Web Buzz: Wenzani pulls from Lonely Planet, Frommer’s, TimeOut

Travel guidebook big shots Lonely Planet, Frommer’s and TimeOut team up to create a guidebook-stocked, socially powered travel app.

Name: Wenzani

Available for: iPhone, iPod and iPad, with other platforms due next year.

What it does: Curates travel guidebook content and connects travel questions to answers from people you know on Facebook and Twitter. Focuses on information for topics such as Eat, Shop, Night, Culture, Live Acts, Sleep, Kids and What’s On.

Cost: Free

What’s hot: It curates information from several publishers as well as people you want to follow. It’s even cooler that you can post a travel question or ask for tips instantly by using your Facebook and Twitter accounts.

What’s not: There wasn’t enough interactivity for me. I wanted to sort the search results myself, instead of Wenzani picking which restaurants to show me. Couldn’t I select a sorting order first, such as most or least expensive? I’d also like to create my own wish list for future travels. What good is finding a cool place to visit if I have no immediate way to keep track of it or email it to myself?

Worth it: Free is free. I’ll keep it on my iPad just to see what my friends on Facebook might have to say the next time I ask a travel question.

— Jen Leo