The great thing with general team building games is that most of them can fit any context. What we’re saying is that you don’t have to worry if you have a classroom full of energetic kids or an outdoor team building with your work colleagues. ‘Truth or dare’, ‘Would you rather’, or scavenger hunts are always a good idea, of course, as long as you make the proper adjustments.
However, specific team building activities are so much more. The games that are designed for particular players (with different skills and topics of interest) or for particular contexts (at home, when going camping, at work, or at school) will turn out to be a lot more useful and fun. Team building activities for couples are a big deal. Here are the most meaningful pros:
- They highlight the values and beliefs of each player
- They are also great ‘getting to know each other’ games
- They cherish trust, so they become relationship building activities as well
- They foster a sense of intimacy where you can feel safe
- They encourage a higher morale
Let’s take a look at the best relationship building activities for couples!
1. The cooking contest
Besides our love for games, we’re also famous for our love for food. You can argue with us as long as you want but we think that food has supernatural powers. Let’s say something bad happens. Could you still be mad at your wife after taking the first bite of a mozzarella stick? Could you still be pissed at your lover after crossing off the last item on your shopping list? Could you still frown at your boyfriend after he cooks you the best pasta of your life? Of course not. So yes, food is fantastic when it comes to bringing people together.
‘The cooking contest’ is a relationship building activity for couples that strengthens the bond between lovers. Cooking and talking go hand in hand, so don’t miss this great opportunity for spilling the beans and sharing personal stuff you don’t know about each other yet. All you have to do for this team building activity for couples is to make sure you have all the ingredients that you need. You could cook your favorite dish, you could try remaking the one you had on your first date, or you could try a whole new recipe. It’s up to you! Last but not least, have a judge taste the dishes and decide which couple wins.
Don’t forget that this relationship building activity is supposed to be fun and to encourage communication. Relax and don’t put pressure on your partner! Don’t let your competitive spirit get in the way of a great game.
2. Write it off
Some people think that you’re either good at writing, or you’re not. We disagree. Writing is one of the purest forms expressing yourself. And contrary to popular beliefs, if you practice it long enough, you can become very good at it.
Since it’s all about personal emotions, necessities and desires, writing can be a powerful relationship building activity for couples. Start by stating a prompt, then set a time limit for this game. Workshops can last from 5 minutes to 10, 20, half an hour, or even longer, depending on how much time you’ve got on the clock. Ask players to free write their take on the given topic. Here are some examples:
- Dating apps should go away in 2023.
- Long-distance relationships don’t stand a chance.
- Marriage is stronger than concubinage.
- Dogs are greater pets than cats.
- Top 5 activities to break monotony in a relationship.
When the time’s up, have the players share their thoughts. It’s very important to be supportive and to encourage kindness among the participants, since some of them might be shy to read their work aloud. You can also respect their privacy and allow them to open up only to their partners. This team building activity for couples gives them the chance to be vulnerable and thus, strengthen the bond between them. It’s a great ‘get to know each other’ game for couples!
3. Life in one sentence
From where we’re standing, this is a tough one. Although it might seem easy, players must present their entire life in just one sentence. They are free to choose if they want to go for something short and sweet, or for something more complex and intense. Explain the rules, make sure everyone understands the purpose of the game, then give players 5 minutes to come up with their own representation of their lives in one sentence. Here are some examples:
- Cats, Netflix & chill.
- Wake up, work, eat, sleep, repeat.
- My job.
- My life is all about doing what I love: from work to spending time with my friends and family, traveling, shopping, Italian cooking, and drinking coffee.
You could make it more complicated by turning it into a ‘minute to win it’ game for couples. That way, lovers won’t have too much time to think and come up with the ‘right’ story the other one would like to hear. They will just say what first goes through their minds and that’s exactly the point of this game: to be honest and say what you really mean and how your life really is like.
4. Two truths and a lie
‘Two truths and a lie’ is a challenge for you as a couple. It’s a relationship building activity that shows how much you know of each other. Ask players to share with their partners two true statements and a false one. The pairs must figure out which one is the lie. If there are not too many things their partners don’t know yet, players could go back in time and share some things from the times they were not together yet. You’ll be amazed by how much there is still to be learned.
5. Peaks and pits
Trust means being able to share your highs and lows. This could be a great team building activity for couples since it encourages communication. The idea of the game is to tell your partner the things that went great that day, but also the ones that didn’t go as smoothly as planned. You don’t need more than 5 minutes for this activity. It’s very healthy and, if you don’t have the time to do it everyday, you can also turn it into a weekly check-in. It’s a good team building activity for married couples but also for partners that are still at the beginning of their journey, since it cultivates empathy and active listening.
6. The Jenga tower
This is not the usual ‘Jenga tower’ game. In this relationship building activity the goal is to keep the tower standing for as long as possible. Partners must work as a team. They must remove the blocks that will prevent the tower from falling apart, unlike the classic version of the game, where you want to make the tower tumble on your partner. Start by giving a Jenga set to all the couples involved in this activity. The couple who keeps the tower standing the longest wins.
7. Blind mines
‘Blind mines’ explores trust as well, but this time, blindfolded. This team building activity game for couples requires a bit of prepping in advance. If this is an indoor game, create an obstacle course in the living room. If it’s a backyard activity or it’s happening anywhere outside, the possibilities are endless. Once the setting is ready, one of the partners must be blindfolded. The other must guide them through the obstacle course by using verbal cues and manage to dodge the mines. When the finish line is reached, partners switch roles.
This relationship building activity for couples tackles listening skills and teaches players to rely on their other half in the decision making process, and be comfortable with it.
8. Admiration list
This is one of the best team building activities for married couples because they don’t require too much time and its impact is so powerful. Being together for so long might make you take things for granted. Don’t do that. This relationship building activity asks you to take a couple minutes and express the things you love about your husband or wife. The classic version of the game consists of writing down 15 qualities you appreciate in your partner, give some examples or details, then exchange lists. Still, if you don’t have a pen and a paper at hand, just express them verbally. You don’t need to stop at 15 and you can also go for less, as long as you speak from the heart. It will mean the world for your significant other.
9. Building together
Have you ever bought something from IKEA that required assembling? If not, do so. ‘Building together’ is a great couple relationship building activity because it challenges your handiness and know-how. This game is originally played with legos. Each couple receives a set, and the one who manages to put all the pieces together first is declared the winner.
It’s important to see if you can rely on your partner when it comes to the more practical stuff in your house. If they are skilled, that’s amazing! If not, you can train it by supporting each other and having lots of patience. The more you play this game, the better you get at it.
10. The name game
This couples team building activity is similar to ‘Admiration list’ only that it has a twist. Ask players to write down the name of their partners. For each letter of that name, they must come up with an adjective that describes them. *Note: Obviously, it must be a nice trait!
For example:
- Joyful
- One-of-a-kind
- Honest
- Noble
- Ladylike
- Inspiring
- Smart
- Attractive
If you’re feeling like complimenting your other half more than that, go for their whole name – middle and last name!
11. Pictionary game
… or ‘Charades’ is one of the most fun team building activities for couples. All you have to do is come up with beautiful memories you and your partner have. This is what turns it into a suitable team building activity for married couples as well. Here are some ideas:
- Act out a scene from your favorite movie.
- Draw the place where you got engaged.
- Describe your favorite dish.
These activities will make you recall why you’ve been together all this time and they will bring you even closer.
12. The same shirt
This is a fun team building activity for couples. All you need is one oversized shirt for each couple involved in the game. Ask one of them to put one arm through an armhole, and have their partner put one of their arms through the other hole. Then have them complete tasks, while using one hand each. You could go for something easy such as taking a selfie or making a sandwich, or for more complicated ones, like decorating a wall or building a penny tower. This couples relationship building activity is meant to teach you two to be more in sync.
13. Eyes on you
When was the last time you looked into your partner’s eyes for more than just a couple seconds? Because this gazing takes everything to a whole new personal level. ‘Eyes on you’ is a relationship building activity for couples that consists of locking eyes with your significant other. It might seem easy peasy lemon squeezy, but once you start the timer, it can get really intense.
‘Eyes on you’ requires players to look into each other’s eyes for 4 minutes straight. The classic version of this game is to avoid blinking first. However, this is not the case here. The lovers are allowed to blink, smile, or even laugh, as long as they don’t speak to each other. At first, it might feel uncomfortable but after a while, the gaze can lead to an amazing connection between partners. They might even notice physical details they haven’t observed yet in one another.
14. Trust lean
This one is a classic team building activity for couples because it’s all about trust. You can also see it in kids, when building long-lasting friendships. Here’s how it goes:
- One player must stand behind his/her partner.
- The player sitting in front must cross his/her arms across himself/herself.
- The player sitting in the back must put his hands on his/her partner’s back.
- The front player begins to lean backwards, slowly, letting the back partner take his/her weight.
- The front player keeps on leaning farther and farther back, while the back partner has to take more and more of his/her weight.
- After the back player has all of the front player’s weight, he/she can get back to standing and switch.
This can be a really fun team building activity for couples when the partners are not really of the same weight and size. Just make sure no one gets hurt!
Here on eTeamBuilding, we cherish love and fun. Other great activities for couples would be:
