I never thought forgetting a Lonely Planet guidebook could change how I see travel, but that's exactly what happened on my last trip to Vietnam.
Feeling lost in a digital world
Without my usual guidebook, I quickly realised how messy modern travel planning can be. One moment I was browsing Tripadvisor, the next Googling "best hidden spots in Hoi An," then digging through random blogs for restaurant tips. I even started using ChatGPT to get quick answers about history, culture, and activities. It worked surprisingly well — but it wasn't built for travel. The conversations got buried, the insights scattered, and nothing connected into a meaningful journey.
It made me realise: there's no real "personal guidebook" anymore.
The idea for My Wayfarer
What if you had a single, intelligent travel companion — not just to answer your questions, but to help you plan, capture memories, and live your trip with everything organised around you? That's how My Wayfarer was born: a personal travel companion app that combines planning, journaling, smart recommendations, and customisable trip management, all in one place.
What Wayfarer does
- Smart Itinerary Planner — build your trip step-by-step with an AI that tailors recommendations to your budget, interests and travel style, no more spreadsheets or scattered notes
- Personal Travel Diary — capture memories along the way: photos, thoughts, special moments, in a private journal built for travellers, not for likes
- Custom Sections for Your Interests — organise your trip with categories you care about: History, Food, Culture, Adventure, or create your own
- AI Travel Companion — ask anything, anytime, from local history to hidden gems, and save the insights you want into your journey
- VR Travel Preview (coming soon) — preview destinations in immersive 360° video before you even book
Building a personal Lonely Planet
The beauty of Wayfarer is that by the end of your trip, you don't just have a bunch of scattered memories — you've built your own custom guidebook, your own Lonely Planet, written by you, for you. Every traveller deserves a trip that feels personal, not generic. Every adventure should be captured in a way that's authentic, not commercial. That's what Wayfarer is for.
Where we are now
Wayfarer is live for early testers, and I'm excited — and a little nervous — to share it with the world. I'm looking for feedback from travellers who want to shape the future of the app. If you believe travel is about living your own story, I'd love for you to try it and tell me what you think.
Thanks for reading, and here's to your next great journey.