As a travel writer, I'm always looking for new tools I can use to help plan my trips. Lately, there's been lots of talk about a social media site called Pinterest, a free online photo bulletin board that's popular with designers, foodies and crafts people.

But could you use it to plan trips? Well, yes. It turns out that the travel industry, as well as individual travelers, are starting to use this visual social platform with interesting results.

The photos make it easy for a traveler to quickly scan a destination's food, architecture or historic sites. If you're intrigued by a picture, a click on it will take you to more content.

For instance, the Pinterest page of Westchester-Frederick Country, Va., (www.pinterest.com/winchesterva) has a category called "Events & Attractions." Click on the photo of singer Patsy Cline, and you'll be taken to details on touring the house where she lived from ages 16 to 21, as well as a video of her music.

The Pinterest page of Savannah, Ga., (www.pinterest.com/visitsavannah/) also is pulling in traffic, with boards such as "Haunted Savannah," "Shop Savannah" and "Savannah Hotels" (with some photos linking to online reservations).

Search tips

Look for the red Pinterest button on travel websites you visit; a click on it will take you to their Pinterest profiles.

Use the site's search box (next to the magnifying glass icon).

Do both a "Boards" and a "People" search (below the regular search box) for keywords such as resorts, hotels, tourism, CVB (conventions and visitors bureaus), visits, vacations, etc. You'll often get different results.

Pinterest pages

Go here to read the rest:

Pinterest spreading to the travel world