30 exciting outdoor team building activities

Outdoor team building activities are a wonderful opportunity for small and large teams to connect, get to know each other more, and simply have fun! It’s not a surprise that outdoor team activities are among the most popular types of team building events, as they allow coworkers to relax outside of their workplace and get some much-needed fresh air, while at the same time building valuable trust in each other that can have a considerable positive impact on their future work relationships with each other. If you need some inspiration for organizing outdoor team building, check out these 30 exciting outdoor team building activities to create that sparkle in your office life!

Why should every team try outdoor team building?

Outdoor team building is a fantastic way to entertain your team and create memorable experiences within your company. But it’s essential to remember that the purpose of outdoor team building activities is not only entertainment. Various outdoor group activities for employees are also a way to increase employee engagement and motivation, improve relationships between colleagues, and overall cooperation abilities in performing various tasks. There are three main reasons for trying outdoor team building games within your company that can be highlighted:

1. Improving the relationships between employees and building mutual trust.
2. Learning how to work together and find solutions under unusual circumstances.
3. An opportunity to have fun together, try out new things and create memories.

Best outdoor team building activities to try at your next event

Outdoor team building activities provide a wide choice of different games and activities that can meet various objectives, for example, focusing on problem-solving or getting to know each other better through unusual and fun activities. There are many types of outdoor team activities you can choose from, including: 

• active outdoor team building activities, such as scavenger hunts or hiking;
• creative outdoor group activities, such as building a fort or creating a painting together;
• culinary outdoor team activities, such as a food masterclass or exploring new foods together;
• outdoor team building activities for employees’ well-being, for example, yoga or meditation classes and much more.

Whichever type is more suitable for your team, our list of the 30 most exciting outdoor games and activities for groups will give you plenty of ideas to try when planning your next outdoor team building event.

Active outdoor team building activities

1. Have fun on an outdoor scavenger hunt

An outdoor scavenger hunt is one of the most exciting outdoor team building games to try if you haven’t done it yet! What makes it even more appealing is that you can easily build an outdoor scavenger hunt on your own, using tools like Loquiz events creator. Your team can use tablets or phones with GPS to open the locations and tasks – it’s easy, fun, and will boost your team spirit to the next level!

 2. Explore the city on a bike tour

If your city is bicycle friendly, you can organize a guided bike tour to explore the city with your coworkers. If your team is not into biking, walking tours around the city are also a great option. Both of these options are among the best low-budget outdoor team activities, as you don’t have to rent a location or a lot of equipment. Just remember to organize a socializing event afterward in a restaurant, cafe or any other location of your liking so that everyone can share what they liked about the tour.

3. Clear your mind while hiking or outdoor camping

This is one of the most traditional outdoor group activities for teams, but it certainly works! People love nature, amazing views, and exciting outdoor games, so why not organize a group hike or a camping trip for your coworkers? Such outdoor team building activities help everyone take a break from their work, relax, and socialize with colleagues. And if your team is currently stuck with a difficult project, this outdoor team building idea might help everyone clear their minds and have a fresh start on it to get it moving again.

4. Enjoy some friendly competition by participating in sports activities together

Pick a sports game your team likes, for example, volleyball, badminton, football or any other, find a place and all the necessary supplies, and release your stress! This is an outdoor team building activity that’s very easy to set up and creates lots of fun and excitement, as well as some friendly competition within your team. Just remind your coworkers that it’s just an outdoor team building game so that they don’t take the game too seriously.

 5. Help the environment by planting trees

Corporate tree planting events could be one of those outdoor team activities that not only unites the team but also does something good for the environment. Such an outdoor team building activity could also be a great tradition for your company to come back to every year. Contact your local city council or an environmental NGO to learn more about tree planting regulations and how you could arrange the planting process.

6. Overcome difficulties together with an obstacle course

What could be more challenging and exciting than a good old obstacle course? These are very popular outdoor team building activities for larger teams, as they encourage employees to face difficulties together and improve the ability to cooperate between team members. You can create your DIY obstacle course in any open space such as a park or a forest or use the services of professionals who offer outdoor rope courses as corporate events.

 7. Facilitate teamwork by building a raft

Want to offer your team something more intriguing than an obstacle course? Try raft building, which is certainly one of the most interesting outdoor team building activities on this list! The goal of this event is to build a raft together with your teammates (under the supervision of experienced instructors to ensure that it’s safe) and then float the raft on the water. If you’re a bit short on time. you can also simply go rafting together, without the raft-building part.

8. Experience strong emotions on a paintball field

For those who enjoy being physically active and don’t shy away from some competition, paintball or laser tag is certainly among the best outdoor team building games. Your team will learn how to improve their communication by signaling each other, coordinating attacks, and adopting new tactics to win. This is quite an extreme team building activity, as it includes a lot of running and also shooting at the opposing team with paintballs, but, if your team is up for it, it can be an extremely rewarding experience. Just remember about safety during the game and don’t forget to warn your colleagues that getting hit by a paintball can sometimes be quite painful.

9. Challenge yourself in axe throwing or archery

Both outdoor axe throwing and archery have become very popular outdoor team building activities over the last few years. And it’s easy to see why, as it allows the participants to challenge themselves, clear negative emotions, compete with teammates and reduce the stress that might be accumulated during work.

10. Try something new and fun with zorbing

Zorbing is one of the most fun outdoor team building activities, and it’s especially perfect for smaller teams. It involves placing team members into a large transparent plastic ball that absorbs the impact of any shocks and then being rolled down a small hill. The idea is to overcome small obstacles along the way and reach the finish line first.

11. Have fun together in an outdoor concert

Choose an outdoor concert all teammates agree with and enjoy a fun outdoor group activity with good music and informal conversations. Such a relaxed atmosphere will help colleagues to loosen up, enjoy their time together and communicate better with each other. Just make sure that all your team members are on board with the concert that you pick, so that everyone has an equally enjoyable time.

12. Look for adventures with geocaching

You have probably heard of geocaching, an outdoor treasure hunt for searching hidden containers (geocaches), using GPS coordinates. It’s a great outdoor team building game to try. For example, you can divide your team into small groups to see which group will locate the most geocaches. If you want your team to have unforgettable memories and a sense of a real adventure, geocaching might be the right outdoor game for your team.

13. Visit a local kart racing center for an energy boost

If you’d like to raise friendly competition within your team, you can try kart racing as your outdoor team activity. It will be great both for small and large teams, providing real excitement and filling everyone with a bit of adrenaline. You can compete as individuals or split into groups to see which group will have the fastest track time.

14. Learn how to support your teammates by climbing a wall

Another classical outdoor team building activity that can be done both indoors and outdoors. It’s a challenging environment, where the moral and physical support of others is especially important. This wonderful outdoor team building activity will help boost trust between the employees, as well as teach them how to overcome obstacles and support each other in challenging situations. 

15. Try new games

If traditional outdoor team building activities don’t cause too much excitement for your team, try to create a unique game to play outdoors at your next event. It might sound quite difficult to do, but it’s actually not that complicated if you use the help of technology. For example, you could use one of our game templates to create fun quests, photo scavenger hunts, self-guided tours, and various other outdoor games for your group.

Creative outdoor team building activities

16. Use your imagination to build a fort

This is one of the most fun outdoor team building activities to try with your team. You can ask your coworkers to bring construction materials, such as boxes, and duct tape, or prepare them on your own. Then split into groups to make forts and then decide which one is the most creative at the end.

17. Create your own piece of art

Many teams do not consider art class as an outdoor team building option because they think they lack talent. But you do not have to be an artist to create awesome artwork together with your teammates! Creating a piece of art together with others is a lot less stressful than doing it alone because everyone can combine their skills together, removing some pressure from each individual. That’s why this activity not only makes everyone use their imagination but also facilitates collaboration between coworkers.

18. Film a video outdoors 

If you need to boost your team’s creativity levels, split them up into small teams and come up with a topic for a short movie or video each team must create, preferably outdoors. After the videos have been finished, you can set up an office movie night, where each team presents their video to everyone in the office. It’s one of the funniest outdoor team building activities, as some bloopers are inevitable, but, at the same time, it will also make your team members connect with each other more, so it provides some real value to teams. 

19. Learn a new skill outdoors

Learning new things is always a good idea, especially when you need to plan outdoor team activities. You can pick up an interesting skill to learn outdoors, for example, how to paint landscapes or how to make a fire.

20. Learn how to make kites and organize a kite flying event

One of the most creative outdoor team building activities is designing and flying a kite. You can also organize a special event within your company each year with the nominations for the most creative design, time spent in the sky, and any other formal or funny nominations.

21. Work in groups to craft an art object

This is another great outdoor team activity for boosting your team’s creativity levels. Invite your coworkers to an outdoor team building event where they will have an opportunity to use their imagination and create an art object somewhere outdoors. This kind of outdoor team building game is great for role distribution, stepping out of your comfort zone, and the ability to adjust to different tasks.

Culinary outdoor team activities

22. Go on a guided food tour

Culinary outdoor team activities have always been popular among teams and a guided food tour might just be the best of them. Such an activity will allow you to discover new tastes, explore the city or the region and get to know your coworkers more in a laid-back atmosphere.

23. Explore local vineyards

If your location has vineyards nearby that offer tours, do not hesitate to use this chance! This outdoor team building activity is a great chance to take a tour in the fresh air through vineyards, have wine tasting sessions and enjoy pleasant informal conversations with your teammates.

24. Go to an outdoor cooking class

We are all used to indoor cooking classes but what about taking an outdoor cooking class? In addition to new ideas for your weeknight meals, it might also give you some useful skills for cooking outside of the comfort zone that is your kitchen. Find out if such classes are being offered in your location and this outdoor team building activity might as well become your favorite one!

 Recreational outdoor team activities

25. Join an outdoor yoga masterclass

Yoga has been always considered a fantastic way how to relax, unwind and reset the mind. It can be also one of the best outdoor team activities for your employees’ well-being. It’s a great activity for reducing stress and improving mental health, along with getting some fresh air outside of the office.

26. Plan a picnic or a beach day

Picnics or beach days are among the most classic outdoor team building activities, used for decades now to relax, have fun and clear the mind from demanding work. It is a day, when all your coworkers can enjoy their time in the outdoors together, playing games, having delicious snacks, and participating in friendly conversations. 

27. Rent canoes and enjoy the scenery

Canoeing is one of the best outdoor group activities, as it allows every team member to enjoy nature and beautiful scenery. It can also be a great recreational outdoor team activity, as the peaceful gliding on the water can be a very calming experience. Just look around for canoe rental companies in your area and arrange a pleasant outdoor group activity for your team!

28. Go horse riding

Another great recreational outdoor team building activity that gives you and your coworkers the option to enjoy the surrounding nature. Choose the preferable outdoor setting for a horseback ride whether it’s a beach, mountains, a forest or somewhere else, and go on a joint adventure to enjoy nature and get to know each other better.

29. Interact with animals in a shelter

One of the best outdoor team building activities for animal lovers! Volunteering together in an animal shelter gives you an opportunity to organize a team building event with some added value. All you need to do is contact a local animal shelter to arrange a time when your team can walk the dogs or help clean the area of the shelter. 

30. Explore the nearest botanical gardens or nature parks

Recreational outdoor team building activities usually involve nature-themed events such as exploring botanical gardens or visiting nature parks with a guide. If your team is up for such an idea, look for the nearest locations and plan your day outdoors.

Now that you’ve gotten to know our list of the best outdoor activities and games for teams, it’s time to start planning your next event. Just pick the idea that you liked the most, find out what you will need to make it happen and start planning!