Day 1: Arrival & Team Connection
First hellos and easing in
- 14:00–18:00Airport transfers and hotel check-in
- 18:30–20:00Welcome dinner and team introductions
- 20:00–22:00Informal networking and discussions
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1000+
Offsites organized
10
Years of experience
200+
Retreat locations
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Why organize a remote team retreat?
Remote work offers flexibility and access to global talent, but it can also make collaboration and relationship-building more difficult. That's why many remote-first companies organize retreats to bring employees together in person.
Time spent together helps colleagues build trust, align on priorities, collaborate on complex projects, and strengthen company culture. Many distributed teams meet once or twice per year to reconnect, share ideas, and create meaningful relationships beyond Slack and Zoom.
Organize your next remote team retreat with Surf Office
1000+ retreats organized ● 10 years of experience ● 200+ retreat locations
Get a quoteSample Retreat Itinerary in Lisbon
For many distributed companies, retreats are one of the few opportunities to bring the entire team together in person. Here's an example of a 5-day remote team retreat in Lisbon based on a real retreat organized for Mattermost.
Recent retreats organized by Surf Office
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Organize your next remote team retreat with Surf Office
Get a quoteRemote team retreat activity ideas
Looking for inspiration on how to keep your remote team busy on the retreat?
Here are some activities that Surf Office has hosted in the past:
Head to the beach
Workday, a people analytics company, hosted its company retreat in Barcelona. The team spent at the beach with activities like stand up paddle, swimming, and a surfing lesson. A beach trip is good for big groups because everyone can do what they want. Some can swim, some can play beach volleyball, and some can veg in the sun.
Take a hike
Get away from the noise and hustle of the city and bring your team for a nature hike. Our destinations in the Catskill Mountains, Zion national park, and Gran Canaria are perfect for bringing your team on a hike for some fresh air.
Treasure hunt
Break up your larger group in small teams and take a walk through the historic streets of Lisbon, for instance. See famous monuments, hidden gems, and learn about the culture of the city on a scavenger hunt. Get to know the city and each other in a fun way.
Host a speaker or Ted Talk
Invite a local expert to speak about something out-of-the-box. Or, have your employees volunteer to give informal Ted Talk-style presentations about something they’re passionate about. This approach leverages internal resources, uplifts individual interests, and shows your support for skills beyond work roles.
Share a meal
EVBox is a company focused on providing charging solutions for electric vehicles. Their group of 200 people joined Surf Office for a company retreat. In the process, we hosted a special dining experience in Lisbon with traditional dishes and drinks. Organizing meals can be a challenge for large groups: read what we’ve learned about making restaurant reservations.
Hackathon
If you want to keep your team bonding business-focused, host a hackathon. Divide the large group up into small teams and work on a project. A traditional hackathon focuses on creative problem-solving – emphasis on “creative.” Don’t be afraid to make the hackathon open-ended to foster innovation.
FAQs about remote team offsites
What is a remote team retreat?
A remote team retreat is an event that brings distributed employees together in person to collaborate, strengthen relationships, and spend time together outside of video calls and messaging platforms.
Why are retreats important for remote teams?
Remote teams often communicate through Slack, email, and video calls. Retreats provide an opportunity to build stronger personal connections, improve collaboration, and strengthen company culture through face-to-face interactions.
How often should remote teams meet in person?
Many remote companies organize retreats once or twice per year. The ideal frequency depends on team size, growth stage, budget, and how often employees have opportunities to meet in person.
What should be included in a remote team retreat agenda?
A successful remote team retreat agenda typically includes collaborative work sessions, brainstorming, team-building activities, and informal social time. The best retreats balance productivity with opportunities to connect outside of work.
How long should a remote team retreat be?
Most remote team retreats last between 3 and 5 days. This gives employees enough time to build meaningful relationships while still making the most of their time away from home.
What are the benefits of a remote team retreat?
Remote team retreats can improve communication, strengthen trust, increase employee engagement, boost morale, and help distributed teams build stronger working relationships.
What activities work best for remote teams?
Popular activities for remote teams include city tours, cooking classes, sailing trips, surf lessons, hiking, escape rooms, and collaborative workshops. The best activities encourage interaction and help teammates get to know each other beyond their daily work.
What are the best locations for a remote team retreat?
The best remote team retreat locations offer good flight connections, reliable infrastructure, comfortable workspaces, and memorable experiences. Popular destinations include Porto, Tenerife, Belgrade, Istanbul, New Orleans, and Da Nang.
Are remote team retreats worth the cost?
For many remote-first companies, retreats are one of the most effective ways to strengthen culture, improve collaboration, and build long-term relationships between employees who rarely meet in person.
How do you organize a retreat for a distributed team?
Planning a remote team retreat involves choosing an accessible destination, coordinating travel, arranging accommodation and workspaces, organizing activities, and creating an agenda that balances work and social time. Many companies work with retreat planners to simplify the process.
💛 Wall of love 💛
We couldn't do it without you. You were a huge support for us. We did a feedback survey asking the team how everything was, asking about the hotel, the food, the program etc. and they were able to rate from 1 to 10, & overall we have a 9.5 So it was really really successful!
The expectations were really high. We put a lot of pressure on you since the start, telling you about our last events in the Moroccan desert and in Eiffel Tower. But it was great. The organization was really smooth. The event was beyond expectation!
We did a survey with the guys, we have like mostly 9/10, or 10/10. People were really having so much fun… they were very happy with the choice of the place. The venue, the weather, the team dynamics, it all came together really well.
I really felt having you being part of it was such an asset. Just knowing that you were point in organizing this and then also if there was a question or problem we could just reach out directly was really helpful.
Everybody loved it! We did a post-offsite survey, and it was all vibes! Everything went to plan. One thing that we were all saying internally as well is like - I honestly don't think we would have made happen unless we had Surf Office.
It was great! People loved the balance of free time and activities. They loved that we gave them options on activities.
We have been doing this since 2008, so it was the 17th event this year. And the consensus was that this was the best ever. Everybody was super happy, they had lots of fun. So it was great.
People got together, people got to see each other. We had really good internal sessions, and also a lot of off time sessions. I feel Surf Office thought of a lot of things that one would not think when you're planning an off site in another country.
We have grown so much since our last event, so were a lot of people, and we needed those three days to talk, to interact with everyone... You handled it so beautifully. We did not have to worry about organizing or arranging anything. You guys did an amazing job.
Organize your next remote team retreat with Surf Office
Get a quoteHow does it work?
1. Tell us more about your plans
We would like to hear more about your plans and how we can make your next remote team summit a success.
Do you have an office in one location or is your team distributed? Can employees bring their partners? Is the retreat going to be more about work or fun?
2. Planning with your dedicated project manager
Even finding and booking one single restaurant for the dinner can be a painful project. Is the food going to be good? Is the price fair? How many of our team members have diet restrictions?
Each retreat is a combination of multiple smaller projects and with a large group the complexity might be scary.
But no worries, we mastered this process and made it fun and easy.
Our experienced project manager dedicated to you will help you with a whole organisation from searching for flights to crafting unique surprise activities for your team.
We will be your one-stop-shop for all of the logistics of your retreat. The Retreat Planner assigned to your group will work with you to book and coordinate everything from A-Z, providing you with peace-of-mind and a guarantee of quality and reliability from our local partners at the best possible prices.
According to our repeat clients and our first-time clients who have previous experience in organizing retreats in-house, this is the greatest value that we bring to them.
3. Detailed plan and schedule of your remote team retreat
At the end of the planning process you will end up with the bullet-proof schedule. There is no room for improvisation with a large group.
Everything must work perfectly, all the activities and transfers must be just-on-time.
Sounds like a dream end, right? That’s how we work.
You are ready for your epic remote team retreat.
OFF-SITE PACKAGE
Included in the package:
- Private office
- Accommodation
- Dedicated pre-arrival Retreat Planner
- Customized schedule with activities
- Meal reservations
- Online concierge service
LITTLE EXTRAS
We can help you to find an optimal location
As people are travelling from all over the places, we know how important is for you to find an optimal retreat location which will minimise the time for your team members.
No matter how spread out around the globe you are, we’ll find the best location for you all to meet.
Flexible check-in
We understand the traditional hospitality check-in after 2 pm is not convenient for a distributed team coming in from all over the globe. We’ll have someone at the workspace at all times to receive guests and check you into the accommodation as early as possible.
Organization of a local meetup
Organizing a local meetup: Be it for hiring or networking purposes, we have a strong local community of tech people and remote workers in most Surf Office locations and can easily put together a meetup like the one for a previous Automattic group in Lisbon.
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