Interested in scheduling an employee trip to increase morale in the workplace? Want it to take place somewhere memorable and have it be a really one-of-a-kind outdoor adventure experience? If so, then the solution is simple: take a Grand Canyon rafting trip down the mighty Colorado River. When people think of visiting the Grand Canyon, they think about spring break trips with friends or family vacations. However, it’s also a great working retreat for companies who want to reward their committed employees and have them participate in team-building exercises. Grand Canyon white water rafting trips are thrilling, enjoyable, and naturally, nothing short of extraordinary.

Colorado River raft trips down a stretch of the Grand Canyon give people the chance to experience otherwise inaccessible areas of the national park. Guided raft trips on the river are great for big groups of families, friends or, as it were, employees working on team-building exercises. Aside from the real excitement of rafting one of the world’s wildest rivers through the geological wonder that is the Grand Canyon, guided group trips with a commercial outfitter stand out for some other reasons as well:

• Commercial outfitters take care of every preliminary step, including acquiring all necessary permits; and collecting all boat, safety, cooking, waste removal and sleeping gear. Plus, they manage all the food and fresh water you’ll need for your journey.

• Each member of your group needs to bring just a couple things, including a small bag of personal items including essential clothing and toiletries, and other items like a digital camera, sunglasses, hat, prescription medications, etc.

• Their guides serve as raft navigators, chefs, storytellers, hike leaders, resident conservationists, and all-around river experts

Your employees need not be expert river dogs to go on a Colorado River rafting trip. However, everyone needs to be in good health with no serious physical impairments, and should be able to handle severe temperatures and be capable of trekking over rugged terrain.

Assuming an employee team-building adventure involves at least one overnight, here’s what you should expect from a typical day on the river:

• Wake up, make breakfast and break down the camp

• Load up the rafts and head out for a few hours of amazing white water rafting; several mammoth rapids like Lava Falls and Crystal, await you!

• One or two stops along the way to take a scenic side hike a ways up the canyon

• Break for lunch (one of the hikes probably will take place at this time), and set out again

• Venture to the next camping area before the sun sets, do the “duffel shuffle” (unloading the rafts), make camp, eat dinner, and be entertained by your guide’s incredible story-telling skills

• Hit the hay, wake up, and do it all over again

If a getaway like this sounds too good to pass up, companies shouldn’t hesitate to contact a professional Colorado River whitewater rafting outfitter. Aside from the obvious advantages of hiring an outfitter as listed above, trying to obtain a private-use permit for Grand Canyon raft trips can be a disappointing experience, given that it’s based on a lottery system. Going it alone also means you’ll have to put everything together by yourself – necessary permits, load-in and load-out transport, boats, food, water, sleeping gear, etc. Save yourself a lot of time, money and frustration and employ a professional to do all this for your group, but be sure to plan well in advance because the spots fill up fast.

On a trip like this, your employees’ intelligence, expertise and teamwork will be put to the ultimate test. The tough, unbridled reality of Mother nature will uncover any leaks in the boat, so to speak, and it will quickly become obvious that only through trust and teamwork will the experience be successful.

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