> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.heyy.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# What is a journey?

> Timed automation paths for contacts with scheduled steps and waits.

**Journeys** are timed paths for clients, leads, and customers on the **contact** record. You schedule steps with waits between them; **each step runs an automation** so the sequence advances on its own.

## How journeys differ from one-off automations

|        | **Automation**                                                                  | **Journey**                                                                                                                           |
| ------ | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Start  | A [trigger](/help/automations/triggers/overview) fires once                     | Contacts enter a journey and move through steps over time                                                                             |
| Timing | Immediate actions (plus [Delay](/help/automations/logic-actions) inside a flow) | Built-in scheduling between steps                                                                                                     |
| Anchor | Event-driven                                                                    | Often tied to [subscription](/help/contacts/the-contact/contact-subscription) (day zero = when they join) or **fixed calendar dates** |

Use journeys for onboarding drips, launch countdowns, post-trial nurture, and other multi-day sequences.

## Related

* [Build a journey](/help/automations/journeys/build-a-journey)
* [Contact subscription](/help/contacts/the-contact/contact-subscription)
* [Triggers](/help/automations/triggers/overview) — individual automations that steps can run