Explainable matching
Curated geography and deterministic trip composition make the reasons and tradeoffs visible instead of relying on generated destination suggestions.
Nearbound
One-to-four-day trips in the Pacific Northwest.
A Pacific Northwest trip planner for one-to-four-day getaways. Combines a curated place catalog with travel time, interests, family needs, and ferry or border constraints to suggest trips and explain the tradeoffs.
Current state
A live, publicly accessible demo with a guided planner, area and route details, an interactive map, and optional saved profiles. The catalog and trip-composition rules are still evolving. It is not a booking service and does not provide live lodging inventory or prices; AI-generated recommendations are outside the initial scope.
The problem
An appealing destination can still make a poor short trip when driving time, children, ferry crossings, and the length of the stay are considered together.
Engineering decisions
A structured regional catalog
Regions, travel zones, areas, places, and routes form a reproducible PostgreSQL catalog, with source evidence and review metadata.
Temporary route data
A confirmed starting point drives live travel-time estimates for the session. Optional accounts keep saved preferences separate from temporary route results.
Technology & scope
Application
Next.js · React · TypeScript · Tailwind CSS
A guided setup followed by an editable planner, place and trip details, and an interactive map.
Data & accounts
Neon Postgres · Drizzle ORM · Better Auth
A curated regional catalog, optional email-and-password accounts, saved starting points, and personal visit history. Public planning does not require an account.
Mapping & travel time
Mapbox GL JS · Geocoding API · Matrix API
Server-side origin confirmation and travel-time estimates, with a separate browser map. Mapbox coordinates and route estimates remain temporary.
Testing & hosting
Jest · Testing Library · Vercel
Automated checks for planner logic and UI behavior; the public demo is hosted on Vercel.
Project notes · September 2026