Our corporate travel and conference projects
Seven groups, from 35 to 325 participants, in Quebec, Ontario, Europe and the Caribbean. For each one, here is what was on the programme and what actually happened. The full list of what we take care of is on our areas of expertise page.
Royalton Negril, Jamaica · 175 people
Annual conference. Morning meetings, a resort discovery rally, a private beachfront cocktail, beach volleyball and basketball tournaments raising money for charity, and a private catamaran trip to Rick’s Café. The week closed with a neon gala evening and an awards ceremony.
What the programme does not say: on the night of the group dinner, the confirmed menu said chicken and the kitchen was cooking fish. There were forty-five minutes left before service. Everyone ate chicken.
Earlier that week, a water main break had cut off the resort’s water supply and emptied the private pools of several rooms. The day’s programme was rebuilt over breakfast.
Hilton Québec · 325 people
The largest of the seven. A ShowTime themed conference, meeting coordination, a trade floor bringing together partners and exhibitors, a technical competition on vehicles, a privatised downtown bistro and a gala evening with a live band and awards.
The technical competition called for real vehicles inside the hotel. We brought two cars into a Hilton Québec function room, then took them back out.
That same weekend the hotel was hosting an international pee-wee hockey tournament. Part of our job was walking back to their parents the children who kept running through our rooms.
JW Marriott Muskoka, Ontario · 275 people
A winter carnival themed conference. Meetings, a casino evening raising money for charity, and an awards gala.
The carnival itself was outdoors. In Ontario, in the middle of winter: a skating rink, ice hockey, skill game stations, toasted marshmallows and music. Building an outdoor programme at that latitude means planning for cold, for snow, and for a fallback that, this time, was not needed.
Club Med Les Boucaniers, Martinique · 100 people
An incentive trip. Meeting coordination, activities and excursions during free time, a sunset cocktail and a private restaurant dinner.
The heart of the stay was a nautical village built for the day on a beach, with an introduction to the yole, Martinique’s traditional sailing craft and national sport. Two crews, sails that catch the wind all at once, and the whole crew shifting out along the wooden poles to keep the boat from going over. None of the participants had ever done it before.
Unico 20°87 Riviera Maya, Mexico · 90 people
Annual conference. A group welcome dinner on arrival, a catamaran outing with lunch on Isla Mujeres, an outdoor training morning, a neon evening with awards, and a private cocktail to finish.
That evening was held in one of the resort’s cabarets, privatised for the group. A venue like that is booked months ahead and lost in a week.
Sandals Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · 65 people
An incentive trip. A private welcome cocktail, a pickleball tournament, a sunset catamaran excursion toward La Soufrière volcano followed by a private dinner on the beach, Dark View Falls, snorkelling off Bequia, and a privatised restaurant for the farewell dinner.
While on site, the client asked for a villa with a private pool large enough for sixty people. We looked for it. It was not available for those dates. We told them the same day rather than letting them wait until the night before.
Paris, France · 35 people
The smallest group, and the densest. A training trip with accommodation near Gare de Lyon, private transport from the airport, several training days held away from the hotel, public transit passes and double decker bus passes, and a closing evening in the private section of a restaurant.
What never appears in an event report
These moments come from other trips. They describe our work better than any list of services.
A village road, in Greece. A forty-five seat coach, a curve that was too tight, and a car parked in exactly the wrong place. The participants got out, lifted the car and moved it. The coach got through.
A dock, a ferry. The captain had a schedule to keep and he was shouting about it. One participant had gone to the washroom. Our tour leader kept one foot on the dock and one foot on the boat until he came back. The ferry left with everyone aboard.
A room, again in Greece. A participant could not manage the stairs and the property had no lift. Our two tour leaders gave her their ground floor room and spent the week in the only one left: one double bed for the two of them, and a heart carved into the headboard. They told no one. The group’s organiser told us after the trip.
A grocery store, in Costa Rica. The property’s wine list was poor and the group was staying a week. Our tour leader went to the village grocery store, came back with cases of wine and served it to participants in their rooms.
A beach, in Saint Lucia. A cricket match against people who have played since childhood. The score does not matter.
Thirty minutes before a welcome address. The stage was not built. We built it.
What this means for your group
A Voyages AquaTerra tour leader travels with the group and stays from the first day to the last. We are also at Montréal airport on the morning of departure, and past customs on arrival, wearing our shirts, so your people never have to look for anyone.
To discuss a group project, reach our Business department at 1-866-628-6241. Voyages AquaTerra holds a Quebec travel agent licence.
