Want to Host a Group Trip? You Don't Have to Do It Alone.....

There is something special about travelling as a group.

A retreat in Italy. A milestone birthday somewhere you've always wanted to visit. A group of women travelling together. A river cruise with people who share a common interest. A business or professional group getting away from the everyday.

The event might be the reason everyone is going - but the experience starts long before everyone arrives.

And that's where things can get complicated.

Someone Has to Look After the Details

When you organize an event close to home, getting there is usually the easy part.

Take that same event to another country and suddenly there are flights, hotels, airport transfers, rooming lists, different arrival times, excursions, dietary requirements, schedules and a steady stream of questions from guests.

And then everyone arrives - and the logistics don't stop.

Whose flight is delayed? Has everyone found their transfer? What time are we leaving tomorrow? Where are we meeting for dinner? Has the hotel got the right rooming list?

These aren't necessarily big problems, but somebody has to deal with them.

And very often, that somebody is the person who is supposed to be running the retreat or hosting the event.

What If Someone Else Looked After the Journey?

That's the idea behind Hosted Group Events, a new service I'm adding to Cee Why Travel.

My background isn't only in travel. I've spent many years working in event management, coordination and education, and I've realized that bringing those skills together with my travel business is a very natural fit.

I'm currently doing exactly that with a retreat in Puglia, Italy, where I'm helping coordinate the travel and guest experience and will be there in person to help host and support the group.

It has made me realize how valuable this service can be for other people who have an idea for a wonderful group experience, but don't necessarily want to manage everything that goes along with getting a group of people there and looking after them once they arrive.

Before We Leave

A successful group trip starts with good planning.

Depending on the event, I can help coordinate accommodation, travel arrangements, airport transfers, activities, rooming lists, guest communications and the practical information everyone needs before they leave home.

I can also become a point of contact for the guests themselves.

Instead of the retreat leader or event organizer answering every question about flights, transfers, packing, arrival times or what happens when they get there, guests have someone they can turn to for the travel side of the experience.

Anyone who has ever organized a group will know just how much time that can save.

And Then I Come With You

This is the part that makes Hosted Group Events a little different.

I can actually accompany your group.

I'm there as your travel host and on-site coordinator - welcoming guests, helping with arrivals and transfers, communicating schedules, liaising with hotels and local suppliers, coordinating activities and excursions and dealing with those inevitable unexpected moments that come with travel.

I'm also simply there as a familiar face.

Your guests know who they can come to when they have a question or need some help.

And if you're the person who created the retreat, event or experience, you don't have to spend the entire trip worrying about whether the driver has arrived or everyone knows where they're supposed to be.

You can concentrate on your people and the reason you brought them together in the first place.

Who Could This Work For?

There are so many possibilities.

Perhaps you're a coach, speaker or wellness professional who has always thought about taking your community on a retreat.

Maybe you run a club, association or special-interest group and would love to organize a trip together. It could be a team building experience for a workplace.

Perhaps you'd like to celebrate a milestone birthday somewhere extraordinary with family and friends.

You might want to bring a group together for a river cruise, an educational experience, an incentive trip or simply a wonderful shared journey.

You don't even need to know exactly where you want to go.

Sometimes it can start with a very simple thought:

“I'd love to take my group somewhere.”

And we work from there.

You Bring the People. I'll Help Create the Journey.

One of the things I love most about travel is the way it brings people together.

But creating a great group experience takes planning - and once the trip begins, it helps enormously to have someone there whose job is to look after the details.

That's what I want Hosted Group Events to be about.

Thoughtful planning before you leave. Someone looking after the travel details while you're away. And a familiar person travelling with your group to help everything run as smoothly as possible.

So, if you've ever thought about taking your community, team members, clients, friends or group somewhere special, let's have a conversation.

You don't need to have the destination chosen.

You don't need to have all the details worked out.

You might just have an idea.

That's a very good place to start.

It's a beautiful planet.