Travel app product design: target traveler, trip journey, MVP, metrics and booking flow

You are asked to design an app for booking travel. How would you approach it? ```hint Pick a wedge Travelers can already book through airlines, hotel sites and large online agencies. Decide which traveler and which part of the trip your app will serve better before you list features. ``` ### Clarifying Questions - Is this a new entrant competing with existing booking sites, or a booking feature inside an app that already has users? - Which travelers are in scope: leisure travelers, employees booking under a company travel policy, or both? - What can be booked: flights only, lodging only, or flights, lodging and ground transport together? - Should the answer stay on the product experience, or also cover at a high level how search, pricing and booking work behind the app? ### What a Strong Answer Covers - A goal and business model for the app, and a deliberate choice of target traveler in a crowded market. - The traveler's journey from planning to the end of the trip, with specific pain points at each stage. - Prioritized features and a clearly scoped first version. - Success metrics with guardrails such as price accuracy, cancellations and support contacts. - A high-level view of how search, live pricing, booking and payment fit together, and the risks in them. ### Follow-up Questions - The price shown in search results sometimes changes at checkout. How would you handle that in the product and in the system? - A flight is cancelled the night before departure. What should the app do for the traveler? - How would the design change if the main users were employees booking trips under their company's travel policy?