CAL PHL FLYER

Nothing..

JRA2000TL

Just used them for the 1st time--nothing major. I was in Chicago last weekend for my annual birthday trip. I tried to get reservations on Open Table for Wildfire downtown. Nothing was available within 2 hours of my requested time of 7pm. I figured, what the hell, I'm paying $$$ for this card....let's give the concierge a shot. I called them and they weren't able to get my 7pm request but a 6:30pm reservation, close enough.

This wasn't a major request that required a great deal of legwork, but it was nice to be able to get my dinner reservation within a reasonable amount of time close to my request. At least they were able to get what I probably couldn't if I called on my own.

semantic

I've generally found them quite good for theatre tickets in London, most recent was for the recent sold out run of Macbeth where they got me some very nice same day tickets at face value plus small booking fee.

VelvetKennedy

I just gave them a call for the first time and asked them for reservations at a few restaurants in the French Quarter in New Orleans for New Years Eve where I was not able to get reservations on my own. I also asked them if they can find a good balcony for us to hang out on. They're going to respond by noon tomorrow... I'll report back on the success.

Frank3172a

Where was the "garbage" res. ??? just curious

EnvoyBoy

This is my primary use for them. On a recent trip to Rome, I called them with names, times, dates, and number of people for each night of the trip.

They got to deal with the international calls, time zones, language, etc. They also did all the required re-confirming calls 24 hours in advance or whatever the restaurant wanted.

I got a single email with my trip's worth of meals all in one place, all with the necessary info.

The international reservations make it worth the cost of the annual fee.

Additionally:

A someone who sometimes travels alone (adding onto a work trip), they'll negotiate better perks for me with FHR properties. If I'm alone, what do I need with free breakfast for two or a complimentary lunch for two?

And they'll even call and make reservations at one of my favorite places near home that's hard to get into that doesn't even accept Amex.

sashasolar

I just had a very strange experience with Amex Plat lifestyle services... We are planning to go to Zurich for a city break and I was trying to get them to book tickets to a classical music or an opera concert and to recommend and book a restaurant for one of the evenings (I didn't have details of specific venues). I was basically told that they are not able to do any research for Platinum card members.

They can only book tickets for events and restaurants that I specifically tell them, but they are not able to recommend anything. This service is only available for Centurion customers...

I called customer services to check this and they've advised that a lifestyle representative was right - they don't do research for Platinum cardmembers.

Did anybody have similar experience?

I hold Amex Platinum International Euro card and I've used a UK number. Can I use a US number for lifestyle services or International Euro card holders are allowed to only use the UK number?

APFPilot1985

My fiancee wanted a specific style of UGG boots that were impossible to find. I called them at 11 at night and got a call the next morning that they had found me a pair. I had spent months trying to find these shoes and couldn't anywhere. That alone was worth the fee for me.

kennycrudup

FWIW, I've had US Plat Concierge do "research" style things for me (i.e., trying to get into Oprah's reception for Obama; turns out I didn't have an extra $50K lying around, though) and they've had no problem. I've even just E-mailed them my requests and they get back to me within 12 hrs.

boulderlaw

Plat Concierge did research on spas and day trips at a destination for me; however it was not much better info than I got with google in a few minutes.

rwilliams603

what's the email address you send requests too?

mia

https://www124.americanexpress.com/c.../concierge.jsp

You can also make your requests through
Platinum Card Concierge online.

PlatHunter

Either I've had bad luck lately with Plat Concierge or they just got a lot worse. The last 3 times I tried to get a restaurant reservation through them they were not able to get me one. But what happened yesterday is just plain bad!

I emailed Plat Concierge on 1/31/08 requesting a dinner reservation at Tao Restaurant for 2 people for 2/1/08 at around 8:00. This is the email I received:

Dear Mr. Plathunter,

I hope you are having a wonderful day! Based on your e mail, I have contacted Tao on your behalf and they do not have any availability within your specified time frame of 6:30pm to 9:30pm on Friday, February 1, 2008. They do hold an American Express table daily but unfortunately it has already been reserved. The hostess has stated that they would have availability at 5:15pm on the earlier side and 11:15pm on the later side for a party of 2. I have also researched availability within your specified time frame of restaurants offering Asian cuisine and at this time I would be able to offer availability at Buddha Bar, Aja, Geisha and Monkey Bar. These alternate restaurants have a great reputation for cuisine and service. I am sure that any one of these restaurants will entice your palate and provide you with an exquisite dining experience.

After getting this response I decided to go onto opentable.com just to check it out and to my shock I was able to get a reservation for 2 at 8:15. What kind of concierge service is this????

Here is the copy of the email from opentable.com:

Dear Plathunter,

Your OpenTable reservation is confirmed at Tao.

Please save this email confirmation for your records. Because you have not created an OpenTable account, this email is the only way to access your reservation.
--> Create an OpenTable account: deleted

Thank you for your reservation.
Tao.
We will make every effort to confirm your reservation by phone, but we respectfully request that you call the day of your reservation to confirm with us.
Live long, be happy and follow your own path. *** Please note: This restaurant is only participating in the New York Restaurant Week promotion during Lunch. ***

RESERVATION DETAILS:
Plathunter
Tao
Friday, February 1, 2008
8:15 PM
Party of 2
Confirmation Number: XXXXXX
Be sure to check in with the maitre d' when you arrive


Sorry for the long post but I had to vent

boulderlaw

IIRC, Opentable updates in real time. That means their info should match exactly the info on the computers in the restaurant. So, it is possible that if you had checked Opentable at the same time the concierge was calling, you both would have found no availability. I would guess that someone canceled in the time between when the concierge checked and when you logged on to Opentable.

Pure speculation, but it makes sense.

soitgoes

Some restaurants have tables set aside for Opentable reservations. That could explain the availability difference.