Concierge

[dee2]

Could people give me examples of what concierge with a platinum charge card has been able to do for them?
Lets share the good stories.
Im probably going to get this card as an upgrade from the gold charge card
which has been excellent.

 

[simongr]

Table at Tetsuyas in Sydney at the exact date and time I wanted with only three months notice. Previously I had tried 6/11 months in advance to get a table with no luck,

 

[aschmid]

Could people give me examples of what concierge with a platinum charge card has been able to do for them?
Lets share the good stories.
Im probably going to get this card as an upgrade from the gold charge card
which has been excellent.

From my personal experience I can only advise you NOT to upgrade to Platinum from Gold card.

I had Gold Card for years and was happy with it. I upgraded earlier this year to Platinum and it just has been a nightmare to the extend that I ended up canceling this card and at least for the moment don't want anything to do anymore with AMEX.

Read the threat here about "Platinum Service" and I think you get the idea why. They are hopeless. Their rules are so complicated as to what you can do and not and it takes several calls to get anything done as nobody in Platinum call centre follows up on anything.

Personally I think if you are happy with Gold and want to avoid major nightmares with AMEX don't go to Platinum. If you want Concierge service go with a Platinum Visa for a fraction of the cost.

 

[significance]

I moved to a platinum card just recently, and have had mixed results. I wasn't sure what they did or didn't do, so I have tried them out with a few things.
1) I asked them to research solar hot water systems for me, and arrange some quotes. I thought it was a long-shot that they'd do this, but they didn't seem taken aback. They did quite well with the research, and emailed me info about three different systems, but didn't really follow through with the quotes (I ended up arranging them myself). Still, this saved me a few calls so I was happy.

2) I asked them to recommend a local hairdresser in either the city centre in Canberra or in the area I live, and make an appointment for me that week if possible. They emailed me details of four hairdressers, one of which was in the city centre as requested, two were in other far-flung suburbs, and the third was in Brisbane! I asked them to go ahead and make me a booking for the first. They weren't able to book me in that week, so I ended up calling myself and booking at another convenient time.

3) I asked them to find a hotel room in Adelaide for me, after I'd first checked out what I could expect booking through Wotif. They admitted that they mostly just check the prices on Wotif themselves, but I think it was still worthwhile: they saved me the effort of trawling through the long list of available hotels trying to work out which looked nicest for the price. They suggested one that looked good, and I booked it myself.

4) After checking out car rentals online for a Brisbane trip, I called to ask if they could get me a rental at a better rate. They did, and the rate they managed to get was better than the discount I could get through the Entertainment Book, and also came with a free upgrade. Next time, I'll probably just go straight to the concierge for this.

Apart from one or two deals that they have with hotels and rental companies, my impression is that they basically just search online for whatever you ask about, but it can save some legwork.

 

[Homer]

2) I asked them to recommend a local hairdresser in either the city centre in Canberra or in the area I live, and make an appointment for me that week if possible. They emailed me details of four hairdressers, one of which was in the city centre as requested, two were in other far-flung suburbs, and the third was in Brisbane!

I have a Centurion card but the concierge service seems essentially the same as Platinum to me. A few years ago we were up in Brisbane for a wedding and my wife needed a hairdresser on a Saturday afternoon. I made three or four calls to the Centurion concierge and they couldn't find one. I eventually found one myself just by asking a local.

When we returned to Sydney I called and spoke to a supervisor because we pay a reasonable amount for this service and they were unable to fulfill what seemed like a straightforward request. I asked if they just Googled this type of thing and he told me they use some sort of concierge software but, if it doesn't have the answer, then they use Google. He also told me that they have difficulty with some requests if you want information about places outside of Sydney or Melbourne because that is where most members are located and also where their software has the widest coverage.

I suggested they start hiring some actual hotel concierges rather than young call centre types and was told that they had a project to do exactly that. Since then someone that I know who was formerly a concierge at a major Sydney hotel has begun working there and, when I get/ask for him, I find that you now receive the sort of inside information and even advice that you expect from a product describing itself as a "concierge" service.

 

[Evan]

I would not upgrade your card for that reason only but as mentioned, good to find out if a club is open before you move or if you want a restaurant booked.
In Asia platinum is much more useful than just in Australia.

 

[AnonymousCoward]

Apart from one or two deals that they have with hotels and rental companies, my impression is that they basically just search online for whatever you ask about, but it can save some legwork.

That may be the case in general, but they do have deals with FHR hotels.

Additionally they have some partners they can book hotels through "on request". Has saved me a bunch of money booking hotels in Canberra (Crowne Plaza & Hyatt) that advertise v.expensive rates during parliamentary sitting weeks.

 

[dee2]

I wanted to upgrade from gold as I wanted
1. access to the free flight
2. priority pass
3. concierge

and they offered me $600 for the first year

 

[deluxeflyer]

I wanted to upgrade from gold as I wanted
1. access to the free flight
2. priority pass
3. concierge

and they offered me $600 for the first year

Here's my experience:
I applied for the Priority Pass membership on a Monday morning by fax.
Concierge promised to do whatever possible to get it to me as quickly as poss.
I received it by Fedex on the Wednesday morning, from HKG,
scarcely 48 hours later.
I was and still am impressed.

 

[Homer]

Here's my experience:
I applied for the Priority Pass membership on a Monday morning by fax.
Concierge promised to do whatever possible to get it to me as quickly as poss.
I received it by Fedex on the Wednesday morning, from HKG,
scarcely 48 hours later.
I was and still am impressed.

But did they bill you $25 for the courier?

 

[wiz]

1. Got tickets for a friend to a U2 concert in Amsterdam, which had already been sold out at the time of request.
2. Been given excellent seats and service when making last minute (i.e. same day) bookings to a few good restaurants around Australia.
3. Have been very good with emergency home assistance (I locked myself out of my apartment once or twice), and I was actually reimbursed for the call-out fees too (as this service was included in the platinum membership).
4. Excellent courier arrangements and pretty good rates with their preferred provider (Toll Priority).

Of course, this is just concierge related. There are a lot of other benefits which make it excellent value for certain lifestyles, not the least of which is the complimentary Priority Pass membership and travel insurance (which, incidentally, is more comprehensive than most commissionable policies).

 

[pauly7]

Table at Tetsuyas in Sydney at the exact date and time I wanted with only three months notice. Previously I had tried 6/11 months in advance to get a table with no luck,

Are you serious??! TBH I never actually personally book the tables our EA does it all but we get in within a fortnight or two... maybe she has an 'arrangement' I don't know about...

 

[AviationNZ]

This may be a couple of stupid questions...but I'll ask anyway...

I'm a supplementary Plat Business Card holder and I've never used the Concierge before.

1. Am I eligable?
2. Does it cost anything for the service?
3. Is there anywhere that lists all the possible uses for the services?

Cheers.

 

[simongr]

Are you serious??! TBH I never actually personally book the tables our EA does it all but we get in within a fortnight or two... maybe she has an 'arrangement' I don't know about...

Yep - I tried on three separate occasions trying to book between 6 and 11 months out and had no luck booking.

 

[significance]

This may be a couple of stupid questions...but I'll ask anyway...

I'm a supplementary Plat Business Card holder and I've never used the Concierge before.

1. Am I eligable?
2. Does it cost anything for the service?
3. Is there anywhere that lists all the possible uses for the services?

Cheers.

1. Yep. 2. No. 3. No.
(To the best of my knowledge)

 

[AviationNZ]

1. Yep. 2. No. 3. No.
(To the best of my knowledge)

And if I use the service to book a restaurant for instance, do I have to use the AMEX to pay, or I am free to pay however I want?

 

[significance]

And if I use the service to book a restaurant for instance, do I have to use the AMEX to pay, or I am free to pay however I want?

You can pay however you want. If you ask them to organise payment for you, though, it might have to be on the AMEX.

 

[deluxeflyer]

But did they bill you $25 for the courier?

Nope. Completely FOC.

 

[deluxeflyer]

This may be a couple of stupid questions...but I'll ask anyway...

I'm a supplementary Plat Business Card holder and I've never used the Concierge before.

1. Am I eligable?
2. Does it cost anything for the service?
3. Is there anywhere that lists all the possible uses for the services?

Cheers.

I think Concierge is only available to Platinum & Centurion Charge cardmembers and their supps only, but I could be mistaken.

The Platinum website gives some possible uses of the service, but really, you are only limited by your imagination.