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01 - MOODI

Category :

Mobile App

Duration :

6 Weeks

Team :

4 Members

Role :

Researcher, UX/UI Designer

Mood-based free iOS App that shows free activities for backpackers.

Welcome!

Explore free activities with your mood

Let’s Lead your mood...

Moodi doesn’t decide the destination - it helps you decide what feels right in the moment.

Get Started

Happy

Good Morning !

We’d like to give you some recommendations. How are you feeling right now?

Bangkok Art and Culture Centre

“Bright, colorful creativity that keeps your energy high.”

About this place

BACC is a free contemporary art centre in central Bangkok featuring rotating exhibitions and cultural events by Thai and international artists.

Opening Hours

Tuesday - Sunday : 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM

Go to Website

Things You Can Do

🎨 Explore contemporary art exhibitions

🖌️ Discover emerging artists

📸 Enjoy the architecture & photo spots

🎭 Join cultural events & talks

🧑‍🎓 Observe workshops or student exhibitions

🗓️ Check pop-up exhibitions

How you can go

My saved activities

Lumpini park

Free Aerobics Classes

Opening Hours : 5:00 - 7:00

8 mins away

Lumpini park

Free Aerobics Classes

Opening Hours : 5:00 - 7:00

8 mins away

View

Delete

Bangkok Art and Cultu....

Culture events, talks and creative activities are held.

Opening Hours : 5:00 - 7:00

8 mins away

 MBK Center

Free Muay Thai Fight Night

Opening Hours :  18:00 – 20:00

8 mins away

Wat Mahatha

Free Meditation Sessions

Opening Hours :  18:00 – 20:00

8 mins away

My Mood History

February

2026

02

Mo

Tu

We

Th

Fr

Sa

Su

5

6

7

13

14

15

8

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

9

23

24

25

26

27

28

1

10

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

0

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Average mood in February

Active

Chill

Happy

Party

Adventurous

Low Energy

25% more active than usual month. You felt chill most of the month.

Gen Z travelers experience decision fatigue

To understand how Gen Z backpackers make travel decisions, we conducted open-ended interviews focusing on decision-making, budgeting, trust, and daily travel behaviors. After synthesizing the findings, we found that travelers often feel overwhelmed by too many choices and spend more time searching and comparing than exploring. Secondary research also supported the impact of information overload and uncertainty on travel decisions.

The biggest friction happens during travel

Mapping the backpacker journey across the pre-travel, during-travel, and post-travel stages helped us identify where travelers experience the most friction. The biggest gap appeared during travel, when backpackers often feel overwhelmed by too many recommendations and spend more time searching than exploring. This revealed an opportunity to help travelers make confident decisions with less planning stress.

TikTok

TikTok

Guide Books

Instagram

Word of Mouths

Instagram

Reddit

Words of Mouth

Words of Mouth

Guide Books

Websites

Chatgpt

Chatgpt

Google

Google Map

Google

HostelWorlds.com

12Go

Booking.com

Trip.com

Agoda

Words of mouth

Paid Ads

Family

Friends

Paid Ads

Paid Ads

Travel Insurances

Guide book

Guide book

Guide book

Visa

Visa

Back pack

Physical Notes

TikTok

TikTok

TikTok

Instagram

Instagram

Instagram

Reddit

Reddit

Photos

Photos

What’s app

Chatgpt

Words of mouse

Words of mouth

Family

Family

Friends

Friends

Physical Notes

TikTok

TikTok

TikTok

Instagram

GuideBook

Instagram

Instagram

Reddit

Reddit

Gallery

What’s app

Chatgpt

Words of mouse

Family

Family

Friends

Friends

Physical Notes

Departing

TikTok

TikTok

Guide Books

Instagram

Word of Mouths

Instagram

Reddit

Words of Mouth

Words of Mouth

Guide Books

Websites

Chatgpt

Chatgpt

Google

Google Map

Google

HostelWorlds.com

12Go

Booking.com

Trip.com

Agoda

Paid Ads

Family

Friends

Paid Ads

Guide book

Guide book

Visa

Physical Notes

TikTok

TikTok

Instagram

Instagram

Instagram

Reddit

What’s app

What’s app

Chatgpt

Chatgpt

Google Map

Words of Mouth

Google Map

Google Map

Get-your-guide

Guide-Book

GoogleTranslate

Guide Book

Websites

Nomadtable

Grab

Grab

GoogleTranslate

GoogleTranslate

Bolt

Bolt

Paid Ads

Visa

Physical Notes

Sign board

Sign board

Money exchange

Hostel stuff

Hostel stuff

Sim card


Locals

Locals

Tourists

Tourists

Other backpackers

Other backpackers

Other backpackers

During-Journey

TikTok

TikTok

Instagram

Instagram

Instagram

Reddit

What’s app

What’s app

Chatgpt

Chatgpt

Google Map

Words of Mouth

Google Map

Google Map

Get-your-guide

Guide-Book

GoogleTranslate

Guide Book

Websites

Nomadtable

Grab

Grab

GoogleTranslate

GoogleTranslate

Bolt

Bolt

Paid Ads

Visa

Physical Notes

Sign board

Sign board

Money exchange

Hostel stuff

Hostel stuff

Sim card


Locals

Locals

Tourists

Tourists

Other backpackers

Other backpackers

Other backpackers

During-Journey

Back Packers
Gen Z

Existing tools provide information, but not decisions

Existing travel platforms provide inspiration, reviews, maps, and trip-planning tools. However, travelers still need to compare information across multiple sources before deciding what to do.


This revealed an opportunity to simplify the decision-making moment, rather than simply providing more information.

Backpackers rely on multiple fragmented tools

Market research revealed that Gen Z backpackers rely on multiple fragmented tools throughout their journey. This highlighted an opportunity to simplify travel decision-making within a single experience.


Personas transformed raw research into relatable user archetypes, helping the team empathize with backpackers’ goals, frustrations, and behaviors throughout the design process.

“I came here to see the world, but I’m spending all my time looking at my screen.”

Decision-Fatigued Daniel (Primary Persona)

PAIN POINT

WORKAROUND

Too many travel apps show long lists and maps, making decisions stressful


Free activities are hard to identify among paid options


Social media information feels untrustworthy or outdated.


Planning every step drains energy and reduces enjoyment

Scrolls through maps and blogs until something feels right.


Saves many places but visits only one or two.


Asks friends for advice or follows random recommendations


Chooses nearby options by convenience, not interest

“I saved so many places online... but now I don’t know where to go”.

PAIN POINT

WORKAROUND

Social media flood her with recommendations, making it hard to choose.


Most content feels staged or optimized for likes.


Saving, comparing and planning from social media drains enjoyment.


Too many recommendations lead to decision fatigue.

Asks experienced backpackers or follows nearby crowds.



Checks comments or searches for “real” opinions


She postpones decisions or repeats same areas.


She scrolls until tired and chooses what feels familiar.

Social-Media-Overloaded Sophia

Lazy Larry

“I don’t want to plan—just tell me something free I can do right now.”

PAIN POINT

WORKAROUND

Planning feels like work after a long travel day.



Too many choices drain his energy.


Most travel apps take too many steps to show useful results.


Paid activities dominate recommendations, making

him hesitant.

Avoids planning and hopes something nearby looks interesting.


Repeats familiar or nearby activities instead of exploring.


Opens an app briefly, then closes it if results aren’t

instant.


Skips activities to avoid spending money.

How might we help Decision-Fatigued Daniel?

Research revealed that Daniel spends more time searching for things to do than actually experiencing the city. With countless travel apps, recommendations, and online resources competing for his attention, making even simple decisions can feel overwhelming. To address this challenge, I designed Moodi, a mood-based travel companion for Gen Z backpackers. By reducing choice overload and simplifying travel decisions, Moodi helps backpackers spend less time planning and more time exploring.

Onboarding

Daniel, a new user, can "Get Started" without creating an account. He only needs to swipe right after reading the information on the onboarding screens.

The main homepage displays six mood options, each represented by a unique shape and color that reflects Daniel's mood: Active, Chill, Happy, Adventurous, Party, and Low Energy.

Home Page

About the place and mood history

Based on Daniel's mood, the app recommends free places to visit. He can swipe right to choose a place or swipe up to view details such as About This Place, Opening Hours, Things to Do, and Google Maps. The app also tracks his selected moods and shows weekly or monthly mood trends.

Get alert and saved activities

Here's a shorter and more natural version:

If Daniel leaves the app without changing his mood and later comes near a place that matches it, the app sends a notification recommending that place. If he cannot visit immediately, he can save it for later. Saved places can be viewed and filtered on the Saved page.

Mood Filter

Active

Chill

Happy

Adventurous

Party

Low Energy

Save

Mapping key user journeys

The user flow was designed to help Daniel move from choosing his mood to finding an activity with minimal effort. By keeping the journey simple, users can quickly explore relevant recommendations, view details, and decide whether to swipe or choose to new mood.

How might decision fatigue Daniel choose a place that matches his current mood?

Building a clear information architecture

The sitemap established a clear information architecture, organizing features and content into a structure that supports quick exploration and easy navigation.

Designing the visual language

Poppins

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Key Learnings

This project changed how I think about designing travel experiences. I learned that a good travel product does not always need to provide more information or more choices; sometimes the more valuable experience is helping users make a decision with less effort. I also learned to balance personality with usability, making sure that Moodi's playful visual language supported the core task instead of competing with it. Most importantly, the project helped me become more intentional about connecting research insights to specific design decisions and designing for the moment when a user needs to act, not just discover.

KHIN MYO KHANT

© 2026 Khin Myo Khant _ Astri.

UX/UI Designer based in Bangkok

There is always another idea to discover, and another chance to grow.

Hello! I'm Astri. I create intuitive and user-friendly digital experiences that solve real problems. Curious, always learning, and eager to grow through new challenges.

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