Concierge Spotlight

Jennifer Kietzke
The Dana on Mission Bay

From the SD Public Defender’s office to The Dana on Mission Bay’s concierge office seems like quite a leap, but Jennifer Kietzke made the jump over a year ago. A criminal justice graduate of Point Loma Nazarene University, Jennifer was headed to law school when she decided to take a career break.

“I thought of the hospitality industry as an interim job,” she says. “But now I feel as if I should always have been here.”Meeting people from all over the world and helping them experience what our city has to offer make her job satisfying, as well as enjoyable. That is especially true when hotel guests want “something off the beaten path.” She often recommends Torrey Pines reserve, as well as flower fields in Carlsbad and the monarch butterfly migration in Leucadia for those who want San Diego County au naturel.

Whale watching has become one of her most requested bookings, even before the official season begins in mid-December. The Old Globe Theatre, Broadway shows at the Civic and the Gaslamp District are perennial favorites, too. Lately, she has received many guests from Australia and New Zealand, and a large number of tourists coming from small Midwestern towns.“A lot of people have never used the services of a concierge before,” she says.  “I’m glad people are beginning to realize we are there for everyone, not just upscale clients.” Thanks to her enthusiasm, even her own family members have begun to rely on concierges when they travel.