Company Outing Ideas That Bring a Team Together
Updated: 5 hours ago
The company outings that bring a team together have three things in common: colleagues work side by side on a shared task, the groups are small and mixed enough that people talk to someone new, and everyone leaves with something to show for it. Which outing is right for your team depends on what you want it to achieve, who is coming and the time of year. This guide explains what we have learned from hosting company groups in Hicksville since 2010, how to choose and plan an outing on Long Island, and where a wine blending session fits.
Table of contents
What have we learned from hosting company groups since 2010?
Which company outing suits your team?
How do you plan a company outing on Long Island?
Where does a wine blending outing fit?
Company outing FAQs
Choosing your team's next outing
What have we learned from hosting company groups since 2010?
A company outing is best judged by what happens in the office the following week. If people who barely spoke before now have something to talk about, it worked. If everyone spent the afternoon with the colleagues they already sit next to, it was a nice day out and little more.
The format does most of the work. We have hosted more than 5,000 guests at our blending tables, and the pattern holds for almost every company group: people relax once their hands are busy. A colleague who says little in meetings will happily argue about whether the blend needs more of the bolder red, because the task gives them something to talk about that has nothing to do with work. An outing that puts everyone around one bar or one long table does the opposite, and people drift back to their usual groups.
Group size matters as much as the activity. We seat groups of 6 to 12 per table, which is large enough for a lively debate and small enough that nobody sits it out. Mixing departments across tables does more for colleagues who never cross paths than any icebreaker.
Experience matters less than organizers expect. Most of our guests arrive with no wine knowledge at all, and that tends to help, because nobody is showing off and everybody is learning at the same pace. What people remember is taking home something they made, which keeps the outing in conversation long after the day itself.
This matters more than it used to. In 2022, Gallup found that just two in 10 U.S. employees say they have a best friend at work, and its research links those friendships to people being more satisfied at work and less likely to leave. With hybrid schedules, many colleagues now see each other only on screens or on certain days, so an outing is one of the few chances to build the familiarity that makes work easier.
Which company outing suits your team?
Most disappointing outings fail because the format did not match the goal, rather than because the venue was poor. Decide first what the outing is for, and the choice becomes much simpler.
If you want departments to get to know each other, choose something hands-on in small mixed groups: a blending session, a cooking class or a workshop where people make something together. Puzzle formats such as escape rooms also mix people well, although most of the time goes on solving rather than talking, so plan food or drinks afterwards.
If you want to thank the team, a relaxed format with little structure is the better fit. A long lunch, a day at one of Long Island's beaches or state parks, or a Long Island Ducks game in Central Islip in the summer lets people unwind and talk as much or as little as they like. The trade-off is that these outings rarely introduce people who do not already know each other, so they suit teams that are already close. Our guide to unique things to do on Long Island for adults covers more options of this kind.
If you want something people keep, choose an activity that ends with something to take home, such as a bottle of wine each table blended together. If you want to give something back, a volunteering morning at a food bank or a park cleanup gives the team a shared purpose that has nothing to do with targets. Book with an established organization, check what the day physically involves, and finish with lunch together so there is time to talk.
How do you plan a company outing on Long Island?
Start with the people. Think about group size, how many people drink, mobility, dietary needs and whether remote or hybrid colleagues will attend. A format that suits eight people in one department may not suit sixty across three offices. Offer a non-alcoholic option that feels like part of the event, and avoid anything physically demanding unless everyone has signed up for it. Anyone drinking must be 21 or over, so check your guest list if you employ interns or younger staff.
Then think about the season. Summer suits outdoor outings and ball games, while fall and winter push most teams indoors, and December fills up quickly with holiday parties, so if your outing doubles as an end-of-year celebration, our guide to office holiday party ideas covers that season in more detail.
Travel decides attendance more than most organizers expect. A good outing close to where your team lives or works will draw more people than a great one two hours away. Hicksville sits in the middle of Nassau County with its own LIRR station, a short drive from Bethpage, Melville and Hauppauge, which makes it workable for teams based across Nassau and western Suffolk. Weekday afternoons can also get better turnout than weekends, because the outing does not eat into people's own time.
Finally, ask every venue the same questions: the maximum group size, how larger groups are split, what is included, how long the activity runs, whether food can be added and how guests who do not drink are looked after. Asking the same questions of every option makes the comparison fair and shows quickly which venues are organized.
Where does a wine blending outing fit?
A wine blending session is our answer for teams who want an outing that gets people talking across the business, and it is how we run all of our team building on Long Island. Your team tastes a selection of our barrel-aged wines from California and Chile, then works in small groups, trying different proportions in trial glasses until each table settles on a blend it is happy with. The finished wine is bottled, corked and labeled, everyone takes a bottle home, and the whole session takes about 90 minutes. You can see how it runs on our wine blending experience page, or read how it differs from a standard tasting in wine blending vs wine tasting.
The same session works for client events. Hosts and guests sit at the same tables, the conversation flows around a shared task rather than a sales pitch, and every client leaves with a bottle they made, which keeps the event in mind long after the day.
Where getting everyone to one place is the hard part, our mobile wine truck brings a guided blending session to your location, which suits companies with a large office or campus and hybrid teams who are only together on certain days.
Company outing FAQs
What is a good company outing for a small team? A hands-on activity suits small teams best, because everyone can take part at once. A wine blending table seats 6 to 12 people, so a small team can share one table and one blend.
What are good company outing ideas in winter? Indoor, hands-on formats work best in the colder months: wine blending, cooking classes, escape rooms or an activity brought into the office. They avoid weather risk and still get people working together.
How far in advance should you book a company outing?
Four to six weeks is sensible for most outings, and longer for December or for large groups, when popular dates go first. Settle the headcount and two or three possible dates before you contact venues.
Do employees need wine experience for a wine blending outing?
No. Most people who blend with us arrive with none, and our winemakers guide every step, from tasting the base wines to corking the finished bottle.
Choosing your team's next outing
The right company outing is the one that matches what you want it to achieve. If the aim is to get people talking across the business, choose something hands-on with small mixed groups; if the aim is to say thank you, choose something relaxed; and pick a date and place that most of the team can actually reach.
If you want an outing your team will still be talking about next month, a blending session in Hicksville takes about 90 minutes, works for groups of 6 to 12 per table, and everyone goes home with a bottle they made. Tell us your group size and preferred dates on our team building on Long Island page and we will plan the rest.
