15 Best Hispanic Heritage Month Activities for Work Teams

Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated from September 15 to October 15, is a time to recognize the histories, cultures, traditions, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities. For workplaces, it offers a meaningful opportunity to bring employees together through shared experiences that encourage learning, connection, and cultural appreciation.

Whether your team connects through food, music, games, art, or storytelling, there are plenty of ways to make the celebration both engaging and memorable. To help you plan a thoughtful event, we've rounded up Hispanic Heritage Month activities for work that combine cultural learning with interactive experiences employees will genuinely enjoy.

Why Host Hispanic Heritage Month Activities at Work?

Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated from September 15 to October 15, is an opportunity for teams to learn about and celebrate the rich cultures, histories, and contributions of Hispanic communities. Whether teams try a traditional dish, participate in a cultural quiz, or learn about Hispanic history, these activities help them explore Hispanic culture through shared experiences.

This year's theme, "UNIDOS, SOMOS MAS" ("Together, We Are More"), reflects the power of unity, resilience, and the collective impact of Hispanic and Latino communities. The message resonates in modern workplaces as well. When people come together to learn, share, and celebrate, they gain a deeper appreciation for the experiences that make their teams unique. Plus, these celebrations can make workplace events more memorable by giving employees something new to experience together.

Hispanic Heritage Month Activities and Games

Check out these games and activities to introduce your employees to Hispanic culture through friendly competition, learning, and shared experiences.

1. Hispanic Culture Trivia

Teams often choose trivia because it introduces Hispanic culture in an interactive format rather than an educational one. It's especially popular with groups of 20 to 100 participants because everyone can contribute regardless of their cultural background. It also works well as part of a Hispanic Heritage Month celebration, virtual happy hour, ERG event, DEI initiative, or team social.

Hooray Teams’ Hispanic Heritage Month Trivia is a great choice to learn about Hispanic history, traditions, food, music, and influential figures in a format that doesn’t feel like a lesson. The experience can be customized to align with your team's goals, preferred difficulty level, and areas of interest.

Did you know? Hispanic Heritage Month begins on September 15 to coincide with the Independence Day of several Latin American countries.

2. Guess the Latin Music

Music is a big part of many Hispanic cultures. That’s why hosting a few rounds of ‘Guess the Latin Music’ can be a fun way to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month with your team. Participants listen to short song clips and try to identify the artist, song title, or genre. To make the experience more relatable, include a mix of classic hits, modern chart-toppers, and popular songs from artists like Shakira, Bad Bunny, or Ricky Martin. Also, share interesting facts about cultural influences behind the music along the way for a fun learning experience.

Check out these ideas to tailor your music rounds:

Guess the music genre in 10 seconds
Identify the artist
Match the song to its country of origin
Finish the lyric challenge

Did You Know? Hispanic music spans dozens of genres, from salsa and mariachi to reggaeton, bachata, tango, and flamenco.

3. Hispanic Heritage Bingo

If you are looking for a low-key Hispanic Heritage Month activity, Hooray Teams' cultural bingo bash is sure to be a crowd-pleaser within your team. Instead of numbers, create bingo cards with prompts related to Hispanic culture, food, music, personal experiences, or trivia questions to engage everyone. Have a host call out these prompts during the game for participants to mark off on their cards, create a winning combo, and shout ‘Bingo!’. It’s perfect for your team to learn about Hispanic culture in a low-key way while enjoying a friendly competition.

Explore these sample bingo prompts to get started:

Can name 3 Latin American countries
Loves salsa music
Has tried empanadas
Can name a Hispanic musician
Knows what papel picado is
Follows a Hispanic artist online
Has a favorite Latin song
Watched a documentary on Hispanic culture
Practiced Bachata before
Watched a Spanish movie

4. Language Learning Challenge

You don't need to become fluent in Spanish to appreciate it. A Language Learning Challenge is simply a fun way to introduce employees to common terms used across Hispanic communities. Throughout Hispanic Heritage Month, share a new phrase each week, explore the meaning behind popular sayings, or challenge teams to use newly learned words in conversations. You can also mix in quick quizzes or role-play exercises to keep participation high and make the activity feel less like a lesson.

Here’s what you can learn:

Common greetings and introductions
Food and dining vocabulary
Popular sayings and expressions
Travel-related words and phrases
Country-specific slang and regional variations

Pro Tip: Focus on practical phrases and cultural context rather than treating the activity like a formal language class.

Hispanic Heritage Culinary Experiences

Food is one of the most enjoyable ways to explore a culture. These culinary experiences highlight the flavors found across Hispanic countries.

5. ‘Around Latin America’ Food Stations

Food is a fantastic way to explore a culture. An "Around Latin America" food-station event lets teams sample dishes from countries such as Mexico, Argentina, and Colombia while learning about the regional ingredients that make each dish unique. You can set up multiple food stations around your workplace so each stop introduces teams to a new cuisine. For a more insightful experience, include recipe cards and ingredient lists at each station so team members can explore the food's flavors during the tasting.

Ways to elevate the experience:

Play a lively playlist to set the vibe for the event.
Host a "People's Choice" vote for the favorite dish of the day.
Bring in a lively host to share fun facts and cultural stories behind the dishes.
Run a "Guess the Ingredient" challenge for select dishes.
Decorate each station with country flags for a fun visual element.
Offer small portions so employees can sample more cuisines.

Quick Tip: For remote teams, you can set a menu and send meal vouchers so everyone can order meals before the event.

6. Coffee and Chocolate Tasting

Coffee and chocolate play important roles in the economies of Hispanic countries, supporting the livelihoods of people in countries like Ecuador, Guatemala, and Peru. This makes a chocolate-and-coffee tasting event a meaningful addition to your team’s Hispanic Heritage Month activities, helping your team appreciate the skill and care that go into producing these products. You can select a hosted session with kits to sample high-quality coffee and chocolates while exploring the production methods that shape their flavors.

Teams can also learn how to pair coffee with chocolates to discover complementary flavors. For a more engaging experience, you can run blind-tasting segments where team members taste and share their honest first impressions before the flavors are revealed.

Quick Tip: Provide a tasting guide with aromas, flavors, and textures to help participants follow along with the session at their own pace.

7. Salsa and Guac Off

Salsa and guacamole offer a delicious introduction to the flavors commonly found in Mexican cuisine. So why not give your team a chance to explore these flavors firsthand with a salsa-and-guac-off challenge? Team members compete individually or in groups to create their favorite versions of salsa and guacamole, adding personal twists to spice levels, textures, or flavors.

Once the timer stops, they try one another’s creations and vote for their favorites to decide on a winner. If you want to add a playful twist, run a blind taste test segment where everyone guesses who made the guac.

Quick Tip: If you have a remote team or just want to enjoy a guided session, join the Hooray Teams’ Guacamole and Salsa Making to learn from an expert.

8. Hispanic Heritage Happy Hour

Not every Hispanic Heritage Month activity has to be formal. Bring a relaxed, social layer to your team celebrations with the Hooray Teams’ Hispanic Heritage Mixology Hour. Teams craft classic drinks like Margaritas, Micheladas, and Palomas under the guidance of an expert host while enjoying conversations about regional flavors.

Along the way, you’ll also explore interesting tidbits about the drinks prepared during the session. Team members will also receive curated kits with alcohol, garnishes, mixers, and a recipe card before the event for a hassle-free experience. Also, if you have non-drinkers on your team, request mocktail kits to keep everyone included.

Quick Tip: Play songs from a lively playlist featuring salsa, bachata, reggaeton, and cumbia to set a festive tone during the event.

Creative Hispanic Heritage Month Experiences

These creative, hands-on activities encourage employees to explore Hispanic cultural heritage through crafts and paintings while creating their own pieces.

9. Papel Picado Crafts

Want to add a splash of color to your Hispanic Heritage Month celebration? A papel picado craft session lets employees create decorative banners while learning about a cherished Mexican tradition. You can join a guided session or follow pre-recorded tutorials to learn how to create intricate designs on paper or use pre-made templates to complete your creations.

Papel Picado banners are typically used as decorations during festivals, so you can also display them in common areas (or hang them at home if you’re remote) to appreciate everyone’s efforts. Remote teams can also photograph their crafts and create a virtual gallery for everyone to check out their finished creations.

Quick Tip: Start the activity with a brief introduction to papel picado to help your team understand its cultural significance.

10. Piñata Making

Piñatas are Mexican decorations that you can spot during cultural festivals and community events during Hispanic Heritage Month. Using simple materials such as cardboard, tissue paper, glue, paint, and streamers, employees can create their own colorful smash-or-pull-string piñatas from scratch.

They make for vibrant decorations and can be filled with treats or small prizes for everyone to ‘smash,’ ‘reveal,’ and enjoy during the celebrations. If you have a remote or hybrid team, check out our sister company Hooray Teams’ hosted Piñata Making event to learn how to craft piñatas using curated kits delivered in advance.

Pro Tip: If you’re not choosing a hosted class, provide follow-along videos, instruction sheets, and design inspiration to the participants before the event.

11. Latino Paint Party

Art has long been a powerful way to preserve stories, celebrate culture, and express identity. A Latino Paint Party gives your team an opportunity to explore these artistic traditions while creating their own artworks inspired by Hispanic culture. Teams choose themes such as cultural symbols, Hispanic Art Movements (like Mexican Muralism or the Chicano Art Movement), or popular paintings by artists like Frida Kahlo or Diego Rivera to create their artworks.

Make it more digital-first by giving participants the option to create AI-generated paintings or sketch them from scratch using tools like Procreate. Along the way, they can learn about the artists and cultural influences that shaped each artwork for a creative, educational experience.

Quick Tip: Provide participants with painting kits containing mini canvases, art sheets, colors, brushes, and a palette so they do not have to source anything in advance.

12. Lucha Libre Mask Making

Lucha Libre masks are among the most recognizable symbols of Mexican popular culture, known for their bold colors and dramatic designs. Host a Lucha Libre Mask-Making Session with Hooray Teams as part of your Hispanic Heritage Month activities to learn how to make them together. A live host guides teams through layering fabric pieces to form the base and finishing the look with colors, embellishments, and elastic bands.

Teams can also experiment with various themes, such as a masked hero, villain, or a totally different alter ego, to make their pieces stand out. The platform sends a curated kit with all the necessary supplies, such as fabric pieces, adhesive gems, foam shapes, elastic bands, and an instruction card, to make participation easy for everyone.

Quick Tip: Host a Lucha Libre mask showcase and cheer on teammates to show appreciation for everyone’s efforts.

Did you know? In a special "mask vs. mask" match, the losing wrestler must remove their mask and reveal their real identity to the audience.

Bonus: Hispanic Heritage Cultural Learning Experiences

Cultural learning experiences are perfect for teams that want to dive deeper into the stories behind the celebration. Here are a few ideas for your team.

13. Heritage Museum Visits and Virtual Tours

Museum visits are one of the easiest ways to add a learning element to your Hispanic Heritage Month activities in a format that’s both immersive and enjoyable. Whether your team visits a local museum in person or explores exhibits online, they can learn about Hispanic history, art, traditions, and cultural contributions through visual displays. To encourage participation, ask employees to share one interesting fact that stood out to them after the tour.

Explore these exhibits to plan your event:

The National Museum of the American Latino's online exhibitions
Virtual collections from the Smithsonian Latino Center
Hispanic art galleries featuring works by Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera
Local Hispanic cultural centers and museums

14. Hispanic Heritage Podcast Club

Want flexible Hispanic Heritage Month activities for your team? Start a podcast club during the month-long celebration. Team members choose a podcast episode each week, listen to it, and discuss key takeaways together. Since episodes are usually shorter, participation tends to be higher, especially among busy teams with tight schedules.

Looking for recommendations? Here are our favorites:

Latino USA: Stories, culture, and news from Latino communities
Anything for Selena: A deep dive into the legacy of Selena Quintanilla
Code Switch: Conversations about race, identity, and culture
My Cultura Podcast Network shows: Covering storytelling, entertainment, and personal experiences
Locatora Radio: Discussions on culture, art, and community

Pro Tip: Invite employees to vote for the episodes they want to listen to ensure maximum participation.

15. Cultural Passport Challenge

Instead of packing your celebrations into a single day, let employees engage with Hispanic culture throughout the month through a cultural passport challenge. Team members receive a digital or physical "passport" and earn stamps, or stickers, by completing cultural activities throughout the month. Because participants complete activities at their own pace, the challenge works particularly well for hybrid and distributed teams. On October 15, everyone shares their ‘passports,’ and whoever has the most stamps wins the challenge.

Explore these ideas to create a list of tasks for your event:

Watch a Hispanic Heritage Month documentary.
Learn and use five new Spanish phrases.
Try a traditional dish with your coworkers.
Share a cultural fact in your team channel.
Listen to a playlist featuring Hispanic artists.
Attend a Hispanic Heritage Month event or webinar.
Read an article about Hispanic culture or history.
Learn a few steps of salsa or bachata.

Quick Tip: Keep activities simple and accessible so employees can participate without adding significant time to their schedules.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is Hispanic Heritage Month?

Hispanic Heritage Month is an annual observance that celebrates the histories, cultures, traditions, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities. It also recognizes the lasting impact these communities have made in areas such as art, music, food, literature, science, business, sports, and public service.

When is Hispanic Heritage Month?

Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated each year from September 15 to October 15 in the United States.

What are some popular national Hispanic Heritage Month activities for the workplace?

Popular Hispanic Heritage Month activities for work include cultural trivia, food tastings, museum tours, art workshops, and employee-led storytelling sessions.

How can organizations plan meaningful activities for Hispanic Heritage Month?

When planning Hispanic Heritage Month work activities, focus on experiences that celebrate Hispanic cultures, traditions, history, food, music, and art. A mix of educational, social, and hands-on activities often helps increase participation across different employee groups.

How to host virtual activities for National Hispanic Heritage Month?

To host virtual Hispanic Heritage Month activities for workplace, select a reliable video conferencing platform such as Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Google Meet. Select activities that are easy to adapt to a virtual setting, such as trivia, bingo, cultural workshops, or watch parties, and bring in a lively host to lead the event. Send out meeting links with the joining links and other necessary details so everyone can join the session.

What types of activities for Hispanic Heritage Month work best for small teams?

For smaller groups, activities such as coffee and chocolate tastings, story circles, podcast discussions, and museum visits often work well for celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month.