Seattle is an amazing city with amazing companies and employees, and with a strong industry comes the opportunity to engage in top team building activities.
Why choose regular team building in Seattle for your business? The benefits of hosting frequent corporate events are vast: boosted morale, improved communication, better collaboration, stronger problem-solving skills, enhanced creative thinking, and deeper team bonding. With that comes an overall increase in employee satisfaction and retention.
The secret is to choose the right team building event for your business. In our view, the best team building activities in Seattle have several key elements; these company events are all fun, innovative, and effective. Knowing which companies offer these team outings can be tough, especially if you haven’t tried any yet yourself.
That’s where we come in. We’ve done the hard work, researched the different team building facilitators in Seattle, and tested them out. Now, we can say with the utmost confidence that the corporate events on our list below are the best of the best Seattle has to offer when it comes to finding the best team building activities.
If you’re looking for team building in Seattle, Kirkland, Redmond, Bellevue, and Renton, then our list of corporate event ideas, team outings, company off-sites, and team bonding ideas is for you. Ready to dive in?
1. The Great Guac Off
The Great Guac Off is the best standalone team building activity in Seattle. This fun team event is a guacamole-making competition that includes trivia and mini-challenges. Centered around the battle to crown your office’s guac champ, TGGO is the perfect choice for an afternoon of fun and team bonding.
Here is what you can expect:
- 90 minutes with highly talented hosts
- avocado-based mini-games, icebreakers, and trivia
- premium guacamole ingredients and dippers
- an optional secret ingredient to challenge contestants
- a spirited guacamole-making contest and judging round
Include catering and BYOB margaritas or the drink of your choice to round out your time away from the office. Guac-offs can be hosted on-site at your office, at the TGGO Seattle HQ, or at a local venue of your choice, and all group sizes can be accommodated. This fun, innovative, and well-priced team building activity should be at the top of your list.
Learn more about The Great Guac Off.
2. Gingerbread Games
Gingerbread Games is ready to change your drab office holiday party into a festive team building adventure. Your group will enjoy small challenges centered around the main event: an epic, fast-paced battle to create the most impressive gingerbread house.
Gingerbread Games features the following:
- 90 minutes with festive holiday hosts
- mini-challenges like gingerbread self-portraits and holiday trivia
- a fast-paced gingerbread house-making contest
Add snacks, catering, holiday cookies, decorations, and BYOB to kick your corporate event up a notch. Provide your own venue or host your company holiday party at the Gingerbread Games’ festive Seattle location.
Note: While elves answer the gingerbread phone year-round, Gingerbread Games only accepts bookings on dates in October, November, and December, so it’s key to get on the calendar ASAP. This corporate event sells out early.
Learn more about Gingerbread Games.
3. Kent Valley Ice Center
Kent Valley Ice Center is a great place to take teams to unwind! This center offers ice skating, skating courses, hockey sessions, batting cages, and mini-golf. Public skating is available often, and skaters can also enjoy black-light nights. Beginners can swing by for skating lessons to learn skating techniques, balance, coordination, and strength. Hockey sessions are drop-in, or Seattle locals can join a hockey league! After spending time on the ice, you can head over to the batting cages, which can pitch slow, medium, or fast. Finally, you can round out the experience with an 18-hole mini-golf game.
Learn more about Kent Valley Ice Center.
4. A Stir
Washington is well-known for its apples, so it is no surprise that Seattle is home to A Stir, the largest independent cider bar in the country! You can enjoy signature cocktails or choose from over 200 ciders on tap. Cider categories include traditional, heritage, draft, wild ferments, rose, perry, fruited, and herbs and spices. When you get hungry, you can check out the gluten- and nut-free kitchen for dishes like fish and chips or Spanish flank steak. A Stir is a great spot for a team happy hour!
Learn more about A Stir.
5. The Center for Wooden Boats
The Center for Wooden Boats is a national landmark that wants to share the history and traditions of Northwestern boats. The docks and exhibits are free to explore, so this experience is perfect for teams on a budget. Examples of exhibits include Coast Guard Art Program Exhibit and Historic Small Craft of the Pacific Northwest. You can also enjoy free events, like public sailing activities that take you onto Lake Union. Best of all, you can rent boats or charters for private sailing parties!
Learn more about The Center for Wooden Boats.
6. Board Game Day
A board game day is a great option for DIY team building activities in Seattle. This team outing won’t cost much and can be hosted right in your office, making it easy and effective to plan. Your team members should bring in a few board games from home. Pop popcorn, host a burrito bar, or come up with another creative plan for food, then go to town enjoying some classic game favorites. Allow free play or turn up the competitive factor and put together a challenge complete with winners and prizes. This is a fun, easy way for your team members to enjoy time out of the cubicle together.
To give your board game day a Seattle twist, consider checking out Meeple’s Games! This venue offers games for sale, plus they have a game library to rent from so you can try before you buy. Plus, you can check out the game store’s regular events, such as D&D or Magic the Gathering experiences.
Learn more about Meeple’s Games.
7. Company Meetup
We love meetups here at Team Building Activities! Meetups are such a cool opportunity to host a DIY team building event that can be as simple or as intricate as you choose. Here’s how to do it:
- Decide on your guest list. Are you going to invite only your employees? We recommend considering extending the invitation to employees’ families, your clients, suppliers, vendors, and perhaps even your local community. The more people you invite, the more connections you may be able to facilitate; that’s valuable to your business and your reputation in the community.
- Based on your anticipated number of attendees, you’ll be able to decide where to host your meetup, whether that be at a local park, your office, or a rented venue.
- Choose what you’ll do. We recommend a few games, like a scavenger hunt, Human Bingo, or photo challenge.
- Pick the food!
That’s it; you now have a great blueprint to plan a fun corporate event to give back to your employees and your community.
Check out this list of places to meet up in Seattle.
8. Jet City Improv
Improv is a corporate event that is often overlooked when it comes to choosing team building activities, but we love it. Improv for team building goes well beyond getting a few chuckles out of your teammates. Improv teaches valuable skills and lessons that directly apply to your daily life at the office. With Jet City Improv, your coworkers will participate in games and team building activities that enhance innovation, problem-solving, collaboration, and communication.
Learn more about Jet City Improv.
9. Argosy Cruises
Argosy Cruises is a cool choice if you’re looking for a relaxing, unique team building activity. Cruise Lake Union and Lake Washington; your team members will enjoy taking in the views, the fresh air, and the unexpected outdoor break from the office. Argosy Cruises offers a three-hour corporate events package that comes complete with a host who can lead fun trivia, a full bar, and food.
Learn more about Argosy Cruises.
10. Lawless Forge
Are you familiar with forging? The art of creating objects out of metal is starting to become hot, and we love team building activities that promote learning a unique skill. At Lawless Forge, your team members will learn how to weld in order to create the chosen object. You can choose from options like a bottle opener, wasabi bowl, cheeseboard and knife, or horseshoe knife. Your team members will enjoy coming together and participating in this unexpected team outing. Expect your corporate event to run for around three hours.
Learn more about Lawless Forge.
11. Ballard Kayak
Ballard Kayak offers team building activities that take advantage of Seattle’s picturesque scenery and outdoorsy nature. Ballard Kayak is full of adventure, fun, and building stronger ties between employees. Ballard Kayak offers corporate outings that include paddle boarding, beach games and team building activities, and kayaking. Your team members are sure to work up an appetite during this physical team event; Ballard Kayak offers catering options to help round out the afternoon and complete your awesome company off-site.
Learn more about Ballard Kayak.
12. The Bellevue Challenge Course
The Bellevue Challenge Course offers team building retreats, games, and activities for corporate clients. Come together on the course to enjoy obstacles, ropes courses, and physically challenging adventures. The Bellevue Challenge Course can accommodate guests of all physical abilities. This team outing will push your team physically and mentally, enhancing communication, collaboration, teamwork, and problem-solving. This is traditional team building at its best in Seattle.
Learn more about The Bellevue Challenge Course.
13. Rage Industry
Rage Industry is for teams who like to break things. Rage Industry is all about providing team building activities that let employees blow off some steam and release pent-up energy and aggression. Your coworkers will be free to destroy office equipment provided by Rage Industry; you also have the option to bring your own equipment that you want to get rid of. Rage Industry will provide baseball bats, golf clubs, and crowbars to inflict maximum destruction and team bonding.
Learn more about Rage Industry.
14. Seattle Glassblowing Studio
Looking for a team building activity that’s a bit more relaxed and slower paced than whacking a printer? Seattle Glassblowing Studio allows your team members to express creativity. Each team member will spend this company outing crafting one or two pieces of custom art. Seattle Glassblowing Studio offers corporate event packages for four hours that can accommodate between five and 30 guests. We like this team outing for its fun, relaxed atmosphere and ability to tap into a skill your coworkers may not use as frequently in the workplace.
Learn more about Seattle Glassblowing Studio.
15. Ice Cream Bar
Shake up your next in-office meeting and surprise your coworkers with an ice cream party. Buy family-size buckets of two or three different flavors of ice cream (we’d vote for a classic like vanilla or chocolate and maybe something unexpected), then grab a variety of toppings like sprinkles, candy, chocolate, and sauces. Each employee can design a fun ice cream cone; hand out a prize for the best one!
Consider buying local for this party! Seattle is home to plenty of delectable ice cream shops, one of which is Molly Moon. Teams can enjoy tasty homemade flavors like honey lavender, salted caramel, and even vegan chocolate chunk!
Learn more about Molly Moon.
16. WhirlyBall Seattle
WhirlyBall is a crazy take on sports that promotes team bonding. WhirlyBall is a combo of bumper cars, baseball, and lacrosse; this is fun because it means no one on your team is a closet WhirlyBall star dating back to high school or college, so everyone starts around the same level. Your team members will drive bumper cars, carry a lacrosse-stick-like club, and try to score goals on the opposing side. WhirlyBall promotes communication and friendly competition, and your team members will have a great time trying to figure out this new sport.
Learn more about WhirlyBall Seattle.
17. Bowling Tournament
Bowling is a solid choice for team building activities in Seattle. With many different bowling alleys in the city, we’re confident you’ll be able to find a convenient location for your company outing to the lanes. Here’s why we like bowling: it’s fun and competitive, all of your team members have a basic idea of how to do it, and you can include food and drinks in the afternoon if you choose an alley that offers it (which we recommend!) One great alley is Roxbury Lanes, which offers several lanes and party packages for larger groups.
Bowling is an easy-to-plan team building activity that your team members will enjoy, especially if you host it during the afternoon during business hours, so no one has to go home late to participate.
Learn more about Roxbury Lanes.
18. Seattle Sailing Club
Seattle Sailing Club is another one of our unique team building activities in Seattle. Your team will be divided into small groups before professional instructors give a lesson on sailing basics and how-tos. As soon as the lesson is over, your groups will hit the water of Puget Sound for a quick sailing race. Seattle Sailing Club’s team building activities promote competition, fun, and learning new skills. We’d recommend heading to a nearby restaurant for lunch or appetizers to complete this team outing.
Learn more about Seattle Sailing Club.
19. Seattle Attraction Tour
Seattle is a hot tourist destination, which means it is a city ripe with fun things to do. Spend an afternoon away from your desks exploring the city like a tourist. You could do this in several different ways; put together a team building scavenger hunt of the city’s landmarks, find a tour company and book your team on a corporate outing that highlights the cool spots of Seattle, or check out some new restaurants near the office. There are hundreds of cool ways to spend a few hours enjoying Seattle like a tourist; see how creative you can get with this DIY team building event.
Here is a list of some of Seattle’s top sightseeing attractions.
20. Hot Stove Society
Most people love to eat, so it’s only natural to think about incorporating good food into your next team outing. Hot Stove Society offers corporate events that start with cocktails and appetizers before a chef teaches your employees how to craft an entree. Your team members will be split into groups to create their own dish, which the chef will judge. After the competition, your group will come together to enjoy a delicious meal together.
Learn more about Hot Stove Society.
Seattle has tons of team building activities. Choosing the perfect fit shouldn’t be overwhelming.
That’s it! You’ve just read about our top choices for the best company team building activities in Seattle. Our hope is that you’re more confident in choosing the perfect fit for your next team outing. If you’re not, then please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d love to help you narrow down the options to find the right corporate event for your business.
