The Four Seasons is known as one of the top hotel brands in the world. Their beds are famously comfortable, and the cross-portfolio architecture is highly regarded. But if there’s one thing that keeps guests coming back, it’s the service. And that couldn’t be more true than at the Four Seasons Hotel New York.
Located on “Billionaires’ Row,” the concierge team at the midtown hotel has more Golden Key awards for excellence in hospitality than any other hotel staff in the United States. They can secure a table at the hottest restaurants in the city, plan out the perfect itinerary and will even remember how you take your coffee.
But, as you can imagine, the team’s members have received notably unique requests from their VIP guests over the years. Below, the concierge team at Four Seasons Hotel New York shares some of their most interesting and over-the-top guest asks.
Daniel Craig’s James Bond Tuxedo
“One of our guests was getting married and called the concierge about getting him a tuxedo,” said a team member. “He didn’t want just any tuxedo; he wanted the same tuxedo that Daniel Craig wore in his last James Bond movie (including the inner pocket for a pistol).”
As Brioni exclusively made the requested tuxedo in Italy for the film, numerous discussions had to take place directly with the manager at Brioni in Italy. And since it was August, the response initially was met with hesitation, as their entire production team was on vacation. However, Brioni was very intrigued by the request, so they were able to assemble the whole team to complete the tuxedo and had it shipped to us at the hotel in time for the wedding.
Vietnamese Proposal
“One of our guests was proposing to his girlfriend,” said a team member. “The Concierge arranged for one of our pages to go to Central Park with a sign asking, ‘Will You Marry Me?’ in a specific Vietnamese dialect from their small town.”
They were able to find a team member in the hotel, who wrote the message on the poster board. The guest had booked a beautiful suite overlooking Central Park, and arranged for a telescope to be placed in the room. The girlfriend walked through a trail of rose petals in the suite leading to the telescope, which was focused on the exact spot where the page was standing in Central Park. When the girlfriend looked through the telescope and saw the sign, she turned around, and her boyfriend appeared behind her. Obviously, she said yes.
Snowman Surprise
Guests from California traveled to NYC with their children who had never experienced snow. While they were here visiting, it snowed. However, since they were out shopping at the time, they asked the Concierge if they would collect some snow for them on the terrace. When the family arrived back to their room, they were greeted by a snowman wearing a Four Seasons baseball cap on their terrace.
Cell Phone Hunt
One of the guests checked into the hotel in a panic and went straight to the Concierge in hopes they could help her. The problem? She had left her wallet in one of the ladies rooms in one of the rest stops along the New Jersey Turnpike, but wasn’t entirely sure which one.
“Within one hour, we called all of the rest stops along the Turnpike, and were able to locate her wallet and ensure that the rest stop’s security personnel held it until the rightful owner went to pick it up,” said a team member. “We then booked her a car service to take her to the right location, where she collected her wallet, fully intact.”
An Early-Morning Shirt Purchase
A VIP was due to arrive in NYC on a redeye flight, with just enough time to go directly from the airport to his very important business meeting (where he would be closing a deal). But as the plane was landing, he spilled a cup of coffee on his shirt—and with no extra time to stop by the hotel, his assistant reached out to the Concierge for help.
“We were able to contact the manager of a nearby store before their opening hours, who was kind enough to open the store one hour early so we could purchase the guest a new shirt,” said a team member. “The Concierge then took the shirt to the meeting point, waited for the guest to arrive, and provided him with the new shirt in time for his scheduled meeting.”
