How to make a scavenger hunt gift

December 16, 2017

Personalized scavenger hunts are fun, they make good gifts, and they can actually be made pretty quickly. I set up the following scavenger hunt in about 3 hours, and you can make one too! Below are some suggestions for planning the hunt and some of my favorite clues. Click here to see the full example of a scavenger hunt with 20 clues.

Planning a scavenger hunt

Walk around the house and make a list of potential places to hide clues e.g. inside a coin bank, underneath that stupid plant

Aim for objects that have a personal connection e.g. that infamous Signals & Systems textbook you both used in undergrad

Brainstorm clue types e.g. word scramble, symbols, drawing, physical items (keys!)

Create a clue for each item e.g. “$” (to represent the coin bank) make your clues as weird/fun as you can. not so serious and straightforward.

Plan the order of the clues start with something easy. Save the more exciting ones for the end. connect the different items in your list together, if possible

Logistics allot sufficient time alone on the premesis to hide the clues pick hiding places that likely won’t be uncovered before you want the hunt to begin

Try not to make the clues too easy or too difficult Ideally, I want there to be several wrong guesses, or 5-15 minutes of thinking Offer clues when they get very stuck.

Let the scavenger hunt lead them to a main present at the end.

My favorite clues

Below are a few of the clues I included in the scavenger hunt, as well as the answers. Maybe they’ll help inspire some fun clues for your scavenger hunt! (See full scavenger hunt)