Around 30 organisers and others recently enjoyed a well-organised tour of Essex venues close to London, as guests of Visit Essex for Business.

o The Marriott Waltham Abbey hotel offers 158 bedrooms and four suites, and fourteen meetings spaces and combinations, comprising the Forest suite for 280 which divides into three, and ten rooms for 10-200. www.WalthamAbbeyMarriott.co.uk

o The Holiday Inn Brentwood hotel offers 149 bedrooms, 18 Executive, and a dedicated Academy conference centre comprising nine meetings spaces and combinations for 10-120. www.holidayinnmeetings.co.uk

o Ingatestone Hall is a sixteenth-century manor house offering up to six spaces for up to 100 and a large garden area for up to 1,000, either in marquees or al fresco. www.essexhousesandgardens.co.uk

o Valentines Mansion and Gardens, Ilford, is a Georgian and Victorian style country house with two rooms for 70/40, two boardrooms for 10/12, and a rose garden and walled garden to explore. www.valentinesmansion.com

o Lee Valley White Water Centre offers canoeing and kayaking down two courses, a 300 metre run of rapids grade two to four used for the 2012 Olympics, and a 160 metre course delivering up to grade three. (grade five is strongest) www.govwhitewater.co.uk

o TopGolf at Chigwell is a large driving range where contestants and team-building groups score points by driving balls into targets. There is also a marquee for up to 100. www.Topgolf.com