...to ask what we could organise that's more inclusive than sports?

[wheresmymojo]

I know I'm not being unreasonable, just looking for plenty of ideas.

I'm at our works 'summer break party' today. We're very lucky as it's a whole day, dinner/dance and overnight stay all expenses paid at a very naice five star hotel and there's no boring meetings or anything to sit through.

The social committee organise it and they've put on optional things to do through the day...

• 'Beach' volleyball
• Human fuseball
• A big inflatable assault course
• A 4 mile walk around the grounds this afternoon
• We can use the spa and/or very expensive golf course

Great. Lovely. It's a very young company, lots of people are having a lot of fun. Brilliant.

I don't like sports and have an injured knee. I thought the one 'mystery team activity' would be something less sporty but it's the inflatable assault course.

So now I'm hanging around the hotel on my own on my phone feeling like I wish I hadn't come and had just taken the free day off.

I could go into the spa but the idea of hanging out in the hot tub with colleagues (especially as I'm very, very busty in my swimming costume) is a no from me.

I'm also on the disabilities group for the company and realising what a nightmare this would be for someone with a physical disability - you can't take part in the sports, but equally may have reasons related or unrelated that mean you wouldn't want to spa either.

So next year I want to organise something for anyone who might not be able to do sports and spa or, like me, are just filled with horror by the thought of either.

What would you organise because I'm at a bit of a loss TBH?

What would you enjoy ?

As PP said, what would you chose to do? I thought of crafting, painting, having someone in to do meditation, cooking class?

Quiz, learn a craft eg paint a pot, learn to make a silver ring etc, film,

So you're by yourself but not wanting to use the spa because your colleagues will see you? That makes no sense, there's also more to a spa than a hot tub....

What about pub quizzes or the likes?

Drumming workshop
Chocolate making
Painting class
Cocktail making
Quiz

Something arty...still life painting
Quiz
Board games

We did an activity at one away day I went to where we got into teams and had to design and build (human powered) go karts - that's clearly not the right word. It worked surprisingly well because it was a mix of practical skills, design stuff and then people who wanted to be more active had a race in the cars afterwards. There might also have been some business skills element to it - maybe negotiation or pitching for more supplies or something. It was quite a long time ago and I was very hungover hence the slightly hazy recollection but I do remember it being universally popular. The other activity that was talked about for years was one where teams had a day to shoot a short film with different genres assigned to each group.

Board games (not monopoly, there’s some really good modern games that are fun and quick to get the hang of).
A pub quiz style thing in teams.
A talk from a local wildlife expert.
Cookery demonstration/food tasting event.

I agree it would be good to have one activity that was less physical. Definitely would be more inclusive. Maybe a quiz, a craft workshop, an escape room, a cookery class, a murder mystery.

I second escape room?

cocktail AND mocktail. Plenty of health and religious why some people can't or won't touch alcohol

I've just been on a company away day and it was all eco stuff - planting seeds, permaculture, a nature scavenger hunt, foraging trip, cooking outside over fire. The site was all flat, and would have been accessible to a wheelchair user that could go on grass or gravel but they also had little electric golf buggies that took people around (we have older team members). For the sportier people there was wild swimming and longer hikes. We had a great time!

Ooh a murder mystery is a good one! Although I guess you need numbers in advance for that?

Board games or quiz

Pottery painting

Cocktail/mocktail making

Flower arranging

FWIW I would never go to a spa with my colleagues!! I’m able bodied but not particularly sporty so I’d probably only want to go for the walk out of all of them.

Obviously depends on the hotel and what can be laid on by the hotel or brought in my external suppliers but things that I'd be looking at would be:

A class/workshop focused on cooking/art/flower arranging/gardening etc - cooking/gardening are slightly less likely to land up being split by gender in the same way that flower arranging or gardening would, although I don't think either is a crisis.

Depending on where you are, a day trip to a local attraction, preferably with a guide or expert?

Pottery painting

Something that I would like but concede might not be to everyone's taste would be some kind of talk on something. eg someone coming in to talk about their expedition to Antarctica or a talk about work being done to protect endangered species or someone to talk about what Smart/AI led cities in the future might look like.

Oh, and I was recently at a hotel that was attached to a bird sanctuary and they did falconry displays. I don't know if those sort of activities are mobile and can be brought in, but that could be good and interesting?

Could you do a trip to a local NT/stately home? Or a talk about local history? Something like that?

I have scars from self-harming as a traumatised teenager.

This is the kind of day that puts me in the position where I feel extremely stressed that I might have to use an excuse that people then pressure me about 'oh come on...we're all in costumes...etc' or actually say that out loud.

The companies that provide the above should also have some ideas - a lot now offer escape room themed games so it's all puzzles and solving mysteries rather than physical challenges

I love cookery classes

Thanks everyone, some really good ideas!

I'm normally good at thinking about things like this but having a mind block because TBH I was always the kid chosen last at sports for school and now, sitting here reading a book on my own, brings back that horrible feeling of burning shame.

(I was diagnosed with ADHD last year and suspect I also have mild dyspraxia which explains why I'm so terrible at sports)

Do you think people would understand if I sloped off home after lunch?

Not in any kind of strop...just in a practical sense it's not very logical for me to sit here reading a book when I could be at home hanging out with my dog?

Is there a way of styling that out so I don't look like a sourpuss?

OP - I don't think many people would be going to spa/sauna/hot tub with their work colleagues, regardless of personal history. It's just not appropriate.

I would like an art/craft workshop of some kind.
Maybe wine tasting or food of some sort.

A quiz would be great.

Even less sporty sports - darts, croquet etc

Quiz, murder mystery night, escape room.

Lego Building.
You can turn it into a game.
Everyone (or team) has a matching set.
Round one - speed build. Follow the instructions and first to build wins.
Round two - take build apart but with just one hand. First to do this wins.
Round three - creative build - have a bunch of categories on cards (car, lighthouse, boat, airplane etc), pick a card, build a version of your category from the parts in the set.

We had something similar recently and I did archery - I know it’s a sport but we all really enjoyed it (no sweating!) it’s fairly inclusive and it was fun even if you were crap at it. The person with the lowest score at the end actually loved it and is going to start doing it as a hobby!

And personally I’d love a still life drawing/painting workshop.

We had a treasure hunt type quiz for one of our away days and it was brilliant. A firm provided the clues and maps and we were divided into teams to just get on with it. Ours was in York so a great location for that sort of thing.