Getaway

Inspiration

The inspiration for our site, Getaway, derived from our recent travels to Yosemite. Planning any trip to any place takes a large investment of time and mind power. It requires immense amounts of organization, research, and readiness. We developed this website to ease the stress of planning a trip.

What it does

Our website provided a personalized trip plan, which includes all the details regarding places to visit, logistics, food, etc. All the users need to enter is the place they want to go to, and a list of concise results will show up, displaying relevant information such as timing, address, and what day of the plan is recommended. Getaway will provide dream plans according to the user’s price range and the duration of their stay.

How we built it

In order to accomplish our goal of developing a website, we primarily used HTML and CSS on the front-end aspects of the project. We used these features for all the web development aspects. We also made use of the Google Maps API, which displayed a map on the screen. This api was also used in the back-end portion to implement the algorithm. Once we got parameters from the user (price, distance, etc.), we used the API to generate a list of relevant results that best suits the user’s expectations.

Challenges we ran into

One challenge that we faced was developing a proper algorithm to incorporate user preferences into our program. We wanted to improve the simplicity of planning a trip for the user, but at the same time, we wanted to plan a trip that fits with the user’s needs and interests. As a result, we implemented logic that takes into account the user’s preferences. Some factors include price range and duration of the trip.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We are proud of developing this website as it helps solve a problem faced by any person planning a trip. It serves as a simple answer for many and can even be implemented into our own lives the next time we visit somewhere. The flexibility, aesthetics, and simplicity of the project results in a smooth experience for the user.

What we learned

While working on this project, we were able to get a better understanding of how to properly implement APIs into a project. We learned more about the features of the Google Maps API and how to modify it to meet our needs. More importantly, we all learned an important life skill of collaboration and teamwork.

What's next for Getaway

In terms of our project, Getaway, the future remains strongly promising. We hope to make further improvements in certain aspects. Currently, our project gives estimated times to spend at each attraction. In the future, we hope to use bluetooth and other data to make real-time estimates on how long a person should spend at each attraction. We also hope to use traffic patterns and other real-world data to constantly keep making accurate recommendations to ensure that the user’s trip is smooth and efficient. As more functionality and professionality is implemented, it has potential to compete with current popular online trip planners, such as Kayak, TripAdvisor, and more. Centralizing the experience to the user remains one of the unique qualities of this website, and could attract a large portion of the internet traffic. There are countless possibilities and opportunities for young programmers like us to improve upon this track, as it is just one of the many experiences that we will have in our journey through the computer science industry.