Juergen was born in Rostock, Germany. He left the occupied zone shortly after the war and settled in Munich, where he studied History of Arts and Journalism at the university.Juergen came to the United States in 1954, not necessarily on a permanent basis, but with the intention of getting to know America. After a few months in New York, he came to Chicago, where he worked at the famous Edgewater Beach Hotel.

Looking for a job in the travel industry he was hired by the Chicago Motor Club as a travel consultant in their International Travel Department, which he subsequently managed for more than 10 years. Paul Klein contacted him in 1969 to offer him a partnership and eventual ownership of Paul Klein Travel.

Juergen’s affiliation with the world of travel extends over 50 years. He was one of the founding fathers of A.T.I. (Allied Travel) which is now Virtuoso. He has been on the advisory board of many cruise-lines, hotels, and trade organizations, and is the only appointed life-time member of Virtuoso’s “On-Site Committee” that selects ground operators providing top service to our clients all over the world.

One of Juergen’s famous lines is “Been there, done that”. He has been everywhere and experienced almost every worthwhile event any luxury traveler could dream of. His relations with hoteliers, cruise lines and other travel suppliers spans decades. Juergen has seen them come and go. He was among the first to fly the Concorde in its inaugural season. He was on the last sailings of Cunard’s original Queen Mary, the Constitution and the Royal Viking Star and has seen more airlines come and go than most of us have flown on.

2005 was a “Double Celebration”; Paul Klein Travel’s 60th anniversary and Juergen’s 50th year in travel!