Isla Bonita is a digital platform designed to simplify vacation planning for tropical cruise destinations. Today’s travelers are looking for personalized, fast, and intuitive guidance. By asking the right questions and understanding users’ unique preferences, Isla Bonita helps vacationers identify their dream tropical cruise in minutes, not hours.
This project is currently a proof of concept and has not gone into development… yet. ☺️
To understand today’s travelers, I interviewed cruise-goers, vacationers, travel agents, and families across a wide range of ages, backgrounds, budgets, and travel styles. This helped me capture a broad perspective on how travel planning needs and expectations have shifted in recent years.
Needs: Clear guidance to choose a cruise that fits their interests and budget.
Pain Points: Feeling overwhelmed by the number of cruise lines, routes, amenities, and pricing tiers.
Goal: Quickly discover a cruise that feels “just right” for them without hours of research.
Needs: A simple, trustworthy way to explore cruise options without navigating overwhelming websites or complex tools.
Pain Points: Overwhelming booking platforms feel impersonal and make it hard to compare cruises or feel confident in their choice.
Goal: Receive clear, guided recommendations that replicate the reassurance of a travel agent while making the planning process easy and accessible.
Needs: A streamlined way to find cruises to accommodate groups with varying interests, budgets, and activity levels.
Pain Points: Coordinating different preferences like itineraries, cabin options, and amenities across cruise lines is time-consuming and exhausting.
Goal: Easily surface cruise options that satisfy everyone’s needs and simplify decision-making for the entire group.
While many travel tools exist, most require significant manual searching. Common frustrations across the audience include information overload, lack of personalization, and difficulty locating relevant cruise details. Isla Bonita shines because of its focus on cruise travel and in-depth personalization.
Expedia / Booking.com
Great for browsing, but the amount of information can be massive, making it difficult to look through.
Cruise Line Brands Websites
Useful for specifics about the cruise line, but brands only on their own offerings, no cross-comparison or objective suggestions.
Travel Agencies
Personalized but not always fast or accessible 24/7, and the experience varies widely depending on the agent.
TripAdvisor & Review Platforms
Helpful for honest reviews and supplementing your search, but not for choosing a cruise based on personal preferences.
Instant Personalized Cruise Matches
The website generates curated cruise recommendations tailored to the user’s ideal experience.
Side-by-Side Itinerary Comparison
Compare cruise lines, dates, ports, amenities, and pricing in a single clean view.
Flexible Filters
Fine-tune results effortlessly with filters for duration, departure port, preferred activities, cabin type, price range, ship size, group size, etc.
Save, Share, and Collaborate
Bookmark favorite cruises, share options with family or friends, and vote as a group on the best choice.