Public roadmap · 2026

What we are building next.

A real public roadmap, not a marketing wishlist. Every item is one of four states: shipped, building, planned, or exploring. If a feature is here, you can either use it today or you can hold us to a date.

Shipped

17

Building

4

Planned

4

Exploring

3

Core platform

  • iOS app on the App Store

    Shipped

    2024

    Full Spixes app available on iOS.

  • Volunteer position catalog

    Shipped

    2024

    Hostels list open volunteer positions for free, backpackers apply directly.

  • Hostel profiles and reviews

    Shipped

    2024

    Hostel verified profiles with galleries, current positions, languages, and traveler reviews.

  • Booking module (private beta)

    Building

    Q3 2026 public availability

    Stripe-Connect-powered booking for opt-in hostels, with tiered commission (10% / 7.40% / 0% for founders).

  • Android app

    Building

    Q4 2026

    Native Android version, parity with iOS.

Social layer

  • Trip planner with backpacker matching

    Shipped

    Drop your route, see other backpackers heading to the same hostels on the same nights.

  • Group chats by hostel, city, route

    Shipped

    Persistent chats layered at every level a backpacker thinks at: dorm, hostel, city, route.

  • QR scan-to-meet encounters

    Shipped

    Scan a backpacker IRL, the encounter lands in both users' log with hostel name, city, date and time.

  • Auto-built passport map

    Shipped

    Map of every country visited, every photo uploaded, every face scanned, sortable and shareable.

  • Travel stories (permanent, not ephemeral)

    Shipped

    Long-form story posts tied to the profile, with city and hostel tags.

  • ShareMap public profile link

    Planned

    Public, shareable artifact summarizing a traveler's passport map with photos and people met.

Discovery and search

  • Destinations directory (60+ countries)

    Shipped

    2026 Q1

    Country guides covering volunteer roles, climate, language, visa, budget, common cities.

  • Find-your-destination quiz

    Shipped

    Preference quiz that recommends destinations based on budget, climate, vibe, adventure level.

  • Live "Backpackers currently here" data

    Building

    Q3 2026

    Surface anonymized counts of travelers active in a country or city, for discovery and arrival timing.

  • Route templates ("Banana Pancake Trail", "Gringo Trail", "Camino")

    Planned

    Pre-built classic backpacker routes a user can clone and customize.

  • Aggregator pages (/jobs/[role]-in-[country])

    Planned

    Programmatic landing pages for queries like "bar volunteering in Portugal", capturing long-tail search.

For hostels

  • Free volunteer listings

    Shipped

    Unlimited volunteer position listings at no charge.

  • Founder hostel program (0% commission)

    Shipped

    Limited cohort of partner hostels on 0% booking commission, governed by a Founding Partner Agreement.

  • Active hostel rating (7.40% tier)

    Shipped

    Automatic monthly assessment that drops a hostel's commission when they keep the community alive.

  • Cloudbeds calendar sync

    Building

    Q3 2026

    Two-way sync with Cloudbeds availability so hostels avoid double-bookings.

  • Native hostel dashboard analytics

    Planned

    Booking conversion, application response time, traveler origin breakdown.

Content and discoverability

  • Blog and editorial content

    Shipped

    2026 Q2

    Field notes on hostel volunteering, work-exchange, backpacker routes.

  • Glossary of backpacker terms

    Shipped

    2026 Q2

    Definitive reference for the vocabulary used across the platform.

  • Comparison guides (vs Workaway / Worldpackers / HelpX / Couchsurfing / Hostelworld)

    Shipped

    2026 Q2

    Honest side-by-side comparisons with every major adjacent platform.

  • Press kit

    Shipped

    2026 Q2

    Key facts, founder bios, ready-to-quote boilerplate, brand assets.

Long horizon

  • Spixes for digital nomads (long-stay focus)

    Exploring

    A separate flow for travelers staying 4+ weeks in one place, with coworking partnerships and visa-friendly listings.

  • Paid mentorship marketplace

    Exploring

    Booked sessions with experienced backpackers who can plan a route, recommend hostels, or coach on first-time travel.

  • Hostel-to-hostel transport coordination

    Exploring

    Shared shuttle rides between popular hostel pairs (Hoi An ↔ Hue, Lisbon ↔ Lagos, San Cristobal ↔ Palenque), traveler-organized.

Suggest a feature

Something missing? Tell us.

The roadmap is shaped by what backpackers and hostels actually ask for. If a feature you want is not on the list, write us. We read everything.

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