Inspiration

Our team is composed of young students who come from all different corners of the earth, and each with a distinct love for travel. As such, we thought that the world was lacking a hub where one could find quick, easy, useful info about travelling between countries. Thus, TravelPixie was born.

How it works

We used Node.js to create the server, and used JavaScript to scrape data from websites, and use various API's to get JSON/XML data about flights, time zones, currency, weather, and other useful info about cities.

Challenges I ran into

Initially, we were going to use a Django server, and so we would be able to code with Python, which we are all more comfortable with. However, due to unforseen circumstances, we had to use a Node server instead. Thus, we were forced to use JavaScript, a language none of us had used much in the past. Scraping data thus became much more difficult.

Moreover, we came across various API's with great data. However, either they cost too much money ($3000), or they had extraneous requests that we couldn't satisfy. Thus, we had to come up with new methods and manners to find useful data.

Accomplishments that I'm proud of

Before this project, I had little experience with JavaScript, and no experience with servers and JSON/XML data. After this project, I can comfortably say we have all learned a lot more about these technologies, and are all excited at the prospect of doing more with them.

What I learned

We all learned how to web scrape in JavaScript, use Node.js to run a server, and analyze JSON/XML data.

What's next for TravelPixie

In the near future, we will make it run faster, be more efficient with our API calls, and include more information, such as country safety, and local news.