27 Top incentive ideas – Part 1

From riding a carabao to exploring Mexico’s cenotes, TTGmice reporters sniff out some of the most unique, exciting and extravagant incentive experiences

Arrive by helicopter or camel to a plated bush tucker dining experience in the illuminated Field of Light at Uluru, in Australia’s stunning Northern Territory. Enjoy canapés and chilled sparkling wine while listening to the live sounds of a didgeridoo, and witness 50,000 glass spheres come to life as the sun sets in the vast outback landscape. This includes a traditional indigenous welcome ceremony by the local Anangu people, a three-course meal and a 45-minute walk through the award-winning Field of Light. Between October 22 and March 24, a premium experience is offered for up to 16 guests combining a gourmet menu – inspired by ancient flavours – with an escorted tour through the Field of Light.

Capacity 100 pax
Email conferences@voyages.com.au
Website ulurumeetingplace.com.au

Spend one day resting and exploring Helsinki before flying to Rovaniemi in Lapland. Get to stay in unique accommodation such as a glass igloo, log cabin or even an ice hotel. Interesting and location-specific activities that can be arranged include reindeer safaris, husky dog sledding, snowmobiling, cruising in an ice breaker along the frozen sea, and Arctic swimming. A winter trip is ideal, as it is the best season to catch the Aurora Borealis.

Capacity 10 minimum, 200 maximum
Email tarja.aho@travel-experience.net
Website www.travel-experience.net

Top earners can escape the city and be whisked off to the tranquil edges of Singapore, where they can enjoy exciting team-bonding activities, indulge in an evening grill and camp under the stars by the sea.

On top of accommodation in cosy tents equipped with either fans or air-conditioning units, Glamping City provides add-on land activities specific for corporate groups. These are held in partnership with Outdoor Adventures, and include laser and archery tag, kayaking or a team challenge race.

Glamping is available on East Coast Park and Sentosa. The latter offers more premium features, such as in-tent air-conditioning, and private toilet and showering facilities.

Capacity Up to 40 pax (maximum for selected land activities)
Email booking@glampingcity.com
Website www.glampingcity.com

Omah Kecebong Guest House in Yogyakarta, Indonesia offers a village life experience where incentive winners will get to dress in traditional Javanese villager attire, hop onto a gerobak sapi (cow-driven carts) and be taken on a tour that passes rice plantations and farmers ploughing the fields with ox-driven harrows. Learn from the locals about the crops that are grown, and have a go at using traditional tools to plant and harvesting the crop.

Take a well-earned rest after and enjoy the view while partaking in a picnic lunch – prepared by the villagers – which is served on banana-leaf plates.

Capacity Up to 75 pax
Email omahkecebong@gmail.com
Website omahkecebong.com

Visit local artisans around Kyoto city and watch them as they create a variety of items from tie-dyed materials and Buddhist paraphernalia, to traditional bamboo-and-paper umbrellas and silk brocades. Aside from admiring the Japanese artisans at work, visitors will also be able to have a go at crafting something. Working with local guides from the City of Kyoto Visitors Host, participants can then visit a local temple to see an artisan’s work in context.

Capacity Varies from venue to venue, but usually a minimum of five people and up to 10
Email info@kyotoartisans.jp
Website www.kyotoartisans.jp

Clamber into vans and relax as the ride takes guests along meandering narrow streets and hilly patches to see Capaddocia’s marvellous underground cities – carved out of rocks by Christians who were avoiding persecution – up close. After the excursion, taste local cuisine and spend a night in a cave hotel to experience how cave dwellers lived but with modern accoutrements of luxury such as a hammam or Turkish bath.

Capacity Up to 80 pax
Email www.gloriousdmc.com/contact-us
Website www.gloriousdmc.com

Immerse yourself in the local Hong Kong scene by taking a guided tour of the Cheung Chau Bun Festival. Catch the ceremonial Floating Colours Parade and cheer on the locals during the Bun Scrambling Competition.

Another cultural tour option is visiting the photogenic fishing village of Tai O during the Dragon Boat Festival to witness local fishermen performing The Dragon Boat Water Parade of Tai O, a religious ritual to pacify water ghosts.

To round off the local experience, an authentic dimsum lunch at three-Michelin-star T’ang Court of The Langham Hong Kong can be arranged.

Capacity 20 to 25 pax
Email tlhkg.sales@langhamhotels.com
Website anghamhotels.com/hongkong

In Cebu, private sessions can be arranged for winners to learn the Philippine martial art form called arnis or eskrima, where combatants make use of a single stick, double sticks, stick and dagger, or just their bare hands in the act of self defense. Your teacher will be the supreme grandmaster of the oldest Filipino martial art club in the world called Doce Pares (translated to twelve pairs in English).

Capacity Up to 12 pax
Email www.bluehorizons.travel
Website www.bluehorizons.travel

For merrymakers, this product in the Philippines’ Siargao island includes a lot of drinking before, during and after the native style ride with a carabao (water buffalo). The ride ambles through the countryside, and the drinks continue well into the evening while watching the sun set.

Capacity Up to 50 pax
Email www.bluehorizons.travel/contact-us
Website www.bluehorizons.travel

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