x" zum Entfernen anzeigen.
👤 Testperson 2
✅ Liked the color palette and minimalist design because it didn’t feel overloaded.
❌ Was confused about the “Chat with Native” function.
🔷 Add a short explanation or a small info icon for clarity.
👤 Testperson 3
✅ Appreciated the option to continue as a guest without registering.
❌ Had trouble recognizing which tab they were in (Activities, Explore, Native).
🔷 Visually highlight the active tab (e.g., with a colored line or stronger icon).
Insights & Next Steps
📌 Insights from Usability Testing
Navigation was generally rated positively, but a visual indicator for active tabs is missing.
The "Chat with Native" function was not self-explanatory, and some users were unsure about the type of interaction.
Filter options were not always clearly recognizable – users had trouble identifying which ones were active.
🚀 Next Steps
✅ Add visual indicators for active tabs (e.g. colored highlight or underline).
✅ Improve filter display: highlight active filters and add an “x” for removal.
✅ Optimize contrast and readability – especially for login elements and buttons.
✅ Add an info icon or tooltip for the “Chat with Native” function to make interaction clearer.