The process started with a recommendation from a friend working there, a recruiter contacted me and asked me for a phone call, she was nice, she asked me the standard HR questions, then she sent me a HackerRack exam, it was 4 questions, the time was limited and I didn't finish all the questions, then she contacted me and told me that I will have a technical interview -about algorithm only- with two guys from the technical team.

I went to the careers portal of Booking.com and then i looked for the JDs available and chose to attend the interview for Perl developer since i was experienced in perl during that time. I uploaded my resume and cover letter as mentioned in the job portal and then i received email from Booking.com that they will get back to me after reviewing the resume. After a week i got a mail regarding the phone screening. The interview process included a telephonic interview, coding round and 2 tech interviews. That was how it was communicated to me in the email.

I applied online for the lead position. A week later, HR called and recommended me for the senior developer position as she thinks my experience is not enough as a lead. Then, a tech phone interview is scheduled in the following week, which consisted 2 interviewers with online pair coding. Straightforward questions, nothing algorithmic heavy. Then I was invited for the on-site interview in Amsterdam. They paid for 3 nights of hotel and flight to Amsterdam. I spent 4-5 hours at their office. First HR interview gives me a chance to ask question about the company. Followed by 2 technical interviews, each with 2 interviewers. Mostly talking about my experience and some behavior questions. A small portion of interview was writing code on paper. The 2 tech interviews would decide if they want to proceed. There would be no further interview if you did not pass the first 2. They made me wait for half an hour and decided to gave a third interview. The 3rd interview was with the HR manager and another lead. Not very technical in this stage. They asked more behavior questions and asked how I would handle some of the problems they often encounter. They made me wait for another half an hour for result and still couldn't decide if I am a good fit. 3 days later, HR called and said they would not proceed with my application for the developer position. They liked me and thought I was smart, but they think it would take me 6 months to ramp up in a senior role due to my background in a totally different industry. Instead, they offer me a fresh graduate position. As a senior engineer at this point of my career, needless to say, I didn't accept. I am in semiconductor industry. Although it's different than web programming, the problems I encountered are not necessarily easier than their industry. I felt I failed to relate my background to their industry. Overall, it was a pleasant experience. HR was very professional and accommodating. The hotel room was very very small, but for the price of free, nothing to complain.