Are you looking for something a little different than trust falls and guest speakers for your next team building event? If so, you might want to consider a murder mystery weekend, murder mystery vacation or murder mystery cruise. There are several outfits offering a variety of murder mystery events around the country and on cruise ships, providing plenty of options from which to choose. Some companies will design corporate murder mystery events specifically for your company in the location of your choice, while others offer affordable, pre-arranged adventures that your team will love.

If you choose a murder mystery group cruise for your next corporate event or team building trip, be aware that there are different types of murder mystery adventures to be had. On the one hand, you have organized cruises that require all participants to study for a role and bring a costume for their character. This can be incredibly fun and is a full-immersion experience; however, this might not be the best option to fit your needs. This type of environment means that other passengers may be constantly interrogating your team members and your staff’s energy will be focused entirely on their part in the mystery.

For corporate events and team building experiences, it is likely a better idea to choose murder mystery events that are organized in a way to allow for plenty of free time and limited participation. For example, some murder mystery cruises have regularly scheduled murder mystery meetings and suspects are available for questioning during scheduled meals. In addition, investigation updates are delivered to cabins each day to keep guests up-to-date on developments.

This type of murder mystery event allows for easy scheduling of corporate meetings, team building activities or other group events, while still allowing your participants to fully enjoy the fun and excitement of solving a murder.

If you are planning a meeting or conference in a popular tourist destination, such as the Caribbean, South America, Australia, Hawaii, Spain or Greece, you can rest assured that you will have plenty of interested participants that will certainly attend. However, you may be concerned about how good their attendance will be once they are at the destination and have to make the tough choice between attending meetings or spending the day at the beach and shopping for souvenirs in open air markets. Your attendees are naturally going to be tempted by pristine, sandy beaches, the warmth of the sun and the draw of local villages and sites of cultural interest. Because of this, it will take a bit of planning to ensure that your attendees participate fully in your meeting or event.

One way to encourage them to attend planned functions and to ensure them that they will also have plenty of time to explore the area is to provide a schedule that clearly defines blocks of free time. This will provide them with a visual reminder that they are there to work, as well as play, and will let them know that you have planned plenty of free time for their enjoyment. You may also want to consider scheduling a free day within the first few days of the event, rather than only towards the end. If they see that they have to wait until the end of the week to hit the beach, they will be much more likely to play hooky from meetings to sneak away to the shore.

Another way to ensure attendance at important events is to plan a group cruise event.  Cruising is extremely popular with meeting attendees, and meeting planners can plan structured events at sea around the cruise itinerary.

Whether you are planning a day-long corporate event or an event that takes place over a number of days, you will more than likely be asked to schedule some sort of entertainment into the itinerary. In the case of multi-day events, you will need to consider activities and entertainment options for several different time slots, since naturally there will be downtime between meetings or at the end of the day. While scheduling organized outings, entertainers, social functions or other entertainment options will certainly be necessary, you may want to consider interspersing planned activities and free time during periods of downtime throughout your event.

There are a number of advantages associated with designating certain days or evenings as free time to allow the attendees to plan their own activities. The most obvious and significant advantage is the money that will be saved, followed closely by the fact that allowing for free time means fewer events for you to plan, which makes your job easier. Experiencing significant cost savings and having less planning to do is reason enough to schedule in free time; however, there are also additional benefits of opting for self-styled entertainment options.

Scheduling in free time is sure to please attendees who would rather explore the city, go out for a drink or retreat to their rooms after a long day of meetings. It also allows you to avoid risking folks not showing up due to lack of appeal or simply being too tired after the day’s activities.

By its very nature, incentive travel should have an air of luxury and absolutely must be enticing in order for it to function as an incentive. It simply cannot be a run-of-the-mill trip that the potential participants could easily throw together themselves. Incentive travel packages must be memorable, meaningful, perfectly planned and expertly executed.
That being said, incentive travel planners are under increasing pressure to cut costs and deliver travel packages that fit into new, reduced travel budgets. As they struggle to meet the demands of their supervisors or client companies, while staying within budget, incentive travel planners are now constantly looking for ways to lower travel expenses. The trick is to find ways to cut costs without cutting corners.

Here are some ways that travel planners are adapting to the changes that have come with this economic downturn:

1. Opting for all-inclusive incentive cruise
2. Choosing lower-cost domestic and international destinations
3. Opting for lower-cost food, beverage and hotel choices
4. Planning more free time into the travel schedule, as opposed to offering multiple planned activities
5. Reducing the number and cost of pillow gifts, or cutting them out completely

When determining the best way for you to cut costs without cutting corners, keep in mind that a lower-cost destination choice coupled with upscale pillow gifts and luxury amenities will deliver a more memorable, enjoyable trip, as compared to opting for a stripped down travel package at a high-end destination.

There are several reasons why a plated lunch is preferable over a lunch buffet or dinner. When you are planning a meeting or event that will include at least one presentation or speaking engagement that incorporates a meal, opting for a plated lunch has several benefits, including the possibility of significant cost savings. Dinners always cost more than lunches and happen at the end of the day when attendees are likely tired and just want to have some free time; therefore, they are not likely to be as attentive and present during the speaking engagement or presentation. Additionally, people generally prefer to have free evenings and to have the opportunity to take off with a few friends to try out local eateries, have a drink and wind down from a day filled with meetings.

Attendees also will generally prefer enjoying a catered lunch during a required presentation, rather than having to hurry in the middle of the day to find a close place to grab a quick lunch before heading back for afternoon meetings and a dinner presentation at the end of the day. As for choosing between plated and buffet lunches, plated lunches will always hold court as the option that looks better organized, more professional and more stylish. Aside from appearances, buffets may offer more options, but they also can cost up to twice as much per person, significantly raising expenses.

As you well know, many clients need their meeting planners to pay particular attention to expenses these days. With tighter budgets and fewer event planning dollars, meeting planners must get creative in order to meet and exceed their clients’ expectations while keeping a close eye on expenditures.

With current and potential clients concerned about budgets, it is also just a good all around idea to find creative ways to keep costs down, which will certainly get people talking about you and how you can plan a stellar event for a fraction of the expected cost.

When it comes to saving money on event entertainment, you don’t have to rely only on low-budget acts or free attractions. For cost-saving ways to entertain your attendees, simply follow these five tips:

1. Look for group discounts on tickets to local museums and attractions.
2. Seek out entertainers who will be performing in the same city during your event. Oftentimes, entertainers are happy to add another gig to their schedule for a discounted price.
3. Plan your meeting in a city that offers numerous entertainment options within close proximity to your meeting location. This way, you can simply schedule free time and allow the attendees to entertain themselves.
4. Contact local entertainers or the music department of a local college or university to find low-cost options.
5. Many museums and similar attractions include monthly free admission days. Check local events calendars to see if these days coincide with your event.