Rhodes is one of Greece’s best-known islands. That made the brief particularly interesting: how could we show participants a place they might already know in a way they had never experienced?
Our answer was to invest in the quality of the stay and the programme. The hotel, local hosts and carefully timed surprises were as important as the destination itself.
Put the budget where participants will feel it.
An impressive destination name can make a proposal stand out, but flights and logistics may absorb a large part of the budget. We compare the complete concept: the hotel standard, programme, travel time and possibilities for special events.
A more accessible destination can create room for a private concert, an unusual dinner setting or a sightseeing walk that unexpectedly becomes a performance. That was the approach behind this Rhodes trip.
A hotel we know well.
Gennadi Grand Resort was the base for the group. Across our projects, we have organised events for close to 1,000 participants at this hotel. We know the property, the team and what can be arranged on site.
For this trip, we added our own sports and activities programme: zumba, yoga, volleyball, water polo, karaoke and private parties with our DJ. Participants could join in, take a break or choose how to spend their time. For a group of 200, that flexibility matters.
A Greek village, made part of the programme.
For one day, a small Greek village became the setting for a series of encounters prepared for our group. Participants tasted local olive oil and traditional baking, visited a small winery, explored ruins and an open-air museum, and listened to an intimate concert in the village church.
Lunch brought everyone together at Michalis’s taverna, with live music and dancing. Goat had been cooking in a wood-fired oven for twelve hours, and the other ingredients came from the village.
The details were specific to the place and its people. Participants could meet the hosts and feel that the day had been prepared especially for them.
“We’re going sightseeing in Rhodes.”
That was all participants were told about the afternoon: a walk through the old town, followed by dinner. The most memorable parts stayed secret.
As the group moved through the medieval streets, more than a dozen actors appeared in costumes inspired by the Knights Hospitaller. Short scenes unfolded in different places, gradually drawing the participants into the story.
We also visited the Palace of the Grand Master. Even then, the location of dinner had not been revealed.
The evening’s final reveal.
Dinner was waiting in a secluded castle garden. We had prepared a gala for 200 people, with white tables between medieval walls and an evening designed to flow from dinner into a party.
Only a few hours earlier, participants had expected an ordinary sightseeing trip. Now they were part of an event created exclusively for their group.
Each element developed the one before it: the walk, the actors, the palace, the garden and the celebration. That progression made the surprise more than a single impressive venue.
What should people remember a year later?
This project shows why we begin with the experience before choosing the destination. For one group, a long-haul journey may be right. For another, a more accessible island, a good hotel and a stronger programme may create the better event.
Following Rhodes, the client began asking us for that sense of surprise in subsequent projects. For us, it was a clear sign that the thought put into the programme had changed how the event was experienced.
Watch the Rhodes event.
See the hotel, local encounters and final evening on YouTube ↗