Because cruises exude luxury, many businesses mistakenly believe that incentive cruises are beyond their budgets. Many may not even consider a cruise event or ship charter as a business incentive due to the “cost” of the cruise. However, incentive cruises are really no different than other forms of business incentives. For example, the cost to secure accommodations for a group at a hotel can range significantly. Some hotels and resorts are much more expensive than others. This same concept applies to cruise events. When businesses opt for meetings at sea, the business can find a price point that will be right for them.

The type of cruise a businesses chooses should be based on the needs of the company as well as the participants. Businesses rewarding a few employees with a business incentive such as a ship charter may desire a more luxurious cruise, while businesses treated hundreds of employees to a cruise event may opt for a more basic cruise package. Not only can a cruise easily fit in the budget of almost any business, but an incentive cruise can be very motivating for employees. Even when businesses have a price point to meet, they should still consider an incentive cruise as a viable option.

It is no secret that cruise ships are ideal for hosting meetings and conferences. They offer a number of benefits, including all-inclusive pricing, significant cost savings over land-based events, built-in entertainment and stellar meeting facilities. With the recent growth in popularity of river cruises, meeting planners are now beginning to contemplate the feasibility of holding meetings on these smaller vessels that cruise the rivers of North America, South America and Europe. On one hand, river cruise meetings they offer an appealing option that provides a more intimate setting, a unique experience and that much-coveted, all-inclusive pricing, but on the other hand, can they provide the amenities and meeting space required for your event?

River barges and boats, by their nature, are much smaller vessels and are a far cry from the floating city atmosphere of oceangoing vessels. Intimate settings for meals, which are often prepared by and eaten with the captain or the captain’s spouse, limited onboard activities and services, and minimal free space are all characteristics of river cruising. Because of this, planning business meetings to take place during a river cruise will take some research and planning. If you are opting for a larger paddlewheel riverboat cruising a river in the South, you will likely find that holding onboard meetings is a viable option; however, some of the smaller river barges that cruise the rivers of Europe may not have the space available to hold a meeting for more than just a handful of people – and will almost certainly have no audio-visual equipment.

If you are determined to host your next business meeting on a boat, a full-size, oceangoing cruise ship will always be your best bet, but with a little planning and preparation, a river cruise is also possible when planning smaller meetings and events.

We all know that plants assist in cleaning indoor air and are nice to look at, but can they really improve meetings in a way that is meaningful and worth the effort?

Plants can be used in both temporary and permanent meeting locations; however, using them at various venues requires meeting planners to transport the plants to different locations and to find a place to store and care for them when not in use. This is going to be too much of a hassle for most meeting planners who already have plenty to manage, but if you plan on-site meetings that are held in regularly used meeting rooms plants may be a viable option.

Aside from cleaning the air and creating a healthier environment, plants are also perfect for creating a more relaxed meeting venue and taking away some of the sterile feeling that is common among nondescript meeting spaces. Dull, drab meeting rooms with little décor and stale air drain the energy of attendees quickly and make for a very long meeting; however, by adding a few well-placed plants to the room, you can create a more welcoming environment that is more comfortable and energetic, which can lead to greater productivity. Plants are also inexpensive, which makes them a much more affordable option for livening up a room than more expensive options, such as new furnishings or artwork.

Team building is important for any company and is one of the best ways to ensure that you have a cohesive team that knows how to work together to meet company goals and create a productive, effective work environment. While it is important for staff members who work together in close proximity each day to get along well and know each other’s strengths, team building is particularly important for companies that operate from a number of sites. If these sites are located in different areas of the country or state, this becomes even more crucial for your success.

Large corporations with multiple sites can benefit from quarterly or annual team building experiences that take place in a central location. While bringing thousands of employees together in one location may not be a viable option for all companies, hosting a centrally located retreat that groups together staff members in each geographical location is an effective option that will prove beneficial to the overall health of your company. Firms with numerous staff members scattered around the country or around the globe may also want to consider virtual team building experiences using video conferencing technologies.

Of course, for small and mid-sized companies, in-person team building experiences will always be the most effective option and can even include simple exercises that are incorporated into regularly scheduled meetings or events.