Top 9 team-building activities in the USA

Looking to improve your teams’ engagement and connection for your next event?

In today’s hybrid world, employees can easily feel disconnected from each other and from their work. In fact, up to 67% of remote workers say they feel isolated from their colleagues and the company. That's why many are going the extra mile to find the right team-building activities to help team members connect—particularly important for remote teams.

Besides boosting morale and camaraderie, team-building events (whether in-person or for remote teams) can help develop communication skills, build team spirit and get those creative juices flowing, in an attempt to get your team thinking outside the box!

We understand that planning corporate team-building events can be a lot of work—there’s planning the travel, arranging accommodation, choosing the activities, and so much more. 

We’ve made things easier for you by compiling a thorough list of activities to help your company culture become that much more dynamic and engaged at your next event in the United States.

9 In-person team-building activities to consider in the USA

Despite the wide variety of virtual team-building activities available, employees are really looking for the opportunity to bond in real life beyond the confines of video calls on Zoom or Slack or a remote happy hour. 

In fact, according to a recent survey, 79% of employees are most excited to get back to events for the opportunity to meet other colleagues and build meaningful relationships in real life. It’s long overdue after so many teams have transitioned into remote work cultures.

With this in mind, let’s have a look at the nine best in-person team-building ideas in the USA, designed to bring your team together and boost employee engagement.

Let’s dive in!

1. Take team improv workshops: have a few laughs and improve your team communication skills along the way

• Location: Across the US
• Duration: 1.5-3 hours
• Group Size: 5-500 
• Budget: $$
• Book now

The Washington Improv Theater (WIT) offers improv team-building activities that are suited for teams of five to five hundred participants.

Whether you choose the 1.5hr or 3hr class, your team will be able to learn the basics of improv, improve their communication, have a few belly laughs, and just enjoy a fun day with their colleagues.

WIT can run the workshops at their theater, or they can meet you anywhere in Washington, the US, and across the globe – they really take saying ‘yes’ exceptionally seriously. It’s a great activity for small groups as well as large groups, engaging each and every one of your participants. 

2. Charade murder mystery: because nothing bonds a team like solving a murder

• Location: Across the US
• Duration: 2 hours
• Group Size: 16-100 
• Budget: $$$
• Book now

Cast the traditional fun games aside, with this activity, a normal workday will suddenly turn into a murder mystery. One of your team members will unexpectedly fall to the ground dead, and anyone could be a suspect! It’s up to you to find out who’s guilty...

Improve employee engagement and boost morale in your next team event with a touch of mystery. With a detective hat on, your team will have to think outside the box and collaborate with others to solve the mystery. 

This murder mystery team-building activity hosted by The Leaders Institute helps teams go past the water cooler chit-chat, put their detective hats on, and try to solve a mystery—keep your enemies close! 

3. Charity bike build-a-thon: give back to the community and increase team morale

• Location: Across the US
• Duration: 1-3 hours
• Group Size: 25-1000+
• Budget: $$$
• Book now

Working together on a good cause is a great team-building exercise to increase your team’s morale, camaraderie, and engagement with their community.

This hands-on activity is the perfect way to get your team doing something truly fulfilling, making a positive impact on someone else’s life. Something as simple as a bike can help kids learn a new skill, gain confidence, and get to school. 

4. A cooking master class: Eataly, the perfect recipe for turning colleagues into friends

• Locations: Chicago, NYC, Dallas, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Boston, and Silicon Valley
• Duration: 1-1.5 hours
• Group Size: Best for smaller teams of around 10 people
• Budget: $$
• Book now

Team meals out are a classic: around 70% of team-building activities are group lunches/dinners. To make this a more valuable (and memorable!) experience for all, treat your team to an Italian cooking class and prepare your meal together while picking up some tips and tricks to show off at home. 

Eataly is an award-winning cooking school that combines everyone’s love for Italian food with an easy-to-follow teaching style that sees beginners leave as pro chefs—or at least with the confidence of one!

Whether you take one of their holiday party events or any other of their hands-on classes, you’ll be able to get your team to bond like only tomato, mozzarella, and oregano can.

5. The Escape Effect room: connect your team in minutes

• Locations: Orlando, Florida
• Duration: Up to 2 hours
• Group Size: min 15
• Budget: $$
• Book now

There are few activities which create as much instant team synergy as an escape room—making them one of the most popular team-building activities around the world. Forget virtual escape rooms: this one’s the real deal. 

The award-winning Escape Effect has been voted the Best Entertainment Experience in Orlando three years in a row by Orlando Magazine. It’s an incredibly immersive experience boasting advanced tech and riveting games, it’s also great value, making it a brilliant option for your next team-building event. 

With Escape Effect, there are enough puzzles, trivia, and realistic rooms for your team to choose from. You could solve a mystery? Or capture some ghosts, if that’s more your thing. You could even rescue a colleague from a dungeon! 

These different types of games are a fun way to build team cohesion and encourage creative thinking without your employees even realizing! With some requiring heavy communication, others offering a more varied mix of puzzles, and some darker and more thrilling, you can choose which works best for your event. 

This activity offers a really memorable experience designed to improve teamwork and develop problem-solving skills. Escape rooms are a classic team-building activity for a reason—and Escape Effect is one of the best around. May the best team win!

6. Try the San Antonio scavenger hunt: explore the city, and deepen your team’s relationships

• Location: San Antonio, Texas
• Duration: 3 hours
• Group Size: Small teams of 2-5
• Budget: $$
• Book now

Scavenger hunts are the perfect icebreaker games that encourage team bonding, with a dash of friendly competition, while sharpening creative thinking and attention-to-detail-skills outside the conference room.

With the San Antonio scavenger hunt, you’ll get to explore the city, learn about its history, and get your team to put on their thinking caps while following a series of artful clues. Led by experienced facilitators, this is definitely a fun team-building activity to consider–especially if you know your team likes a bit of competition.

7. Nashville bubble football: the perfect way to score employee engagement

• Location: Nashville and across the US
• Duration: 2 hours
• Group Size: 16-32 
• Budget: $$$
• Book now

Nashville Bubble Ball will get your teammates into massive inflatable balls as they try to dribble across the field and score a goal! Also known as zorb soccer, this classic game is a firm favorite for corporate events, known for its feel-good factor and ability to get teams up and running without being too physically demanding. 

Suitable for all abilities, you’ll have the option to choose from multiple games, like British Bulldog, Around the World, and Last Person Standing. If you’re specifically looking for an icebreaker activity, this one’s for you. 

There’s no better way to get your employees to know each other than while dressed as a huge zorb-ball. It’s original, engaging, and your team will be sure to go home fulfilled and invigorated. 

8. The LA Guac Off: get your team working together as smooth as guacamole

• Location: Los Angeles, California
• Duration: 1.5 hours
• Group Size: 2-300+
• Budget: $$
• Book now

A little competition is always great for team-building, and it’s even better when everyone gets to enjoy a little guacamole and some snacks at the end of it all. 

The Guac Off is more than just a guacamole competition, though! There are fun mini-trivia games and challenges, too, so teams have to do more than smash some avocados. 

This activity is great for teams looking for out-of-the-box team-building activities, and will definitely bring some laughs, memories, and perhaps a touch of spice to your team dynamics. Ideal for getting your team out of the office, or bringing remote employees together, this one’s a must.

9. Museum Hack: learn and hack out some fun at the same time

• Location: Boston, Massachusetts & more
• Duration: Tailored to your needs 
• Group Size: 2-300
• Budget: $$
• Book now

Boston is a beautiful city for any workplace event. It’s filled with green parks, rich history, and great food, so why not take your team to Boston for a Museum Hack?

The Boston Museum Hack’s tour guide will lead your team through the Museum of Fine Arts–but it won’t be your typical museum visit. Visiting a museum is always an enlightening experience, but can often be overwhelming, and difficult to keep larger groups consistently engaged. With these guides you can get into the depths of the museum, so everyone comes away feeling fulfilled and like they’ve really learned something.  

There’ll be some engaging group activities throughout, with guides sharing interesting trivia and amusing historical secrets. Together with your team, you’ll be able to expand your mind, imagination, and find inspiration in all the museum has to offer. You can even find a way to tie the tour back to your company’s industry–after all, there was a great quality of service in the Roman empire, and the technology in ancient Egypt is one of a kind! 

Organize a team-building experience today and see your team thrive together

The USA is a country that offers nature and modern cities for you and your team to explore. Whether your team is already in America or is in other corners of the world, you can seize this beautiful country by organizing a memorable corporate event.

One that will have your team leaving the isolation of the pandemic in the past, working together, developing skills, and most importantly, feeling like they are part of something greater than them.

Use TravelPerk to make your team’s building event a reality. See employees and your company thrive!