Brian Kelly is the founder and CEO of The Points Guy (TPG), the preeminent voice in the industry of points, miles and everything travel-related. Kelly launched TPG in 2010 during his time as a Wall Street road warrior, where he developed his keen sense for maximizing travel experiences while minimizing spending. Since then, Kelly has grown the company into a powerhouse travel and lifestyle media platform, and through a team of distinguished editors and freelancers that span the globe, has expanded its editorial content to include flight and hotel reviews, curated travel guides, immersive video reviews, as well as global event activations. Voted Forbes #1 travel influencer in 2017, Kelly is the industry leader, shaping the way consumers and brands approach travel. Today, TPG has a dedicated fan base, receiving 5.2 million unique monthly visitors and more than 2.2 million followers on social media.
Through his vision of using travel as a force for good, Kelly serves on the board of the Rainbow Railroad and is a Global Ambassador for the PeaceJam organization. As a Goalkeeper for the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Kelly recently committed to raising 5 million air miles for the Goalkeepers’ Women’s Movement Accelerator, which helps women activists to have their voices heard by decision-makers on important issues. Kelly is also a member of PTTOW, a year-round community of innovative and creative leaders across business, sports, arts, and culture.
Our Team
Adam joined The Points Guy full time in 2016 after consulting since 2014. A gatekeeper with locks of steel, Adam works directly with Brian to maximize Brian’s travel, expense and time management. A Points Guy that loves to challenge ‘The Points Guy’ to keep Brian on top of his points and miles game, Adam is also a points and miles expert. Born and raised in NYC and graduated from NYU in 2002, Adam now resides full time in Miami Beach, Florida.
Jill Holtsinger is the VP of Data and Analytics, with 10 years of media experience across A+E Networks, Federated Media and Forbes. Prior to joining The Points Guy, Jill was an avid site reader racking up her own points and miles. Travel has always been a personal passion and her favorite destinations include Jose Ignacio, Mexico City and Paris but her bucket list includes Patagonia and Japan. She can be reached at jill@thepointsguy.com.
Kate O’Brien joined The Points Guy team just over 5 years ago in June of 2012. Starting out as Brian’s personal assistant, she learned the business as she went along and took on the role of Director of Marketing & Compliance – as the team likes to say, ‘Kate knows where all the bodies are buried’. On a day to day basis Kate develops and maintains relationships with credit card issuers and works on discovering new revenue and affiliate opportunities.
Thailand and Cape Town have been some of Kate’s favorite travel destinations so far, but she is pretty confident that her African Safari honeymoon will take the cake next year!
Becca Denenberg joined The Points Guy team from Charitybuzz where she spent five years in Client Development, collaborating with nonprofits, celebrities, influencers and business leaders to expand their philanthropy. A graduate of the University of Michigan, she majored in Organizational Studies, an interdisciplinary program focusing on Psychology, Sociology and Economics.
At TPG, Becca manages marketing, PR, events and charity initiatives. Her favorite travel destinations include Japan, Thailand, Australia and Bali!
You can reach her by email at becca@thepointsguy.com, or follow her travels on Instagram.
A Milanese transplanted to New York by way of Rome, Atlanta and Manhattan, Alberto leads TPG’s editorial team — and as an AvGeek, he is thrilled to be running a crew full of people who can tell a 767 from a 777 at a glance. His journalism career began as a reporter covering airlines and railways for a news agency in Italy, and has taken him to a few dozen countries working for CNN, Bloomberg and Vice, among others. He lives in Brooklyn and is happiest at high altitude, whether on a plane or climbing in the Alps. He speaks Italian, French and Spanish, and one day he’ll be less awful at German. You can follow Alberto on Instagram and Twitter.
As Editor-at-Large, Zach Honig is responsible for covering several core TPG verticals, including airlines, hotels, loyalty programs and credit cards, while also serving as a mentor to writers and editors and assisting with the direction of the site’s editorial content. Additionally, Zach is a lifelong aviation enthusiast and a private pilot, although he prefers to spend his time in the air in a lie-flat bed, catching up on the latest flicks while dining on caviar and Champagne. Zach joined TPG in April 2015 as the site's first Editor-in-Chief, transitioning to his current role in September 2017.
Emily McNutt has been an avid traveler from a young age. From the annual family trip from Upstate New York to Disney World (and forever being scarred by the "It's a Small World" song on repeat), to the summer getaways in Cape Cod, Emily's affinity for venturing to new places has only grown. Since those summer days on Wellfleet's beaches, Emily's traveled to experience all four seasons in one day in Cape Town and the frigid Nordic air in Tromsø, Norway. In all, she's visited six continents (still looking for that one Antarctica opportunity!). Some of her favorite destinations to date include Tallinn, Estonia; Cape Town, South Africa; and Auckland, New Zealand — and, of course, Cape Cod! Her travel bucket list includes Namibia, Rwanda, exploring more of New Zealand, Georgia (the country), Vietnam, Bolivia, Chile, Greenland, Iceland, Tanzania and Madagascar.
Emily holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri (MIZ!) and a master's degree in journalism from New York University. You can reach her via email at emily@thepointsguy.com or on Twitter @em_mcnutt
Julian learned the ins and outs of travel loyalty programs while flying more than 200,000 miles a year as a TV producer and director for World Wrestling Entertainment (and yes, of course it's all real). Before becoming a Senior Editor for The Points Guy, he had previously written about travel loyalty programs for U.S. News and World Report, Travel Codex and Frequent Miler.
A graduate of the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Julian has appeared as an analyst on multiple media outlets to discuss travel and loyalty programs, including television segments for Bloomberg News, CNBC's "Squawk Box," Cheddar TV and on NBC affiliates across the country. He has also been interviewed on ABC and CBS Radio, CNBC.com, and in the Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal.
Lifelong avgeek and optimist. Passion for problem-solving and travel. Relatively well versed in 737 & 777 standard operating procedures, and didn't have the fish. Never not learning.
Samantha manages social and content strategy for TPG. She studied marketing at Tulane University, and will never hesitate to tell you how obsessed she is with New Orleans. Sam has been an avid traveler from a young age, and studied abroad in Madrid during her junior year of college; Hong Kong, Thailand, Cape Town, and Buenos Aires are all on her bucket list. There's also a good chance she's planning her next meal as you're reading this sentence... or at SoulCycle.
You can get in touch with her by e-mail at samantha@thepointsguy.com, or follow her on Instagram and Twitter.
Born and raised in Northern California, schooled in our Nation's capital, and currently working in the greatest city in the world - NYC. I was instantly hooked to traveling the second I stepped foot in Europe. The addiction only grew once I found out I could do it for free, all on points and miles.
I could also eat bagels for every meal.
Follow me on Instagram @brendandorsey1 or on Twitter @brendan_dorsey
De'Asia Collins oversees all TPG office activities and plans fun team-building events each quarter. She brings in fresh ideas and a passion for travel and exploration that never ceases. She graduated from the University of Hartford in 2014 with a focus in her studies on biology and photography. Since a child she's been a frequent flyer to Jamaica, but her favorite destination ever is London. She is hoping to continue expanding her travels as she brings her unique experiences to the team!
Already well-traveled, JT Genter stumbled across The Points Guy in 2014. Blown away by the potential travel savings from utilizing credit card sign-up bonuses and knowing mileage program sweet spots, he jumped in head first. Since then, he and his wife Katie have generated over 4.6 million miles/points and visited 26 countries, primarily on award or discounted economy fares.
JT started contributing for The Points Guy in July 2015 with a series of three economy flight reviews as part of an award redemption that took him around the globe. The overwhelmingly positive reaction from readers helped secure him a role on the TPG team initially as an economy flight reviewer. When he's not reviewing flights, he covers American Airlines, Oneworld, IHG, Amex Offers, general news and uses his number-crunching abilities anytime they're needed on other topics.
In September 2016, he gave up his full-time tax accounting job to contribute full-time for TPG. In February 2017, he joined the TPG team as a full-time writer. Now, JT and his wife Katie have sold or donated almost all of their possessions and transitioned to become "digital nomads" — traveling the world and writing about their experiences for TPG.
Feel free to pass along any tips or leads to JT at jt@thepointsguy.com. Outside of The Points Guy, you can follow JT via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat (@jtgenter).
Sarah's been obsessed with travel ever since age six, when her family took a cruise trip to Mexico — though she quickly learned she prefers traveling by plane and staying on land, ideally at a Hyatt or SPG property. Her favorite destinations include Bermuda, Cambodia, Ireland and Japan, and she's been able to visit each multiple times thanks to the points and miles hobby. In addition to helping TPG readers book their dream trips, she enjoys acting as an unofficial credit card consultant to friends and family.
Richard Kerr is a veteran naval officer and founder of the Award Travel 101 Facebook community. He’s one of the foremost experts in points and miles strategy, featured in Forbes, US News, Money Magazine, Kiplinger Personal Finance and presented at #SXSW 2017. Richard has visited over 45 countries, lived in England and Japan, and spends his spare time dissecting loyalty program award charts to maximize the value of points and miles. Richard holds a BBA in International Business and has his wife and two small children in tow for his travels as often as possible.
Peter Rothbart joined The Points Guy as an editor and contributor in 2014. He produces a variety of points and miles content, including strategy guides, industry news and more. Peter became an award travel enthusiast when, prompted and encouraged by TPG’s own storied voyages, he earned his way to a free Hawaiian vacation in 2011. After years of road-tripping across North America and Europe as a touring musician, his interest in loyalty programs paired well with his profound appreciation for air travel and any bed that wasn’t the back seat of a van.
When he’s not writing, traveling or performing, Peter can often be found working with his brother to produce FOUND Magazine, raking in poker chips at Vegas casinos, or ruling the dodgeball courts of the Pacific Northwest with lethal marksmanship.
Nick Ewen recently joined The Points Guy full-time as Editor-at-Large, Special Projects after working as a contributor since 2012. Though he no longer logs 100,000+ miles in the air and 100+ nights in hotels each year, he still works tirelessly to make the most of every point and mile he earns. The strategies he’s learned have taken him to more than 25 countries, traveling in first or business class and staying in luxury hotels for next to nothing. Favorite destinations include London (site of his three-month study abroad program), New Zealand, the Seychelles, Bali, and Istanbul. Nick and his wife Lillian live in Florida with their three-year-old daughter Evy, who regularly appears in hotel reviews and undoubtedly will follow in her dad’s footsteps and become a full-fledged points & miles enthusiast.
You can reach Nick via email at nick.ewen@thepointsguy.com.
Having traveled to almost 40 countries over six continents and fluent in three languages, Lori Zaino gave up her New York City job working in fashion for a life of adventure. She moved to Madrid, Spain in 2008 and hasn’t stopped exploring since. As TPG’s International Contributor, Lori writes all sorts of content, like lifestyle and destination posts, about budget travel, trains, planes and more. Her favorite destinations are Cuba, Southern Italy, Myanmar and any Southeast Asian island she can backpack through. Her most recent travels have taken her to West Africa. Keep an eye out for her content on Asia, Europe and Latin America in 2017. Lori’s travel advice is to get Global Entry and always politely ask for an upgrade.
You can follow all of Lori’s adventures on her website, Travel Like Lori, or on her Instagram, Twitter or on Snapchat (StyleMadrid).
Miles, Hootie and Swisher are a trio of best friends that we call The Points Pups. They enjoy toys, dog bones, taking naps, giving kisses and sitting in/snoring through important meetings. Follow them on Instragram @thepointspups!