70 years of the Italian Hotel Concierge Association

The 42nd National UIPA Florence-Pisa Congress from November 17 to 20

TEXT Virginia Mammoli

Professionalism, care and a ention in order to give hotel guests access to the best experiences possible while enhancing the history, art, culture, tradition and natural beauties of local areas that have no equal. Yes, because a Les Clefs d’Or concierge is the person who not only knows everything about the city’s main a ractions, top restaurants and must-see events, but is also commi ed to fulfilling the passions, dreams, tastes and needs of hotel guests by creating custom-made stays, even achieving the impossible at times. He or she possesses the gi of being, at the same time, a friend, a psychologist and a genie of the lamp who makes all dreams come true. This tradition led to the creation of an increasingly wider international network - including forty-seven countries across the world - of which the

Italian Hotel Concierge Association, which celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, is

a member. A history dating back to the mid-1900s, with the establishment of the Italian Les Clefs d’Or section in 1949, which led, three years later, to the first National Congress held in Pisa, Tuscany, where

one of the first regional associations of Les Clefs d’Or in Italy was established as an indepen-

dent group. To mark this major anniversary, the 42nd National UIPA

Florence-Pisa Congress will be held from November 17 to

20 at the Hotel Plaza Lucchesi, where the meetings of delegates and workshops will take place, along with the awarding of the Fabio Carlesi Prize, dedicated to the charismatic Head Concierge of Florence’s Excelsior Hotel, also the former President of the Tuscany association. The award goes to the young concierge chosen to represent Italy at the international UICH competition (Union Internationale des Concierges d’Hôtels Les Clefs d’Or). The program includes guided tours of the city, while the gala event will take place at the 15th-century Palazzo Ximènes Panciatichi, the elegant event that crowns this important meeting and strengthens such a precious network built on genuine sharing and communication.