SEARCHING FOR SAFE TEAM OUTINGS? HEAD INTO NATURE

Our current pandemic has forced many of us to work remotely, and this makes it tough to connect with our co-workers. Just a few months ago, we would spend 40+ hours each week with these people, and they formed a huge part of our lives. If you are finding it hard to connect with co-workers, we have a solution to solitude – head out into nature for safe team outings.

If there has been one huge benefit throughout the pandemic, is that more people are spending quality time outside on a daily basis. They are walking, hiking, biking and learning, as Rachel Carson once said, “those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.”

But, nature doesn’t just have to be a place for recreation. Many companies are finding that the great outdoors can be a great option for getting their teams back together. In the past, team outings might have occurred at a hotel conference room or inside a restaurant, which just aren’t viable options during the pandemic.

At La Vida Laguna, we curate meetings in open space and combine them with healthy activities and mindfulness practices to enhance your team’s experience and improve wellbeing. We don’t just provide you with safe team outings; we help you to reconnect to one another. Here’s a quick look at some of our COVID-19-safe company outing ideas.

Hiking The Laguna Coast Wilderness

Laguna Beach is truly a paradise on earth, and it’s definitely easy to plan covid-safe Laguna Beach activities. A hike through the Laguna Coast Wilderness allows you to enjoy our stunning coastal views as well as enjoying flora and fauna unique to Southern California. During our interpretive trail hike, we will engage in walking meditation and guide your team as they truly slow down and take in their natural surroundings.

Become A Part Of The eBike Craze

Electric bikes have become the must-have item for the pandemic. In fact, some people have even ditched their cars permanently now that they are comfortable using their eBike. Laguna Beach has a unique north-south bike route that allows bicyclists to enjoy the beauty of Laguna without having to ride down busy Pacific Coast Highway.

At La Vida Laguna, we can lead your group on electric bike tours that allow you to see Laguna Beach up close and personal along an easy and safe historic loop. We will wind through neighborhoods with quaint cottages enjoying stunning ocean views, experience Laguna’s charming downtown and spend some time at spectacular Heisler Park, which offers ocean views and magnificent public art.

Explore Laguna & The Local Waters

There’s almost no end to the fun outdoor activities we can provide for you in Laguna Beach. If your company outing ideas include a wish to enjoy some sand and surf, we can make that happen. We offer surf lessons, stand up paddleboarding experiences, kayak treks and outrigger canoe adventures.

With the paddleboarding, kayaking and canoeing, you’ll explore Laguna’s extensive protected coastline. Our guided tours allow you to experience a view of Laguna Beach that few people ever enjoy. We launch from a hidden and protected cove, making it easy for your team members that might have little to no experience with paddleboarding, canoeing or kayaking. The outrigger canoe trek can be an excellent team-building option as everyone works together toward a shared goal.

If you’d prefer to stay on the shore, we have a few other team outings to consider. We can host sand sculpture contests, beach volleyball, beach soccer, ultimate Frisbee or you might consider our unique Shipwrecked survival challenge. Additionally, we can plan a fun scavenger hunt and walking tour of Laguna Beach or set up a glass blowing experience or even a session of plein air painting.

An All-Day Experience

But, our company outing ideas don’t have to simply include a single activity. We can provide you with a complete bonding experience. We begin with a team greeting where we outline the challenges and goals for the day.  From there, we might engage in some breath work or light yoga to increase blood and oxygen flow.

Upon returning from your adventure, we can gather together for a socially distanced picnic lunch, and then engage in what is known as a “clearing.” This is a process that allows each person in your group to express anything they wish to let go of in order to be fully present. It is an amazing empathetic tool to help people connect more deeply with one another.

After this, we can provide you with some private meeting time to discuss any corporate issues, strategies or plans. If you like, we also can facilitate this process and lead a discussion on brand identity, core values, shared purpose and reaching the pinnacle of Maslow’s Pyramid of Needs, which is known as self-actualization.

We close the day out with some quiet meditation and a gratitude ceremony and drum circle. Our goal with outdoor team outings is to re-establish and strengthen the connection between co-workers and invigorate your team so that they can be better able to tackle any challenges that the future brings.

There’s just something special about getting together in nature, and if your team has been separated for many months, give us a call and let’s talk about safe, outdoor team outings. In addition to the company outing ideas outlined in this blog, we also have an outdoor meeting space available at our Laguna Beach office, which can accommodate small gatherings and still allow for social distancing.