Like a challenge? Four great hotels for team-building fun

The Biltmore Culinary Academy, at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, offers tasty team building activities.

By Mark Chesnut

Whether it?s rappelling down a cliff, competing to finish a gourmet recipe or engaging in a lively scavenger hunt, team building activities are increasingly popular for businesses looking to build camaraderie, communication and productivity among staff and even with clients. Here are a few hotels that offer interesting options for having fun while working together.

The very name West Point brings to mind discipline and teamwork, and at the historic Thayer Hotel at West Point, located on the grounds of the famed military academy in upstate New York, groups can take part in everything from pleasantly competitive golf tournaments to sophisticated tactical team training on a simulated battlefield. After competing on the fields where George Washington drilled his Revolutionary War troops, present-day business challenges might seem small in comparison.

Exciting, action-oriented team building is also popular at the Houstonian Hotel Club & Spa, a property in Houston with 125,000 square feet of fitness facilities. Guests here can make use of a rock climbing wall, participate in Amazing Race-style games and hone their so-called ?primitive survival skills,? all on the hotel?s campus.

All that may sound tiring to some attendees, but don?t be fooled into thinking that every team building event is physically demanding. At the historic Biltmore Hotel, in Miami?s upscale Coral Gables area, the Biltmore Culinary Academy hosts private gatherings that combine elements of a cooking class, cocktail party and team building event. Participants learn to work together as they create delicious hors d?oeuvres and other menu items, and they?ll be able to share the fruits of their labor afterwards.

Across the Atlantic, team players can take advantage of Italy?s most alluring ?and delicious?qualities at The Duke Hotel Rome. This boutique property stages personalized tasting sessions of wine, olive oil, cheese and chocolate, tailored for business groups who want to share experiences and learn together. The hotel also stages team-building cooking lessons at a private estate just 20 minutes outside the city.

Mark Chesnut is a travel writer, editor and publisher of LatinFlyer.com, which focuses on travel to Latin America. He?s always open to joining a chocolate tasting session.?

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