From improved employee motivation and morale, to team building and rewarding your people for a job well done, the benefits of a corporate retreat are many. That means that good planning for your company retreat is crucial if you’re to reap all the rewards it offers.

But that’s a lot easier said than done. From competing priorities between departments to different dietary requirements between employees, successful planning for a company retreat is not a simple task.

Fortunately, due to the popularity of corporate retreats, you can find lots of great online tips to help your planning.

5 Company Retreat Planning Tips You Might Not Think About

Our chalets here at Stay at Blue Mountain are the setting for many company retreats every year. With its mix of mother nature and creature comforts, Blue Mountain is a great location for company retreats.

So we thought we’d scour different online tips for retreat planning and pick out a few that businesses don’t always consider.

1. Plan the Event Outside the Office

from 6 Things to Consider When Planning a Business Retreat”.

Advice: “Disrupting the company’s ordinary routine may help usher in new ways of working together. You may want to avoid any distractions during your retreat—consider picking someplace where your team can relax and learn new ways of communicating and collaborating.”

2. Find a Good Place to Work

from 5 Tips to Make the Most of Your Company Retreat.

Advice: “Remote workers understand the challenge of coming by dependable internet outside an office environment. Finding a relatively quiet place with decent internet (and decent coffee) can be quite the treasure hunt.”

3. Find an Accessible Outdoor Spot

from 5 Tips to Plan a Remarkably Productive Company Retreat.

Advice: “Locations that offer a myriad of outdoor activities are hugely popular. The Huffington Post reports that connections with nature have been proven to improve an employee’s performance at work.”

4. The Power of Fun

from 5 Tips for an Effective Team Retreat.

Advice: “Get creative when planning activities for your team retreat. Don’t settle for the same old, same old. Consider where you will be holding the retreat, what equipment or resources are available to you, what your employees are interested in and plan around these factors.”

5. Never Underestimate the Importance of Food

from 7 Tips for a Stellar Company Retreat.

Advice: “This may be the single most significant element in a successful retreat. If the food is terrible, people will droop and look for the exits, but if the food is the tastiest you can afford, folks will suddenly be happy to hang around and bond. If you have to cut anything from the budget, don’t let it be the food.”

There you have it. To learn more about planning a company retreat, or to book one of our well-appointed chalets in Blue Mountain for your next retreat, contact Stay at Blue Mountain, today.

Every bride and groom want their wedding day to be special, different, something that is uniquely theirs. Destination weddings are a popular way of doing that. But costs can get out of control quickly and it’s a lot to ask your guests to spend extra money to attend your wedding.

But what if you could find a closer destination, one with all of the amenities of a world-class resort, vacation town and travel destination all rolled into one?

5 Reasons to Choose Blue Mountain for Your Destination Wedding

One of the main reasons for having a destination wedding is to get the chance to spend more time with your family and guests. But that can only happen if the destination offers lots of options for getting together. You need great restaurants, activities, excursions, and a beautiful setting as a backdrop for it all.

With that in mind, the Blue Mountain area, including Collingwood and the Blue Mountain Resort, might be one of the best wedding destinations on the world.

The Setting for Your Ceremony

Imagine just the two of you riding a gondola to the top of the Mountain to celebrate your outdoor wedding overlooking Georgian Bay. Or, if you prefer the beaches you get in tropical destinations, you can have that in Blue Mountain too. And if you want a traditional church wedding, Collingwood is home to beautiful churches that are characteristic of small-town Ontario.

Think of the Photo Ops

Imagine a dock, in a bay, at sunset. Or dancing through the streets of Blue Mountain Village. Or the breathtaking scenery at the top of the Mountain. Or the waves crashing on Georgian Bay’s shores. Just the photo ops alone are a great reason to choose Blue Mountain for your wedding.

Dinner & Reception

Your options are almost endless here too. Collingwood and the Blue Mountain area are blessed with lots of great venues, from straightforward banquet halls to full-on conference centres.

Things To Do

This is where Collinwood and Blue Mountain leave other wedding destinations way behind. Golf, zip lining, sailing, winter skiing (yes, you can consider a winter wedding!), water skiing, nightlife, hiking, outdoor concerts, mountain biking, horseback riding, spa retreats, sitting on a patio. And that’s just for starters.

Destination Wedding Without the Destination Wedding Costs 

Just a couple hours drive from Toronto and most of Southern Ontario, Collingwood, and Blue Mountain are close by. That means you and your guests don’t have to worry about airfare and most other travel costs.

Last but not least, there are great options for accommodations in Blue Mountain for all your guests. One of the most popular choices is to have your guests share a premium chalet near the Mountain. Equipped with all the amenities, and private rooms for everyone, your guests enjoy a taste of the chalet lifestyle while helping you celebrate your nuptials. Contact Stay at Blue Mountain to learn more.

If you’re looking for things to do in Blue Mountain this October, you really don’t have to plan anything to enjoy your stay. October paints the entire area around Blue Mountain with the vibrant colours of autumn. So just going for a walk is a treat for your senses. And the views from the top of the Mountain are more spectacular than usual.

But, just in case you like to have a ‘things to do’ list of events and options when you visit to Blue Mountain, here are just a few items for this October.

October 6 to October 8 – Blue Mountains Apple Harvest Festival

You might think that a place that’s famous for skiing in the winter and boating and festivals in the summer wouldn’t have much going on in October. But it’s not so and the Apple Harvest Festival is a perfect example.

With events in both Blue Mountain Village and nearby Thornbury, festival visitors can enjoy lots of free family activities, including fish ladder viewing, live music, Apple Pie Trail, scavenger hunts, lots of apple-related fun, hiking, biking & fall driving tours.

October 13 – Everest Challenge

Want to be part of the first of what promises to be a much-anticipated annual event? And help support the Collingwood General & Marine Hospital? Then the Everest Challenge is for you.

The Everest Challenge is an exciting, new event in which teams of 2, 4, 5, 8 or 10 will climb the mountain together enough times to equal 29,092 feet, the height of Mount Everest.

October 27 – Jersey Seasons: A Tribute to Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons

The historic Gayety Theatre in downtown Collingwood, just 10 minutes drive from Blue Mountain Village has been entertaining guests for over 100 years.

Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons started entertaining their fans over 50 years ago. What happens when you bring together these two historic entertainment icons? The Jersey Seasons is fronted by Gavan Rousseau and backed by the Gem Tones. The result is a tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons that’s difficult to tell from the original.

If you and a group of family, friends or work colleagues would like to enjoy any of these events while staying in premium chalet accommodations, contact us here at Stay at Blue Mountain.

Why does everyone think the summer’s over as soon as September comes and the kids go back to school? Most of September is still summer! So this year, instead of being down about the end of summer, check out some of the things to do at Blue Mountain in September and make the summer last as long as possible.

September 8

Canada’s Only Guitar Trail

It’s the first weekend after Labour Day and the summer fun continues right on the mountain. The Guitar Trail lets you discover and enjoy dozens of guitarists in Blue Mountain Village and up the mountain hiking trail. If climbing the mountain isn’t possible for you. You can take the gondola to the top and enjoy the music on your way back down to the Village.

Once you get there, you’ll enjoy the featured concert by legendary Canadian rocker Colin James!

September 15 & 16

Centurion Blue Mountain Bicycling Event

Whether you’re a regular racer, or you’ve never thought you’re good enough to enter an organized cycling event, the Centurion Blue Mountain is for you. With a motto of “Racers Race, Riders Ride”, cyclists of all ages and abilities can enjoy this well-organized ride through the areas around Blue Mountain. Routes include food stations along the way, OPP traffic control, and medical and mechanical support.

September 22

Creemore Springs Oktoberfest

It’s Oktoberfest in September! Roll out the barrels, dust off your lederhosen and head to Blue Mountain Village. You can enjoy German-inspired food and drink, and traditional live music, dances, games, family-friendly activities and much, much more.

Even if you don’t visit for a formal event. There are still lots of things to do in Blue Mountain in September. If you need great accommodations for a group of family, friends or work colleagues, be sure to check out the premium chalets we have for you here at Stay at Blue Mountain.

Not only is July 1st Canada Day at Blue Mountain, it’s the first long weekend of the summer, so you have two great reasons to celebrate.

If you haven’t enjoyed it before, the Blue Mountain Canada Day Experience just keeps getting better. Every year there are more events, festivities and activities for people of all ages.

Of course, our Canada 150 birthday party last year was the biggest of all and we’re looking forward to making Canada 151 even better.

What to Expect on Canada Day at Blue Mountain

Start planning your visit right now and you can look forward to taking part in all the events and activities. Here are just a few we enjoyed for Canada Day 150.

Canada Day Eve Party

The celebrations began even before the weekend started. The Canada Day Eve Party was hosted in Thornbury and featured live bands, a BBQ dinner, fun for the kids and ice cream too

Fireworks Displays

This is a must on Canada Day, but there seemed to be great displays of firework pyrotechnics everywhere you went. The three biggest were in Thornbury, Blue Mountain and Collingwood.

Pancake Breakfast 

Ever had a pancake breakfast right under the clock tower in Collingwood? If you were here for last Canada Day at Blue Mountain you could scratch that one off your bucket list.

Fish Derby for the Kids 

Catch a fish and you could have been eligible to win a prize for the largest fish, smallest fis and ugliest fish!

The Lumberjack Show 

What’s more Canadian than a Lumberjack Show, including axe juggling and and aerial act?

Plan Your Own Canada Day at Blue Mountain 

If you don’t want to fill your Canada Day weekend with planned events, Blue Mountain and the surrounding area has lots of things to do and places to explore. From swimming or sailing in the waters of Georgian Bay, to biking and hiking on the Mountain, and even some cave exploring, you can plan your very own way to celebrate Canada Day here in Blue Mountain

If you’re looking for a great place to stay for a group of family, friends or work colleagues, for Canada Day or anytime, be sure to check out the premium chalets we offer here at Stay at Blue Mountain.