← GuidesChecked September 2026

Team building in NYC: who publishes a price and what it costs

39 team-building operators in New York City — craft studios, cooking schools, escape rooms, games venues, hunts, harbour cruises, improv theatres and volunteer days. For each: the per-head price if one is printed, the smallest and largest group, how far ahead to book, and what is not in the headline figure.

The finding that shapes everything else: 22 of the 39 publish no price at all, and only 9 print a per-head price together with a minimum and a maximum group size.

operators checked

publish some price

print price and group size

8.875%

NYC sales tax — printed by none

The short answer

Team building in New York costs from about $20 a head at a bowling or golf venue, $40–$47 at an escape room, $59–$150 for a hands-on craft workshop and $155 for a private cooking class, before tax and gratuity. Scavenger hunts are often priced per group — Watson Adventures starts at $650 on weekends — and corporate volunteering is sold as a sponsorship from $2,500.

For a team of 20, the craft and cooking options with a printed price come to roughly $1,300–$3,400 including tax, before any gratuity. Add New York City's 8.875% sales tax where it applies and any service charge, because no operator here prints the tax, and book two to three weeks ahead for groups over 20.

Team-building prices in NYC, per head

Every operator that prints a per-head figure, cheapest first. The 'from' price is usually the smallest package on the quietest day.

Operator	Kind	From	Group	Length
Frames Bowling Lounge	Games venues	$19.95	—	2 hours (unlimited bowling package)
Swingers NoMad	Games venues	$23	12–525	—
SPIN New York Flatiron	Games venues	$30	—	2 hours
Kick Axe Throwing Brooklyn	Games venues	$35	8–20	75 minutes
PanIQ Escape Room NYC (formerly Clue Chase)	Escape rooms	$40.95	2–10	60 minutes plus 10–15 minutes briefing
Escape The Room NYC	Escape rooms	$44	2–100	—
The Escape Game Times Square	Escape rooms	$47	2–48	60 minutes of game time
KraftStories (Kraft Universe)	Hands-on making	$59	8–500	1 hour (candle) to 3 hours (rug tufting)
Foods of NY Tours — private group tours	Tours and boats	$89	12–48	2.5–3 hours
Accomplice NYC	Scavenger and puzzle hunts	$92.50	11+	2–2¾ hours
FlowerSchool New York	Hands-on making	$150	6–225	30 minutes of instruction plus 1–1.5 hours of design time
Home Cooking New York	Cooking classes	$155	8–35	3 hours

Flat group prices are not in this table: Watson Adventures from $650 (weekend) or $750 (weekday) per private game; Home Cooking NY charges an eight-person minimum of $1,240; the Manhattan Yacht Club corporate league is $3,800 per series.

By group size

Operators that publish a minimum or maximum group size, sorted into the band they can take. Operators that print no size are left out rather than guessed.

Headcount	Operators that say they can host it
Up to 10 people	KraftStories (Kraft Universe) ($59), FlowerSchool New York ($150), Home Cooking New York ($155), League of Kitchens, Escape The Room NYC ($44), The Escape Game Times Square ($47), PanIQ Escape Room NYC (formerly Clue Chase) ($40.95), Kick Axe Throwing Brooklyn ($35), Movement Gowanus, Movement LIC, Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) corporate workshops, Food Bank For New York City, Randall's Island Park Alliance — corporate volunteer, Billion Oyster Project — corporate volunteering, City Harvest — group volunteering, Let's Roam
11 to 25	KraftStories (Kraft Universe) ($59), FlowerSchool New York ($150), Home Cooking New York ($155), Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) — special events, League of Kitchens, Escape The Room NYC ($44), The Escape Game Times Square ($47), Accomplice NYC ($92.50), Kick Axe Throwing Brooklyn ($35), Swingers NoMad ($23), Movement Gowanus, Movement LIC, Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) corporate workshops, Food Bank For New York City, Randall's Island Park Alliance — corporate volunteer, Billion Oyster Project — corporate volunteering, City Harvest — group volunteering, Foods of NY Tours — private group tours ($89), Let's Roam
26 to 50	KraftStories (Kraft Universe) ($59), FlowerSchool New York ($150), Home Cooking New York ($155), Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) — special events, League of Kitchens, Escape The Room NYC ($44), The Escape Game Times Square ($47), Accomplice NYC ($92.50), Swingers NoMad ($23), Movement Gowanus, Movement LIC, Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) corporate workshops, Food Bank For New York City, Billion Oyster Project — corporate volunteering, City Harvest — group volunteering, Classic Harbor Line — private charters, Foods of NY Tours — private group tours ($89), Let's Roam
51 to 100	KraftStories (Kraft Universe) ($59), FlowerSchool New York ($150), Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) — special events, League of Kitchens, Escape The Room NYC ($44), Accomplice NYC ($92.50), Swingers NoMad ($23), Movement Gowanus, Movement LIC, Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) corporate workshops, City Harvest — group volunteering, Classic Harbor Line — private charters, Let's Roam
Over 100	KraftStories (Kraft Universe) ($59), FlowerSchool New York ($150), League of Kitchens, Accomplice NYC ($92.50), Swingers NoMad ($23), Movement Gowanus, Movement LIC, Upright Citizens Brigade (UCB) corporate workshops, City Harvest — group volunteering, Classic Harbor Line — private charters, Let's Roam

Venue buyouts — The Escape Game, Escape The Room, Swingers — take the biggest groups at a fixed venue. Chelsea Piers, Brooklyn Bowl, Circle Line and Classic Harbor Line quote for large groups but publish no rate.

What 20 or 40 people actually cost

The printed per-head price multiplied out, with 8.875% sales tax added. Service charges and gratuity are extra where they apply.

A team of 20

Operator	Per head	× 20	+ 8.875% tax
Swingers NoMad	$23	$460	$501
Kick Axe Throwing Brooklyn	$35	$700	$762
Escape The Room NYC	$44	$880	$958
The Escape Game Times Square	$47	$940	$1,023
KraftStories (Kraft Universe)	$59	$1,180	$1,285
Foods of NY Tours — private group tours	$89	$1,780	$1,938
Accomplice NYC	$92.50	$1,850	$2,014
FlowerSchool New York	$150	$3,000	$3,266
Home Cooking New York	$155	$3,100	$3,375

A team of 40

Operator	Per head	× 40	+ 8.875% tax
Swingers NoMad	$23	$920	$1,002
Escape The Room NYC	$44	$1,760	$1,916
The Escape Game Times Square	$47	$1,880	$2,047
KraftStories (Kraft Universe)	$59	$2,360	$2,569
Foods of NY Tours — private group tours	$89	$3,560	$3,876
Accomplice NYC	$92.50	$3,700	$4,028
FlowerSchool New York	$150	$6,000	$6,533

These are floors. Most operators price the headline figure at their shortest session or quietest day; Friday evenings, longer sessions, food and drinks packages and at-your-office travel all move it up. Whether sales tax applies depends on the service — ask for a quote that shows it.

Costs that are not in the headline price

Sales tax

New York City’s combined rate is 8.875%. Not one operator here prints it next to a price, so add it to every taxable quote before you compare.

Gratuity

Home Cooking NY prints 15%. Foods of NY prints +20% on one part of its page and contradicts it elsewhere. Games venues — Swingers, SPIN, Frames — do not say whether their packages include a service charge.

Deposits and cancellation

Classic Harbor Line takes a 50% deposit and keeps it inside 14 days. Brooklyn Glass charges a 20% fee on any cancellation and a non-refundable booking fee.

Travel and drinks

FlowerSchool adds an unpriced travel fee to offsite classes. Home Cooking NY charges $20 a head for wine or $15 corkage. Taste Buds Kitchen allows wine and beer, no spirits.

Minimum charges

Home Cooking NY bills a minimum of eight people ($1,240). Watson Adventures prices private games from $650. Paying for a minimum you do not fill is the most common surprise.

Invoices and POs

No operator publishes invoicing, purchase-order or W-9 terms. If your finance team needs them, ask in the first email.

How to choose

Start from the headcount, not the activity: an escape room splits a team of 40 into rooms of eight, which is good for mixing departments and poor for one shared moment. Craft and cooking keep everyone at the same tables and produce something to take home. Games venues suit a relaxed evening where half the room wants to talk rather than play. Hunts and harbour cruises suit a spring or autumn afternoon; volunteering suits a team that wants the day to count for something, but in New York it is usually a sponsorship.

Lead times are rarely printed. Where they are: Movement climbing gyms need 21 days, Escape The Room asks for two weeks (three to four for 20 or more), Classic Harbor Line wants final payment 14 days out, Foods of NY needs two weeks for dietary requirements. 10 of 39 operators say anything about lead time at all.

Volunteering as a team is not free

New York's big volunteer organisations sell corporate days as sponsorships: Food Bank for NYC from $2,500 for a repack shift to $15,000 for a mobile pantry; Randall's Island Park Alliance from $2,500 for up to 25 people; Billion Oyster Project $7,500–$10,000. For a free team shift, individual sign-ups at the organisations in our volunteer guide sometimes work for small groups — ask before you book ten places.

Every operator, in detail

Grouped by kind of activity. 'Quote only' means the operator's own pages print no price.

Hands-on making · 6

KraftStories (Kraft Universe)

Financial District and Midtown, Manhattan

Their venue or your officePrice on the page8–500 people

From $59 a head

Our own studio, and the publisher of this site — so it carries the same fields and gaps as everyone else. Group range is published as "8 to 500+"; the FiDi candle page says up to 120 for private bookings, and the FiDi studio is stairs-only with no elevator, which matters for accessibility.

This is us. KraftStories publishes this site; it is held to the same fields as every other operator.

What it is: Hands-on craft workshops (candles, terrariums, Turkish mosaic lamps, rug tufting, moss art, perfume) in two Manhattan studios, mobile at your office, or live-hosted virtual with shipped kits
Printed price: $59–$149 per person (NYC workshop pages: candle "$59.00", terrarium "Starts from $69.00", mosaic lamp "Starts from $99.00", rug tufting "$129.00", Sip & Plant "$149.00")
Group size: 8–500
How long: 1 hour (candle) to 3 hours (rug tufting)
Included: "All materials included — just show up"
Lead time and terms: "Last-minute? Book with just 4 hours notice"; "Free quote in 1 business day"
Address: 93 Pearl St, 4th Floor, New York, NY 10004 (FiDi) and 325 W 38th St #706, New York, NY 10018 (Midtown)

Team building in NYC: who publishes a price and what it costs

Team-building prices in NYC, per head

By group size

What 20 or 40 people actually cost

A team of 20

A team of 40

Costs that are not in the headline price

Sales tax

Gratuity

Deposits and cancellation

Travel and drinks

Minimum charges

Invoices and POs

How to choose

Volunteering as a team is not free

Every operator, in detail

Hands-on making · 6

Cooking classes · 5

Escape rooms · 4

Games venues · 5

Scavenger and puzzle hunts · 2

Active and outdoors · 4

Improv and performance · 3

Tours and boats · 3

Volunteering as a team · 6

Virtual · 1

Closed, moved or paused

Clue Chase

Twig Terrariums

Luludi Living Art (flower workshops)

Manhattan Sailing Club (manhattansailingclub.com)

Brooklyn Boulders (NYC)

Puttshack

Questions people ask

How this page was made, and who made it

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