If you’re looking for something cool to do this weekend, there’s an app that might just have some awesome suggestions for you. It’s called Well, and it’s a social networking app that allows you to connect with other users to get recommendations for cool stuff to do, see, or visit in your area and around the world.

What is it and what does it do

Main Functionality

Well allows users to build everything from “bucket lists” to the perfect list of activities for a weekend getaway. In addition to recommending restaurants, road trip destinations, or other points of interest, Well also offers suggestions from users regarding more esoteric life quandaries, like what book you should read next or what wine you should pick up on your next trip out of the house.

Pros

• Clean, modern app design that’s easy to navigate
• Great selection of recommendations from users
• Ability to “re-list” recommendations from other users, and add them to your own “to try” list
• Users can be social butterflies, or disable suggestions on their lists if they don’t want any ideas from the community. This makes the app perfect for both gregarious and reclusive personalities.

Cons

• Still has some bugs to be fixed, include stability issues
• Some users have complained about privacy features. One user review commented on how the app forces a relationship with Well Official. You can remove this relationship. However, commenting on a Well Official list will trigger the official accounts to follow you, and users have complained about the inability to block.
• Could use a lot more variety in terms of the color palette, both as a way for users to customize the look of the app, and as a way of organizing lists

Discussion

Well is a great-looking app that is simple to navigate. The ability to create and share lists is a key part of what makes this app so enticing, but it’s far from the only service Well offers. In addition, you can see an activity timeline of your friends, to see what they are watching, eating, or experiencing. It’s like watching a Facebook timeline, but without the guilty feeling like you’re stalking people, because Well is all about sharing life experiences.

There’s a wonderful interactivity to reading other people’s lists. With a simple swiping motion, you can select an item on the list that you’d like to add to your own list. The same gesture also sets you up to comment on the list item. If you see a friend who’s added a new steakhouse to his list of restaurants he wants to visit, you can easily comment on the restaurant and make plans to go together!

Getting started couldn’t be simpler, and I’m really pleased to see that users have the option of choosing Twitter or Facebook to sign in with (or, they can create a new account using an email address.) As someone who vastly prefers Twitter to Facebook, it’s nice to have an easy way to sign in with my preferred social networking tool.

If you’re planning a trip, or just planning a night out on the town, Well offers great suggestions from people who have actually been there. It’s an invaluable resource for planning any excursion. Think of Well as a Netflix queue for every aspect of your life.

Conclusion and download link

If you want a social networking app that’s all about doing cool stuff and having new experience, Well is an app you’ve simply gotta try. As both a social tool and a tool for goal-setting, this excellent app would be a great value at twice the price. Which would still be “free,” I guess. But you know what I mean. :-)

Price: Free

Version reviewed: 1.2

Requires iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad, iOS version 5.0 or later

Download size: 12.2 MB

Well on Apple App Store