He’s booked and busy.
Since launching the wildly successful travel website The Points Guy back in 2010, Brian Kelly has been a sought-after source for tips on traversing the globe.
Now, the guru of go is taking his act from digital to print, compiling 15 years’ worth of experience into his first book, “How to Win at Travel.”
“Frankly, travel is still really confusing,” the 41-year-old frequent-flier told The Post about the motivation behind his new tome for tourists. “I see so many people making mistakes.”
In the decade and a half since “The Points Guy” was founded, Americans have been traveling at record rates — but many still find themselves flummoxed when it comes to planning the perfect trip.
Between overwhelming accommodation options, iffy insurance policies and confounding, ever-evolving points-based travel reward programs, it’s easy to feel checked out before you even get to check-in.
Fortunately, the peripatetic pro’s guide to all of the above and more hits shelves Feb. 4 — and it’ll slip snugly into your carry-on.
To coincide with the book’s launch, Kelly shared some of his most valuable vacation hacks with The Post — read on and get packing.
Cheap seats
Flight prices are soaring sky-high in 2025, with tickets for some routes expected to increase by a jaw-dropping 14% in the coming months.
Thus, it’s no surprise that Kelly is most frequently asked about how to procure plane seats for the lowest possible price.
For years, rumors have run rampant that Tuesday is the cheapest day for plane tickets, while some swear that booking exactly six weeks out snags them the sweetest deal.
But Kelly claims that’s all bunk.
“There’s no one best magical day where all of a sudden the fairy flight godfather just makes all flights cheap,” he declared.
Instead: be flexible — both with the dates and your exact location — and get on Google Flights.
“Google.com/flights is a free tool that every travel expert that I know uses,” the expert asserted. “The real hack with Google Flights is this little button called ‘Explore’ and that’ll let you put in your home city and then a destination region.”
For example: “Say it’s freezing cold and you want to get away for a warm weekend as cheaply as possible, you can put in a certain time frame… and it’ll reverse engineer pull in all the cheapest flights so you can just look on a map and then select the cheapest flights.”
“That’s how you save money,” Kelly declared.
Insurance
In addition to Google Flights, the intrepid expert says there’s a second site that’s essential to look at before you fly: insuremytrip.com
While most mindless travelers will simply choose the stock-standard insurance that’s an optional add-on to their airline ticket or hotel stay, Kelly says that’s something to avoid.
“The biggest mistake people make with travel insurance is buying it through the airline or hotel,” he said. “Do not do that in general. That’s not even travel insurance. It’s called travel protection, and you’re paying a huge premium for really bad coverage.”
Instead, he advises you to “compare and contrast policies” at insuremytrip.com.
“It has all the insurers… it’s very simple to compare and contrast policies,” he explained. The most expensive policies don’t always give you the best coverage, so put in your details for your trip. It’ll show the top three quotes and then see which is the best coverage for the best price.”
Baggage
The former CEO of American Airlines recently revealed that he’d never check a bag when flying — and Kelly concedes that tactic does make the airport experience infinitely easier.
“You have much more flexibility if you don’t check a bag,” he explained. “However, I have kids, [so] there’s no way I’m [only] doing a carry-on.”
Kelly urges those who check a bag to “get an airline credit card that gives you a free checked bag because bag fees keep rising even more than the costs of airfares.”
Additionally, he advises adding an Airtag to your checked luggage, so you can track its whereabouts in the event it goes missing en route to your destination.
Meanwhile, an extra-cautious Kelly even pops an extra Airtag into his carry-on just in case.
“Sometimes we leave our [carry-on] luggage with the hotel that could go missing,” he stated. “So knowing where your belongings are at all times is critical.”
Summer travel is no longer hot
While Kelly did say it’s important to be flexible with dates, he believes that some travel seasons are superior to others.
He urges you to forget flocking to Italy’s Amalfi or the Greek islands in July or August, where there’s a plethora of US tourists and a dearth of air conditioning.
Kelly says it’s still warm enough to enjoy Europe in September and even October, and advises “shoulder season” travel — aka: trips that take place in the fall or the spring.
“During the summer… you’re going to pay through the nose,” he declared. “And frankly, most Europeans leave cities in August, so you’re going to go and have very inauthentic experiences.”
“Fall travel [on the other hand] in Europe is fabulous,” the guru gushed. “You’re going to pay a fraction of the cost and you can still catch that really nice weather now in certain places until October.”
Where to go
In the wake of the COVID pandemic, Portugal has become the destination du jour for American tourists, who are enamored by low prices and the country’s gorgeous coastline.
But is Portugal already played out? Kelly said that another inexpensive European country — also boasting beautiful seaside towns — is 2025’s place to be.
“Croatia has beautiful beaches, really fun party islands and [it comes] at a fraction of the cost,” he enthused. “It is definitely the hot spot.”
And what’s the one place in Europe you can confidently skip? Kelly says that’s Mykonos.
“It’s super expensive,” he declared of the über-popular Greek island.
“If you’re going to do Greece, the Athens Riviera is where it’s at now,” he dished.
“Right outside of Athens, there’s beautiful beach clubs… That’s where the real hidden gems are.”
