Arctic Travel

Responsive web page designs for a travel agency specialising in ski and snowboarding holidays.

Role: UX Researcher | UX/UI Designer

Overview

Arctic Travel is a specialist travel agency that provides tailor-made skiing and snowboarding holidays. Their website allows users to effortlessly plan their trip, customise it according to their preferences, and keep track of their itinerary. They prioritise offering luxurious but affordable experiences and quality customer service to ensure their customers have an unforgettable holiday.

Challenge

Winter sports travellers require a user-friendly platform that offers an easy and intuitive way to search for their ideal holiday. It can be challenging to find the perfect holiday that caters to individual preferences. There is a need for a platform that not only provides a wide range of amenities but also presents all the relevant information about the destination in an easy-to-read format.

Goal

The aim of this project is to address the difficulties and dissatisfaction experienced by individuals seeking to book skiing and snowboarding holidays online. My goal is to implement effective solutions to improve the user experience and build a reliable, inclusive travel agency website. It’s imperative to capitalise on market trends and create opportunities to revamp existing products.

DISCOVER PHASE

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DISCOVER PHASE •••

Competitive Analysis

To initiate the research phase, I conducted a competitive analysis to evaluate the current market's strengths and weaknesses. This helped me devise a strategy to identify potential opportunities for Arctic Travel to outperform its competitors. In addition to competitor websites, I used review platforms such as Trip Advisor to gain valuable insights into the experiences of their respective users.

Key Insights:

  • Smaller, lesser-known travel companies offer a more personalized touch and direct interaction with their team.

  • Efficient navigation and user-friendly search/filter options are essential on travel websites, enabling users to easily access information tailored to their individual holiday needs.

  • The presence of relevant images and compelling copy is crucial in facilitating informed decision-making.

  • Being able to personalise a holiday can enhance the overall experience for users.

  • Smaller, direct competitors have an outdated and inconsistent visual style which is an opportunity for the Arctic travel website.

User Surveys

Based on my findings, I proceeded to create a survey to gain more insights into potential users' preferences and expectations. To reach out to potential users, I leveraged social media platforms such as Facebook and Reddit. I searched for relevant groups and pages dedicated to skiers and snowboarders, which aligned with the website's target audience. This approach helped me gather both quantitative and qualitative data and receive valuable feedback from 87 potential users.

Key Insights:

  • 88.6% ofrespondents favour booking package holidays over individual bookings.

  • The majority of respondents would find location recommendations and activity suggestions useful.

  • The majority of respondents (82.8%) have a preference for a live chat when seeking assistance during the booking process, indicating a strong desire for real-time interaction and personalized support.

  • User preferences underscore the importance of incorporating features such as reviews, travel itinerary creation, sharing options, and automated cancellation/refund updates to enhance travel website functionality and cater to diverse needs.

DEFINE PHASE

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DEFINE PHASE •••

Affinity mapping

After analysing the results from the competitive analysis and user survey, I utilised an affinity map to organise my findings into related categories. This method allowed me to group my observations based on common themes and patterns and also helped to uncover potential design opportunities and gaps in the user experience that need to be addressed.

User Personas

Based on my findings, I created three distinct profiles representing various user types in order to ensure that the decisions I made during the project were user-centric.

IDEATE PHASE

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IDEATE PHASE •••

After identifying some user paint points during my research, I used these to direct my design choices by creating “How might we?” questions. These questions allowed me to start exploring creative solutions and think outside the box.

Information Architecture

After conducting extensive research and identifying user groups and their goals, I structured the navigation in an efficient way to make holiday information easily accessible for users.

User Flow

For the next part of the design process, I went on to create a user flow. The user flow was essential to understand possible paths the user may take when interacting with the travel website.

Based on the findings that nearly 90% of people prefer to book package holidays, I chose to look at the user flow for someone wanting to book both flights and accommodation in one go.

Wireframes

Based on the HMW questions, IA and user flow I sketched some ideas for the Home page, Destination page, Booking page, Payment page and Confirmation page. By creating wireframes, I was able to visualise and address the specific needs of the users in a more precise way.

I drew up several low-fidelity wireframes to quickly explore different ideas and assess their feasibility. From there, I refined and iterated until I had a single wireframe for each page that I could use as a basis for a high-fidelity version.

I took a desktop-first approach as research showed; In 2022, 64% of those booking online make online purchases on a desktop and 44% make them on a mobile device (SalesCycle).

Low Fidelity

Next, I turned the low-fi wireframes into mid-fi and continued the development of the interface taking into consideration any feedback I received from my peers.

Key changes:

  • Users don’t like filling out forms and it could be a potential area where users abandon the process. The booking form was split into sections to allow the user to process the information with more clarity and prevent fatigue from creeping in.

  • I reduced the content and the number of items shown per row to decrease decision time and overwhelming the users - Hick’s Law

  • I incorporated labels and explanatory text in each section to enhance user understanding and accessibility.

  • Guided by Jakob’s Law, the booking page layout was designed to be familiar to users by drawing inspiration from competitor websites.

Mid Fidelity

Design System

The logo has two variations. On darker-coloured backgrounds, the logo should only be displayed in Blue/Light - #EBF1FC. On lighter-coloured backgrounds, the logo should only be displayed in Blue/Darker - #00245F.

Logo and Usage

I opted to use the Montserrat typeface to provide it with a contemporary touch. The font's readability is excellent, and it comes in various sizes and weights, allowing for a broad range of use, from headlines to body text.

I opted for Made Outer sans for the main headings as its a stylish font that adds a touch of sophistication and elegance to the website's design.

Typography

I incorporated cool colours that align with the winter sports theme. Blue, in particular, was a strategic choice due to its professional and secure connotations.

As it is also a dominant colour in the competitive market, using blue would resonate well with the target audience, establishing familiarity and trust. It's human nature to gravitate towards what we know, and leveraging a familiar colour like blue can help create a connection between the brand and its audience.

Colours

For the icons I chose to use Feather icons. The icons are all outlined, rounded and have a 2px stroke weight. Feather icons give the website a clean, minimalist look. They are also highly scalable, making them a good choice for responsive design.

Icons

To ensure the website was responsive and accommodated mobile and desktop devices, I made use of a fluid grid system.

Grid System

Defining all design components not only strengthened the brand's visual identity and message in an aesthetically pleasing way but also ensured a consistent and accessible user experience. Components were a great tool for speeding up the workflow when I was designing.

UI Components

DELIVER PHASE

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DELIVER PHASE •••

Solution

Outline of the main rationale underlying the interface design:

Pain point: Some users are money conscious and dislike unexpected expenses.
• When searching for flights, the calendar gives an indication of which days it’s cheaper to travel on.
• Option to create price alerts.
• Best deals and member discounts are highlighted on the home page.
• Additional add-on options with prices clearly marked.

Pain point: Some users don’t feel like they have all the info they need to confidently book
• Scrollable map so users can see the exact location and surroundings.
• Detailed information about the chosen lodging option with options for room types and board.
• Easy bite-size, visual information on what’s available to book - Clear and to the point to help users decide the usefulness of the website.
• Added user reviews to help build trust with new users and increase confidence in booking.

Pain point: Some users feel they have to sift through a lot of offers that aren’t relevant to them.
• Well-defined categories, making it easier for users to quickly find options that match their interests.
• Advanced Filtering Options: Tabs/links that filter and show only relevant holiday options

Accessibility

I consistently prioritised the accessibility of my design throughout the entire project:

  • I used readable fonts, appropriate font sizes, and colour contrast to make text easily readable for all users, including those with visual impairments.

  • Maintaining a clear and consistent layout with organized content, headings, and labels, helps users with screen readers to navigate effectively.

  • Ensured the web pages were responsive and work well across different devices, including mobile phones.

  • Used form elements with clear labels, placeholders, and error messages to assist users in filling out forms accurately.

  • Displayed high-resolution images that capture the beauty and essence of the travel destination, even when zoomed in.

  • Minimising the text overlay on images enhances readability.

  • The option to alter location and language settings prioritises all users.

Key Takeaways

My key takeaways from the project are:

The right type of user research is crucial. Conducting user research in the early stages can help to identify pain points and ensure that the product meets the needs of the target audience.

Effective planning is essential when working with time constraints to ensure that the project is completed successfully within the given timeline. Breaking down the project into manageable tasks and prioritising critical features helped to keep the project on track.

Future Considertions

Looking back, with more time at my disposal, I would:

  • Create and test prototypes with a small user group, and gather feedback to uncover design issues.

  • Identify new features from user research to enhance intuitiveness and usefulness.

  • Have direct conversations with the community, particularly the disabled skiing/snowboarding community to understand their unique needs and challenges.