Hopper

Senior Backend Engineer - Lodging and Cars

Hopper2 days ago
Location

Brazil - Remote

Workplace

Remote

Type

Full Time

Salary

USD 130,000 – 180,000

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 to architect and maintain high-throughput microservices handling real-time booking transactions across a global hotel and car rental ecosystem. You'll own end-to-end technical integrations with external partners, write performant Scala/JVM code, troubleshoot distributed systems, and collaborate across product and operations teams in a remote-first environment. This role is ideal for self-directed engineers who excel at system exploration, can operate within technical ambiguity, and are passionate about delivering reliable booking fulfillment at scale.

What you'll do

End-to-End Technical Integrations: Execute comprehensive technical integrations with external lodging, cars, and GDS partners while navigating complex communication protocols, distributed data schemas, and multi-partner ecosystems to expand Hopper's supply network.
High-Performance Code Development: Write clean, performant, and maintainable code in Scala or other JVM languages (Java, Kotlin) to build mission-critical lodging services that meet rigorous engineering standards and support high-volume transaction processing.
Production Issue Resolution: Explore and troubleshoot complex codebases to diagnose infrastructure issues, resolve production incidents in distributed system environments, and implement preventative monitoring strategies.
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Product Managers and Operations teams to decompose business requirements into technical specifications, provide accurate delivery estimates, and ensure alignment between business objectives and technical implementation.
Feature Ownership and Lifecycle Management: Take full ownership of the complete development lifecycle for new product features, including technical design, implementation, comprehensive testing, and production deployment with monitoring.
Resilient Service Architecture: Contribute to the design and optimization of highly resilient, low-latency services that maintain seamless booking experiences under peak load conditions and handle millions of concurrent transactions.
Code Review and Performance Optimization: Participate in thorough code reviews, identify scalability bottlenecks, optimize system performance and resource utilization, and mentor team members on engineering best practices and architectural patterns.

What we look for

Technical

Scala or JVM Languages ProficiencyStrong expertise in Scala, Java, or Kotlin with demonstrated ability to design and build scalable, high-throughput backend services handling millions of transactions in production environments.
Microservices Architecture ExperienceProven track record of designing, developing, testing, and deploying features within microservices architectures, with understanding of service decomposition, API contracts, and inter-service communication patterns.
Distributed Systems KnowledgePractical experience building and operating distributed systems, including proficiency with service communication methods such as gRPC, Pub/Sub messaging, REST APIs, and asynchronous event-driven architectures.
Infrastructure and Codebase NavigationAbility to rapidly onboard into complex existing codebases, independently explore infrastructure, operate under technical ambiguity, and execute technical plans without extensive guidance.
Performance and Scalability OptimizationExperience optimizing system performance, managing resource constraints, reducing latency in high-throughput systems, and implementing monitoring and observability solutions for production services.

Education

Computer Science or Related FieldBachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, or related discipline, or equivalent professional software engineering experience demonstrating equivalent technical depth.

Experience

Senior-Level Backend DevelopmentMinimum 5+ years of professional backend software engineering experience with at least 2+ years in a senior or lead individual contributor capacity, demonstrating technical depth and architectural thinking.
Production Systems at ScaleDemonstrated experience owning and operating mission-critical production systems handling high transaction volumes, real-time processing, or complex distributed system challenges in customer-facing products.
Integration and API DevelopmentExperience integrating with third-party APIs, building robust integration layers, handling distributed data schemas, and managing external partner dependencies in complex technical environments.
Cross-Functional CollaborationTrack record of collaborating effectively with product, operations, and business teams, translating business requirements into technical specifications, and communicating complex technical concepts to non-technical stakeholders.

Skills

Required skills

Scala ProgrammingStrong proficiency in Scala with demonstrated ability to leverage functional programming paradigms, type systems, and concurrency models to build robust, scalable backend services.
JVM EcosystemDeep understanding of Java Virtual Machine architecture, JVM tuning, garbage collection, memory management, and experience with Java or Kotlin for high-performance backend development.
Microservices ArchitectureExpertise in microservices design patterns, service boundaries, inter-service communication, API versioning, and deployment strategies for distributed service ecosystems.
gRPC and Pub/Sub MessagingHands-on experience implementing and debugging gRPC services, pub/sub messaging systems (Kafka, RabbitMQ, Cloud Pub/Sub), and asynchronous event-driven communication patterns.
REST API Design and ImplementationProficiency designing and implementing RESTful APIs with proper HTTP semantics, error handling, pagination, filtering, rate limiting, and API versioning strategies.
Production Debugging and TroubleshootingStrong ability to diagnose and resolve production incidents using logging, distributed tracing, profiling tools, and systematic troubleshooting methodologies in complex distributed systems.
System Design and ArchitectureCapability to design scalable system architectures, make trade-off decisions between consistency and availability, design for resilience, and implement fault tolerance patterns.

Nice to have

Travel or E-Commerce Industry ExperiencePrior experience in travel technology, e-commerce, or marketplace platforms, with understanding of booking flows, inventory management, or real-time transaction processing.
Database OptimizationExperience optimizing database queries, designing efficient schemas, working with both SQL and NoSQL databases, and implementing caching strategies for high-throughput systems.
Observability and MonitoringExperience implementing comprehensive observability solutions including structured logging, distributed tracing (Jaeger, Datadog), metrics collection, and alerting for production systems.
DevOps and Deployment PracticesFamiliarity with containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure-as-code, and modern deployment strategies for scalable backend services.
GDS and Travel Systems IntegrationPrior exposure to Global Distribution Systems (GDS), hotel/car rental APIs, or travel industry technical standards, providing valuable context for lodging and cars ecosystem integrations.

Compensation & benefits

Salary

USD 130,000 – 180,000 (annual)

Stock options

Available

Benefits

Pre-IPO Equity Package

Significant equity compensation as a well-funded startup approaching IPO milestone, providing substantial upside potential and ownership stake in company growth trajectory.

Carrot Cash Travel Stipend

Annual travel benefits allowing employees to book flights, hotels, and car rentals through Hopper's platform at discounted rates, providing practical value for frequent and personal travel.

Comprehensive Health Coverage

100% employer-paid premiums for health, dental, life insurance, and short-term disability insurance through SulAmerica for Brazilian-based employees and equivalent coverage for other regions.

Meal Vouchers (Brazil)

Monthly meal vouchers provided to Brazilian-based employees to support nutrition and work-life balance.

Generous Parental Leave

Extended parental leave benefits supporting work-life balance and family planning for both primary and secondary caregivers.

Flexdesk All Access Pass and Work-from-Home Stipend

Flexible workspace solutions including access to Flexdesk locations globally and home office stipend for remote work setup and equipment.

Entrepreneurial and Dynamic Culture

Innovative startup environment encouraging calculated risk-taking, boundary-pushing, and ownership mentality where individual contributions directly impact company trajectory.

Open Leadership Communication

Direct access to management and company leadership with transparent communication channels, supporting career development and strategic alignment across organization.

High-Impact Team Environment

Small, dynamic cross-functional teams where engineers own significant product and technical areas, enabling rapid iteration and visible impact on millions of users globally.

Interview process

  1. 1
    Initial Application Screening — AI-assisted screening of applications to assess qualifications, technical experience, and cultural fit alignment with the role requirements using automated assessment technologies.
  2. 2
    Technical Phone Screen — Preliminary conversation with engineering team member to evaluate Scala/JVM proficiency, distributed systems knowledge, and problem-solving approach in conversational setting.
  3. 3
    System Design Interview — Technical interview focusing on architecture design, scalability considerations, microservices patterns, and ability to navigate complex technical trade-offs relevant to booking platform systems.
  4. 4
    Coding Assessment — Practical programming exercise in Scala or preferred JVM language, evaluating code quality, performance optimization, and approach to building robust backend services.
  5. 5
    Behavioral and Cross-Functional Interview — Discussion with product, operations, or team leadership assessing collaboration skills, communication ability, bias for action, and cultural alignment in remote-first team environment.
  6. 6
    Senior Leadership Interview — Meeting with engineering leadership to discuss career goals, technical vision, ownership philosophy, and strategic contribution to Lodging and Cars Supply team direction.
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Hopper

Hopper

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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
AkkaPlay FrameworkSpring BootgRPC
Databases
SQL Databases (PostgreSQL/MySQL)NoSQL Databases (MongoDB/Cassandra)Redis
Tools
Docker and KubernetesApache KafkaDatadog or Similar MonitoringGit and Version Control
Other
Distributed Systems PatternsAPI Protocol StandardsDatabase Replication and Consistency
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