2019-09-01_Lonely_Planet_Traveller

We’veheld aeroplanesback for guests,and hoppedon flightsat shortnotice.If you

seetheClefsd’Orgoldenkeysona concierge’slapel,it meanswe’lldoanythinglegallyandhumanly

possibleforyou.A celebritystayingwithuscreateda hand-writtenpoemforhiswifeinLAfortheir

anniversary.Courierservicesweretooslow,sowehadtodeliverit ourselves.Afterworkingan

eight-hourshift,mycolleaguewentstraighttotheairport.Hewasprobablyup for 50 hours straight.

Whenmoneyis no issue,it’s easierto makethingshappen.OneMiddleEasternmonarch

wanteda Siamesecatwithdifferent-colouredeyes.Thattooka lotofresearch,astheyarea freakofnature.

We finallyfoundabreeder.She said no initially,but eventuallyquotedaround€12,000.Acolleagueat

the Hyatthad aguestwho wantedto export120 cowsto Qatar.Requestslike this are alwaysan adventure.

Agood conciergefostersanetworkall over the city, helpingguestsaccesssecretor

booked-outplaces.Forexample,theBorosCollectionisa contemporaryartexhibitina war-era

undergroundbunkerinBerlin.There’snosign,soit’seasytowalkpast.Youcangetanappointmentto

seeit online.It’susuallybookedoutmonthsinadvance;whenyoucomeandseeus,wecangetyouin.

Aspart of Les Clefs d’Or,Ican lean on the connectionsof conciergesin othercities.

AcoupleofmonthsagoI calleda conciergeinMunichbecausewehada Mexicanfamilystayingwith us

whowantedtodoa stadiumtourofBayernMunich.Thetourswerebookedoutbuthewasableto

arrangeone. I’d noticedthe son had a jerseyon with RobertLewandowski’s name on the back. We had

theplayersigntheT-shirtforhim.Theyoungmanwasblown away.

Thekindsof requestswe get have changed.Twentyyearsago,it wasrareina luxuryhotelto

seetattoosandpiercings.NowI needtoknowwherethebesttattooparlourinBerlinis.I recommend

Blut& Eisen(blutundeisen.de),whichhaswell-known,creativeartistswhocandrawanythingforyou.

The internethas changedthe way peopleuse us, but they still valueface-to-face

insights.Nowadayspeoplecometo the desk with five restaurantsthey’vefoundon TripAdvisorand

wantyour opinion.But it’s hard to find local recommendationsonline.I send peopleto placesI go to

myself,like ArminiusMarkthalle.It’s one of the last remaining19th-centurymarkethalls,with high

ceilingsandwroughtirontypicalofPrussianarchitecture.It’snotglamorousbutit’sanauthenticWest

Berlinexperience,withspecialitiessuchascurrysausage,regionalcheeses,andseasonalbeersondraft.

Travellersincreasinglywantto becomepart of the communitythey’revisiting,

even if only for abrief moment.I hada guestwhowantedtomeeta refugee.I putthemontoan

associationcalledWelcomeDinnerBerlinthatorganisesdinnerswithrefugeesindifferentlocations.

Refugeesare a big aspectof the city at the moment,so the guestwanted to know about it. It’s a nice gesture.

WhenItravel,Iask otherconciergesfor theirtips.InNewYork,I wassenttoMaialino,a

trattoriawithheartfeltserviceandslow-roastsucklingpigthat’samazinglytenderwitha crispyskin.

Google‘Italianrestaurantsin Manhattan’and you’llfind 2,000– placeslike this are hard to find unless

someonepersonallyrecommendsthem.InCannes,I discoveredLePastis,whichtransportsyouto

ruralProvence,andinSalzburg,ZumFidelenAffen,a rusticAustrianrestaurantwithfantastichot

cherry Kaiserschmarrn pancakes. People don’t take advantage of concierges’ local knowledge enough.

’We’ ll do

anything

that is

legally and

humanly

possible

for you’

Tolearnmoreabout

LesClefsd’Or,see

lesclefsdor.org.

ThomasMunkoof theRitz-CarltonBerlinis presidentof theGermanchapter of

Les Clefs d’Or, an international fraternity of elite hotel concierges

What IÕve learned...

working as a

five-star concierge

PHOTOGRAPHS: RICARDA SPIEGEL, JULIA REMEZOVA/SHUTTERSTOCK