10 Off-Season Outdoor Teambuilding Ideas at Ski Destinations

The Adventure Center at Greek Peak in Cortland, New York, focuses on teamwork as well as personal and professional development. Take on two types of challenge courses: The Twin Creeks Challenge Course is a low ropes course that requires a facilitator and a goal sheet. Elements include the team wall, spider web, and trust fall. The High Peaks Aerial Challenge Course invites participants to tackle suspension bridges, zip lines, tight ropes, and more. Rates depend on group size. For teambuilding for six to 16 people, prices start at $400, plus $10 per person. Note that the Adventure Center operates in rain or snow, although it will delay events or shut down the course in more serious weather.

For groups ranging from 20 to 200 people, Spruce Peak in Stowe, Vermont, offers the Lumberjack Games. The energetic team competition consists of timed challenges, scored on points and best time. Elements include tug-of-war, paintball target shooting, sap bucket beer pong, log rolling, lawn game Olympics, and a bonus arm-wrestling competition. The games unfold over the course of two hours, where team members must work together to achieve success in a fun atmosphere. Rates begin at $75 per person. The Lumberjack Games are offered year-round; there is an indoor version during the winter months.

Fall outdoor activities in Park City Mountain in Utah are included in Adventure Day Passes, offering access to the climbing wall, the Flying Eagle Zip Line, disc golf, a putting course, and the mountain bike haul. Pass rates are $77 per day, per person. There's also Utah Olympic Park’s Base Camp training initiatives, which are centered around team objectives and athletic ability. Elemental tests include balance, agility, and strength, while fusing communication and cooperative skills. The facility, which builds on the legacy of the XIX Olympic Winter Games in 2002, operates year-round.

Groups seeking to explore Snow Valley this fall can visit Pali Mountain Retreat in California’s San Bernardino Mountains. Pali specializes in activities for groups of all ages and abilities, with a trained facilitator leading fun and positive tasks. Both the high and low ropes courses conclude with a debriefing session to analyze group actions and provide constructive techniques to apply to day-to-day life. Pali can coordinate a lunch meeting to Snow Valley, a quick 15-minute drive away. Take the chair lift to the top of the mountain, along with a boxed lunch prepared by Pali’s executive chef. This add-on offers vast mountain views—before snowfall. The minimum group size is 24 (two cabins of 12) and the retreat costs $248 per person for a two-night, three-day stay, five meals, a meeting space, and the ropes course. For a late-fall, pre-snow getaway, rates are discounted to $199 per person during November and December. The Snow Valley add-on (weather permitting) costs an additional $49 per person.

For the team that’s willing to go to great heights, consider the TreEscape Aerial Adventure at Mountain Creek Resort in Vernon, New Jersey, less than an hour’s drive from Manhattan. A series of wooden platforms built high in the trees are connected by rope walks, obstacles, climbing elements, and zip lines—all located in a forest setting. The adventure caters to groups of 15, with activity packages beginning at $20 per person (food, beverage, conference space access), and activities rates start at $50 per person. The course is open through November 30, and can be booked on nights and weekends, for groups that can’t escape the office during business hours.

For companies seeking both teambuilding as well as event space, Taos Ski Valley offers several options. First, embark on a hike up 13,000-foot Wheeler Peak, the highest point in New Mexico. The all-day activity requires hard work and bonding. For a tamer outdoor adventure, groups can default to the short, 1.5-mile hike to Williams Lake, by the Taos Ski Valley base. Companies can head to the 6,334-square-foot Phoenix Lodge event space for a post-teambuilding gathering—with 360-degree mountain views—or get back to business at the eight-room Rio Hondo Learning Center or in the Lake Fork Boardroom.

Fall teambuilding activities in Sun Valley, Idaho, include hiking and biking trails, golfing, a shooting range, an outdoor, year-round ice-skating rink, and group fly fishing through Silver Creek Outfitters. Instructors are available to lead activities, which can be tailored to a group’s ability level. Prices are based on the size of the party. Take advantage of the outdoors through late October, as ski season begins on Thanksgiving Day.

For a private teambuilding experience, Plattekill Mountain in the Northwestern Catskills of New York offers a “Rent the Mountain” package, which gives groups exclusive access to the facilities. Work with the onsite event coordinator to plan a day of activities such as scenic chairlift rides to and from the summit, mountaintop yoga sessions, and guided mountain biking and hiking. Catering packages, including a full bar, are available, along with complimentary s’mores around a fire pit. Mountain buyouts start at $3,000 for 250 guests and include use of the base lodge services, meeting space, and chairlift.

Aspen is the leading destination in Colorado surrounding viewpoints for the changing of the autumn leaves. Team up for a creative, outdoor scavenger hunt among the fall foliage with Blazing Adventures. The activity—which requires a minimum of 15 people, and ranges from $150 to 200 per person—is comprised of both photo and video challenges, along with mandatory tasks to complete. Teams compete surrounding puzzle solving, and are then scored by an unbiased, in-house team of judges.

For a group-friendly, cozy Aspen stay, take advantage of Molly Gibson Lodge’s off-season prices through November 20 (one week prior to ski season kickoff). The comfortable quarters invite groups down to the pool to host a post-scavenger hunt happy hour, along with hot tub soaks.