Hopper

Senior Backend Engineer - Lodging and Cars

Hopper2 days ago
Location

Vancouver - Remote

Workplace

Remote

Type

Full Time

Salary

CAD 220,000 – 300,000

Level

Senior

Role

Backend Engineer

Posted

Jul 1, 2026

Full TimeRemoteSenior

The role

Summary

Join Hopper's Lodging and Cars Supply team as a Senior Backend Engineer, scaling a global hotel and cars ecosystem processing high-volume, real-time transactions through a complex microservices architecture. You'll execute end-to-end technical integrations with lodging and car partners, write performant Scala/JVM code for mission-critical services, and own the complete development lifecycle from implementation to production deployment. This role is ideal for a self-directed engineer with strong distributed systems expertise, proven microservices experience, and a passion for building reliable, low-latency booking fulfillment systems in a remote-first, fast-growing travel fintech environment.

What you'll do

End-to-End Integration Development: Execute comprehensive technical integrations with external lodging, car rental, and GDS (Global Distribution System) partners by navigating complex communication protocols, API specifications, and distributed data schemas to ensure seamless third-party ecosystem connectivity.
High-Performance Backend Development: Write clean, maintainable, and performant code in Scala or other JVM languages (Java, Kotlin) to build, maintain, and evolve mission-critical lodging and cars services that handle high-throughput transactions and meet rigorous engineering standards.
Production Issue Resolution: Explore and troubleshoot complex distributed system codebases to identify root causes of production issues, implement fixes, and optimize infrastructure performance across the microservices architecture handling global booking traffic.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Product Managers, Operations teams, and business stakeholders to decompose business requirements into well-scoped technical tasks, provide accurate delivery estimates, and align engineering solutions with commercial objectives.
Feature Ownership and Deployment: Take full end-to-end ownership of new product features including technical design, implementation, comprehensive testing, quality assurance, and production deployment with monitoring and observability in place.
System Design and Resilience: Contribute to the architectural design of highly resilient, low-latency microservices and distributed systems that maintain peak performance under sustained high load while ensuring seamless customer booking experiences globally.
Code Review and Optimization: Participate in thorough code reviews across the team, identify opportunities to improve scalability, performance, and system health, and mentor junior engineers on distributed systems best practices and production-ready code patterns.

What we look for

Technical

Scala or JVM Languages ProficiencyExpert-level proficiency in Scala, Java, or Kotlin with demonstrated experience building scalable, high-throughput backend services that handle millions of transactions and process distributed data at scale.
Microservices Architecture ExperienceProven track record of designing, implementing, testing, and deploying features within microservices architectures, including service decomposition, inter-service communication patterns, and distributed system coordination.
Distributed Systems and Service CommunicationPractical hands-on experience with distributed systems design patterns, service communication protocols including gRPC, REST APIs, and asynchronous messaging systems like Pub/Sub, with understanding of consistency, reliability, and failure modes.
Production Systems DebuggingAbility to navigate, explore, and troubleshoot large, complex codebases in production environments, identify performance bottlenecks, and implement optimizations in real-time transaction processing systems.
Full Development Lifecycle OwnershipDemonstrated capability to own technical implementation, write comprehensive test coverage, manage CI/CD pipelines, and drive features from design through production deployment with monitoring and incident response.

Education

Computer Science or Related FieldBachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related technical field, or equivalent professional experience demonstrating deep systems-level knowledge and engineering problem-solving capabilities.

Experience

Senior Backend Engineering ExperienceMinimum 6-8 years of professional software engineering experience with at least 3-4 years in senior-level backend engineering roles, including shipping production systems and owning critical services at scale.
High-Volume Transaction ProcessingExperience building and maintaining backend systems that process high-volume, real-time transactions in sectors such as fintech, travel, e-commerce, or marketplaces with focus on reliability, performance, and data consistency.
Third-Party Integration and API DevelopmentProven experience designing and implementing integrations with external partners, building robust APIs, handling edge cases in distributed systems, and managing complex data synchronization across multiple systems.
Cross-Functional Technical LeadershipTrack record of collaborating effectively with Product, Operations, and other engineering teams, translating business requirements into technical solutions, providing accurate estimates, and driving projects to completion in ambiguous environments.

Skills

Required skills

Scala/JVM LanguagesDeep expertise in Scala, Java, or Kotlin for building performant backend services and systems programming in JVM ecosystems.
Microservices ArchitectureHands-on experience designing, building, and deploying microservices with strong understanding of service boundaries, communication patterns, and distributed system tradeoffs.
Distributed SystemsSolid foundation in distributed system principles including eventual consistency, fault tolerance, load balancing, and understanding of CAP theorem and its practical implications.
gRPC and REST API DevelopmentPractical experience building and consuming both gRPC and REST APIs with understanding of protocol buffers, serialization, and API design principles for system integration.
Asynchronous Messaging and Pub/SubHands-on experience with event-driven architectures, message queues, publish-subscribe patterns, and asynchronous communication in distributed systems.
Production System DebuggingStrong ability to diagnose and resolve issues in production environments including log analysis, profiling, tracing, and performance optimization techniques.
Testing and Quality AssuranceExpertise in writing comprehensive unit tests, integration tests, contract tests, and end-to-end tests; familiarity with testing frameworks and strategies for ensuring reliability in microservices.
SQL and Data DesignStrong foundation in relational database design, SQL optimization, and understanding of data consistency patterns relevant to high-volume transaction processing systems.

Nice to have

Travel Tech or Travel Industry ExperiencePrior experience working in travel technology, travel platforms, or travel commerce environments with understanding of booking systems, inventory management, and traveler-facing applications.
Fintech Systems KnowledgeExperience with financial technology platforms, payment processing, or fintech product integration; understanding of financial data handling and regulatory compliance considerations.
GDS (Global Distribution System) IntegrationKnowledge of hotel and car rental GDS platforms, inventory systems, and experience integrating with global travel distribution networks.
NoSQL DatabasesExperience with NoSQL databases such as MongoDB, DynamoDB, or Cassandra for handling distributed data at scale and understanding when to apply NoSQL solutions.
Kubernetes and Container OrchestrationFamiliarity with Docker, Kubernetes, and modern containerized deployment strategies for managing microservices at scale in cloud environments.
Observability and MonitoringExperience implementing distributed tracing, metrics collection, and logging strategies using tools like Datadog, Prometheus, or ELK stack for production system visibility.
Infrastructure as CodeFamiliarity with Infrastructure as Code practices using Terraform, CloudFormation, or similar tools for managing cloud infrastructure and deployment automation.

Compensation & benefits

Salary

CAD 220,000 – 300,000 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Pre-IPO Equity Package

Competitive equity compensation with meaningful upside potential as a well-funded startup, offering significant financial opportunities alongside base salary.

Comprehensive Health Insurance

100% premium coverage for group insurance plan including medical, dental, and vision benefits for employees.

Life and Disability Coverage

Comprehensive life insurance, short-term disability, and long-term disability coverage to protect financial security for you and your family.

Health Savings Account (HSA)

Tax-advantaged HSA that covers eligible medical and dental expenses with employer contributions to maximize healthcare savings.

Telemedicine Services

Access to Dialogue's telemedicine platform for all employees and dependents, providing anytime, anywhere virtual healthcare and mental health support.

RRSP Retirement Plan

Registered Retirement Savings Plan with automatic pre-tax withdrawals per pay period to support long-term retirement savings and tax efficiency.

Generous Parental Leave

Above-industry-standard parental leave policy supporting work-life balance and family planning for new parents.

Unlimited PTO

Flexible unlimited paid time off policy enabling employees to manage work-life balance and take time off as needed without accrual constraints.

Carrot Cash Travel Stipend

Annual travel stipend enabling employees to explore new destinations and book travel experiences at discounted rates through Hopper's platform.

Flexible Work Arrangements

On-demand access to co-working space through FlexDesk network plus work-from-home stipend to support remote-first working preferences and flexibility.

Entrepreneurial Culture

Dynamic, innovation-focused environment where taking calculated risks and pushing boundaries is encouraged and celebrated across the organization.

Direct Leadership Access

Open communication channels with management and company leadership enabling direct input on strategic decisions and organizational direction.

High-Impact Small Teams

Opportunity to work in lean, dynamic teams where individual contributions directly shape product direction and drive meaningful business outcomes.

Apply for this position

You'll be redirected to the company's application page

Hopper

Hopper

View all jobs

Hopper is a travel booking app and online marketplace, leveraging data-driven technology to predict prices and help users book hotels, flights, and car rentals at the best rates.

Montreal, QC, CanadaFounded 2006hopper.com

Tech Stack

Languages
ScalaJavaKotlin
Frameworks
Play Framework or AkkaSpring BootgRPC
Databases
PostgreSQLMySQLRedis
Tools
DockerKubernetesGitCI/CD PipelinesDatadog or Monitoring Tools
Other
Protocol Buffers (Protobuf)Message Queues (Kafka, RabbitMQ, Pub/Sub)REST API DesignDistributed Tracing
Apply Now

On this page