Make Waves TogetherWatersport Events & Activities

Corporate watersports events and outdoor team building across the UK. Want a team day people are still talking about three weeks later? Get them out of the office, off their phones, and onto the water. Hen dos, away days, charity fundraisers, family fun days, we run the lot, and we run them properly. No experience needed. Just turn up.

OR

All across the U.K.

10 – 10,000+ guests

OUTDOOR Exclusive

We bring everything

Why water-based team building actually works

Stick a group in a boat together and watch what happens. The phones go away. The small talk goes away. Suddenly the marketing manager is shouting at the ops director to paddle harder, and they’re both loving it. Water levels people. It’s loud, it’s physical, it’s fun, and nobody escapes it. That’s exactly why it works.

We run the whole thing. Kit, instructors, helms, safety, insurance, logistics, the lot. And because we cover way more than watersports, you can stack your day with land-based challenges, inflatables, creative workshops or full evening entertainment without making ten different phone calls. One supplier. One brilliant day. Sorted.

Our watersports activities

Dragon Boat Racing

This is the one. Our most-booked activity, and once you’ve seen a crew cross the line first, you’ll know why. Twenty paddlers, one boat, one drumbeat. You either pull together or you don’t move. Watch a team click into rhythm halfway down the course and you’re watching team building happen in real time.

We run dragon boat events all over the UK, with regular hotspots in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Windsor, Oxford and Milton Keynes. Got a venue in mind? We’ll come to you.

It’s brilliant on its own, and even better with bankside activities firing alongside while crews rotate. Think target sports, Segways, inflatables, the works.

No experience needed. Qualified helms, full safety briefing, suitable for any group size.

Canoeing

Calmer than dragon boat racing, but don’t mistake calm for easy. Canoeing forces a team to communicate properly, paddle in sync, and actually listen to each other. We can run it as a guided paddle, a timed relay, or a navigational challenge across open water, depending on how competitive your group wants to get.

Run by experienced instructors who pitch it to suit the group. Slots in beautifully as one rotation inside a bigger multi-activity day.

Kayaking

A proper crowd-pleaser. Singles kayaks for the people who want to power off and prove a point. Doubles for the pairs who’ll either smash it or end up arguing about steering. Either way, you’re getting laughs, action, and a proper workout. Mix formats, run relays, set up a course, whatever fits the group.

Beginner friendly, fully instructed, scales to any group size.

Raft Building and Racing

Give a team some barrels, planks and rope. Tell them to build something that floats. Then race it. The next thirty minutes are pure chaos, and someone is definitely getting wet. This is the activity that exposes who plans, who panics, and who just starts knotting rope without a strategy. It’s brilliant, every single time.

No skills required. Mixed-ability friendly. One of the best for away days, fun days and charity fundraisers.

Paddleboarding (SUP)

SUP is everywhere right now, and rightly so. Easy enough to get up on. Hard enough to make racing genuinely competitive. And there’s something deeply funny about watching your boss eat it on a paddleboard in front of the whole team. Run it as a casual session, a relay, or a flat-out race. Whichever one suits the energy of the day.

Any fitness level. Pairs perfectly with wellness programmes or as the lead-in to a bigger day.

Katakanus

Bet you’ve never been on one. Bet most of your team haven’t either. Katakanus are basically a giant catamaran-canoe hybrid, easy to start on, surprisingly addictive once you get the hang of it. Novelty factor through the roof, which makes them a brilliant icebreaker and an absolute talking point at the bar afterwards.

Suits all abilities. Works standalone or as one rotation in a wider programme.

Build a bigger event around
your watersports day!

Why stop at the water’s edge? Stack any of the above with our wider event range and turn a session into a proper day out:

Target sports, including archery, axe throwing and laser clay pigeon shooting.
Motorised activities like quads, Segways, hovercrafts and rage buggies.
Inflatable obstacle courses, zorbs and high-energy games for company fun days.
Creative workshops covering art, cooking, craft and music, for a calmer counterpoint when the group needs a breather.
Themed events, from full adventure concepts to branded corporate experiences.
Evening entertainment, including race nights, murder mysteries, musical bingo and gala dinners.

Two activities or ten. Half a day or three. Twenty people or four hundred. Tell us the group, the venue and the goal, and we’ll build a day that absolutely flies.

How do I plan my watersports team building! event?

Planning a water-based event is straightforward when you take it one step at a time. Here’s how we walk every client through it.

1. Nail down the goal

What do you actually want from the day? Communication? Bonding? Pure fun and a release valve after a long quarter? Maybe a charity fundraiser with a competitive edge. Get clear on this first and everything else falls into place.

2. Pick your format

Flat-out competitive racing, mixed multi-activity rotations, themed days, creative challenges, or a stack of all of the above. Tell us the energy you’re going for and we’ll match the format to the group.

3. Lock in the venue and logistics

Confirm your numbers, choose a venue (ours or yours), and leave the rest to us. We’ll handle kit, instructors, safety, timings and the running order so the day flows from arrival to last paddle.

Tailor your event

Every event we run is built around your brief.
Half-day, full-day and multi-day formats. Venues across the UK, or at a site of your choice. Fully managed from the first call to the post-event debrief. Watersports only, or stacked with the full activity range. Competitive, casual, or a proper mix of both.

What our clients say

“A fantastic and professionally created event. From the pre-communications to the delivery of safety briefings and the fun interaction from the helms, execution was 100%. The team and families attending loved every moment.”

– Jemma Avery

“The support leading up to the event was amazing. They were always at the end of the phone. They have an incredible team who constantly had smiles on their faces and couldn’t do enough to help us.”

– Event organiser, dragon boat charity race

Watersports Team
building FAQs.

Can't see your question?

The easiest way to start is a quick call, usually about eight minutes. You don’t need to have it all figured out. Just tell us roughly what you’re planning and we’ll talk you through what’s worth knowing. If we’re a good fit, brilliant. If not, you’ll still come away knowing more than you did.

Call the team

01536 674748

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What size groups can NewWave Events accommodate for watersports team building?

Anything from 20 to 400+. Our watersports activities scale up brilliantly, with multiple boats or stations running in parallel for bigger groups, or smaller, more intimate setups for compact teams. Tell us your numbers and we’ll recommend the right format.

Do participants need to know how to swim?

No. All our watersports activities run with full safety kit, qualified instructors and buoyancy aids as standard. Confidence in the water is helpful, but it isn’t a requirement. We’ve run successful corporate days for plenty of complete first-timers. People who are uncomfortable in or around water are advised to not book instead look at some our fantastic on-land events instead.

What happens if the weather's bad?

We run rain or shine, and a bit of weather rarely stops us. For genuine safety concerns like high winds or storms, we’ll work with you on a backup plan, whether that’s rescheduling or switching to an indoor or land-based alternative from our wider activity range.

Are watersports activities suitable for mixed-ability groups?

Yes. Every activity is designed to work for all fitness levels, ages and confidence levels. Dragon boating, raft building and kayaking in particular are brilliant levellers, the senior leadership team and the new starter end up in the same boat, literally.

What should participants wear or bring on the day?

Comfortable clothes you don’t mind getting wet, trainers or water shoes, and a full change of clothes for afterwards. We provide all the technical kit, including buoyancy aids, paddles and helmets where needed. A towel and sunscreen never hurt either.

Where in the UK do you run watersports team building events?

All over. We have regular venues in London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Windsor, Oxford and Milton Keynes, and we run events nationwide. Got a venue with water access in mind? We can usually come to you.

Can we combine watersports with other team building activities?

Absolutely, and we’d recommend it for full-day events. Pair your watersports session with land-based challenges, target sports, inflatables or evening entertainment for a packed multi-activity day. Take a look at our multi-activity events for ideas.

Do you provide all the equipment and safety kit?

Yes. Boats, paddles, buoyancy aids, helmets, safety boats, qualified instructors and helms, full safety briefing, the lot. You and your team just need to turn up ready to go.

How far in advance should we book a watersports team building event?

Sooner is better, especially for summer dates and Fridays which book up fast. We’d suggest reaching out at least 6 to 8 weeks ahead for larger groups, but get in touch even if your timeline is tighter, we’ll always try to make it work.

Are themed concepts available for watersports days?

Yes. We can wrap a watersports day inside a fully themed event, from adventure-style concepts to branded corporate experiences, complete with bespoke trophies, team names and event branding. Or bring your own with fancy dress!