10 Fun Team Building Activities That Are Out of the Office
Are you planning team-building group outings and benefits for your employees but don’t know where to start? Why not make use of the wonderful weather and organize a day of outdoor activities for your team that’ll help build team spirit but also make it a day of stress-free, worry-free fun?
Whether it’s water sports, scavenger hunt, room escape, or a relaxing day at the beach, your employees are your company’s bread and butter. They’re spending 8 or more hours a day in an enclosed space helping to grow your business, so a day or a weekend of outdoor fun will help everyone unwind, de-stress, and get back to the office refreshed and ready for new challenges. Keep reading to discover 10 fun team-building activities to boost productivity, improve teamwork, and build a strong company culture.
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Potluck Party
One of the best team-building activities you can do outside is a potluck party or barbeque. Everyone can bring their own homemade dish to the party as well as their favorite drink. This is a great way to get to know your co-workers’ different cultures and backgrounds, talk about recipes, and have fun with the people you see every day.
The weekend is the best time for potlucks and BBQs, but if employees prefer to spend the weekend with their families, it’s best to choose a day in the week and make it a day off for everyone. Eating is a social activity, and it’s a lot of fun when you get to try different dishes. Make sure you ask everyone about their dietary requirements, restrictions, or allergies to ensure everyone’s needs are taken care of.
Fun Team Building Activities: Scavenger Hunt
An outdoor scavenger hunt is a fun team-building activity that’ll give people an adrenaline rush and help build teamwork as people will need to work together to win. You can choose an outdoor location like a park or a beach or use the office rooftop or backyard (if available). You can also get even more creative and hide clues around the neighborhood or even the entire town.
A Gel Blaster game is one of the best and not yet common team-building games. This game is best for team building as this promotes great teamwork and sharpens the mind of the players as they need to think of strategies on how to catch and shoot the opponents. Also, this is funny considering that the players will use a gel blaster gun that releases water gel. The gel has a lot of different colors. This makes it more interesting for the players. And, of course, with this game, employees will enjoy the whole game process.
When there’s a common goal that everyone has to help resolve, employees will learn effective ways to work together. The scavenger hunt prize can be extra days off for the winning team, bonuses, gift cards, electronics, sports tickets, or gift vouchers for cafes and restaurants.
A Day at the Beach
Spending a day at the beach doesn’t have to be all sunbathing and swimming. It can be filled with tons of team-building activities either in the water or on land. For example, after everyone has had their time under the sun, you can suggest playing group sports for a prize, organize a scavenger hunt for a hidden treasure, flying kites, building sandcastles, or having a beach race.
Even if your team decides to take the day off and relax in the sun, having some time off work is always helpful to de-stress after a long week or a difficult project.
Organized Charity Walk or Run
Charitable activities or volunteering are wonderful ways to bring everyone together for a noble cause. You can visit a local animal shelter to volunteer and play with sweet kitties or puppies, help put together packages for the homeless or others in need, or go for a group walk or run for a charitable cause.
The prize can be donating in the winners’ names and displaying the winner’s photos and achievements in the office. This is a great activity for team building and building a good company image, so it’s a win-win for everyone.
Water Sports
If you’re looking for outdoor team-building activities, water sports are the best choice for your company, especially with several different departments and teams. This can be anything from beach sports to adventures in rafting, kayaking, paddleboarding, and surfing — as long as everyone is having fun and feels included.
For example, research the best rafting trips in your area, decide on a date and time, and surprise your employees with a fun day on the water. The winners can win prizes or choose to donate a sum of money to their charity of choice. Rafting is one of the best team-building activities as it helps improve communication skills, collaboration skills, trust between team members, and everyone working together towards a common goal.
Escape Room
Escape rooms are among the best team-building activities to merge two teams or help new employees get to know their coworkers better. Escape rooms are high-pressure environments where teams must work together to figure out the fastest way out. This helps build communication and collaboration skills, helps people learn to work under pressure, and gives them a sense of accomplishment after finding a solution.
Though most escape room games are indoors, you can find outdoor escape gardens or mazes surrounded by fences. The entire city can serve as an escape room in some locations where people need to communicate via walkie-talkies to find the exit.
Weekend Getaway
Sometimes, all employees need is a weekend away from work to relax, wind down, have some fun, and not think of work-related stuff. Everyone has a favorite spot to relax outside of the office, so why not book a weekend getaway for your employees where you can spend some time together and get to know each other as individuals rather than just co-workers?
This can be a getaway in a cabin lodge, a vacation spot, a staycation in a fancy hotel, or a spa resort. Most places have their own scheduled activities for groups, so there will always be something fun to do together. You can also organize day trips, company dinners, board games, and other group activities to help build strength as a team.
Board Games
Board games are a simple and fun group activity that’s guaranteed to build team spirit, improve your employees’ communication and problem-solving skills, and provide lots of fun and laughter. Some of the best board games for adults include:
- Monopoly
- Cards Against Humanity
- Speak Out
- Heads Up
- The Game of Life
- Telestrations After Dark
- What Do You Meme
- Charades
- Hangman
Whichever game you choose, make sure everyone is comfortable with it, and be mindful of people’s wishes, beliefs, and personal preferences. Board games are harmless fun that’ll help people get to know their co-workers and build stronger relationships both inside and outside the office.
A Group Day Trip
Team building tips are a great way to get out of the office and spend some time exploring together. You can book a day trip with a guide or organize the activities yourself. Day trips can be to a nearby vacation spot, another town or city, or visiting a few different local spots in one day.
You can end the day trip with a team lunch or a picnic in a park, share impressions, take photos, and talk about your next big adventure together. You can visit museums, galleries, botanical gardens, popular tourist spots, sports events, and outdoor areas like parks, beaches, and piers.
Fun Team Building Activities: Karaoke Night
Karaoke is a classic group activity that’s guaranteed to bring a lot of laughter, fun, and relaxation to any group. It’s a great way to help people relax after a long day or week, and different teams can compete for prizes or rounds of drinks. However, karaoke night isn’t for everyone, and more introverted people might hesitate to come. If so, find a way to make it fun for everyone.
If people don’t want to go on stage and sing, they can keep score, choose the songs, or form the teams that’ll sing together. If this is your first-ever karaoke as a company, consider renting an outdoor space for just your company. You can also go to a beach, park, or another outdoor area where you won’t disturb anyone with loud music.
This way, people will be more relaxed with each other if they’re among people they know, and all you need to do is bring microphones, speakers, and a long playlist of different songs and genres. Bonus points if everyone dresses up as the original performer and prepares a choreography or a special performance for their songs.
Try These Fun Team Building Activities Outside the Office To Boost Teamwork
Whether this is your first team building as a company or you’ve been to a few before, these fun team building activities will help your team connect on a deeper level, build communication and problem-solving skills, and work better with each other.
From day trips to a different city, scavenger hunts, escape rooms, and karaoke to playing water sports or spending a day at the beach, there are so many fun ways to build team spirit outside the office walls.
Want more team-building ideas and activities? Explore some of the other posts we’ve written on these topics and come back often to discover more of the latest industry news and trends.
