Right so somebody important is flying in and guess who got told to look after them. Three days. Your city, your call. Easy enough until the week before, when you’re at your desk with forty tabs open wondering if a river cruise is impressive or just a bit naff. I’ve done this maybe five times now. Got it wrong twice, fairly badly, so take what follows as advice from someone who’s paid for the lessons.
Day One, Go Easy On Them
Don’t plan much.
I know the urge, you want to show off the whole city in one go, but your client’s been on a plane for ten hours and their body thinks it’s 4am. Book a car for the airport. Proper driver, name on a card, the lot. Nobody’s first memory of London should be a taxi queue in the drizzle.
Put them somewhere central. Mayfair ideally. Then let it be for the afternoon.If they’re up for dinner at all, keep it early. Somewhere simple, and please, no tasting menu. Nobody who’s been awake since the small hours wants eleven tiny courses and a waiter explaining each one.
Day Two Is Where Work Actually Happens
Meetings in the morning, fine, obviously. But where you hold them matters more than you’d think. A conference room across town is a waste when you could grab a private room at their hotel or a members’ space nearby. Less travel. Less faff. Everyone arrives in a better mood, which I swear makes the actual conversation shorter.
Lunch next, and keep it tight. Ninety minutes, nothing heavy. I once took a client for a huge three course thing and watched him slowly disappear around 3pm, eyes open but nobody home. Didn’t make that mistake again.
Afternoon should be something that isn’t a meeting at all. A gallery tour, a quiet hour in one of the big museums, the old arcades off Piccadilly if shopping’s their thing. You don’t have to guess either, just send one email beforehand asking what they like. Some want culture, some want food, one guy I hosted only wanted to see Big Ben and be done with it. Totally fine, we saw Big Ben.
Pick One Dinner and Make It The Event
One night, one proper dinner. Book early. Two weeks at least, three if the place is any good, because the decent tables vanish quicker than you’d expect. When you ring, say it’s a client dinner so they can seat you somewhere you can actually hear each other. You want a corner, nowhere near the kitchen doors, and definitely away from the entrance where every new arrival lets a draught in.
Check numbers early, since international clients love bringing a colleague or two along. Ask about dietary stuff at the same time. Allergies, religious requirements, everything. There’s nothing worse than finding out halfway through the starter that someone at the table can’t eat what you ordered for everyone.
Then slow the whole thing down. Long dinner, proper conversation, no watch checking. If the wine list looks like a textbook just ask the sommelier, that’s their entire job and clients tend to respect a host who asks instead of bluffing. I used to bluff. It never worked once.
After Dinner Is Where People Remember The Trip
Plenty of hosts forget this part, honestly. The dinner finishes and they panic a bit, shake hands, send everyone off in cabs. But if it went well your client’s in a great mood and not remotely ready to sit in a hotel room watching the news.
London handles this well. Certain spots around the West End and Mayfair pull a properly upscale crowd with a lot of international faces, loads of energy, beautiful interiors, somewhere a guest from abroad feels like they’ve seen the real city and not a tourist version of it. Maddox London is the sort of place I’m thinking of, polished but lively, where the evening keeps going without it turning into a mess.
Couple of practical things. Tell your client the dress code ahead of time so they’re not caught out. Get there early enough that you skip any queue drama. And give yourself a limit, because there’s still a morning to survive. I ignored that once and walked into a 9am looking like I’d lost an argument with a lorry. Everyone noticed. Nobody said anything, which was worse.
Last Day, Keep It Light And Send Them Off Well
Nothing big on the schedule. Easy breakfast, maybe one last meeting if there’s truly no way around it, then some free time for souvenirs. A lot of visitors want something from Fortnum’s or one of the shops along Jermyn Street, so mention where they are before they have to ask.
Sort the airport transfer without being prompted. Same driver as day one if you can, it gives the whole trip a neat start and finish. Then message them the next morning, short and simple, thanks for coming, really enjoyed it. That’s it. Don’t write an essay.
If you’ve got room in the budget, leave a small gift at their hotel on the last night. A decent bottle, a box from a proper London chocolatier, whatever suits them. Doesn’t have to be expensive. These little things land way harder than you’d expect, I’ve had clients mention a box of chocolates two years later.
Mostly it comes down to reading the person. Some clients want every hour planned, others want room to breathe, and you’ll usually know which one you’ve got within about an hour of meeting them. Keep the plan loose enough to change on the day. Look after the small stuff, get the dinner right, and try to give them one evening they weren’t expecting. Do that and they’ll probably want to come back.
