Top 8 Rope Team Building Activities

Team building games are fun, but do you know what’s even better? Team building games that don’t require too much fuss!

Let’s face it. Most organizers look for outdoor activities or indoor games that don’t need a complex set-up or too many materials for each player. With this in mind, team building activities using rope are the deal. Besides being fun, they also encourage communication and collaboration among players. So, if you’re a teacher, you could use them to encourage trust and build long-lasting relationships between students. If you’re a manager, you could suggest them as a means of fostering company culture, which should be one of your main team building objectives. 

Are you ready to learn how to play the best 8 rope team building activities?

1. Perfect Square

The goal of this game is to work as a team to create a perfect square using a length of rope. The twist? All team members must wear blindfolds!

1. To start, you must tie the rope so that it forms a circle, and everyone in the group can hold onto it with both hands. 
2. Then, you will lay the rope circle on the ground and ask the players to stand around it. 
3. You will ask everyone to close their eyes and walk in a circle a couple of times to get a bit dizzy.
4. Once everyone has lost their sense of direction, you will ask them to work together to form a perfect square using the rope, without opening their eyes. 

This game is all about teamwork and communication, as everyone will need to work together to achieve the goal.

2. Crossing the Line

The goal of this rope team building game is to get the other player to cross the line without physically touching them. 

1. To play, you’ll need to place a rope on the floor in a circle and divide it in half with tape. 
2. Then, you will select two volunteers from the group and ask them to face each other on each side of the circle.
3. They will need to use their persuasive skills to argue, lecture, bribe, and trick each other to cross the line. 

It’s a great way to practice communication and negotiation skills!

3. Tug of War

This is one of the most popular rope team building activities. You can also turn it into a ‘minute to win it’ game for adults!

1. It can be played with 2 to 10+ players, and the objective is to pull the other team across a line in the middle of the rope. 
2. Note that you will need a strong rope for this one, like manila, that can withstand the pulling from each team. It’s important to make sure that the rope is suitable for the number of players in the game.

4. Helicopter

This rope team building game is really easy to play! The only trick here is to get a  long rope that isn’t too heavy.

1. To play, you will need one player to stand in the middle with the rope. 
2. The other players will stand about 5-10 feet away from the center person in a circle.
3. The player with the rope will place it on the ground in a straight line and start to go in a circle. 
4. As the rope moves around, all the players will have to jump over it once it gets to them.

This game is great for practicing coordination and timing skills, and it’s also a fun way to get some exercise! 

5. Knot Rope

It involves untangling a series of knots in a rope while being attached to it. It’s perfect for an outdoor group game, but you can also use it as an indoor rope team building game if you have enough room.

1. To start, you will need one team rope per 10 people.
2. Attach 10 pieces of rope or bungee in equal intervals down the rope, so that you can have 10 players attached to the rope at equal distances from each other. 

*Note: If you want, we can add a small carabiner to the end of each attachment so participants can attach it to their pants waistline or pant loop. 

3. Then, tie a knot in the long rope between each pair of people, so there are 10 knots in the rope.
4. The goal of the activity is for participants to open the knot between them and find a way to crawl through it. 
5. The activity is over when all of the knots have been untied or when time runs out.

This activity is a great way to build communication, problem-solving, and teamwork skills, and it’s sure to be a lot of fun for everyone involved.

6. Human Knot

The game is simple to play and requires a rope that is relatively thin with a small diameter of 1/8 inch or less. 

1. First, lay out the rope in a circle and mark different parts of the rope for each player, spaced evenly apart. 
2. Each player then grabs a part of the rope and trades it with someone else who is not adjacent to them. 
3. Once everyone is holding their traded part of the rope, they must work together as a team to untie the knot. 

*Note: For added difficulty, teammates can be blindfolded or not allowed to talk until the knot is untied. 

This game is great for breaking the ice and building teamwork.

7. Spider Web

The goal of this team building activity is to create a spider web using string. 

1. The challenge is to pass all team members through different holes in the spiderweb without using the same hole twice.
2.  You have only 30 minutes to complete the task, and it’s up to you to figure out who fits through which hole and in what order. 
3. The team that completes the task in the least amount of time is the winner. 

It’s a great way to improve communication and collaboration skills.

8. Rope Race

‘Rope race’ is like a game of tag, but with a twist! 

1. You will need a rope to play this game, and you can lay it out in circles, squares, or lines. 
2. One person is chosen as the tagger, and they must chase and tag other players. But here’s the catch – everyone can only run on the rope lines, and they can’t push or pass other players.
3. If you step off the rope lines, you become the tagger! 
4. When someone gets tagged, they also become a tagger, and the game continues until the last person standing is declared the winner.

Besides rope team building activities, balloons are also a great resource and don’t involve too much planning for your games. On eTeamBuilding, you can check out the list of iconic games with balloons for adults or 5 excellent games with water balloons for adults!