Team building is one of the most important investments you’ll ever make. When you demonstrate to your employees that you genuinely appreciate all of the hard work they do and invest in your team members’ well-being and professional growth, you’ll see a drastic improvement in overall employee satisfaction, engagement and retention. That’s why we’ve put together this list of the best team building activities Boston has to offer.
We don’t take team building lightly. Our team has researched and vetted countless team building companies to compile this list of the best corporate team building activities in the Boston area.
Keep reading to find the best team building activities and fun group activities for adults in and around Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, and Milton.
1. Museum Hack
Museum Hack offers some of the very best team building activities in Boston. Experience the best museums in Boston like you’ve never experienced any museum before, bond with your team, and have a ton of fun all at the same time!
Every one of Museum Hack’s tours is packed with the following:
- super fun and interactive games designed to break the ice
- sassy behind the scenes stories
- epic photo challenges
- games optimized for maximum team bonding
If you want to see art and hear stories that align directly with your company’s industry and unique goals, then Museum Hack can completely customize your tour! For instance, we once ran a yogurt-themed museum tour for Dannon. To crank up competitiveness up a few notches on your next team outing, check out Museum Hack’s Escape the Museum and custom team building scavenger hunts.
Learn more about Museum Hack.
2. The Great Guac Off
The Great Guac Off™ is one of the best company team building activities in Boston! This guacamole-making competition that doubles as a team building event is designed to boost collaboration, communication, and competition, all while your employees have a great time.
Here is what you can expect:
- 90 minutes with highly talented hosts
- avocado-themed facts, mini-games, and trivia
- high-quality guacamole ingredients and chips
- an optional secret ingredient to shake up the recipes
- a fast-paced guacamole-making contest and judging round
The Great Guac Off is the ultimate fun team outing that achieves great results without feeling like work. The Great Guac Off can be hosted anywhere, including at the official Boston location or even at your office. There is no cap on guest count, which makes this an awesome corporate event for large groups.
Learn more about The Great Guac Off.
3. Gingerbread Games
Gingerbread Games is a great option for your team’s end-of-the-year company holiday party! The atmosphere will be festive and merry.
Each event includes the following:
- 90 minutes with highly engaging hosts
- entertaining holiday trivia contest
- small festive challenges like Snowman Hustle and Gingerbread Self-Portraits
- a high-intensity gingerbread house-building competition
Afterward, judges will award prizes, and teams can dig in to their gingerbread houses. Snacks, cookies, a professional photographer, and BYOB are all possible additions to your company event. You can host the event at your office, the location of your choice, or at one of the Gingerbread Games locations around Boston.
Note: Gingerbread Games only takes reservations from October through December, so it is a good idea to book your company holiday party early. Elves answer the phone year-round, so call anytime!
Learn more about Gingerbread Games.
4. The Paint Bar
The Paint Bar offers a wide range of creative services to cater to a wide audience. The firm is well-known for its expertise in organizing corporate team building painting events. The Paint Bar offers step-by-step guidance to create beautiful artwork. Examples of previous classes include Intro to Paint Pouring and themed paint-and-sip classes. The venue can also run custom corporate events for your whole team, and they have held over 1,000 team building events. Whether enhancing artistic skills, celebrating milestones, or promoting teamwork and innovation, The Paint Bar’s services fit many creative needs.
Learn more about The Paint Bar.
5. Improv Asylum
Improv Asylum is known for its entertaining approach to comedy and creative experiences. The venue has house teams that deliver top-notch comedy, such as Main Stage: Unscripted, Made-Up Matinee. The main attraction is a range of comedy shows, including the Main Stage Show, The NXT Show, Raunch, and ‘Twas An Improvised Night Before Christmas.
For corporate teams, Improv Asylum’s IA Innovation program focuses on team building and innovation through improv techniques. Further, guests can enjoy various comedy classes, including improv, stand-up, comedy writing, and dance classes.
The venue also provides comedy trolley tours like The Massholes Comedy Trolley Tour and The Bliss Bus Tour of Boston for a unique way to explore the city. Additionally, companies can book private events, offering custom shows and party trolley tours. Improv Asylum is a great spot for an entertaining team outing!
Learn more about Improv Asylum.
6. Charlestown Navy Yard
The Charlestown Navy Yard has been a hub for Navy activities for 174 years. Established in 1800, workers in the yard built, repaired, modernized, and resupplied ships. For many sailors, Charlestown Navy Yard was the last connection to US soil before going on extended missions. Initially, the yard serviced wooden sailing ships, employing skilled craftsmen. When it closed in 1974, the yard was home to a diverse workforce of welders, electricians, machinists, and engineers. Visitors today can explore the Navy Yard’s history by touring historic warships such as the USS Constitution and USS Cassin Young. Additionally, guests can visit the USS Constitution Museum and Charlestown Navy Yard Visitor Center. The Charlestown Navy Yard preserves its legacy and contribution to US history.
Learn more about the Charlestown Navy Yard.
7. Mobsters & Lobsters
Mobsters and Lobsters is a cool and local option for Boston team building activities. Are you interested in learning more about local criminal lore and the darker side of Boston’s history? If so, then you’ll love this team bonding activity! Mobsters & Lobsters will take you on an adventure that explores Boston’s sinister side. While on a trolley ride through the city’s historic mobster underworld, you’ll hear stories and see sites of historic heists, mobster hideaways, and hangouts. Your tour will wrap with a famous lobster dinner at one of Boston’s top waterfront restaurants. Mobsters & Lobsters is ideal for small to medium-sized groups; the max number of people is 40.
Learn more about Mobsters & Lobsters.
8. Bites of Boston
Bites of Boston is a great option for your company outing ideas list. Bites of Boston offers neighborhood food tours that are full of fun activities for employees. On tour, you’ll sample a variety of food from local eateries, learn about the eatery’s interesting history, and make memories with your team. Bites of Boston is passionate about teaching you all about the history, culture and architecture that makes each neighborhood so unique. Each tour lasts approximately three hours and covers about one to one-and-a-half miles of walking distance. This is a great option for smaller groups, as the number of guests is capped between 12 and 16. Boston team building activities include Sweet & Savory South End, Allston Arts & Eats, Chinatown’s Culture & Cuisine, and Classic Bites of Boston.
Learn more about Bites of Boston.
9. Host a Meetup
Meetups aren’t just for local book clubs and hiking groups; meetups can be highly beneficial for companies too. Hosting your own meetup is a great way to create a fun event for your employees while also getting your brand and name out into the local community. Meetups can (and should) be lots of fun and there are a million and one ways to do it. Plan a small or large event that highlights your mission, brand and values, from the location to the food and activities. Don’t forget to invite your customers, suppliers, vendors and local community along with your own team. Hosting a meetup is a great way to connect people in your network who may never have met otherwise in a fun way and show them how much you appreciate that they are part of your community.
10. Trapology Boston
Trapology Boston is home to challenging escape rooms in Boston. Like most escape games, you and your team will have a limited time to follow a series of difficult clues, solve puzzles, and ultimately escape before the clock runs out. Trapology Boston offers five escape rooms with different challenges, making this corporate event full of fun group activities for adults. Trapology Boston is a good choice for a team outing for both small and large groups. Each escape room can hold up to 10 people. If you have a larger team, your group will be split up into different rooms and you’ll compete not only against the clock but each other, too.
Learn more about Trapology Boston.
11. Boston Public Market
A group visit to the Boston Indoor Public Market is a great option for a slightly more unique team building activity. The market is open year-round and is home to 35 different New England artisans and food producers. Spend the afternoon sampling local food, taking fun photos together, and bonding with your team. If you want to add more structure to your day, create a mini scavenger hunt of the market or check out group events at The Kitchen at The Boston Public Market. The Kitchen hosts hands-on seasonal cooking classes and workshops.
Learn more about Boston Public Market.
12. Blue Hills Reservation
Another great option for unique company team building activities in Boston is taking a group trip to one of the city’s local parks. Blue Hills Reservation, located just a few miles outside of busy Boston, is a great place to hold fun corporate events. There are a whopping 125 miles of trails to explore! If hiking isn’t your thing, then your team could participate in any one of the following fun group activities for adults: mountain biking, horseback riding, camping, swimming, boating, canoeing, and kayaking. Blue Hills Reservation is a cool place for an outdoor adventure. Get your team out of the office and moving together. With activity levels ranging from easy to difficult, you’ll find the right fit for your team at Blue Hills Reservation. We love that this is a cost-effective team outing option that’s great for both small and large teams.
Learn more about Blue Hills Reservation.
13. Cashunt Boston
Does hustling around the city, striking wacky poses, leapfrogging down the street, and dancing your way to the next clue sound like fun to you? If so, then check out Cashunt Boston’s two-and-a-half-hour multi-game scavenger hunt-style team building events. Cashunt offers five different Boston team building activities: Boston Hustle, Back Bay Hustle, Havad Yahd Hustle, Foxboro Dash, and Smartphone Gate. All of these fun corporate events include a 30-minute post-game debrief where awards are handed out and coworkers can compare adventures. You’ll also get free photos and a video of the day. You must have at least eight people in your team to book an event with Cashunt Boston. If you have more people, you’ll be split up into smaller groups to compete for a prize.
Learn more about Cashunt Boston.
14. Boda Borg Boston
Boda Borg Boston is questing in real life (AKA a real-world gaming experience). Each quest with Boda Borg is a series of two to five challenges your team will have to work together to overcome. Boda Borg Boston has more than 20 different quests to choose from. There will be both physical and mental tasks that you and your team will have to work through in order to move to the next level. Each challenge presents a task that only a group that is working well together can solve. The stakes are high; if you fail a challenge, then you’ll have to go back to the beginning or choose a new quest altogether. This team outing is perfect for smaller groups, as you only need three people to launch a quest. Are you ready to break out of prison, win a TV game show, explore a haunted house, or run an obstacle course?
Learn more about Boda Borg Boston.
15. Brooklyn Boulders
Is your team active? Do your employees enjoy a physical challenge? Are your coworkers the type who want to try something new? Brooklyn Boulders, located nearby in Somerville, is home to different styles and levels of climbing – bouldering, auto-belay, top-roping, and lead climbing. Even if your team has never climbed before, this is a cool space for a team bonding activity. You and your team will be guided by experts through all the basics of bouldering, earning your official auto-belay certificate. Nothing builds trust like belaying your co-workers on a massive rock climbing wall. You also have the option to include additional fun activities for employees like yoga, boot camp, and meditation.
Learn more about Brooklyn Boulders.
16. Selfup
Selfup offers a variety of fun corporate team building activities in Boston. Selfup’s activities are great for corporate events, company parties, and team building activities. Fun activities for employees include the following classes: Italian Dinner with Tiramisu Finale, Cocktails Mixology Class, Authentic Japanese Sushi, The Perfect Homemade Dumplings, and more! Not only will your team have a great time cooking and bonding, but you’ll also pick up a few new tricks to use at home in your own kitchen. Selfup events are very easy to book. Simply head over to the website, choose an activity, pick a date, and book.
Learn more about Selfup.
17. Boston Public Garden
On a warm sunny day, the Boston Public Garden is a great location for DIY team building activities in Boston. Did you know the Boston Public Garden was the first public botanical garden in America? There is so much to explore during an afternoon at the park. Enjoy and explore the lagoon, fountains, monuments and, of course, beautiful local flora and fauna. Plan a park day for your team complete with food, drinks, and games. Bring along some music, and you’ve got yourself the perfect team offsite to promote camaraderie and show your team that you appreciate the work your employees do.
Learn more about Boston Public Garden.
18. Paddle Boston
How does spending a few hours getting to know your team in a relaxed environment away from screens sound? Paddle Boston offers just that with guided canoe or kayak tours. Don’t worry if you’ve never done either of these team building activities before. Your group will be led by an expert guide who will give a lesson before the tour starts. Spend the next hour or two out on Boston’s waterways, take in the city from a new perspective, learn all about the wildlife, and get to know your coworkers outside the office. After the canoe or kayak portion of your tour, you’ll be greeted with a delicious meal and a lovely view. Paddle Boston has four different team building packages to choose from.
Learn more about Paddle Boston.
The Final Word About Team Building Activities in Boston
Investing in the right company team building activities will always be a win for your business. Great team outings result in happier employees, and happier employees are more satisfied, engaged, and don’t want to look for employment elsewhere.
With so many incredible Boston team building activities to choose from, there’s no reason you shouldn’t get at least one company team building activity on your calendar today!
If you have any questions about company team building activities in Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Brookline, and Milton, or other cities in the surrounding area, shoot us a message. We’ll help find the right team building event for you!
