Outdoor Team Building Activities That Change How Your Team Works

Outdoor team building activities get your team out of the office. That's the easy part. The hard part is making sure Monday morning is different because of what happened outside. Most outdoor team activities are fun in the moment and forgotten by lunch. The 10 activities below range from quick exercises you can run yourself to full-day experiences that change how your team communicates, makes decisions, and performs under pressure. Some are free. Some require a facilitator. All of them beat another afternoon in a conference room. If you're planning for team building for senior leaders, several of these scale well for executive groups. If you want to compare outdoor activities to structured experiences that produce measurable behavior change, see this buyer's guide to team simulation games.

BEST OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES FOR BUILDING TEAMS 

The best outdoor activities for team building are ones that are engaging, challenging and require good communication and creative thinking. Some examples of good outdoor team building activities include:

1. Egg Drop
2. The Shoe Game
3. Blindfold Hunt
4. Create a Landscape
5. Cardboard Boat Building Challenge
6. Hiking
7. Giving Back to the Community
8. Team Sports
9. Outdoor Team Picnic
10. Outdoor Scavenger Hunt

1. DROP AN EGG

The purpose of this corporate outdoor team building activity is to build a container to protect an egg dropped from a pre-determined height (usually 5 – 8 feet).

Activity Instructions: 

• Organize teams of 4-5 people.
• Provide materials that can be used to build the container, including balloons, straws and masking tape.
• Give each team a specified amount of time to build their container.
• Once the teams have finished their container, have them drop their egg containers from the pre-determined height.

After all the teams have dropped their containers, they check to see if their egg has cracked. Prizes can be awarded to the teams whose egg did not crack. You can continue the activity and raise the height until only one team remains and give them the prize. Drop an egg is a great outdoor team building activity because team members will work together to attain the same goal. For a unique experience like this that brings all your teams together, consider Bridge the Gap to engage the entire team together building one structure — a proven way to build real cohesion under pressure. You can even engage your whole team in building the plan to take results to a whole new level.

2. THE SHOE GAME

The Shoe Game is a very simple outdoor team building activity.

Activity Instructions:

• Everyone will need to take off their shoes.
• After that, they will need to make a pile with the shoes and mix them up.
• You should give everyone a specified amount of time to locate their shoes.
• The person who gets to his or her shoes first should be given a prize.

These types of team building activities are fun and get everyone working together. You can do the same thing without the smell with Connect & Collaborate.

3. BLINDFOLD HUNT

This outdoor team building game requires that one trusts his or her team-mates.

Activity Instructions:

• Place clues in five or more locations. The purpose of the clues is to help the person get to the final destination.
• Organize the group into teams of 3.
• The team selects 1 person to be blindfolded.
• The team members who are blinded-folded are responsible for leading the other team members.
• The other team members need to communicate to the blindfolded person when to stop and turn.
• Give each team the first clue to get the game started.

To boost this team building activity, you can have teams of 2 compete at an activity then form them into teams of 4. Continue merging the teams together until everyone has competed and been merged into 1 team. This helps people learn to collaborate together. We call it 2 Become 1 and we’ve facilitated it for the Canadian Olympic Committee and lots of other teams that want to be engaged by both competition and collaboration.

4. CREATE A LANDSCAPE

This is a simple outdoor team building activity with few formal rules and works best with 6 to 8 people.

Activity Instructions:

• All you do is give each team member materials to create a landscape.
• Give the team a certain amount of time to create their landscape.
• Give awards based on the most unique, prettiest and funniest landscapes.

Double down on the fun and learn the amazing art of improv to create stories together as a team using the landscapes. In Improv to Improve, employees learn to collaborate and create together – more importantly they have fun communicating and develop lasting relationships.

5. Cardboard Boat Building Challenge

The cardboard boat building challenge is a great team building activity that those with an engineer’s mind will surely enjoy. There is room for leadership, problem-solving, and camaraderie with this enjoyable team building challenge.

Activity Instructions 

• Split into teams.
• Create a cardboard boat using only the supplied materials, cardboard and tape.
• The boat must sail across a pool of water without sinking.
• Before the boats sail, the teams should create a presentation about why their boat is best.
• After the various boats sail across the water, the teams can then race them across.

Cooperation is key to this team building activity, and no one will succeed with this sizable project alone. The activity can help people find what role they are best suited for in a small team setting. Also, people will recognize that they cannot go it alone when back working after this exercise.

6. Hiking/ Exploring the Great Outdoors

Some team members are bound to enjoy something a bit more athletic, and hiking or exploring the great outdoors will be what these team members enjoy the most. Even people who merely enjoy getting a bit of fresh air will enjoy this lovable team building activity.

Activity Instructions 

• Gather coworkers that are interested in hiking.
• Pick a local trail and hike.
• Prepare a bit more and choose somewhere that suits the group better, such as an easy trail for beginners or a more strenuous trail for experts.
• Consider forming a hiking club for regular outings if this team building activity is a success.

Hiking or exploring the great outdoors is a crucial team building exercise among outdoor options. There is something important about conquering some rugged terrain that helps people form a special bond that can produce teamwork and camaraderie at work.

7. Giving Back to the Community

Finding a path to giving back to the community can be fulfilling. Also, it will help coworkers thrive together because those who serve together will respect each other. Plus, spending time together is sure to help turn acquaintances into friendships.

Activity Instructions 

• Find a need in the community, such as cleaning up a beach or park or take part in a local charitable walk or community event.
• Other ideas include an office yard sale where the proceeds go to a charity.
• Try taking pictures or videos of the team giving back.

Those who do something bigger than themselves will reduce their ego and spark team building. So, it makes sense to team build by volunteering. Also, who would not want a team building exercise that helps people in some truly incredible ways? Giving back might even become a regular activity some team members pursue on their own back home.

8. Team Sports

Sports are all about teamwork in the end. So, there is no better way to bond with these people among outdoor team building activities than playing a team sport together.

Activity Instructions 

• Picture field day from school to know what to expect from this activity.
• Find a large enough space to play the chosen sports.
• Divide into different teams.
• Play sports like volleyball, soccer, kickball, or flag football.
• Be careful with the chosen sport because those less athletic might not enjoy playing certain ones. So, the spirit of team building might be less powerful with more strenuous activities.
• Know that some sports are easier than others to play. For example, anyone can enjoy baseball in some form or another.

There are so many phenomenal reasons to pursue a team sport in the spirit of team building. Team sports demand discipline, focus, and communication in order to succeed. Another substantial gain from team sports is training people to work harder and longer.

9. Outdoor Team Picnic

Sometimes, breaking bread with somebody will lead to growth in a relationship. Learning about each other over some food works to build a team with everyone, coworkers included. So, an outdoor team picnic may be just the activity to boost team productivity back at the office.

Activity Instructions 

• Find a park or other location to host the picnic.
• Invite coworkers to participate.
• Relax with some excellent barbecue food, chat, and get to know everyone a bit better.
• Try playing a park game, such as Frisbee, in the background while others eat.
• Try posing for a photo at the end to help everyone remember the picnic.

While some people may enjoy some of these activities more or less than others, almost everyone would enjoy an outdoor team picnic. One team building benefit is that a picnic will help everyone get to know one another better. That builds trust, creating a sense of community. Also, knowing one another better creates respect for other team members.

10. Outdoor Scavenger Hunt

Finding a collection of intriguing items on an outdoor scavenger hunt list can make priceless moments and memories. Why not take a little time to create a list of unique items for people from the office to find somewhere special, like a park?

Activity Instructions 

• Set aside a few hours for employees to go on a scavenger hunt.
• Head outside to some pleasant place to search for the items.
• Break into groups of four or five.
• Supply each group with a list of items to hunt down.
• Set a clock and let the employees search for the items.
• Declare the team that collects the highest number of items the winner.

Working together in small groups like this is vital to creating strong office chemistry for when people need something from one another back at work. Also, employees stand to gain from searching together because it will help them learn more about each other.

BENEFITS OF OUTDOOR TEAM BUILDING ACTIVITIES

Team building experiences should never feel like it’s just another regular day in the office. Take your teams away from laptops and conferences and bring them outside. Hosting outside team building events provides a neutral setting where colleagues can easily communicate, be social, and mingle with others. There are many benefits to having outdoor team building activities to bring employees together.

• Improves productivity and creativity
• Decreases stress
• Boosts communication
• Fosters employee relationships
• Improves problem solving skills
• Improves time management skills

Improves productivity and creativity

Studies have shown that being outside for just 20 minutes can increase productivity and creativity. Mental fatigue can easily occur in places where you have long meetings or work daily. When you combine team building with the outdoors, you allow employees to explore their creativity and can change it into effective results for your business.

Decreases stress

Being outside reduces stress. When you can breathe fresh air and experience the elements, research shows it can reduce both heart rate and cortisol levels. Team building activities should be a place where employees can express themselves in a stress-free environment. Choosing to have an outdoor team building activity can help!

Boosts communication

When your employees are focused on their daily tasks, communication can sometimes be stagnant and consistent of work-related conversations. Team building experiences provide opportunities for employees to connect on a more meaningful level.

Fosters employee relationships

Outside team building events help to establish new employee relationships. Having more space outside means that more people can be incorporated into a team-building event. Different employees and departments can get the opportunity to meet and build relationships outside of just ‘water cooler’ talk.

Improves problem solving skills

Take the opportunity to move your team building activities outside and benefit from increasing problem-solving skills. Let team members use the space available to them to select team building activities that require problem solving. The outdoor space allows team members to see problems come to life and then work towards solving them. Want to see what your team does under pressure?

Improves time management skills

Working together during a timed event like a team building activity requires teammates to work together under a deadline. Discover natural leaders and creative ways to solve problems when you host team building activities outside.

Your Team Deserves More Than an Afternoon Outside

An outdoor activity gets your team outside. The right experience changes how they work when they go back inside. Save the Titanic is the team experience that over 6 million people have engaged with. It works indoors or outdoors, for groups of 15 to 1,500, and it reveals team dynamics no icebreaker ever could. See a demo of Save the Titanic →

Frequently Asked Questions About Outdoor Team Building

What are the best outdoor team building activities for large groups?

Activities that scale well include outdoor scavenger hunts, cardboard boat challenges, and simulation-based experiences. For groups over 50, choose activities where teams compete in parallel rather than waiting for turns.

How long should an outdoor team building event last?

A minimum of 120 minutes creates meaningful interaction. Half-day events allow deeper engagement. Full-day experiences with structured debrief produce the most lasting behavior change.

Do outdoor team building activities actually improve team performance?

Activities with structured goals, time pressure, and debriefs improve team performance. Activities that are purely social create bonding but rarely change how people work together. The difference is whether the experience mirrors real work challenges.

What is the difference between team building activities and team development?

Team building activities are events — a few hours of exercises. Team development is a process — structured experiences designed to change how your team communicates, makes decisions, and handles conflict. Activities are a starting point. Development produces results.

How do you choose the right outdoor team building activity?

Start with the problem you are trying to solve. If teams don’t communicate well, choose activities that require coordination without visual cues. If decision-making is slow, choose activities with time pressure and real consequences. Match the activity to the gap.

By Doug Bolger, CEO of Learn2