Chris was born in Dallas and has lived all over the country since then. Growing up, he spent about ten years in Westchester County, just outside of New York City. He also spent a couple of years going to school in Pennsylvania. His high school years were spent in Lufkin, Texas and that’s where he got his first job in radio.
The broadcasting industry would ultimately take him to Boston, Las Vegas, back to Lufkin and finally to Houston. Over a 25-year career, he played every type of music and met (and worked with) some amazing people. Throughout that time, he was an amateur travel agent, constantly helping his friends and family book vacations and plan travel excursions.
He is the founder and owner of PREMIER CUSTOM TRAVEL, a travel agency based in Iowa Colony, Texas and specializing in cruises, theme park vacations, the Sandals & Beaches Resorts, and destinations worldwide.
Chris lives in Iowa Colony, Texas with his girlfriend Melissa and their cats Otto, who serves as the company's mascot and official office kitty, and Sammy. In his spare time, Chris enjoys going to see live theatre, traveling, sports (especially baseball, hockey and football), spending time with his friends, and going to restaurants and wine tastings.
In 2022, Chris was inducted into the Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) Hall of Fame as the Elite Cruise Counsellor (ECC) of the Year. Chris is a CLIA Elite Cruise Counsellor, a CLIA Luxury Cruise Specialist, a CLIA-certified Travel Agency Executive (TAE), a Travel Institute Certified Travel Counselor, an IATA Accredited Agent, a Verified Travel Advisor with ASTA - the American Society of Travel Advisors, a Silver Certified Sandals Specialist and a SNG Certified Accessible Travel Advocate. In July of 2013, Chris was selected from among thousands of travel agents to be Carnival Cruise Line's Fun Planner of the Month. In 2020, Chris was chosen to participate in the CruiseWorld Star Program. Chris also has a seat on the CLIA StarBoard, the travel agent advisory committee for Cruise Lines International Association.
Chris is also a co-author of the #1 best-selling book The Travel Advisor's Handbook.
