Traveling provides a unique way to experience other cultures and amazing sights and create unforgettable memories. As such, corporate travel in the form of travel incentives or reward programs is a powerful tool and a great way to reward hard-working, dedicated employees, drive performance, and boost morale. Of course, one of the key elements to orchestrating a successful incentive trip is incorporating the right travel experiences within the getaway.
After all, without engaging, fun, inspiring, challenging, and entertaining experiences, an incentive trip wouldn’t be as fun. Thankfully, at MTI Events, we have over 30 years of corporate event planning and are happy to share some of our most beloved global travel experiences.
Golf Retreats: Team-Building Experience
One of the best experiences you can incorporate into a trip is a golf competition. Golf has been synonymous with professionalism and business for years. It also offers many opportunities to encourage teamwork and promote a unified front.
It can even create a bit of healthy stress, such as when an employee is up next and needs to make a difficult shot for the team to win. This is a good thing, as it allows your team to learn how to work together, even in stressful situations, while having fun and enjoying themselves out on the greens. Thankfully, virtually any travel destination will be close enough to a golf course to incorporate golf as a traveling experience within the trip overall. Of course, if you want, you can make it the entire theme and have your team stay at a golf resort.
Get Out In Nature
A hike is another great travel experience you can incorporate into nearly any getaway. Hikes are great in that they can range in severity and challenge levels. So, even if you have employees who aren’t as in shape as others, there are still many hikes available that will be less challenging and still get the team out and about exploring the beauty all around. Of course, if your team is up for it, then a strenuous hike to a rewarding experience at the end, such as a beautiful waterfall or breathtaking view, can also be very fulfilling.
Try a Scavenger Hunt
Scavenger hunts present unique ways to promote team collaboration and challenge a group to think outside the box. It can also be an ideal way to explore the area where you are traveling. You can create a scavenger hunt that takes your team into the nearby town or off the beaten path. Create challenging clues to encourage brainstorming and prompt problem-solving skills.
Incorporate collectible items and local landmarks to make the hunt even more fun. To up the ante and the passion, pair your employees against each other and offer prizes for the first team that finishes the scavenger hunt. You can even combine a scavenger hunt with a jeep ride or ATV ride to put another level of fun into the experience and to get your team members from point A to point B.
Relays of All Kinds
Relays of various kinds are ideally suited for corporate getaways. They provide a measure of physical or mental challenge and encourage a team of employees to work together instead of fighting against each other. One example of this is a kayak relay.
One team will race against another team, all in kayaks, to capture a specific item and return to the start. This will continue until the entire team has participated and a winner is named. This type of relay is challenging but fun and is done in the water, allowing your team to experience all the beauty of the water. If your team is water-averse, or you don’t have the ideal setting for such a relay, take it out of the water and instead plan another type of relay utilizing the same principles.
Completing a Task
While completing a task might not seem like a fun experience from the outset, it is when your employees get into the spirit of the challenge and begin to race against each other to achieve the goal first or best. Raft building is one example of this type of group activity. Provide each team with supplies to create a durable, seaworthy raft.
However, don’t give them any other instructions. Let them work together to figure out how to make the best raft. The team that finishes quickest and whose raft doesn’t sink is the winner. Another option is to have teams compete against each other to complete a survival task, like starting a fire or pitching a tent.
Exciting Activities
Another type of travel experience you can incorporate into your next reward trip includes exciting or adrenaline-pumping activities that likely won’t be something your employees would do on their own. These can vary based on your destination. You can plan a scuba diving or snorkeling trip, a ziplining adventure, a trip up in a helicopter or plane for aerial views, or rock or mountain climbing. Not everyone in your team will have the same level of physical ability, but many of these activities can be tapered based on the ability of the participants.
Relaxing Experiences
Last but not least, when planning some experiences as part of your next incentive trip for your team, consider some relaxing experiences to pay them back for how hard they work. This can include a day at the spa for everyone or a relaxing massage for each member. It could also include trips to museums or local art attractions to experience the beauty of the surrounding environment and culture.
You can even rent a veranda around the pool and provide meals on demand to create an atmosphere of relaxation for those who work so hard to make your company a success. You can even plan a cooking class or a night at a luxurious restaurant.
Contact us at MTI Events
While the logistics of planning a corporate event can get overwhelming when trying to handle it on your own, we at MTI Events are here to help. We are a full-service corporate event planning company passionate about details, creativity, and flexible event solutions.
Contact us today to start planning your next incentive trip. Let us help you incorporate some of the most amazing incentive travel experiences into your next employee reward trip.
