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The Old Town and the New Town comprise the historic centre of Edinburgh. Together, these districts form an area unmatched in Europe for its beauty, ruggedness and eccentricity.
A company retreat here is a unique and magical experience. Amidst tall buildings, spires of dark stone and wild countryside, your team will encounter unforgettable experiences from kayaking to high-rope courses, go-karting to rock climbing.
The City of Edinburgh enchants visitors with a magical quality that radiates from the historic buildings and proud community.
During your company retreat, you can immerse your team in several group activities like paintball, rock climbing, chocolate making and kayaking.
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We've put together a list of
team-building activities for company retreats in
Edinburgh
, including options that work well for both small and large teams.
Set across four days in Edinburgh’s Old Town, New Town, and iconic landmarks like the Royal Mile and Arthur’s Seat, this retreat agenda combines structured sessions, a local experience, and time to explore the city.
Edinburgh appeals to teams looking for a distinctive setting with historic character and a strong atmosphere. A company retreat in Edinburgh allows for focused work sessions alongside experiences like castle views, old town walks, and memorable group dinners.
Edinburgh Airport (EDI) sits about 25–30 minutes from the city centre by tram or taxi. It has solid connections across Europe and the UK, making it manageable for both regional and international teams.
Late spring through early autumn, especially May to September, offers the most reliable conditions with temperatures around 12–20°C. August is lively due to festivals, while winter months are colder and better suited to indoor-heavy agendas.
Old Town offers a historic and immersive experience, New Town provides a more elegant and organized layout, Leith brings a waterfront feel with great dining, and Haymarket is practical for transport connections.
Teams often organize guided walking tours through Old Town, whisky tastings, hikes up Arthur’s Seat, ghost tours, or private dining experiences in historic venues.
A 3 to 4 day format works well, giving enough time to combine structured sessions with activities and time to explore the city without rushing.
Costs are generally higher than in other UK cities, particularly during peak festival periods. However, the unique setting and overall experience often justify the spend for many teams.
The city’s dramatic landscape, historic architecture, and compact layout create a very distinct environment. It feels immersive and different from more modern or business-focused cities.
Edinburgh offers a mix of traditional Scottish cuisine and modern dining. Teams often plan group dinners, whisky tastings, or evenings in cozy pubs and cocktail bars.
Yes, most of the central areas are walkable, though the city’s hills can slow things down slightly. In our experience, teams benefit from staying centrally, with short distances between venues, restaurants, and activity spots.
In full transparency, everyone loved it. People are still talking about it. The main goal was team bonding and you helped me to reach it.
Everyone was delighted by the venue, the activities, the transfer coordination and everything! Long live Surf Office! Can’t wait to plan our next company retreat with you :)
Our team offsite retreat was excellent - great food, weather and activities. Even the people that couldn't attend wished they could have made it. And the location was perfect. Surf Office - Thank you very much for your help and support with planning and organization - and Beatriz our retreat manager was fantastic - fast, efficient and always kept us informed. It really made the difference. It really did!
Surf Office helped us plan our 60 person staff retreat, scoping locations, venues, restaurants, activities, and more. Angela was really on top of it and paid close attention to all of the details. Definitely saved us time on research and back-and-forth with all of the various contact persons!
We went into talks with SurfOffice and hit it off with the founders to make this happen. Theres a team that will guide you through the choice and a platform for when you are to arrive with an agenda. Our team likes to bring in community members to these types of events and the crew is excited. The onboarding is going well and we paid the deposit, and we're looking forward to the trip. Our party had to reduce significantly due to constraints and the team has been accomodating so far. 5* everyone had a good time and Rayna on site made everyone feel comfortable.
The location was great, the areas dedicated to us were amazing and all things we asked for were there - also, I love the shared dashboard to organize.
I recently worked with Surf Office to organize an offsite retreat for my company in Gran Canaria, and I couldn't be happier with the experience! Beatriz, the retreat planner, was incredible. From start to finish, she was exceptionally organized, responsive, and attentive to every detail. Planning a retreat for a team can be daunting, but Beatriz made the process seamless. She answered all my questions quickly and thoroughly, and her recommendations were spot-on. The offsite itself was beyond amazing – the accommodations and activities were perfectly tailored to our team’s needs. Surf Office took all the stress out of planning and delivered an unforgettable experience for our group. I highly recommend them to anyone looking to plan a work retreat. If you’re lucky enough to have Beatriz as your planner, you’re in great hands!
The most popular team building activities are surf lessons, SUP lessons and tapas night but there are plenty more to choose from.
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Join the club of innovative companies which organise
retreats with Surf Office.
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