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BAHRAINI hotel concierge Saleha Al Wazzan has been selected to represent Bahrain and the UAE at the renowned international Les Clefs d’Or Award 2025, coinciding with her completing 10 glorious years in hospitality.
The 34-year-old is up against 16 other contenders from across the globe in the ‘friendly competition’, also known as the Young Concierge Award.
The event is part of the prestigious Les Clefs d’Or international congress, the 69th edition of which is set to be staged in Madrid from March 30 to April 4. It will bring together top hospitality professionals from around the world under one roof.
Les Clefs d’Or (‘the golden keys’) is a professional association of hotel concierges, with approximately 4,000 members working in more than 80 countries and 530 destinations across the globe. Easily identified by the golden crossed keys on their lapels, members are an elite fraternity, globally connected, committed to professional development, and driven to setting new standards for guest service perfection.
“We received an email from Les Clefs d’Or UAE (chapter) to nominate ourselves and so, I did as I fit the criteria,” the Al Noor International School alumna told GulfWeekly.
“I also submitted a four-page essay about myself as it was part of the process. Later, I received the news that I had to fly to Dubai to attend their meeting, where they would announce the candidate who would be representing the award,” she added.
Those under 36 years, who are participating for the first time in the congress, holding the title of ‘concierge’, and are fluent in English can nominate themselves for the award.
Saleha was also the first Bahraini woman to become a Les Clefs d’Or member in 2018, just five years after launching her career in the field.
The marketing graduate from Assumption University, Thailand, who presently works as Chief Concierge at Hilton Bahrain, might have carved a career in hospitality by chance but, over the years, has proved that it’s where she was always meant to be.
“I had just completed my final exam and there was an opening at the Four Seasons Hotel Bahrain Bay, and I took it up. It changed my idea of hospitality completely and ever since, it all came as an instinct,” she reminisced.
Saleha started her career as a concierge agent and two years in, she earned her ‘golden keys’ and became an official Les clefs d’Or member.
She moved to Hilton Bahrain two years ago, where she got promoted to assistant chief concierge and a year later, to chief concierge.
At the same time, she was appointed as the public relations in-charge for the Bahrain Hotel Concierge Group – the local representatives of Les Clefs d’Or – and is currently president of the group, comprising around 40 members.
The winner of the Young Concierge Award will be declared during the event in Madrid. While Saleha is a confident contender, she believes she will always have a passion for hospitality regardless of the outcome.
In a message to young hoteliers, she said, “Believe in and love yourself, have the ability to be open-minded, and keep an open heart to new opportunities. Like today, we have witnessed a huge transformation in hospitality – I take our kingdom (Bahrain) as an example of change, where the Tourism Ministry is committed to promoting the country, with diversified offerings, like new cuisines and (dining) outlets.”
