The girlfriend experience: a date that runs on its own clock

Her hello sounds like it belongs to someone who has been looking forward to this all day. Conversation carries on from where you left it instead of starting again from nothing. She will suggest a walk if you have spent the day in meetings, or a quiet hour indoors if you have been on your feet all week. None of it follows a script, and all of it stays warm, easy and entirely non-explicit.

One good shape for it: meet at 16:00 by the water at Paddington Basin, follow the towpath to Little Venice in roughly fifteen minutes, and sit outside with a drink while the narrowboats drift past. Then back to the hotel before the light goes. Another: cross the Bayswater Road into Hyde Park and take the long way round the Serpentine. These are small plans on purpose, because nobody is trying to impress anybody.

A portrait shows how someone looks, but it cannot show how an afternoon in her company feels. When you write to the desk, describe the mood you are after: quiet and attentive, bright and sociable, or spontaneous enough to change the plan halfway. The desk knows each companion well enough to answer honestly, and will say so when someone else would suit you better.

This is the booking guests most often repeat with the same person. Because the desk keeps no client files, simply mention in your message who you met and roughly when, along with anything you would like the evening to include, such as a favourite bar or a later start. The second meeting then picks up where the first left off.

18:00: she arrives at your hotel near Queensway and you swap the day's news over a drink in the lounge. 18:30: out into the evening air, a wander down to the park gates and along the railings while the light softens. 19:15: a small table at a neighbourhood restaurant, shared plates and no rush. 19:50: the short walk back, and a relaxed goodbye at 20:00. Nothing in that plan is remarkable on paper, which is exactly why it feels like time with someone you know rather than an appointment.

Warmth works because both people feel at ease. She will be herself, and she expects the courtesy she offers in return: punctuality, a respectful manner and an evening that stays within its booked hours. If anything about the plan needs discussing, the desk is the place for it, before she sets out rather than halfway through.

Rosa takes delays and unfamiliar menus in her stride, and her questions are kind and to the point. Thea has a friendly word for every doorman and waiter she passes, and her evenings feel improvised even when she has planned them carefully. Lea is spontaneous enough to move dessert to a different street entirely. Cindy brings a sunny, sporty ease that suits guests who have spent all day in conference rooms. Rosa and Lea both sit among the petite companions.