Team Building

A tablet in your hand, the coordinates of the next station on the screen, and your colleagues leaning in to decide whether the code should be read backwards. That is how team building with CityHunters begins. This page helps you choose the right format for your team from eleven options. It sorts them by what you want to achieve, how many people are coming, how much time you have and the season you are planning for. By the end, you will know which format to ask for and how to justify your choice internally.

What is team building? How it differs from an away day or an incentive

Team building means bringing a team closer together through a shared task. The task calls on different strengths, and at the end everyone holds a result they reached together. The occasion is the setting in which you pursue that aim: a corporate away day, a summer party, a Christmas party, a kick-off or an incentive. Keep the two apart and planning becomes simpler. You choose the occasion from your calendar and the format from your goal.

Away days and parties: the fixed dates in the year

Many companies already have these dates in the calendar. The away day gives the whole workforce a shared day out of the office. The summer party and the Christmas party give them a shared evening. The programme is what turns them into team building. Once the group is given a task that can only be solved together, the date has a purpose alongside the social part, and you can name that purpose in the invitation.

Team events, kick-offs and incentives: three more settings

A team event is any shared activity of a team, with or without an explicit team building aim. A kick-off opens a project or a financial year and brings together people who will deliver together from now on. Team building fits there most naturally. An incentive rewards a goal that has been reached. Shared tasks work well here too, because the team celebrates its success in the same line-up that earned it.

How to describe your own case

For planning, you need a single sentence with two parts: the occasion and what your team should take away from it. For example: “Christmas party for the whole company, and the different offices should get to know each other.” Or: “Kick-off for the new project group that starts working together on Monday.” This sentence quickly narrows the eleven formats down, and it goes straight into your enquiry later. The next section shows how to get from your goal to the right format.

Team building ideas by goal: which format suits your team?

Most planning starts with the question of format. You will get there faster with a different question: what should be different in your team after this day? The answer usually comes down to one of four goals, and each one leads to different formats.

Your team wants to compete

If your sales team checks the leaderboard every quarter, they will want to know who is ahead here too. The iPad formats are built for exactly that. A live leaderboard shows every team the current standings at all times. The chat in the app lets teams challenge rivals a few streets away. Photo and video tasks award points for imagination, not just speed, so the quickest team does not automatically win.

For smaller groups who want competition, the Escape Game is the right choice. It starts from five people and puts teams against the clock, with a mission to complete before time runs out.

Your team needs to grow together

After a restructure, with many new faces, or when departments are to work more closely, one thing matters most: people talking to colleagues they rarely speak to. In the guided formats, the team guide forms small teams at the meeting point. In Geocaching, these are groups of five to eight people. That is large enough for a mix of strengths and small enough that everyone has a part to play.

Along the route, every task asks for something different. One moment the analyst cracks the code. The next, the quiet colleague spots the crucial detail on a building's facade. If you want to bring new starters into the team, the Murder Mystery Tour works well: everyone has to pool the evidence before the case can be solved.

Your team should get to know the place

Is your team meeting in a city that many of them are seeing for the first time? Or do your staff know their own head office city only as the route between the station and the office? Then Geocaching, the Scavenger Hunt and the iPad Tour take them where it is worth looking. Stations and coordinates sit at landmarks, striking architecture and the squares of the city centre.

Teams hear the stories behind these places while they solve puzzles. When everyone sits down to dinner that evening, they all have something to say about the city. That includes the colleague who usually only talks about projects.

Your team should solve a story together

Some teams are not driven by a score but by a case. In the crime formats they investigate: who has a motive, which alibi holds up, which clues fit together? In the Escape Game they become agents tasked with preventing a disaster.

The Treasure Hunt follows an old manuscript. Here, deciphering together is the focus, and the path to the treasure counts for more than the gap to the next team. It suits groups who prefer puzzling with each other to competing against each other. A good example is a team that works under pressure every day and should simply achieve something together on this one.

Types of team building: four kinds and where city formats fit

Search for team building activities and you will find a wide field. It becomes clear once you sort it by where the team comes together and what they do there together. That gives you four kinds.

Training rooms, sport and creative making

Training-room formats work with facilitation, exercises and conversations about how the team works together. Sporting formats rely on movement and physical challenge. Creative formats have a group build, design or prepare something together. Many companies spread different kinds across the year. The fourth kind fits easily alongside them because it needs no room, no kit and no preparation from your team.

Out in the city together: the fourth kind

In the fourth kind, the team sets off in small groups and solves tasks along the way that are tied to real places. The city becomes the playing field. Because the groups are always on the move, conversations start by themselves: on the way to the next station, in the debate about the right turning, in the shared cheer over a cracked code. This kind combines with any occasion, and there is no venue for you to book.

Why CityHunters focuses entirely on city formats

CityHunters concentrates entirely on this fourth kind and offers it in eleven formats. Everything takes place in the open air, and nobody needs any prior knowledge. The tasks call for skills that every team already has, spread across its members: logic, a good eye and imagination. The formats cover groups from five to 1,000 people and can be booked in 1.719 cities. So you are choosing a format that works just as well for a team of five as for the annual conference of the whole company.

How many are coming? Team building by group size

The number of participants settles the format earlier than any question of taste. The good news is that between 15 and 200 people, all eleven formats are open to you. For smaller and larger groups, the choice is just as clear, because specific formats are designed for each end.

The small department: from five people

For a five-person finance team or a small project group, the five app formats are the answer. The Scavenger Hunt, Murder Mystery Tour, Escape Game, Treasure Hunt and Xmas Adventure all start from five participants. The group plays on their own smartphones and does not need to arrange a slot with a guide. That means the event fits into an ordinary working day without you having to organise a full day out.

The mid-sized group: 15 to 200 people

In this range, you have the full choice and can decide by goal and time rather than by size. One rule of thumb helps. If you want to hand over the running of the event and value a shared finish with a prize-giving, choose a guided format. If you want to set the start time yourself, choose an app format.

Team building for large groups: up to 1,000 people

The guided formats are designed for the whole-company kick-off or the annual conference with several offices. Geocaching, the iPad Tour and their Christmas versions take up to 1,000 people. Murder Mystery Geocaching and the Murder Mystery iPad Tour take up to 500. CityHunters team guides handle the welcome, the team allocation and the handing out of devices. You do not have to answer hundreds of questions yourself at the meeting point.

The international team

Does your team work across several languages? Every one of the eleven formats runs in English. The app formats are also available in German, Spanish, French, Italian and Dutch. The iPad Tour is also available in German and Spanish, and the other guided formats in German. You can choose the language in which everyone thinks fastest, so the puzzle is about the code and never about a word.

How long is a team building day? 90 minutes to three hours

Team building does not have to take up the whole day. The formats last between 90 minutes and three hours. The right choice depends on what comes before and after in your schedule.

90 minutes: the break between two conference sessions

Geocaching, the iPad Tour, the Murder Mystery iPad Tour and the Xmas iPad Tour can be booked with 90 minutes of playing time. That is enough for a round through the city centre that clears everyone's head after a morning of slides. The rest of the day stays free for your agenda.

Two hours: the afternoon before dinner

Murder Mystery Geocaching starts at two hours of playing time. Xmas Geocaching and the Xmas Adventure are set at two hours. Start mid-afternoon, reach the finish two hours later, then head on to the restaurant. You can explain that schedule in a single sentence in the invitation.

Three hours: the event as the main programme

The Scavenger Hunt, Murder Mystery Tour, Escape Game and Treasure Hunt are designed for three hours, and the guided formats can be extended up to three hours. This is the length for the away day or the team day where the event is the reason everyone comes together. Three hours also fits neatly into a conference day.

Fixed time or flexible start

For the guided formats, you agree a meeting point and a time, and the team guide is ready when your group arrives. The app formats start as soon as your team is ready. If the morning meeting runs late, the event simply moves with it, so nobody waits and nobody has to replan.

Outdoor team building in every season: what works when

All eleven formats are played outdoors in the city. That is their appeal, and a little thought about the season gets the most out of any date.

Team building in spring and summer: long evenings

When it stays light into the evening, the full three hours fit comfortably before a summer party in a pub garden or on a rooftop terrace. The formats that show a lot of the city, such as Geocaching, the Scavenger Hunt and the iPad Tour, come into their own when squares and riverside walks are busy. Teams can grab an ice cream between two stations.

Autumn: the kick-off after the summer break

In September and October, many teams start the second half of the year with new targets. A crime format or the Escape Game gives the kick-off a shared start that someone will still be referring to in the next meeting. Because it gets dark earlier, start in the early afternoon or choose a playing time between 90 minutes and two hours.

The festive season: three formats for the Christmas party

For the Christmas party, each family has its own festive version. In Xmas Geocaching, the coordinates also lead to the highlights of the local Christmas market. The Xmas iPad Tour brings the competition to festively decorated streets. The Xmas Adventure follows the treasure map of a mysterious entrepreneur and can be played on your own smartphones from five people.

All three last two hours at most. Afterwards, there is mulled wine at the market or the Christmas dinner, so the event becomes the first part of the evening rather than a replacement for it.

Team building in winter: rain, wind and cold days

A shower does not need to change your plans. A line in the invitation about sturdy shoes and a waterproof jacket is all it takes, and you can book a pub or restaurant at the finish where everyone warms up afterwards. If you are planning in winter, choose a shorter playing time so the mood stays high until the last puzzle.

Team building cost: what is included in the price?

For internal sign-off, you need two things: a reliable figure and a clear statement of what it covers. Both depend on the format family.

App formats: one price per person

The Scavenger Hunt, Murder Mystery Tour, Escape Game, Treasure Hunt and Xmas Adventure cost from €22,99 per person. This includes the game code and the complete game in the CityHunters app with its multimedia tasks. It also includes the freedom to set the day and start time yourself. Your team only needs to bring their own smartphones.

Guided formats: a quote based on group, city and duration

For the Geocaching and iPad formats, you receive a quote based on group size, city and the playing time you want. It includes the team guide on site, the introduction at the meeting point, a device for every team and the prize-giving at the finish.

Choose by what matters most to your team. If the city and puzzling together are the focus, Geocaching is the leaner choice. If winning and rankings are the point, the iPad formats connect all teams through the app and keep the competition visible for the entire game.

What you plan around the event

You shape the journey to the meeting point and the end of the day to suit your team, from drinks to a seated dinner. Ask about the finish point when you make your enquiry. You can then book a venue within walking distance, and the prize-giving leads straight into the evening without anyone having to move on.

How to justify the choice internally

Two arguments carry most sign-off discussions. First, the amount is fixed in advance, either as a price per person or in the quote. Second, the event draws on different strengths: logic, observation, creativity and decisiveness. That gives every person in the team a moment when they are needed. As evidence from practice, 6.266 customer reviews give CityHunters an average of 4,7 out of 5.

How a team building event runs: enquiry, start, prize-giving

Only a few clear steps lie between your first message and the moment the winning team cheers. For you as the organiser, that mainly means giving the right details once, then joining in.

The enquiry: city, date, group size, playing time

Four details form the basis of your quote: which city, which day, how many people and for how long. If you have not settled on a format yet, add your goal: competing, growing together, getting to know the city or solving a case. That narrows the choice to one or two formats.

At the meeting point: welcome, teams, devices

For the guided formats, the CityHunters team guide meets you at a central meeting point in the city. The guide explains how everything works, forms the teams and hands each team its device. Anyone who has never followed a trail with a tablet is ready to go after this introduction. For Murder Mystery Geocaching, the guide also sets out the background to the case.

On the route: stations, puzzles, points

Then each team sets off. The screen shows the next station, where a task is waiting. It might be a code to crack, a detail on a facade, a quiz question or a group photo with a tricky brief. Every solved task earns points. You do not have to coordinate anything, because the app guides the teams and you can walk along and puzzle with them.

At the finish: the prize-giving

When the agreed playing time is up, all teams meet at the finish, where the team guide is already waiting. The guide announces which team has collected the most points. This is the moment when many small teams become one department again, applauding together.

With the app formats: activate the code and go

For the app formats, your participants download the CityHunters app, activate the game code and start after a short introduction in the app. You set the final moment yourself. Agree a meeting point for the end of the playing time, where the teams compare their answers and raise a glass together.

Team building games on the route: what teams solve at each station

Every station has a task, and no two are alike. The tasks fall roughly into three types, each drawing on different skills. This mix means that in every team, a different person takes the lead at a different station.

Puzzling: codes, messages, numbers

Some tasks are pure brainwork. In the Escape Game, teams decipher cryptic messages. In the Treasure Hunt, they decode the encrypted clues of an old manuscript. In Murder Mystery Geocaching, the range runs from mathematical understanding to analytical thinking. In the Murder Mystery Tour, teams build hypotheses together from the evidence. These tasks call on the people who like getting to the bottom of things at work.

Following the trail: observing and combining

Other tasks need a sharp eye. In Geocaching, teams track down hidden objects. In the Murder Mystery Tour, photos, videos, audio recordings and virtual witness interviews supply the pieces that have to be fitted together. Successful teams split up. While some are still working on a puzzle, others are already scanning the area for the next clue. Along the way, you see in practice how a team shares out work when the clock is running.

Creating: photos, videos and festive missions

The third type gives creativity room. In the iPad formats, photo and video challenges set briefs that can only be met with imagination. In Xmas Geocaching, the stations carry names such as “Silent Night” or “Christmas Miracle” and bring the shared puzzling into the festive season. So it is not speed alone but the interplay of all three skills that decides who stands on the winners' podium.

Corporate team building formats at a glance: eleven formats, three families

The eleven formats differ mainly in three ways: who runs the event on site, which device the teams hold, and how many people it is designed for. On that basis, they fall into three families.

Guided with tablet or GPS device: the Geocaching family

Here, the search for coordinates combines with a puzzle at every station. A team guide handles the start and the finish, and teams navigate themselves in between. All three formats start from 15 people and run in English and German.

• Geocaching: tablet in hand, teams head for landmarks and hidden clues, using sharp wits and a good eye. 15 to 1,000 people, 90 to 180 minutes.
• Murder Mystery Geocaching: teams become detectives with GPS devices in a game of cat and mouse across the city centre. Every skill counts, from mathematical understanding to imagination. 15 to 500 people, 120 to 180 minutes.
• Xmas Geocaching: the Christmas party version with tablets and festive missions. 15 to 1,000 people, 120 minutes.

Guided with iPad: the connected family

The iPad family is the choice for the goal of competing. Teams are connected through the app, navigate by GPS and map view, and collect points with puzzles, quiz questions and photo and video tasks. A team guide runs the start and the prize-giving here too, and groups start from 15 people.

• iPad Tour: missions in streets, squares and places people usually walk past. 15 to 1,000 people, 90 to 180 minutes, in English, German and Spanish.
• Murder Mystery iPad Tour: the stations are crime scenes, the tasks are detective questions, and the game ends with the fictional culprit being caught. 15 to 500 people, 90 to 180 minutes, in English and German.
• Xmas iPad Tour: connected competition in the festive season. 15 to 1,000 people, 90 to 120 minutes, in English and German.

By app on your own smartphones: the flexible family

These five formats run on your team's own schedule, so your team decides when and where to play. They suit groups of 5 to 200 people and are available in six languages.

• Scavenger Hunt: from a central meeting point, the route leads to major landmarks, with a creative task at every station. 180 minutes.
• Murder Mystery Tour: the smartphone becomes an incident room, with photos, videos, audio recordings and virtual witness interviews. 180 minutes.
• Escape Game: an open-air spy adventure in which teams decode messages, analyse evidence and unmask spies. 180 minutes.
• Treasure Hunt: encrypted messages, hidden clues and a treasure to be the first to recover. 180 minutes.
• Xmas Adventure: the festive treasure hunt for the Christmas party. 120 minutes.

Where can you book corporate team building? At your office or your conference venue

Your team does not need to travel for good team building. Whether you stay at head office or are already travelling to a conference, the event comes to where your group is.

1.121 cities with their own city page

CityHunters has its own city page with a description for 1.121 cities across 27 countries. They range from capitals such as Barcelona, Vienna, Amsterdam, Paris and Rome to cities such as Porto, Krakow, Lisbon and Dublin. Name your head office, your branch or your conference city in your enquiry, and you will receive the matching quote.

At head office or at the conference venue

You play the app formats wherever you like. For the guided formats, name the city in your enquiry, and the start will be at a central meeting point that everyone can find easily. That turns a conference in an unfamiliar city into an afternoon in which your team really gets to know the place.

You now know what your team should achieve, how many people are coming, how much time you have and which season you are planning for. With these answers and the name of your city, your team building is planned at its core. All that remains is the quote to put in front of your management, so send your enquiry today.