Are you looking for the perfect team-building adventure in Asheville? We’ve got you covered! Trying to figure out the ideal experience for your group can be overwhelming, so we’ve compiled a list of some of the best in town.

Scheduling regular team-building experiences is essential. They bring people together in a new environment to do exciting things and help create a more relaxed atmosphere and a positive group culture. They break down barriers to foster communication and build trust among members. 

The first step is to find out what you’re looking for. Are you seeking a simple, fun outing to break the ice and deepen the bonds between your team? Would you like to work on developing specific strengths, like better communication, more effective collaboration, and leadership skills? 

There are many team-building opportunities in Asheville, from a laid-back, artsy night out with co-workers to hanging out drinking beer and throwing axes to intricate problem-solving challenges and escape rooms. You can also do yoga with goats, bake French macarons, bathe in the forest, or learn about history. 

Do you have limited funds? No worries! We’ve included a couple of free Asheville team-building experiences that are super meaningful and rewarding. You don’t need a big production to strengthen your team! 

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. If you make a purchase or booking through one of our links we may earn a small commission (don’t worry, it’s at no extra cost to you).

13 Excellent Team-Building Experiences in Asheville

1. Get Creative at Fired Up! 

Making art is a fun way to decompress, relax, and be playful, even if you have the artistic abilities of a toddler. Think about how much fun toddlers have! This is a perfect Asheville team-building experience for those seeking a light-spirited break from the office. Plus, you can bring your own food and beverages.

Fired Up! Creative Lounge has been voted “Best Place to Make Art” by Mountain Xpress readers, and it offers a wide range of artistic activities for kids, adults, families, and groups celebrating special events. You can paint pre-made pottery pieces and take glass fusing, clay hand-building, or canvas painting classes.

In addition, Fired Up! hosts super fun events, including Studio Ghibli, “Barbie,” and “Harry Potter”-inspired guided painting and pottery classes. Is your group from out of town? Don’t worry – they’ll mail your pieces for a flat fee per order (not per piece). 

2. Work on Collaboration Skills at Breakout Games

Breakout Games offers some of the best Asheville team-building adventures. Your team will improve its strategizing, communication, collaboration, and leadership skills while overcoming challenges to escape from a room within an hour. 

This experience is perfect for those seeking intellectual stimulation and a little adrenaline. It’s also a great chance to discover your team members’ natural skills. 

Escape rooms have specific themes or storylines. Some of Breakout Games’ themes are Wild West, Clue (a favorite!), Bomb Squad, Mystery Mansion, The Kidnapping, and Operation Casino. 

Once inside the room, the clocks start ticking, and your team must solve logic puzzles, riddles, code-breaking challenges, and more to complete the escape. At Breakout, they don’t limit the number of hints you can ask for as you play the game so that you can choose your difficulty level.

3. Volunteer as a Team

Volunteering as a team not only offers the chance to give back to the community, but it’s a valuable opportunity for team members to bond and improve communication skills, build trust, bring out leadership qualities, and get inspiration. This is also a great chance to build bridges between your team and local organizations – a win-win situation!

Asheville has many great nonprofits doing outstanding work in the community and offering team volunteering opportunities year-round and on special occasions, like Thanksgiving and the holidays. 

Find a cause you’d love to support, an activity your team would enjoy, or a skill they’d love to learn, and start your volunteering team-building experience in Asheville. You can do something as easy as sorting and packing food donations with Manna Food Bank, collaborating with the wonderful mamas of Babies Need Bottoms, or helping the animals at Animal Haven of Asheville. 

My go-to place for volunteering solo and with my team is the Downtown Welcome Table. You can help in the kitchen, serve tables, or clean up. This is perfect for people-person folks. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to enhance your cultural awareness since you’ll interact with people from all walks of life. 

Check out Hands On Asheville for a complete guide to volunteer opportunities. 

4. Break the Ice at the Axeville Throwing Club

Is your team full of adventurous folks who love trying the newest trends in town? Do y’all need to work on getting out of your comfort zone more?

Then Axeville Throwing Club is the perfect Asheville team-building adventure. You can reserve the place for your party, or they have a fully insured mobile unit that can bring the whole experience to your event.

Axeville is an indoor space that allows folks 18+ to throw axes at targets while sipping local beer, cider, or wine. This experience is ideal for those seeking an opportunity to have fun together while releasing stress in a safe environment. They can also organize a friendly tournament, allowing your people to team up and work together. 

There are three lounges and an outdoor area where you can hang out and play chess, mancala, Giant Jenga, and cornhole. You can also cater your event. 

5. Go on a Downtown Scavenger Hunt 

The Team Building Detour will take your group on an exciting adventure around Downtown Asheville, where you’ll follow a 3-hour self-guided scavenger hunt. Each of the five stops will guide you to your next experience, fostering teamwork and guaranteeing shared fun. 

This Asheville team-building journey starts with a welcome toast from the group coordinator. From there, you’ll participate in activities like a hot sauce challenge (a prize for the winner is included), a group crafting class, or a tasting of local goodies, including the fantastic chocolate from French Broad Chocolates and honey from Bee Charmer.  

The detours can begin between 11 am and 4 pm and be customized according to your preferences. This will give your team a much-deserved break from the office while increasing their joy and motivation.

6. Reconnect with an Asheville Wellness Tour

Asheville Wellness Tours‘ experiences are crafted just for your group and make some of Asheville’s most restorative team-building opportunities. Depending on your needs, you can book a few-hour experience or a weekend retreat to deepen the connection between your team members.

You can choose one experience or mix and match a couple of them. Imagine combining a guided meditation with a goat yoga class in a barn or an outdoor yoga class with forest bathing therapy. Add a group tarot reading, and you’ll have the perfect Asheville team-building day! 

In addition, they offer awesome yoga hiking tours, SUP adventures, and a winery tour if you’re feeling celebratory. A special treat for your team would be to join a tour to search for the whimsical blue ghost fireflies from late May to early June. 

7. Practice Yoga as a Team at Asheville Yoga Center

A yoga team-building experience can foster relaxation and serenity, critical elements of a productive work environment. Also, learning new things as a group is empowering and promotes a sense of unity and camaraderie. Experienced yogis and yoginis can mentor their co-workers who are new to the practice.  

Asheville Yoga Center is one of the best yoga studios in Asheville, offering an incredible amount of yoga classes, from dawn to dusk and beyond, in every yoga style. You can book a private yoga class to fit your group’s needs and add other experiences like sound healing therapy, mindfulness, and meditation – an awesome practice to relax and focus in the present.

Discuss with your instructor the possibility of including partner yoga poses to enhance collaboration and trust among your team members. The practice can close with a circle where every participant shares their experience. 

You can celebrate the end of your Asheville team-building yoga practice with lunch at Liberty House Café or a Pulp + Sprout healthy juice.

8. Develop New Skills at the Adventure Center 

The Adventure Center of Asheville offers some of the most engaging team-building experiences in Asheville. There are activities for every need, from cooperative group games and lightly competitive activities to opportunities to develop new skills and leave the workshop super motivated and ready to perform.

The Team Bonding Initiative Program focuses on team bonding as “cooperative challenges to strengthen the relationship between team members on a personal level.”  The facilitator will guide your group through a fun session of ice-breaking exercises, light-hearted games, and low-rope fun. Of course, you can add a climb at the Treetops Adventure Park. 

The Facilitated Team Building Program is more challenging. It focuses on growth and developing skills based on your team’s goals. Does your group want to develop a deeper sense of strength and improve at task completion,  decision-making, or delegation? This is the space to work on that!

As Adventure Center of Asheville puts it: “The group will walk away knowing more about themselves and each other and hopefully shed light on some ideas the team can develop and implement long-term.”

9. Book a Private Cooking Class at The Asheville Kitchen

Even if cooking is not your favorite activity, participating in a group cooking class is fun and a great team-building experience to develop trust, camaraderie, and taste buds. The Asheville Kitchen offers fantastic sweet and savory cooking and baking classes that can be customized according to your desires.

Your instructor will be Chef Brian Ross, a former chef at Biltmore Estate’s Biltmore Inn and Ritz Carlton hotels, among other top-notch places to eat in the country. You can design your themed class or choose from their current offerings, including Tapas From Spain, Taste of Greece, Night in Sicily, Hors D’oeuvres To Die For, Comfort Food, Taco Truck, and other exciting international cuisine classes.

Or perhaps your team is full of sweet tooths who will love the French Macarons Baking Class or the Coconut Cake Baking Class. Either way, enhance the experience by dividing the group into teams, each one with its unique personalized aprons. It’s a great opportunity to mix up members of different departments who don’t normally interact with each other. 

You can also incorporate team challenges and end this Asheville team-building experience by awarding prizes for creativity, teamwork, the team who laughed the most, or the best-tasting dish.

10. Take a Team Outing with Asheville Hiking Tours 

The ingredients of Asheville Hiking Tours‘ hiking retreats are simple: “Hiking + Wellness + Nature.” What’s not to love? They also offer private hiking tours designed according to your group’s preferences.

The summer and fall retreats feature wildflower and fall foliage-guided hiking tours, outstanding cuisine, comfortable accommodations, polar plunges, and foraging experiences in which you’ll learn how to identify mushrooms and other edible wild foods.

Asheville Hiking Tours also offers other great adventures that make for some of the best team-building experiences in Asheville, from waterfall and Blue Ridge Parkway hikes to nighttime walks to spot rare fireflies.

11. Get to Know Each Other By Playing with Cats

Animals are great facilitators of joy and connection. I mentioned doing yoga with goats, but thankfully, Asheville has two cat lounges that are also available for private events. 

Cats at Play is Asheville’s first cat café and an excellent place to hang out with your team while savoring local snacks and drinks, including beer, wine, and non-alcoholic elixirs. The café doubles as a foster home, and all the kitties are available for adoption!

House of Black Cat Magic in West Asheville also works with a foster-based cat rescue organization for black kitties, the most euthanized animals in US shelters. This is perfect for groups of modern wizards and witches. You’ll love the shop and the possibility of adding tarot readings and facilitated gratitude circles to your gathering.

This Asheville team-building experience will make everyone feel happy and productive. Remember what Sigmund Freud said: “Time spent with cats is never wasted.”

12. Learn About Asheville’s Black Community 

Educating folks on equity is crucial to fostering a fair and inclusive work environment and a just community. Workplace equity education helps people understand and appreciate diversity, encourages an inclusive workplace, and reduces discrimination and biases.

Asheville has amazing organizations offering classes and resources. For example, having your team join a Hood Tour will take you on an emotional journey around town, where you’ll learn historical facts and discover your emotions related to the complex history of Black Americans in Asheville and the United States. 

In addition, the Asheville Cultural Heritage Trail takes visitors through downtown, the Southside, and the River Area in a self-guided tour of 2.5 hours following the steps of Black Americans in Asheville. And it’s free!

These other organizations will also help you to learn more about this topic:

• State of Black Asheville 
• YMC Cultural Center
• Just Folks Organization
• The Racial Equity Institute
• Building Bridges  
• Cothinkk

13. Do Listening Training for Teams

SeekHealing is another incredible organization working to promote social health and ease the effects of the isolation crisis in the country. The Listening Training they offer is an outstanding tool for life. I did it during the pandemic and have volunteered with them, offering and receiving peer-to-peer support. 

They now offer Listening Training for teams, aimed at improving listening skills and interpersonal relationships and leading to more productive use of time and resources. While the training is free for volunteers, there is a fee for businesses. The retreat lasts two full days or can be broken into a six-week class.

This Asheville team-building experience will be perfect for those experiencing conflictive work environments and those who are doing great but want to open up to be vulnerable and achieve a deeper level of emotional intimacy. You can find more info about the Listening Training for Teams here.

There you have it! The 13 best team-building experiences in Asheville. Did we miss any cool local team-building experiences? Let us know in the comments.