You’ve been put in charge of organising the team day out and your business-savvy brain is telling you to do something a little different and check out some unusual team-building activities in London.
Well, you asked, so we’ve provided.
But first, is that a good idea, or a bad idea?
Why Choose Unusual Team Building Activities in London?
The word on the street is that UK workers want more team-building events (a whopping 82%, in fact) – but there’s a caveat. The event or activity itself has to be something that your colleagues actually want to do.
According to recent studies, that narrows down the margins to just five options: lunch, escape rooms, team vs team competitions, mixology classes, or quiz/trivia nights.
But does that mean you have to reduce your London team building activity to another lunch or, even worse, a homemade digital quiz? Absolutely not.
Read on to find 12+ unusual team building activities in London you can do that will be unusual - but won’t have most of your team mysteriously developing coughs, colds or illnesses to get out of it.
And just so you know, nobody is paid to be featured on this list. They’re just our recommendations to you, so you can find the best team building activities in London.
The Best Unusual Team Building Activities London Has to Offer
Short on time or need tips ASAP? These are our top 5 unusual team building activities in London.
Invite The Team to Lunch - But Use a Treasure Hunt to Lead Them There
You don’t need telling there’s nothing ‘unusual’ about eating lunch - it’s most people’s favourite part of their working day, after all - but statistics show that that’s all employees really want out of their team building day.
Kill two birds with one stone by giving your team exactly what they want, while ensuring they meet your team building activity goals of working together, utilising their problem-solving skills and earning their prize!
Quick and simple enough to squeeze into a lunch hour, treasure hunts like these get your teams navigating the quirky streets of London, solving clues and challenges before they discover their dining destination – and they also eliminate that awkward, forced feeling that typical “unusual” team building day activities in London.
Capacity: Any number!
Ease of booking: Simple
Price: £15 - £17.50 pp
Up The Stakes and Give an Outdoor Escape Room a Try
As we know, escape rooms are the third most popular team building activity overall with 31% of UK employees noting it as their favourite, so really, you can’t go wrong.
But as you’re looking for unusual team building activities in London, why not change the concept up a bit?
Escape the confines of the office - and the typical indoor escape room - for a breath of fresh air with an outdoor escape room experience like these.
Teams have to crack codes, unravel riddles and follow clues across London’s scenic spots, turning the city streets into a live-action board game. You’ll get the interactivity, immersion and team-building experience of a classic escape room, but with an added dose of vitamin D, physical exercise and, yes, plenty of fun too.
PSST: 🔥 Opt for a themed outdoor escape room where teams can save London from apocalyptic doom or solve a 200-year-old cold case linked to Jack The Ripper for some added time pressure and immersion.
Capacity: Any number!
Ease of booking: Simple
Price: £15 - £17.50 pp
Turn Lunch Into an Urban Gourmet Quest with a Mystery Picnic
As the tastiest unusual team building activity in London on this list, the Mystery Picnic is a sure-fire way to ensure optimum involvement and enjoyment.
How it works: Teams receive clues and solve puzzles to reveal each course of their meal spread across various locations. Players have to co-operate to navigate through London’s streets on the hunt to unlock local bakeries, artisanal shops, and delis before sitting down and tasting their rewards.
Call it bribery or call it what it is: the easiest way to transform an otherwise dull lunch hour into an urban quest that
incorporates everything you want out of a team building activity with a flavour punch.
Capacity: Any number!
Ease of booking: Simple
Price: Variable
Get The Office’s Step Count Up With a Self-Guided Walking Tour
“Unusual” doesn’t have to mean “whacky”, and to prove it, here’s an alarming statistic: a study a few years ago found that British adults spend twice as long on the loo per week as they do being physically active.
I’m not a doctor, but that’s…less than ideal.
More fun than just suggesting going for a walk, self-guided walking tours like these get everybody up and moving - and you can stop and start at any time that’s convenient for you, so don’t worry about spending hours planning a route only to be hampered by bad weather or unforeseen meetings.
Not only that, but these routes help improve the health and productivity of the office by
encouraging your team to stretch their legs and explore London’s historical and cultural sights.
Armed with just a phone, some clues, and some intriguing facts, employees can discover old and new landmarks at their own pace, promoting health and historical knowledge simultaneously.
Capacity: Any number!
Ease of booking: Simple
Price: £15 - £17.50 pp
Get a Corporate Treasure Hunt Designed Exclusively For Your Team
Why settle for off-the-shelf when you can go bespoke?
Bespoke and unusual team building activities in London like these are exactly what they sound like: activities created exclusively for your organisation or office to suit your needs, whichever borough you’re in.
Corporate treasure hunts help inject a sense of adventure and exhilarating competition into team building. Tailor-made to challenge your team's wit and encourage collaboration, they turn ordinary locations into playgrounds of mystery and discovery – right in the office’s backyard.
Customisation ideas are endless: you can incorporate company milestones and history, location-specific challenges, industry-specific knowledge, and core business values.
What does this look like in practice? Well, we’ve seen teams exchange Swiss trivia, play a cow-stacking game, architects visit their own completed designs, and some blindfolded taste-testing games.
Capacity: Any number!
Ease of booking: Simple
Price: Variable
Not ready to book yet? Halve your worries by telling us what you need. We’ll take it from there.
More Ideas for Unusual Team Building Activities in London
Take Indoor Ski or Snowboarding Lessons Together
Looking for unusual team building activities in London that will prepare you for the Alps? Well, probably not – but it never hurts to build up a new skill.
Swap the boardroom for the slopes with indoor ski or snowboarding lessons, available right in the heart of London (and without the added cost of a dozen chalets).
Set your office a chilly challenge that’s perfect for teams looking to try something new while encouraging each other down the slopes. The best part is, there’s no need to wait for winter; this activity is a great way to cool down and slide into fun any time of the year and hey, maybe you can get creative organising an aprés-ski in the city afterwards?
Unleash Your Colleagues in an Unfamiliar Suburb in an Outdoor Exploration Game
Did you know that south Londoners are more likely to venture north than vice versa?
Whichever side of the Thames you’re on, letting your team loose in an unfamiliar London borough with an outdoor exploration game is a fail-proof way to ring the changes and liven the team up a bit.
Exploration games like these challenge teams to navigate, discover local landmarks, and solve community-based puzzles, transforming a regular team outing into an exploration adventure.
It’s a great way to see a different side of London while fostering team bonding - and the adventure begins just a few tube stops away.
Break The Ice - Literally - at an Ice Sculpting Workshop
Cool down with an unusual team building activity in London that’s literally (and figuratively) cool - and probably not in a way anybody in the office will expect.
These ice sculpting workshops encourage teams to chisel away their best creations, making it a perfect metaphor for breaking the ice among colleagues, and a chance to show off their skills.
Ice sculpting workshops tick quite a few boxes: they’re unique, hands on and help spark creativity and teamwork, ensuring everyone can “chill out” (sorry) and do something that most likely isn’t already part of their skill set (yet).
Or Put the Ice in Nice with a Biscuiteers Biscuit Icing Workshop
Add a sweet twist to your unusual team building activity ideas in London with a biscuit icing workshop.
Obviously, the major benefit of this one is that everybody gets to spend some time surrounded by biscuits (who doesn’t want to do that?) but there’s more to it than just admiring (and gobbling) sweet treats.
Hands-on activities like this allow teams to express their creativity by decorating biscuits however they choose - or you can up the stakes a bit and give them a brief (maybe based on a prompt related to company values or current projects?)
Whichever way you pick, this activity will give your colleagues a chance to loosen up - and they get to bring their masterpiece home with them at the end.
Mix Things Up with an Interactive and Theatrical Mixology Class at Avora
Mixology classes regularly come in the top five of team building activities favoured by UK employees, but for an unusual twist on proceedings, we recommend adding a dash of theatre.
Shake up your list of unusual team building activities in London with an interactive mixology class at Avora. Here, teams learn the art of cocktail creation from expert mixologists in an interactive, adventure format.
Armed with a jumpsuit, your colleagues, and some experts, the team will learn how to craft their own cocktails in a variety of settings - and yes, there are alcohol-free and vegan cocktails available.
Encourage Some Competition with Some Pub Games
Before team building activities in London became a “thing”, a familiar staple of British culture dominated the way workmates interacted outside of work: going to the pub.
Of course, there are benefits to this method: it’s a casual way to socialise and from a budget point of view, it’s unlikely to break the bank - but it’s worth noting that not everyone in the office will feel comfortable or motivated for a pub session (especially if it’s after work).
Luckily, there’s an easy way to keep the venue but turn the activity on its head: introduce some pub games. There are loads of places to choose from, but a favourite of ours is Bermondsey Bierkeller.
There’s a whole range of games to compete in, from ping pong to shuffleboard, axe throwing, and more. The wider the choice of games, the more inclusive the experience will be for all team members, and the options of playing games means that non-drinkers or shyer colleagues will have the opportunity to get stuck in as well.
🎮 PSST: Looking for more places to play games? Check out our top 16 arcades in London for inspo.
Declare an Office Winner with Hijingo Multi-Sensory Bingo
Experience bingo like never before with Hijingo's multi-sensory bingo.
Forget any pre-existing notions you have about bingo halls: you’re unlikely to stumble across Nana here. This is a high-energy, visually spectacular venue that combines the traditional game with lights, sounds, and surprises.
Perfect for competitive teams looking for an exhilarating and modern twist on a classic game, this is something everyone can get involved in and will have the office buzzing for days after.
Find More Things to Do in London with CityDays
So there you have it, 12+ unusual team building activities London has to offer!
Want to find more things to do in London?
Whatever your interests are, there’s always something new for you to discover. In fact, you don’t have to go out of your way at all to find them - you just have to know where to look.
Discover London’s secret sights and noteworthy nooks by playing one of our London treasure and scavenger hunts, urban adventures, escape room games or walking tours.
You’ll find curated trails and hunts all over London, including Central London, Greenwich Mayfair, Shoreditch, Kensington and Southwark.
All you have to do is team up with your partner, friends, family or whoever to solve riddles, complete challenges and answer trivia to lead you on an unforgettable journey around London’s most intriguing streets.
The best part? We’ll recommend top-rated pubs, cafés and restaurants and give your team the chance to earn rewards by competing on our leaderboard.