Corporate Travel Destinations

Different cultures have developed different business habits and trends, a fact that still needs to be contended with in our modern corporate environment. While globalization has certainly reduced the overall number of differences between different cultures and their meeting styles by allowing a freer flow of ideas, it still falls to the meeting planners to understand the different concepts different cultures have about time and business etiquette.

For example, in the United States and England meetings start and stop at a pre-appointed time regardless of nearly anything else. In fact, some sketch comedy troupes have made fun of this reliance on time be showing whole middle management teams unable to leave a burning meeting room because it was not yet time or suffering some similar fate while bound to the tick-tock of a clock.

In some European cultures, particular Spain and Italy, meetings might begin at a predetermined time or perhaps a little later but they do not end until a resolution has been reached. This means that scheduling an afternoon meeting might be taken as a sign of low significance by some as there is always the likelihood that a morning meeting would run long. In some Asian cultures time is less important and meetings might begin whenever all parties are ready and may end for any reason or for little discernible reason at all.

There is a misconception among some segments of the corporate meeting and incentive travel industry that cruises are an extravagantly expensive option for corporate meetings and travel. On the contrary, opting to plan your next corporate meeting onboard a cruise ship can be quite cost-effective and can result in significant cost savings when compared to corporate meeting destinations that are land-based. This is particularly true when travel and event planners take advantage of enticing packages available when planning meetings with multiple attendees. The cost savings can be even greater if most of the attendees live near a port or cruise terminal, avoiding the need for air travel.

The idea of attending a corporate meeting at sea event is also much more exciting and appealing to attendees, which results in them actually looking forward to the trip, rather than dreading yet another event where they spend hours locked in a boring meeting room in Omaha or Kansas City. Onboard activities and entertainment are an excellent way to wind down after a long day of meetings, and offer plenty of options for days off. Stopping in interesting ports of call also adds appeal to shipboard corporate travel, and allows attendees to spend time enjoying attractions, dining, entertainment and shopping off the ship as well.

Plan your next corporate meeting on a cruise ship and you will find that attendees will be happier and more productive as they enjoy the opportunity to both work and play onboard.