It is said that travel is not about the places you see, but the people you meet along the way.

This idea is the inspiration behind InBed.me, a social booking site for travelers to connect with each other before their trip begins. The site began with a group of travelers who met in a Brooklyn hostel and shared an understanding that some hostels are not as social as others. To allow people to have more exciting, social experiences during their travels, the group formed InBed.me in June 2011 during Startup Weekend in New York City. The travel site won second place out of 20 startups.

InBed.me incorporates a social feature that provides an opportunity for travelers to see who will be visiting the same destination at the same time. This way travelers can get to know each other online, share tips and plan activities together before they arrive. By connecting with other travelers with similar interests going to the same destinations, travelers will be able to get tips and plan activities together.

InBed.me curates the top hostels and bed and breakfasts around the world based on how social they are. Users can sign up for a new account or sign in with their Facebook account. If you sign in with your Facebook account, InBed.me will create a personal profile for you based on your profile picture, country, first name and first letter of your last name. Users have full control over what personal information they share with the InBed.me community. They can also personalize their information and add details about their travels in the “About Me” section.

Once you type in your destination and travel dates, InBed.me generates a list of hostels and bed and breakfasts in that city. You can see who will be staying at each place, check out their profiles and find people who share similar interests with you.

With access to 25,000 properties in more than 700 cities around the world, InBed.me is a way for travelers to ensure they have a social experience during their stay. The site also helps travelers make better planning decisions based on where their connections have stayed in the past.

InBed.me currently has about 1,000 users and plans to include additional social networks such as Twitter and Foursquare to its site in the future.

Thanks Mashable