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A company retreat is an opportunity to step away from day-to-day work and bring people together around shared goals. Whether you're looking to strengthen relationships, improve collaboration, celebrate milestones, or align on strategy, retreats create space for conversations that rarely happen in the office or over Zoom.
For remote and distributed teams, company retreats are especially valuable. Bringing everyone together in person helps build trust, strengthen company culture, and create a sense of connection across departments and teams.
Whether you're organizing a retreat for 20 people or a company-wide gathering for 600, Surf Office helps you create an experience that fits your goals and budget.
There are a number of good reasons why your company might come together for a retreat. A company retreat can help your team:
Most company retreats last between 2 and 5 days. While every retreat is different, here's a sample 4-day company retreat itinerary in Barcelona.
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Looking for inspiration on how to keep your company busy on the retreat?
Here are some activities that Surf Office has hosted in the past:
Workday, a people analytics company, hosted its company retreat in Barcelona. The team spent at the beach with activities like stand up paddle, swimming, and a surfing lesson. A beach trip is good for big groups because everyone can do what they want. Some can swim, some can play beach volleyball, and some can veg in the sun.
Get away from the noise and hustle of the city and bring your team for a nature hike. Our destinations in the Catskill Mountains, Zion national park, and Gran Canaria are perfect for bringing your team on a hike for some fresh air.
Break up your larger group in small teams and take a walk through the historic streets of Lisbon, for instance. See famous monuments, hidden gems, and learn about the culture of the city on a scavenger hunt. Get to know the city and each other in a fun way.
Invite a local expert to speak about something out-of-the-box. Or, have your employees volunteer to give informal Ted Talk-style presentations about something they’re passionate about. This approach leverages internal resources, uplifts individual interests, and shows your support for skills beyond work roles.
EVBox is a company focused on providing charging solutions for electric vehicles. Their group of 200 people joined Surf Office for a company retreat. In the process, we hosted a special dining experience in Lisbon with traditional dishes and drinks. Organizing meals can be a challenge for large groups: read what we’ve learned about making restaurant reservations.
If you want to keep your team bonding business-focused, host a hackathon. Divide the large group up into small teams and work on a project. A traditional hackathon focuses on creative problem-solving – emphasis on “creative.” Don’t be afraid to make the hackathon open-ended to foster innovation.
A company retreat is an event that brings employees together outside their usual work environment to focus on collaboration, team building, strategic planning, and company culture. Company retreats can range from small team gatherings to company-wide events involving hundreds of participants.
Companies organize retreats to strengthen team relationships, improve communication, align on goals, celebrate milestones, and create opportunities for meaningful collaboration. Retreats are particularly valuable for remote and distributed teams that spend most of their time working online.
The terms company retreat and corporate retreat are often used interchangeably. Both involve bringing teams together for workshops, planning sessions, team-building activities, and relationship building. Corporate retreat is more commonly used by larger organizations, while company retreat is often preferred by startups and growing companies.
Most company retreats last between 2 and 4 days. A 3-day retreat is often considered the ideal format because it provides enough time for productive sessions, team-building activities, and informal networking without keeping employees away from work for too long.
For the best venue selection and availability, most companies begin planning their retreat 3 to 6 months in advance. Larger groups, international teams, and retreats during peak travel seasons may require additional planning time.
A successful company retreat agenda typically combines strategic discussions, workshops, team-building activities, networking opportunities, and free time. The best retreats balance productivity with opportunities for employees to connect in a more relaxed setting.
The cost of a company retreat depends on factors such as destination, accommodation, group size, season, and activities. Budgets can vary significantly, but most companies aim to find a balance between creating a memorable experience and achieving their business objectives.
The best company retreat destinations offer convenient travel connections, quality accommodation, meeting facilities, and engaging activities. Popular choices include destinations such as Lisbon, Barcelona, Mallorca, Porto, and other locations that combine productive work environments with memorable team experiences.
Absolutely. Company retreats are especially valuable for remote teams because they provide opportunities for face-to-face collaboration, stronger personal connections, and team alignment that are difficult to achieve through virtual meetings alone.
A company retreat planning service can handle venue sourcing, accommodation, meeting spaces, transportation, activities, budgeting, logistics, and on-site coordination. This allows internal teams to focus on their retreat goals while experienced planners manage the operational details.
We recently worked with Surf Office to plan an offsite for our team in Sintra, Portugal and the experience was excellent. Elke went above and beyond throughout the entire process, even driving to visit the location herself to ensure everything was perfect. She was instrumental in securing a restaurant that opened exclusively for our group, making the experience truly special. The hotel was lovely, with breathtaking views that provided the ideal backdrop for both work and relaxation. The space was perfect for connecting, brainstorming, and fostering team collaboration. Every detail was thoughtfully managed. We would wholeheartedly recommend Surf Office to others looking to host memorable and productive retreats!
Romane LeBrec-Foulatier was a fantastic partner in planning this event. She did a wonderful job of introducing the planning project via Coda and then was extremely helpful and conscientious in helping us plan toward the event. I always felt that I could depend on her follow-up and she was clear and articulate in her guidance. She was also proactive in flagging items that needed extra consideration or in raising potential issues with the schedule or venue or planning. We really loved the Coda site that she created to for planning and also the Coda dashboard that we shared with the team; the team found it very helpful as well. Lastly, Romane was critical in helping on our last day in France when the taxi drivers were on strike - she very quickly implemented a contingency plan and helped us communicate it to the team through the Coda site. Similarly. Álvaro Pérez-Segnini was very helpful in helping us choose the Chantilly location. He understood the parameters of the offsite and got back to us with multiple proposals in a limited time frame. He helped us understand which option would be the best for us and he helped us negotiate the best space and the best price.
Great offer - hotel did fit perfectly with our expectations. Danielle who took care about our company did a great job, was super available before the event and was a great help to accommodate with every impediment and change we faced and find the best solution for us. Also during the event, she was always available to make our stay a awesome moment.
We had such a fantastic experience working with SurfOffice! It was our very first time getting external support for our company retreat – and we couldn’t have asked for a better partner. From the very beginning, we felt incredibly well taken care of. The regular check-ins helped us go through every detail and made sure nothing was overlooked. And in the end, everything turned out exactly as we had hoped! The implementation was seamless, and the SurfOffice team was always there to support us – even during the retreat itself. A huge thank you for your time, effort, and amazing support. You truly made our retreat an unforgettable experience. We can’t wait to work with you again next year!
We had an amazing experience! Everything was perfectly organized from A to Z. As a vegan company, it’s usually quite difficult to find places that can fully accommodate our needs — but the Surf Office team handled everything with ease. They weren’t afraid of any request, preference, or extra thing we asked for. The communication was smooth, fast, and friendly throughout the entire process. We truly appreciated the attention to detail and how flexible and supportive the team was. We can’t recommend them enough!
I have just wrapped up my fourth annual retreat with Surf Office, this time hosted in Mallorca, and as always they created the perfect experience for myself and my team. Our sales representative Giselle was brilliant, she listened to what we needed and came back with venue options that were perfect for our budget and vibe. Romane was my main contact throughout for the logistics. We had some last-minute changes and she managed everything like a pro, even securing us refunds when we had a cancellation. This is why I keep coming back to Surf Office for our annual event. They actually care about making the retreat something special. It's that personal touch that makes all the difference.
We recently worked with Surf Office to plan an off-site retreat for 105 people, and the experience from start to finish was absolutely seamless. From the initial proposal stage, through planning, to on site support, everything went perfectly, and we honestly couldn’t have done it without them. A special thanks to Alvaro and Elke. Alvaro was our initial intro to Surf Office, and working with him on proposals for the retreat was a pleasure. He understood our needs and helped shape the retreat options. Once the planning stage began, Elke took over as our retreat planner. She made everything feel completely in hand and ensured that every detail was looked after. Nothing was ever too much to ask. On site, Fernanda and Bibi were fantastic. With their support, everything ran super smoothly, and we had all the help we could possibly need. The feedback we received was overwhelmingly positive, everyone LOVED the trip! A huge well done to the whole team. We couldn’t recommend them enough.
Our team had an amazing experience working with Surf Office. From the very first conversation, their team was incredibly communicative, organized, and attentive to every detail. They made the entire retreat-planning process smooth and stress-free from venue coordination to activities and logistics, everything was handled with care and professionalism. What really stood out was their responsiveness and ability to anticipate our needs before we even mentioned them. It’s clear they truly understand what makes a company retreat successful. If you’re looking for a partner who combines efficiency, great communication, and genuine hospitality, look no further than Surf Office. We couldn’t recommend them more!
I had a wonderful experience working with the SurOffice team. I’d like to specifically highlight Raquel and Giselle, who have been incredibly supportive from day one. They were always proactive in checking in, handling last-minute requests, and doing so with the utmost professionalism and politeness. This was my second time working with the team, and it was an absolute pleasure. I would definitely look forward to collaborating with them again in the future.
We would like to hear more about your plans and how we can make your next company summit a success.
Do you have an office in one location or is your team distributed? Can employees bring their partners? Is the retreat going to be more about work or fun?
Even finding and booking one single restaurant for the dinner can be a painful project. Is the food going to be good? Is the price fair? How many of our team members have diet restrictions?
Each retreat is a combination of multiple smaller projects and with a large group the complexity might be scary.
But no worries, we mastered this process and made it fun and easy.
Our experienced project manager dedicated to you will help you with a whole organisation from searching for flights to crafting unique surprise activities for your team.
We will be your one-stop-shop for all of the logistics of your retreat. The Retreat Planner assigned to your group will work with you to book and coordinate everything from A-Z, providing you with peace-of-mind and a guarantee of quality and reliability from our local partners at the best possible prices.
According to our repeat clients and our first-time clients who have previous experience in organizing retreats in-house, this is the greatest value that we bring to them.
At the end of the planning process you will end up with the bullet-proof schedule. There is no room for improvisation with a large group.
Everything must work perfectly, all the activities and transfers must be just-on-time.
Sounds like a dream end, right? That’s how we work.
You are ready for your epic company retreat.
Choose from hundreds of retreat locations in Europe, America, Asia-Pacific, and Africa.
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