Welcome to the Frugal Flyer Team, Kirin!

Fresh off a team retreat at the W Seattle and the launch of the Miles Ahead podcast, we continue to look for experienced miles and points experts who want to share their knowledge with our readers.

As with anything in this hobby, opportunities often present themselves, and with that in mind, we are excited to announce the newest addition to the Frugal Flyer team, Kirin Tsang. We’ve known Kirin for many years and are excited to bring him into the roster of Frugal Flyer contributors.

Welcome to Frugal Flyer, Kirin!

Kirin is a man of twists and turns, who enjoys learning every detail of a points program or credit card product and then using its own rules to his advantage. He’s been an avid student of the miles and points community since 2019 and loves meeting other enthusiasts because he views the hobby as a real way to enhance and better his life as much as a pastime in and of itself.

An avid lover of the Romantic languages he has studied Latin and speaks English, French, and Portuguese. Aside from his love for travel, he is also an amateur writer with a particular fascination for subjects as esoteric and wide-ranging as medieval magic and the hermit kingdom of North Korea.

We asked Kirin a few questions to learn more about him and to see what to expect from him on Frugal Flyer in 2024 and beyond.

What got you into Miles & Points?

Back in the spring of 2019, I went with a friend for lunch. He paid with his BMO World Elite card, which to broke-ass me looked about as slick as the American Express Centurion Card. I then realized that because I had finally entered the workforce and was looking at an upward career trajectory, I could get into these credit cards as well.

That summer, I read everything I could get my greasy paws on via the “usual suspect” websites: Redflagdeals, Prince of Travel, and even a few miles and points focused subreddits. I also moved to Edmonton, Alberta, where I knew exactly one person, and so I was in need of a new hobby.

Enter Miles & Points, where the biggest reward thus far has literally been the friends I made along the way. The best runner-up has been the slick hotels and flight redemptions though.

It’s been a wild ride, with many trips and even a stint at Prince of Travel. I’ve been proud to have furthered my knowledge in this space solidly for the past 5 years, and I’m hoping there are many more to come as a member of the Frugal Flyer team.

Do you have any redemptions you are looking forward to in 2024?

For October of this year, I have secured a Turkish Business class flight on the Boeing 777-ER from Montreal to Istanbul, formerly Constantinople.

My obsession with the Queen of Cities and her storied past, particularly her time as the center of the Roman (and later Byzantine) world, is well-known to all my friends. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to walk in the footsteps of warriors, priests, emperors, and merchantmen on the History of Byzantium tour hosted by Robin Pierson of the eponymous podcast. 

I’ve been listening to this podcast since its early days covering the fall of the Western Roman Empire. I thank providence for having introduced me to the Miles & Points hobby that allows me to travel and partake in this once-in-a-lifetime tour of Asia Minor in style I normally would never have been able to afford.

What areas of miles and points interest you most? What do you plan to write about on Frugal Flyer?

I have always loved the thrill of the chase – for me, maximizing miles and points is a way to get the best value for the lowest inputs. This is because I’ve always disliked how complex or bureaucratic systems can inconvenience individuals.

For me, it’s a huge reward to be able to figure out how a financial system or credit card product works, and then use its own rules to my own greatest advantage. This is because I feel that individuals who seek to make their own luck will often find it.

I also love the social aspects of miles and points and getting to know other enthusiasts – this hobby is to improve my life and the lives of others rather than just an end in itself.

What do you do in your free time?

Aside from long walks on the beach and forming a real emotional connection?

I have a pile of esoteric hobbies: I’m a sometime writer and am currently in the very early stages of a book about North Korea. I also like working out because I used to be fat and don’t want to be anymore, I cannot shut up about Dante’s Divine Comedy or Byzantine history, and am a well-known stan of the karate soap drama-comedy Cobra Kai.

Conclusion

We are excited to welcome Kirin to the Frugal Flyer team and look forward to his contributions! You can expect to see his first article tomorrow, titled “The Importance of Being a Miles & Points Opportunist”.