Challenge 3: Usability Evaluation and Site Redesign
By: Julia Morillo Cuñat
Tags: Challenge, Machu Picchu, Ironhack Prework, UX Design, Usability Testing

In this challenge, I did a usability assessment and redesign a travel application using a prototype.

USER TYPE

I had to jump into the shoes of a world traveler. So I chose the User Type of a Young Group of friends. We want to invest time and money together. The trip is planned one year in advance to accommodate evertbody’s schedules and needs. We are interested in tourism and leisure, so we want spoil ourselves.

DESTINATION

We are going to one of the seven wonders, so we finally decided to travel to Machu Picchu. The closest airport to Machu-Picchu is Cuzco Airport (CUZ) which is 76.1 km away where we will stay for 4 days, which are the recommended days to see Cuzco and Sacred Valley, they will the organized as:

Day 1: The city of Cusco and the surroundings

Day 2: Full day excursion to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, Pisac, Ollantaytambo and Chincheros

Day 3: Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu and Cusco

Day 4: Cusco and back home

Day 1: The city of Cusco and the surroundings

Day 2: Full day excursion to the Sacred Valley of the Incas, Pisac, Ollantaytambo and Chincheros

Day 3: Aguas Calientes, Machu Picchu and Cusco

Day 4: Cusco and back home

The general opinion of the people is that the best time to visit Machu Picchu is the dry season, which occurs between April and October. The sun shines throughout the day and there is almost no rainfall, allowing tourists to visit the Inca City in a pleasant way.

It is recommended to wear appropriate clothing for the time such as a cotton blouse, cotton socks, trekking shoes and a hat or cap. Shorts or skirts are not recommended due to mosquitoes.

The Sol (S /) is the official currency of Peru and, 1 sol is equivalent to 0.23 euros.

The only way to enter Machu Picchu is through Cusco, and this city is located at 3,400 meters above sea level; So if you suffer from cardiorespiratory diseases, chronic diseases or those listed below, we recommend that you visit a doctor before your trip.

Circulatory problems such as hypertension, heart disease.

Respiratory problems such as asthma, emphysema or recurrent bronchitis.

Heart problems, such as tachycardia, myocardial diseases, epilepsy, or others.

Any disease that causes you to faint during the tour.

TRIP ADVISOR

To choose which application to use, I had to make a comparison of three travel applications that have been subjected to a heuristic evaluation of usability using Nielsen principles.

I compared Trip Advisor, Skyscanner and KAYAK, and I have made a simple ranking of each section, click here to see.

In the end, I have chosen Trip Advisor because it is the application that best suits the needs of the desired type of user, since you can buy flights, see restaurants and things to do in the destination, which saves us a lot of time and guarantees us to enjoy the trip.

TESTING

To test the application, I have selected 3 users that fit the type of user I have chosen.

The test has two parts:

· 5 seconds: The tester opens the app and watches the first screen of it as habitual. After 5 seconds, he turns off the screen and is asked what he has seen, what he thinks the application is for and what he usually uses to search for flights.

· Tasks: I designed two tasks that the users has to complete. The first task is to find the round trip flight in the recommended months that we have talked about before. And the second is to find a hotel or a hostel to stay during the trip.