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GETAWAY

GetAway

Designing, testing, and pitching: my startup journey into travel-tech innovation

Role

Co-Founder & Product Lead

Duration

3+ months (2025)

Tools

Miro, Figma, Excel

Team

6 members

HOME

WORK

GETAWAY

GetAway

Designing, testing, and pitching: my startup journey into travel-tech innovation

Role

Co-Founder & Product Lead

Duration

3+ months (2025)

Tools

Miro, Figma, Excel

Team

6 members

HOME

WORK

GETAWAY

GetAway

Designing, testing, and pitching: my startup journey into travel-tech innovation

Role

Co-Founder & Product Lead

Duration

3+ months (2025)

Tools

Miro, Figma, Excel

Team

6 members

Overview

Turning loyalty points into real travel plans

A focused sprint to connect billions in unused rewards to bookable, guided itineraries.

A focused sprint to connect billions in unused rewards to bookable, guided itineraries.

A focused sprint to connect billions in unused rewards to bookable, guided itineraries.

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

$16B

points unredeemed each year

$48B

points issued annually

191M

US travel reward credit card holders • 67M active redeemers

$16B

points unredeemed each year

$48B

points issued annually

191M

US travel reward credit card holders • 67M active redeemers

$16B

points unredeemed each year

$48B

points issued annually

191M

US travel reward credit card holders • 67M active redeemers

The Challenge

Clarity, not more cards

People don't lack reward points—they lack a system that makes sense.

People don't lack reward points—they lack a system that makes sense.

People don't lack reward points—they lack a system that makes sense.

Award travel is fragmented: users juggle multiple programs, transfer partners, and availability checks across airline and hotel sites. That friction pushes people toward poor redemptions (gift cards, statement credits) or no redemption at all. The opportunity was to replace scattered research with a guided, confidence-building journey.

Award travel is fragmented: users juggle multiple programs, transfer partners, and availability checks across airline and hotel sites. That friction pushes people toward poor redemptions (gift cards, statement credits) or no redemption at all. The opportunity was to replace scattered research with a guided, confidence-building journey.

Award travel is fragmented: users juggle multiple programs, transfer partners, and availability checks across airline and hotel sites. That friction pushes people toward poor redemptions (gift cards, statement credits) or no redemption at all. The opportunity was to replace scattered research with a guided, confidence-building journey.

Suboptimal Redemption

Missed Transfer Bonuses

Suboptimal Redemption

Missed Transfer Bonuses

Suboptimal Redemption

Missed Transfer Bonuses

Complex Search

Complex Search

Complex Search

Job To Be done

"Reduce redemption research time and simplify trip planning."

"When I hold points across programs and want to book a trip, I need one place that tells me where I can actually go, how to get the best value, and the exact steps to book, so I stop wasting time and stop leaving value on the table."

Target outcome: faster decisions, higher redemption value, lower cognitive load.

Target Customers

Three high-need segments

Different motivations, same pain: too much friction.

Different motivations, same pain: too much friction.

Different motivations, same pain: too much friction.

Points Accumulators

Sitting on unused rewards

Time-Constrained Planners

Needing efficiency in planning

Points-Savvy Users

Wanting to optimize redemptions

Points Accumulators

Sitting on unused rewards

Time-Constrained Planners

Needing efficiency in planning

Points-Savvy Users

Wanting to optimize redemptions

Points Accumulators

Sitting on unused rewards

Time-Constrained Planners

Needing efficiency in planning

Points-Savvy Users

Wanting to optimize redemptions

Positioning & Competitors

Planner × Optimizer

Top-right of the matrix: trip planning and award optimization.

Top-right of the matrix: trip planning and award optimization.

Top-right of the matrix: trip planning and award optimization.

TripIt/Wanderlog help organize trips; point.me optimizes awards. GetAway's differentiation is doing both: it starts with balances, recommends destinations, then explains exactly how to move points and book.

TripIt/Wanderlog help organize trips; point.me optimizes awards. GetAway's differentiation is doing both: it starts with balances, recommends destinations, then explains exactly how to move points and book.

TripIt/Wanderlog help organize trips; point.me optimizes awards. GetAway's differentiation is doing both: it starts with balances, recommends destinations, then explains exactly how to move points and book.

Architecture Concept

How it works

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

GetAway reframes award travel from a maze of transfer charts and forums into a single guided flow that starts with the user's balances and ends with a plan. In one incubation cycle, our team defined the job-to-be-done, built an interactive MVP, and tied UX decisions directly to GTM and finance so the story would hold up in an investor room.

Integrations: ExpertFlyer (availability), Viator & Geopify (content/geo), Zyte (data collection)

Integrations: ExpertFlyer (availability), Viator & Geopify (content/geo), Zyte (data collection)

Integrations: ExpertFlyer (availability), Viator & Geopify (content/geo), Zyte (data collection)

Crafting a Unique Approach

From points to plan

Start with balances, end with a plan.

Start with balances, end with a plan.

Start with balances, end with a plan.

GetAway combines award optimization with trip planning. Users see destinations that match their balances, get clear transfer instructions, and track personal trip goals, removing guesswork and decision fatigue.

GetAway combines award optimization with trip planning. Users see destinations that match their balances, get clear transfer instructions, and track personal trip goals, removing guesswork and decision fatigue.

GetAway combines award optimization with trip planning. Users see destinations that match their balances, get clear transfer instructions, and track personal trip goals, removing guesswork and decision fatigue.

Outcomes & Next Steps

What we shipped, and what we'd test next

We made deliberate space for debate, then moved quickly with prototypes. Biggest lesson: align product + finance + marketing early so the pitch stands up to scrutiny. Next step focus on feasibility spikes and proof points: API coverage and usability testing on data transfer flows.

Say hello!

Whether it's about work, ideas, or just a chat, I'd love to hear from you.

Let's talk

Let's talk

Let's talk

Patrick Lee 2025