Why More Companies Are Swapping the Boardroom for the Great Outdoors
When was the last time your team actually left the office together, not for a client meeting, but just to think, connect, and reset?
If it's been a while, you're not alone, but the companies getting ahead are changing that.
Hybrid working has left a lot of teams reduced to Zoom calls and endless emails, and companies are noticing that the fix isn't another video call, it's getting people back in a place all together, properly. Research shows offsite retreats lead to a 26% increase in productivity, and it's not hard to see why: face-to-face communication is 34 times more effective than virtual alternatives when it comes to actually landing an idea.
It's paying off in other ways too, companies with a strong approach to team bonding see a 73% decrease in employee turnover. So the question isn't really "can we afford to do an offsite this year?" It's "can we afford not to?"
This is exactly the gap Tipis at Mapledurham was built to fill, somewhere your team can properly switch off from the office, communicate face to face the way the research says actually works, and come back more connected than a screen could ever manage.
It's Not Just About Getting Out the Office
There's real science behind why nature based venues work so well for this. Even 20 minutes of outdoor exposure has been shown to measurably lower cortisol and restore cognitive focus (Wellhub, 2026). Your team won’t just enjoy a day outdoors, they think better because of it.
That's the whole idea behind Tipis at Mapledurham. Surrounded by trees, birds of prey, a 12th century estate and the Thames riverside, there's not many better places to unwind, connect, and actually get something done. Whether that's a strategy session, a team building day, or just a summer celebration for hitting your targets.
So What Should You Actually Be Looking For?
If you're planning your next offsite, conference, or team day, it's worth asking a few questions before you book anywhere:
How large is the space outdoors?
Is the venue flexible enough for both structured sessions and informal downtime?
Is there venue support on the day, or are you left to manage all the suppliers?
What happens if it rains? (This is England, after all)
Is the venue somewhere your team will actually remember, not just another conference room?
Does the venue's approach to sustainability match your company's own values?
Propper Snacks Mexican Regatta Arrival
Where We Come In
Whether you're planning a conference for up to 100 guests theatre-style, a wellness retreat, a product launch in front of Mapledurham House, or a full-blown company celebration. Our venue team is experienced in designing agendas to fit your company and your audience while utilising the variety of indoor and outdoor spaces..] We’re on hand throughout, from suggesting suppliers and shaping your agenda, right through to on-site venue management on the day.
And because we're a Certified B Corp, sustainability isn't an add on, it's entwined into how we run every event, from our energy sources to our supplier network, the same way we do it for the weddings we host here.
We see this play out with the companies who come here. This summer we hosted PROPER SNACKS - the UK's largestB Corp-certified snack brand — for their "Mexican Regatta" summer party. Events like this work best when a venue and a company share the same values around sustainability, and it showed in how naturally the day came together. The team at Proper Snacks left us a 5-star review, calling the setting "genuinely stunning" and praising how smoothly everything ran.
Ready to Get Your Team Out of the Boardroom?
A great offsite shouldn't feel like a compromise between "productive" and "actually enjoyable." Here, they're the same thing.
Propper Snacks Mexican Regatta Celebration
