Laravel Trip Planning API

Overview

This is a Laravel-based API application that allows users to search for cities based on weather conditions, store planned trips, and manage user authentication via Laravel Sanctum.

Prerequisites

• PHP 8.3+
• Composer
• MySQL 8
• Laravel 11
• Node.js & npm (for frontend if needed)

Installation Steps

1. Clone the Repository

   git clone https://github.com/arslanramay/laravel-trips-api.git
   cd laravel-trips-api

2. Install Dependencies

   composer install

3. Create .env File

   cp .env.example .env

   Update .env with your database credentials.

4. Generate Application Key

   php artisan key:generate

5. Run Migrations

   php artisan migrate

Setting Up Laravel Sanctum

Laravel Sanctum is used for API authentication.

1. Install Sanctum (if not installed)

   composer require laravel/sanctum

2. Publish Sanctum Configuration

   php artisan vendor:publish --provider="Laravel\Sanctum\SanctumServiceProvider"

3. Run Database Migrations

   php artisan migrate

4. Add Sanctum Middleware in app/Http/Kernel.php

   protected $middlewareGroups = [
       'api' => [
           \Laravel\Sanctum\Http\Middleware\EnsureFrontendRequestsAreStateful::class,
           'throttle:api',
           \Illuminate\Routing\Middleware\SubstituteBindings::class,
       ],
   ];

5. Add Sanctum Trait in User Model

   use Laravel\Sanctum\HasApiTokens;
   
   class User extends Authenticatable {
       use HasApiTokens, HasFactory, Notifiable;
   }

6. Authenticate Users via API Token

   • Login API generates a Bearer token to be used in further requests.
   • Include Authorization: Bearer {token} in API calls.

Running Database Seeders

To populate the database with test data, run:

php artisan db:seed

To seed a specific table, use:

php artisan db:seed --class=UserSeeder
php artisan db:seed --class=CitySeeder
php artisan db:seed --class=WeatherPreferenceSeeder
php artisan db:seed --class=WeatherConditionSeeder
php artisan db:seed --class=TripSeeder

API Endpoints

Authentication

• POST /api/login - Logs in a user and returns an API token.
• POST /api/register - Registers a new user.

Cities Search

• GET /api/cities?temp_min=15&temp_max=30&month=June - Fetches cities based on weather conditions.

Trips Management

• POST /api/trips - Stores trips for the authenticated user.
• GET /api/trips - Retrieves user’s planned trips.

Running the Application

1. Start Laravel Server

   php artisan serve

2. Test API with Postman

   • Set Authorization: Bearer {token} in the headers.
   • Use the provided API endpoints to interact with the system.

Deployment

1. Optimize for Production

   php artisan config:cache
   php artisan route:cache
   php artisan view:cache