Conrad Hotels launches new concierge app

By Samantha Rea

The Conrad Hotels and Resorts group has released a new app which it says could help replace traditional concierge services, recommending local activities for time-tight travellers.

The suggestions are curated by Nilou Motamed, the former editor-in-chief of Conde Nast's Epicurious who has hand-picked experiences in 12 destinations including Hong Kong, Singapore, London and Dubai.

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What does it do?

The app offers users a range of experiences in categories including food, shopping, art and adventure. These can be filtered down according to how much time a guest has available, with the option to pick experiences according to time slots of one, three and five hours.

For guests of the Conrad in New York, suggestions include visiting the One World Observatory ($26-$32 for one hour), a stroll along the high line, followed by lunch in the Meatpacking District (five hours), and joining the Urban Circus for a spot of flying trapeze ($50-$70 for five hours).

That sounds very active – is there anything more relaxed on offer?

For the more less exercise-centric traveller, there's the "Only in New York" beauty fix which promises a mani-pedi to remember ($40 for one hour), and Ginny's Supper Club, a speakeasy-style jazz lounge ($45 for five hours). If that's not relaxing enough, the Conrad provides a rather luxurious robe and an ever-replenishing chocolate tray, in the hotel suite.

Do you have to stay at the hotel to use the service?

No. Details of the curated experiences are available online and the app is freely available to download, so there's no need to stay at the hotel to use the service.

Any reason to give it a miss?

Each experience has been carefully chosen for the high-end consumer, and sticking solely to the suggestions could mean seeing only an expensive version of the destination city you are in. While the initiative aims to offer authentic experiences, brand experts in the luxury sector may not always be the best source for advice. Many online city guides recommend that to really experience a city, the best thing to do is simply to throw away the map.

What is the competition?

The Conrad is not the only hotel to offer a concierge app. Fairmont Hotels offers an app it describes as, "like having a concierge in your pocket at all times." The Ritz-Carlton also offers an app which it says offers a "reservationist, local guide and on property concierge all in one."