Celebrity Travel Addict: Brian Kelly, The Points Guy

So my passion for travel started as a kid. I was always an entrepreneurial little teenager. I started an eBay business when eBay first started. I would actually sell items for thrift shops. And I started making money, and then I was just always technically savvy. And I then turned that into a business of booking travel for family members, including my dad. So when Travelocity first started in the 90s, I figured out how to do it, and I started charging my dad to make his flight reservations, which are so easy to do, but he thought it was much more difficult. So I started in the 90s as a kid, basically making money off my dad. And then one day, we realized we had all these points. And that's when I started getting involved with the frequent flyer miles and maximizing those systems. I like to diversify where I go. I mean, I love beaches. I'm a scuba diver. I also love cities. Tokyo is one of my favorite cities, Madrid. On the flip side, I love Mauritius and the Maldives, too, so I like to mix it up and go new places. I usually try to go somewhere once a month, whether it's domestic or international. I'd say one big international trip per quarter and one domestic trip or somewhat regional per month. But I have no rules. Whatever comes up comes up, and I like to go with the flow. I love hearing from my readers. Basically, it's how to maximize your life, like simple things to just be smarter about your credit card, smarter about the airlines that you fly, avoiding fees. For me, I have the best job in the world, because I teach people how to save money and also travel more. And to me, there's nothing more rewarding than hearing from people saying, I couldn't go on a honeymoon, but the tips I learned from your site in maximizing all of my wedding expenses, all of a sudden, I could take my wife to Hawaii, and I'm a hero, and you're the boss. So I love teaching my readers to overcome what so many people don't understand, like travel people are always confused by, credit cards, there's so many options. Basically, I like empowering my readers to harness their everyday spend. So I like using my points to go to far-flung destinations, because generally, those flights are really long. I'm 6'7", so frankly, going coach to Asia is not an option. So my top three destinations using points, Japan, in first class, I actually have been twice now on Japan Airlines. Drinking Dom as you cross the international date line, and eating caviar is definitely an experience. I also love South Africa. Actually, I think South Africa is my favorite all-around destination for wine, for outdoors, safari, Cape Town's like a European capital right on the water. So that's a long flight, too, so you've got to do it in business class. And then I think the third would be the Maldives. I think for a lot of people in the travel community, the Maldives represent this really far to get to. You've got to travel, literally, around the world to get there, and once you get there, it's absolutely incredible. And as a scuba diver, it was incredible. So I'd say those three places are my favorite using points in business or first class. So I'll focus on Tokyo, because that's on my mind. I just spent a week there just exploring the city. For someone who's never been, I think the number one thing to do is just walk around. Tokyo may be busy and a lot of people, but it's actually very navigable. The subways are very easy to use and cheap, basically $6 for an all-day pass, so just explore, walk down streets. Every neighborhood has its own unique flavor, and that in itself is a day's worth of activities. Second thing is to try the food. Sushi's great, but Tokyo has so much more than just sushi. Food from around the world, but also push yourself outside of your comfort zone a little bit. Go to one of the little bars where people go for happy hour every day. They have these little grills with random organs that they're grilling. And don't even question what the organ is. I had a couple that were eye-opening, but just enjoy it, it's an experience. And the noodle and ramen shops are out of this world. It's not like the ramen that you had in college for a dollar a packet. The third thing would be to check out the hotel scene. So Tokyo, it's a beautiful city, amazing skylines. You see the mountains in the background, the Park Hyatt. And the Andaz have incredible hotel lobby bars on like the 50th floor at the Andaz, and I think in the 30s at the Park Hyatt. Drinks are expensive, but the views are priceless. The fourth thing would be to, I think Japan's a relatively small country, and the bullet trains are so easy to take. So I went to Kyoto. It's only a two-hour train ride. The bullet train's pretty cool. That's an experience in itself. Go explore outside of Tokyo. Easy to go to Mount Fuji for a day. So explore Tokyo, but take a day trip outside the city. Actually, the fifth thing to do in Tokyo would be shopping. Now, like I said, I'm 6'7", so I don't fit into any of the clothes, but the shops are amazing. They have these department stores that are 12 stories high, each floor is a different. You've got your luxury department stores, and then you've got these wacky department stores with arts and crafts. And what I like about Japan is it's unapologetically quirky. There's a robot restaurant that I went to where there are 15 women in outfits that do these crazy scenes, screeching and running around, and these robots fighting each other. And you're drinking beer and eating crappy food, and it's just like this totally wacky experience that you just have to revel in Tokyo's wackiness, is the fifth thing. So I don't watch movies, but I always bring documentaries on planes with me, and as a diver, I'm an avid shark lover. Sharks are probably my favorite animal, so I watch National Geographic shark documentaries. That gets me inspired to travel, that makes me officially a shark geek, and I'm proud of it. So I'm a loyal American Airlines executive platinum member, that's their top tier. I think in general of all airlines, at the top tier, American Airlines is pretty top notch. Now, they're not perfect by any stretch. In fact, no airline's really perfect, but I think American's got the best overall frequent flyer program, and as a top tier flyer, they treat you pretty good. Delta being a quick second. The reason why Delta wouldn't make the top is that their frequent flyer program is very customer unfriendly in comparison to American, so I give the edge to American. I'd have to say, I mean, Cathay Pacific is phenomenal. When flying to Hong Kong, it's always a long flight if you're leaving from North America. They've got Krug champagne, really comfortable seats. I actually, in awards, Singapore Airlines edges out Cathay in terms of service. I actually haven't flown Singapore first, so maybe I'll have to get back to you once I do and give you my final verdict. But Cathay Pacific is a wonderful airline, great food service, at least in the front of the plane. I really like Madrid airport, partially because I just love Spain, and I think I have a big smile on my face every time I land at Barajas. It's a cool design, and it's really easy to get to the heart of the city in about 20 minutes on the subway. Taxi is the same. I hate when airports are two hours outside of the city, like in Seoul. So it's not the fanciest airport, but I like Madrid. So one of my favorite new airport lounges is the American Express Centurion lounges. So Amex lost the ability for their platinum card holders to get into American Airlines lounges. They kind of broke up. So American Express has been creating their own high-end lounge called the Centurion lounge. There's four of them now in the US. Miami's opening up later this year, and there's some other plans for Seattle. But basically, these lounges are like no other airline lounge. In Dallas, the Centurion lounge, I was just there this week, you can get a massage. They've got really locally inspired food, craft beers, great cocktails, and it's all free. So none of this BS of airline lounges now charging you for Grey Goose, $10, and only getting well liquor for free. The American Express Centurion lounges are top notch, and it's free if you have a platinum card or a Centurion card, or $50 if you are any other American Express card holder. So most other lounges will charge you the same and offer you far less. So I give props to American Express for these new Centurion lounges. Now, user-friendly goes both two ways. So there are a lot of programs that are very easy to use, like Southwest Rapid Rewards, because simply they say every point's going to be worth a certain amount. Book whatever flight you want. Now, the problem there is that you can't really leverage those programs for first class flights to South Africa for the relatively small amount in other programs. So Southwest is probably one of the easiest programs to use, but in terms of user-friendly and in terms of getting to amazing destinations, not so much. So in terms of frequent flyer miles, one of my favorite programs is actually US Airways Dividend Miles. Now, their website's terrible, so you have to call to book a lot of awards, but their frequent flyer miles are probably the most valuable out there if you know how to use them and route around the world. There's all these really interesting nooks and crannies to that program that a lot of people who are mileage experts really maximize that program. And it's going away in the second quarter of 2015. So if you've got US Airways miles, use them now on an amazing award before they automatically become American Advantage miles and potentially less valuable. What's your least favorite? Least favorite frequent flyer program? I mean, I think Spirit Airlines is known for being the least favorite airline, and it kind of carries over to their frequent flyer program. The miles expire really, really quickly. Very customer unfriendly. Of the major programs, I would say Delta is the most unfriendly because they keep making negative changes. Frequent flyer programs, every couple years, they'll make an adjustment to the award levels. Delta, in 2014, made two changes. In 2013, they made two. There's another change this year. So they're constantly moving the needle, which I think is pretty consumer unfriendly. You save up all these miles to take a trip, and then all of a sudden, you go to Redeem, and you find out that, oh, wait, there was a change yesterday. So it's completely within the right of these airlines to do that. They own these programs, but I think it's pretty user unfriendly when you keep moving the goalposts. So I like to, you know, I have a dog. My dog's name is Miles. Not for Miles Davis, but for frequent flyer Miles. So I don't like to leave for too, too long. I don't do, you know, three-month-long trips. I usually go for about two weeks or three weeks, maybe. I just did an around-the-world trip to Tokyo, Bali, and London. That was 20 days. That's kind of the limit that I like to do it, because I've got my son waiting at home for me. So with that around-the-world trip, I mostly used Miles. I bought one of the flights because it was cheap. I actually flew Malaysia Airlines. They had a bad 2014, but their fares are really cheap. So it was $500 to go from Tokyo to Kuala Lumpur to Bali. I raked in a ton of miles, got my week status. So I usually mix and match redeeming Miles with paying for cheaper flights. I may be biased here, but Madrid is one of my favorite cities. People are very laid back. Now, I did study Spanish in college, so I'm able to communicate in Spanish. But I feel like every night out in Madrid, I meet new friends, people invite you into their homes. I love spending New Year's in Madrid. People will have you over for a big dinner with their family and extended family. So there's a lot of competition for that one, because I actually find that most cities around the world are pretty friendly. But I think Madrid might take the cake. So my partner is a fashion photographer. So traveling with him is a blast, because he's my best friend, and he's also an amazing photographer. So it's really fun to go out exploring, and then come back and experience it again through pictures. So it's really fun to travel with him. None. I am a iPhone 6 Plus power user, and I also have a MacBook Air that goes with me everywhere. So to have a third item is just too much. I can do everything on my phone, and what I can't, like watching my trashy TV that I bring on the plane with me, will go on that MacBook Air. With my iPhone, I'm on my iPhone 6 Plus far too much than I probably should be. So I am always checking social media. I'm big on Instagram. I love uploading pictures and seeing other people's pictures, so social media is a way for me. If I ever have a minute in line that I'm waiting, I'm refreshing Instagram or uploading a picture of the first class seat that I'm sitting in, or being served macadamia nuts, God forbid, in a bag. So yeah, social media is my easy way to kill time. And make sure you follow me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. So the big thing right now is that credit card companies have huge bonuses. So the easiest way to rack up points instead of flying is simply making sure that you have good credit, because you definitely don't want to be applying for cards if your credit is kind of sketchy. You want to make sure you get that in check first. But if you've got good credit, and you're not going to be tempted to run up your balance if you do get approved for a credit card, is getting in on some of the best credit card deals. American Express recently launched targeted offers of 100,000 points for getting the Platinum card. And even though that card has a $450 annual fee, you get a ton of perks, like access to the Centurion lounges, free global entry, which is amazing for travelers, all these other perks. So always do the math. Even if there's an annual fee, I think so many people say, I want a no annual fee card. But often, those cards come with terrible sign-up bonuses. So if you're going to get $1,000 for paying a couple hundred in a fee, it's a lot better than getting a car with no annual fee that's going to throw you $100 your way. So always do the math. And I know people sometimes get overwhelmed with so many options, but that's what you have to pointsguy.com. We have our Hot Deals tab, where we go through all of the top public credit card offers, which ones make sense for which types of travelers. And make sure you're leveraging. It's not just the points, it's the benefits and the perks, like lost baggage if you ever pay for a flight. Most credit cards have some form of lost baggage protection, so know what your benefits are, because they can save you thousands of dollars if you know how to use them. I think I felt the most transported in the Seychelles. It's just a beautiful little granite outcrop in the Indian Ocean, driving around the island. Unlike the Maldives, where you're on a little atoll at most resorts, and you're kind of confined to a dot of sand. The main island in Seychelles, Mahe, is stunning. There's a mountain that separates both sides. You kind of go up this winding mountain in order to drive around. It's actually frightening to drive, because it's one small road, and sometimes you're on the edge with no railing and looking down at the water. But it is, so far, the most spectacular, just to drive to a deserted beach. I remember eating at this restaurant where we had this squid that was so fresh. And the guy goes, yeah, you see right over there? And there was still a net hanging up. We just caught that 20 minutes ago. So I love going to places where you can kind of immerse and not necessarily just have to be at a big resort, paying $20 for a cocktail. So the first step is acknowledging your failures. So I know a lot of people get overwhelmed and kind of just want to double down and say, well, I haven't for years. And I'm too late to the game. You're not too late to the game. And it's not just credit cards. I think a lot of people say, well, I don't want to apply for a million cards. Fair enough. But there's so many ways to earn these days, whether shopping online. Never, ever, ever, ever go directly to a retailer's website. Always go through a shopping portal. Whether you want cash back or airline miles or hotel points, you simply click through these shopping portals. It puts a cookie on your computer. You go to the same exact retail site, but you get one, two, three, up to 10 miles per dollar extra that they deposit into your frequent flyer account. So think about how much money you spend throughout the year. So always leverage shopping portals. There's also dining programs where all around Miami, New York, there's random restaurants that will give you extra miles in addition to the miles that you earn on your credit card. So there's all these programs that people don't realize. And it's just a matter of signing up for them. They're all free for the most part. And for people who are overwhelmed, I have a beginner's guide on my website. Go there. There's a bunch of simple instructions. And then once you start getting used to it, my site, we have over 5,000 blog posts. We have detailed analyses of every major frequent flyer program, credit card. So when you're ready, kind of narrow your focus. And Google's your friend too. Trust me, I know all the other bloggers in my space. There's tons of content. It's all there. But you need to be the one in the driver's seat. And I guarantee you, I don't meet anyone who says, oh well, I learned how to use miles and now I'm unhappy. You will travel more. You will travel cheaper. You just need to do the little bit of work and it'll pay off. So I never travel without my Bose headphones. You never know when you're going to get on a flight with that screaming baby. And even though the noise canceling headphones don't cancel out everything, I love them. And a tip, I sometimes put the earplugs in and then the Bose headphones, and that pretty much knocks out everything. So I like being able to control the noise in my environment. I also love traveling with my MacBook Air. Self-explanatory. I also always travel with a passport. Even if I'm going New York to LA, I always have a passport on me because you never know when there's going to be an amazing deal. Something could come up. There have been a couple times where great opportunities presented themselves and I didn't have a passport. And if you're a traveler, you can get a second passport as well. So always keep one at home and one on you is one of the things I would always say. And then the last thing is always cash. As much as I love credit cards, there's no worse feeling than going to a destination. And guess what? Your ATM card doesn't work because that just happened to me in Tokyo. So even if you have to use the currency exchange bureaus which rip you off, it's better to be able to get some of the local currency than having none. So I always like having at least $150 in cash of the local currency to pay just in case the credit cards aren't. I get anxiety if I don't have at least some cash on me. Dream destination. So I'm a scuba diver. Like I said a million times, I'm dying to do the South Pacific. So Bora Bora is up there. But also to kind of explore some of the random little island hopping, I'd love to go to some of the atolls that people have never been to. And I think to do that, my dream vacation would be to go on a nice boat and just kind of cruise with someone who knows the area. And when you feel like stopping and diving, I think that to me is a dream destination. I hope to do it this year. So I'm probably going to mess it up, but it's from Diane von Furstenberg, and she said, to me, travel and living are the same. How you travel describes how you live your life, or something like that. And to me, it resonates because when I travel, it's not a vacation. For me, travel is my life. And I continue working from the road. So many people always say, oh, is that for business or pleasure? And I'm like, it's both. For me, experiencing a new destination or airline is fun, but it's also meeting new people and just immersing yourself in cultures, and meeting new people, and eating new food. And it makes you realize that your life at home, you appreciate it all the more. So to me, my life in travel and my daily life, I have a very unconventional daily life as well, living in two cities at age 31 and kind of being all over the place all the time. But I think travel actually, in a weird way, helps keep me grounded, and it helps make me realize what I love at home. So the next destination for me is Park City, Utah. I'm going to the Sundance Film Festival. I use my points to stay five nights at the St. Regis in Park City. It was $2,200 a night, but I was able to use my points for five nights, 25,000 points a night, because you get the fifth night free with Starwood. So it's an amazing deal. And I'm going to ski, watch some movies, because I never get a chance to. So yeah, I'm excited. For anyone thinking about getting into the miles and points world, you can go from a little bit, just dipping your feet in, to extremes, right? There's a whole community out there. And whether you want first class travel or just to go to Orlando with your family, you can do whatever you want. So even though you may read some blogs and see me going to Tokyo in first class, and that's not what you want, you can make points and miles work for you in whatever way. And at the end of the day, it's just being smart. I would say, if you want the best mortgage, you can't just Google, give me the best mortgage for me. And it's going to do all the research. And it takes a little bit of research with miles and points. It is kind of personal finance, but it definitely pays off in the end.