Instead of waiting in long airport security lines and immigration lines, why not hire a personal escort to whisk you to the front of the line? It's a promise that a growing number of airport concierge services make to fliers, regardless of where they are in the world. In addition to offering their services in airports worldwide, these companies are independent of airports and airlines (they have permission to operate in the airports where they sell their products).

The demand for these services has grown in the last few years, according to airline and airport analyst George Hobica, who used a few of these services. He said they're perfect for travelers with busy schedules and long lines, or who require help finding their way through airports or who have a tight connection. The airport concierge is a good choice if you like to board a plane just as it closes, he added. Moreover, you are treated like a VIP.

In particular, people traveling internationally in economy class may benefit from airport escorting, Mr. Hobica said, since they must arrive at the airport three hours before departure and must wait in long lines in security, in comparison to business and first class passengers. A professional airport escort can save you a lot of time, he told me.

The Royal Airport Concierge provides airport escorts, as an example of a well-established company. The escorting service, which started in 2006, now operates in more than 550 airports worldwide. It uses local escorting firms and its own greeters. The type of service provided is based on the rules of the airport and the country, according to Founder Ron Gorfinkel. For a departure from Italy, for example, As departures from London's Heathrow Airport are handled by greeters and passengers are helped stow their carry-on luggage, those arriving have the option of being met outside their gates and taken to customs and immigration by golf cart. passing through the lanes more quickly. Up to four passengers can be carried for $300 to $450, depending on the company.

Having been intrigued by the idea of getting star treatment at an airport with the help of a personal escort, I decided to try one from Blacklane, a Berlin-based company that launched an airport concierge service in August last year called Blacklane PASS.

The Basics:

Blacklane was founded in 2011 as a car service and now offers escorts in more than 500 airports worldwide. In either case, these escorts are employed by the airport or a local concierge company. The Blacklane company provides services based upon country and airport rules, similar to Royal Airport Concierge. However, in general, escorts fast track passengers through security, customs, immigration, carries luggage, and helps process VAT refunds, according to Jens Wohltorf. Additionally, they meet arriving passengers at the exit of the plane and assist them through customs, immigration, and baggage claim; in some instances, they can even arrange curbside pickup and coordinate the pickup with the driver.
The Cost:

First-time guests are charged $200, and subsequent guests are charged $100. Children two and under are free. Whether or not you give a gratuity to your escort is completely up to you, Wohltorf said.

My Experience:

The Blacklane PASS service was used on a recent flight from Paris Orly Airport to Newark Liberty International Airport by me, my two children, and my parents. The service was reserved a week before our trip (first-time customers must reserve online; subsequent reservations can be made either online or by phone) and our escort, Reda (only allowed to use his first name), introducing himself to me and asking for a text when we were five minutes away from the airport so he could meet us. Airport Service Having given us a drop off point, he was waiting at the curb at the airport as soon as we arrived with a smile on his face. In a luggage cart, Reda loaded our four carry-ons and four check-in bags and led us to the front of the check-in line for La Compagnie, our airline. Though the line wasn't long, I felt a wave of elation when Reda flashed his pass to an airline employee, which allowed us to bypass the rest of the crowd.

It was time to claim our VAT refund for our shopping in Paris. We ran into a sticky situation here: the employee- a lady- with whom we dealt with our refund claim told us receipts for the goods would not suffice to claim our refunds. We needed the actual goods. Since we were unaware of this rule, we had packed most of our shopping in our check-in bags. Considering that we should have kept the money, the refund actually amounted to over $1000. While my father and I begged her to make an exception, she refused- no items, no refund.

I intervened on Reda's behalf and told her that we were airport VIPs. Her pause ended with her processing the refund. Whom would we have turned to if he hadn't helped us?