🌍 Wanderlust

Welcome to Wanderlust, a full-stack travel listing app where users can explore, create, and review amazing travel destinations!
Built with Node.js, Express, MongoDB, and EJS, it provides a smooth user experience enhanced by secure authentication, cloud image uploads, and interactive reviews.

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🚀 Table of Contents

• ✨ Features
• 🛠️ Technologies Used
• 📁 Project Structure
• ⚙️ Installation & Setup
• 🔐 Environment Variables
• 📦 Running Locally
• ☁️ Deployment
• 🔍 Usage
• 🛡️ Security & Validation
• 🤝 Contributing
• 📜 License

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✨ Features

• 👤 User Authentication — Secure signup/login/logout with Passport.js
• 🏷️ Listings — Create, view, edit, and delete travel listings with images
• 📷 Cloudinary Integration — Upload and store images in the cloud
• ⭐ Reviews — Users can leave ratings and comments on listings
• 🔐 Authorization — Only owners can edit/delete their listings and reviews
• 💬 Flash Messages — Instant success/error feedback
• 🌐 Responsive UI — Clean and intuitive views built with EJS templates

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🛠️ Technologies Used

• Backend: Node.js, Express.js
• Database: MongoDB, Mongoose ODM
• Authentication: Passport.js, express-session
• Validation: Joi
• File Upload: Multer, multer-storage-cloudinary, Cloudinary SDK
• Templating: EJS with express-ejs-layouts
• Deployment: Vercel

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📁 Project Structure

wanderlust/
├─ controllers/
│  ├─ listings.js          # Handles listing CRUD logic
│  ├─ reviews.js           # Review creation and deletion logic
│  └─ users.js             # User signup/login/logout logic
├─ init/
│  ├─ data.js              # Seed or initial data scripts
│  └─ index.js             # Initialization scripts
├─ models/
│  ├─ listing.js           # Mongoose schema for Listings
│  ├─ review.js            # Mongoose schema for Reviews
│  └─ user.js              # Mongoose schema for Users
├─ node_modules/           # Installed dependencies
├─ public/
│  ├─ css/
│  │  ├─ rating.css        # Styles for ratings UI
│  │  └─ style.css         # Main styling
│  └─ js/
│     └─ script.js         # Client-side JavaScript
├─ routes/
│  ├─ listing.js           # Routes for listings
│  ├─ review.js            # Routes for reviews
│  └─ user.js              # Routes for user authentication
├─ uploads/                # Temporary local upload storage (if used)
├─ utils/
│  ├─ ExpressError.js      # Custom error class
│  └─ wrapAsync.js         # Async wrapper middleware for routes
├─ views/
│  ├─ includes/
│  │  ├─ flash.ejs         # Flash message partial
│  │  ├─ footer.ejs        # Footer partial
│  │  └─ navbar.ejs        # Navbar partial
│  ├─ layouts/
│  │  └─ boilerplate.ejs   # Main layout template
│  ├─ listings/
│  │  ├─ edit.ejs          # Edit listing form
│  │  ├─ index.ejs         # Listings index page
│  │  ├─ new.ejs           # New listing form
│  │  └─ show.ejs          # Show individual listing details
│  ├─ users/
│  │  ├─ login.ejs         # Login form
│  │  └─ signup.ejs        # Signup form
│  └─ error.ejs            # Error display page
├─ .env                    # Environment variables (local)
├─ app.js                  # Main application file
├─ cloudConfig.js          # Cloudinary and multer storage config
├─ middleware.js           # Custom middleware functions
├─ package.json            # Project metadata and dependencies
├─ package-lock.json       # Dependency versions lock
├─ schema.js               # Joi validation schemas

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⚙️ Installation & Setup

Clone using the web URL

git clone https://github.com/sherlock-hashed/Wanderlust.git
cd WanderLust

Install dependencies

npm install

💡 Note: To avoid conflicts with Cloudinary dependencies, install compatible versions:

npm uninstall cloudinary
npm install cloudinary@1.41.3 multer-storage-cloudinary@4.0.0

Set up environment variables

Create a .env file with the following keys (replace placeholders):

CLOUD_NAME=your_cloudinary_cloud_name
CLOUD_API_KEY=your_cloudinary_api_key
CLOUD_API_SECRET=your_cloudinary_api_secret

SESSION_SECRET=your_session_secret_here
ATLASDB_URL=your_mongodb_connection_string_here

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🔐 Environment Variables Explained

Variable	Description
CLOUD_NAME	Cloudinary cloud name
CLOUD_API_KEY	Cloudinary API key
CLOUD_API_SECRET	Cloudinary API secret
SESSION_SECRET	Secret for session encryption
ATLASDB_URL	MongoDB connection URI (local or Atlas)

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📦 Running Locally

1. Start MongoDB (if using local MongoDB)

mongod

2. Run the server

node app.js

3. Open your browser and visit:

http://localhost:8080

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☁️ Deployment

Deploy your project on Vercel for free hosting:

1. Push your code to GitHub:

git add .
git commit -m "Ready for deployment"
git push origin main

2. Log in to Vercel and import your GitHub repo.

3. Add your environment variables in the Vercel dashboard under project settings.

4. Deploy. Vercel will install dependencies and start the app automatically.

⚠️ Ensure Cloudinary is pinned to 1.41.3 and multer-storage-cloudinary to 4.0.0 to avoid build errors.

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🔍 Usage

• Sign Up / Log In: Create an account or log in to access full features.
• Browse Listings: View all travel listings on the homepage.
• Create Listings: Add new listings with images and detailed info.
• Edit/Delete Listings: Modify or remove your own listings.
• Reviews: Leave ratings and comments on listings.
• Delete Reviews: Remove your own reviews.

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🛡️ Security & Validation

• Authentication required to create or modify listings and reviews.
• Authorization checks prevent unauthorized edits/deletions.
• Data validated on server-side using Joi schemas.
• Custom error handling and flash messages provide clear feedback.

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Thank you for checking out Wanderlust! Happy travels and coding! ✈️🌏✨