Beth Price, concierge supervisor of The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota's swank eighth-floor club level, is a whirlwind of efficiency. Hard-to-find theater tickets? No problem. Dinner reservations? Piece of cake. Likewise with car rentals, boarding passes, where to go Latin dancing or even arranging a last-minute memorial Mass. For twin six-year-olds who were taking a holiday pastry class, Price had a seamstress whip up little white aprons and chef's hats embroidered with their names.

The club level is like a hotel within the hotel, and room rates include five food presentations a day. "It's like running a busy restaurant and being a busy concierge all at the same time," Price says.

A Sarasota native who's been with The Ritz since it opened in 2001, Price credits studying literature in college for making her a good concierge, including sharpening her "appreciation for plot, character and motivation. Every guest has his own story; my job is to get each guest to tell his."