Treasure

Hunts
Team building, learning and fun!
Types of Treasure Hunt 5
The art of creating a helpful challenge 6
1. Free-For-All 7
2. Scavenger 8
3. Step-By-Step 9
Mixing Treasure Hunt Types 10
Creating a Free-For-All Treasure Hunt 11
Free-For-All Examples 13
More info on Free-For-All 14
Creating a Scavenger Hunt 16
Creating a Step-By-Step Treasure Hunt 23
Starting your step-by-step hunt 32
How to Use QR Codes 33
Other Treasure Hunt Resources 36

Treasure Hunts | 2
 Treasure Hunts
The purpose
Treasure Hunts are a great way to introduce fun
and challenge into an event or program.
They can serve different purposes:

• To introduce people to each other

• To get people working together and build trust
• To discover big ideas, one step at a time
• To introduce players to particular objects and
get them thinking about them
• Or just to have fun!

Treasure Hunts | 3
Easter
Easter is associated with treasure hunts in many
cultures, often with children “hunting” for hidden
eggs. Using a treasure hunt to explore and unpack
the events of Easter is a great way to make the
most of this common activity.
This booklet includes guidelines for running
treasure hunts, as well as suggestions and ideas.
There is also information on running digital
treasure hunts if your players or teams have access
to phones or devices with GPS or internet
connections.

Treasure Hunts | 4
Types of Treasure Hunt
There are 3 common kinds of treasure hunt!

• Free-for-all
• Scavenger
• Step-by-step
You can choose according to the complexity level
required to challenge players in a helpful way.

Treasure Hunts | 5
The art of creating a helpful challenge
At the heart of a treasure hunt is the concept of
‘challenge’. Children love a treasure hunt for this
reason – the solution takes time to emerge.
If a hunt is too easy for players, they won’t be
challenged or engaged. If a treasure hunt is too
difficult, players will want to give up. Designing a
hunt with the ability of players in mind is essential.
As you design the activity also consider whether
players will work alone, in pairs or in teams. There
are benefits and limitations to each.

Hint: To make a hunt more broadly adaptable to a range of

children, put the children into teams of 3 or 4 with a variety
of ages in each team.

Treasure Hunts | 6
 1. Free-For-All
Best For: young children, families, large
groups, individual players, festivals, ice
breakers
A free-for-all treasure hunt is where “treasures”
are hidden throughout an area, and players can
find them in any order.
A popular example is an Easter egg hunt!

Free-For-All Treasure Hunt Idea

In free-for-all treasure hunts, it’s common for the “treasures”

players find to become their prizes – such as when players are
searching for hidden chocolates.

But you can change that! Players can search for anything,
such as tokens they can use at the end of the game to choose
rewards, or the clues required to solve a puzzle – like a list of
words they must arrange to form a sentence!

Treasure Hunts | 7
 2. Scavenger
Best For: families, teens, teams, team
building, fostering creativity
A scavenger hunt is where players must find
objects that you have not hidden for them.
They are given a list and must find an object that
matches each entry on the list.
A list might ask them to find things like:

• Something blue
• Something that sinks
• Something that tells the time
• The letter “s”
Scavenger hunts are great ways for players to
exercise their creativity in meeting the challenges.
Scavenger hunts are particularly good for building
teams. They are excellent as team icebreakers or
for established teams to work together
competitively.

Treasure Hunts | 8
 3. Step-By-Step
Best For: teens, adults, competition,
challenge, exploring a theme, telling a story
A step-by-step treasure hunt is the hardest to set
up but can be the most rewarding.
Players are given a clue that leads to the first
treasure.
The first treasure gives a clue as to where to find
the second treasure.
The second treasure gives a clue as where to find
the third treasure, and so on.
Each “treasure” location needs to provide
information. Sometimes the location has a poster
or card stuck in place for players to read, and
sometimes it has information sheets for players to
take.

Treasure Hunts | 9
Mixing Treasure Hunt Types
There are no rules, and you can combine treasure
hunt styles if you want to!

For example, players could work through a step-by-

step hunt and also be given a scavenger hunt list of
objects to find on their way. Or players are given a
scavenger hunt list at one of the treasures they
uncover along the way. This allows the game to
start simply but build as it plays.
A step-by-step treasure hunt can also use other
treasure hunt types to direct players to the next
treasure. Players could arrive at one treasure and
discover that six letters revealing the location of
the next treasure have been hidden in the room!

Treasure Hunts | 10
Treasure Hunts | 11
 Creating a Free-For-All
Treasure Hunt
Steps to create a free-for-all treasure hunt.

Decide your goal for the hunt

THINK: Are you wanting players to learn
something? Experience something? Or just have
fun by collecting as many prizes as possible?
If you are making the game into a puzzle, you need
to plan the puzzle, including the information
players will collect at each treasure and what
puzzle needs to be solved.
You will need to decide:

• Are players expected to solve the puzzle during

the game’s “search” time? Or is the “hunt”
time only for finding as many clues as possible,
with players attempting to solve the puzzle
once the group is back together?
• Do you want players to find all the clues? It is
best if your puzzle can be solved with only
some of the clues, even if that makes it harder.
Otherwise, you must ensure players have
enough time to find every clue, which can lead
to those who find them quickly becoming
restless.

Treasure Hunts | 12
Free-For-All Examples
1. 17 Words
Players are told there are 17 words to find (including 2
repeated words). They search and find “all”, “all”, “and”,
“good”, “has”, “he”, “his”, “is”, “is”, “LORD”, “made.”,
“mercy”, “over”, “Psalm 145:9”, “that”, “The” and “to”.
Afterwards they see if they can arrange the words to figure
out today’s verse (“The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is
over all that he has made.” – Psalm 145:9). The more words a
player collects, the easier it will be!

2. Sentences to tell a story

Players collect sentences that each tell part of a story. They
search and find “Jesus is put to death on a cross”, “Peter
denies Jesus three times”, “Jesus rises from the dead!”,
“Jesus washes his disciples’ feet”, “Soldiers arrive to arrest
Jesus” and “There is an earthquake, and the curtain in the
temple tears from top to bottom”. Afterwards, they need to
arrange the sentences in order. The more sentences a player
collects, the more complete their result will be.

3. Find the names

3. Each treasure has the name of a leader who will NOT be
running the next activity. Players search for as many names as
they can. When the game ends, they are told to go to a
leader. Players who found all the names will know exactly
which leader to go to. Others will have to guess from the ones
they didn’t find.

Treasure Hunts | 13
More info on Free-For-All
Decide what you’ll be hiding
If it’s just to have fun, it’s usually best to hide the prizes
players will collect as they do the hunt.
If the game is a puzzle or an experience, you might choose to
hide objects or tokens or something players must collect that
will be important for the broader game – like pieces of a
jigsaw puzzle.
Based on what you’re hiding, there are different approaches
to what players will take when they find it.
• Sometimes you will hide each object on its own. The first
player to find that object gets to take it (such as an Easter
egg).
• Another approach is to hide lots of one object at each
location, instructing players to take 1 when they find it.
This is a good option for when you want players to solve a
puzzle and they need to find as many clues as possible but
is best played with mature players who can be trusted not
to take all the objects.
• Another approach is that players never take anything!
When they find a “treasure” it is a message (or a QR Code)
that might be a clue such as a word or letter, and players
must note it down and find as many as possible to help
solve a larger problem.
Important!
Make sure all the objects you hide can be clearly identified so
if a player finds one, they know they’ve found a treasure!
This is easy when all the objects are the same (like Easter
eggs) but if leaving notes or objects that are different from
each other, you need to find a way for players to be sure it’s a
treasure.

Treasure Hunts | 14
You could draw the same picture or symbol on each one, or
accompany each with a card that says “TREASURE!” or (for
example) put all objects in red boxes.

Set it up
Decide on a very clear boundary of where items can be
hidden and try to spread items around in that area as much
as possible.
Hide your objects just before the game is played to avoid
anything being disturbed (or found) before you start!

Explain the rules clearly to players before you begin

Players need to know:
• The boundaries for the treasure hunt
• How to identify an object as a ‘treasure’
• What puzzle needs to be solved (if any) and when they
should move from searching for clues to solving the
puzzle.
Players should also be told how long they will have to search,
such as “you have 5 minutes” or “until I blow this whistle”.

Gather back and debrief

It is good to gather back together afterwards. You may want
to give a cheer or a prize for any players who did particularly
well.
If any players have not done well, you might want to have
some extra prizes or clues to help balance things up.
If players need to solve a riddle from the clues they have
found, now would be a great time for that.

Treasure Hunts | 15
Treasure Hunts | 16
Creating a Scavenger Hunt
A scavenger hunt can be the easiest of all
hunts to organise.

Decide why you are playing

Scavenger hunts are great for getting-to-know-you
and team-building and are usually played in groups.
Are you:
1. Collecting items
2. Photographing objects
3. Finding people

Also, decide if you want existing groups to play as a

way of working together and building trust, or if
you are going to form new groups and use the
scavenger hunt as a way for them to get to know
each other.

Scavenger Hunt Idea

Scavenger hunts can be used to explain or explore a theme.

For example: send players on a scavenger hunt for a lamp, a

mirror, a knife, and a map. When they return, talk about how
the Bible is like each of these objects!

Treasure Hunts | 17
More info on Scavenger Hunts
Decide how players will need to “collect” objects
There are different ways that players can “collect” objects in
a scavenger hunt. The method you choose will have an
impact on the sort of objects you ask people to find.

1. Collecting Items
The most common approach is for players to physically “get”
each object and bring them back at the end of the game. If
doing this, ensure each team has a bag or a basket, or just a
lot of players!
Examples of objects people might be challenged to collect:

Something you can write A leaf

with

Something metal A twig

Something crooked Water

Something you can wear A band-aid

Something pink Something with wheels

Something you can eat The letter “p”

A boat The number “5”

Treasure Hunts | 18
Scavenger Hunt Idea

You can add a touch of creative fun to your scavenger hunt by

having a theme for all the objects players must find.

For example, a simple theme is for all the requirements to

start with the same letter, such as:

- Something green
- Something gigantic
- Something ghastly
- Something glamorous

2. Photographing Objects
If your players have access to devices with cameras, then a
fun variation is to get teams to photograph the objects they
need to find, rather than collect them and bring them in.
This allows you to ask players to look for bigger and more
unusual things.
It also makes it easier for players if the list is lengthy.

Important!

It’s much harder to quickly check if players collected all their

objects when they are collected through photographs.

Because of this, Photographing Objects is best played when

you don’t stress the competitive element of the treasure
hunt, or if you are prepared to take your time afterwards to
assess everyone’s results. If so, get teams to upload or email
their photos to submit them, and move on to the next activity
whilst somebody checks the entries.

Sometimes players need to take a “selfie” of the object with

the team in the same photo. This can make the game extra
fun and build up an even better sense of team.

Treasure Hunts | 19
Important!

Avoid requiring “selfies” with an object if playing at night as

it’s hard for players to photograph themselves with enough
light.

It can work if teams are sufficiently large for one player to

photograph the others.

Examples of objects people might be challenged to

photograph:
• A statue
• A cloud that looks like an
animal
• A street sign that stars
with the letter “s”
• A bicycle
• A piece of fruit
• The top of someone’s
head
• A flying bird
• Somebody who is
upside-down
3. Finding people
Another approach is a scavenger hunt where the “objects”
that players must find are – other players!
This is normally played as individuals rather than in teams.
Each player has a list of things to find. They must look for
someone who is a match and write down that player’s name.
The first to finish wins.
This is usually played in a single room or hall with players
talking to other players to find matches for their list.

Treasure Hunts | 20
Examples of people to find:
• Has green eyes
• Has a “J” in their name
• Has eaten an egg today
• Has no brothers or sisters
• You have never met before today

Remember
Create a list of things that players must find
Write a list of objects players need to find.
Also explain any rules, such as how players need to collect the
objects.
The list should be large print and easy to read.

Important!

Don’t ask players to bring back living creatures, however

small. It’s not necessary and the poor critter probably won’t
wind up living through the experience.

Think Safety
Scavenger hunts sometimes have no boundaries. Players can
go anywhere to find the challenges you have given them.
Decide if this is how you want to play, or if there should be
limitations.
How old are the players? How safe is it for them to travel
about? Should an adult accompany each group?
How will you contact any teams who don’t return at the time
the game is meant to end?

Treasure Hunts | 21
If children are playing you may need to get permission from
parents and guardians first.

Starting the game

Gather the players and go through the following:
• Explain any rules.
• Explain how players are expected to “collect” objects and
make sure everyone understands.
• If there are any special instructions (for example, if you
want players to dwell on each object as they find them),
make these clear.
• If the game has any boundaries, make them very clear.
• Be very clear about when the game ends, and where
players are expected to be at that time.
• Give players the list of objects to find.
• If players need to physically bring objects back, consider
giving each team a bag or box.

Treasure Hunts | 22
Treasure Hunts | 23
Creating a Step-By-Step
Treasure Hunt
Step-by-step treasure hunts require the most
preparation, but can be the most engaging
and memorable.

Step-By-Step Treasure Hunt Idea

Step-by-step treasure hunts are fantastic for telling a story or

revealing information in order, because you know exactly the
order in which players will find clues.

Each treasure can have a story or Bible verse to read or even

a video that players can watch. These can be part of a larger
story that gradually unfolds.

Decide how treasures will point players to the

next one
Each treasure in a step-by-step treasure hunt needs
to direct players to the next treasure. This is usually
done by sticking a note or information sheet up at
the treasure point.

Treasure Hunts | 24
Step-By-Step Treasure Hunt Idea

If your players have access to internet-enabled devices, step-

by-step treasure hunts can feel extra creative if you use the
devices as part of the game.

Instead of having an information sheet at each treasure point,

you can just have a QR Code that players scan to find out
what you want them to know and to get a clue to the location
of the next treasure.

This allows you to include multimedia such as video as part of

your treasure hunt.

You can even use a QR Code to a mapping app that will lead
players to the next treasure!

There are many ways to direct players to the next treasure,

and this will define how your treasure hunt plays out (and
how long it takes to create).

1. Tell players where the next treasure is

This is the simplest and fastest approach. It’s good for a quick
treasure hunt where the fun is just going through the steps
rather than being challenged by solving clues.
A treasure might have a simple instruction like “You’ll find the
next treasure in the mailbox”.

Treasure Hunts | 25
Important!

If each treasure directs players to the next treasure with no

puzzle or searching required, players will move very quickly
through the game, and players won’t spread out much. If you
have a lot of players in a small space, it could get very
crowded around this constantly moving pack!

2. Tell players ROUGHLY where the next treasure is

This is the simplest way to provide a challenge.
Choose where the next treasure will be, but only tell players
roughly where to look. For example, “You will find the next
treasure somewhere in the hallway”.
You can make the game harder or easier by giving less or
more specific detail in your clues.
This is a challenge that works for all ages and will help spread
your teams or players out if they all play at once.

3. Give players a riddle or puzzle to solve that will tell

them where the next treasure is
Here are some examples:
• Describe exactly where the next treasure is, but not very
clearly. For example, “Your next treasure is where you will
find letters”. Players may have to explore different
possibilities before they discover that it’s referring to the
mailbox.
• An activity sheet with a maze that has letters scattered
throughout. When players solve it, the correct path goes
through the letters “M – A – I – L – B – O – X” in order.

Treasure Hunts | 26
• A picture puzzle where the answer spells out the location
of the next treasure.

• A series of pictures of the same sort of thing (people,

movie posters, flags, landmarks) where the first letters of
each spell out the next location.

Important!

If you give players a riddle or puzzle to solve that will lead

them to the next treasure, make sure the treasure is easy to
spot when they get there!

The challenge should be in solving the puzzle, not in finding

the actual treasure.

4. Have a map that leads players to the treasure

Literally a treasure map!
This can be very clear, such as a map that shows where
players currently are, and where the next treasure is (often
marked with a big red cross) and a dotted line showing them
how to get there.
Or it can just be a map showing the location of the treasure.
This is best used with players who are very familiar with the
area.

Treasure Hunts | 27
Map Idea

If you are playing outdoors and players can bring electronic

devices, you can provide a QR Code to a mapping site or app
(such as Google Maps), with the location of the next treasure
marked.

Mapping software only gets people close to the treasure, so

you may need to tell them where to look when they get
there.

For example, a note that says, “Go to the location at this QR

Code, then look under the park bench.”

Or your “map” can be a set of instructions to guide players

from their current location to the next treasure. For example:
“Face the clock on the far wall. Now walk through the door on
your left. Now walk down the corridor and walk through the
3rd door on the right. Now look behind the painting.”. You
need to test your instructions thoroughly by following them
yourself and by giving them to someone else to check. This is
a fun way to play, and if players make a mistake they can
usually go back and try again.

Treasure Hunts | 28
Car Rallies

A car rally is a kind of step-by-step treasure hunt where

players travel from location to location by car.

It is best suited for adults, or teens with adult leaders who

will drive.

Players are often given full instructions at the beginning of

the journey such as drive ahead, turn left at the first set of
traffic lights, continue until you see a petrol station on the
right, and so on).

But a car rally could also be played with new instructions and
new things to discover at various locations along the way.

Decide what you want players to discover as they

progress
Is this just an exercise where players have fun moving from
clue to clue, or do you want players to perform an activity or
learn something with each step?
Either way, each treasure location should have an
information sheet providing a clue to the next treasure
location.
It should also include anything else you want players to
discover at this point of their journey. For example, the next
part of the story, the next Bible verse, or the next thing to
think about.
The information sheet at a location can provide this, or it
could be a QR Code that will send players to online content.
You might allow players to take a copy of the information
sheet, particularly if it includes an activity. Be sure to clearly
write something like “Take 1 of these (but leave the rest for
other players)”.

Treasure Hunts | 29
If players are not meant to take the information sheet, make
sure it’s securely fastened. You may want to instruct players
to “Do not take this – please leave it here for other groups”.

Step-by-step treasure hunt idea

Because you often know exactly what route players will take
on a step-by-step treasure hunt, you can give them questions
to answer along the way.

Questions could be as simple as “What is the name of the last

shop you passed on the right?” or “There’s something
peculiar about the road you just crossed – what is it?”

They could also be thoughtful, such as: “Look at the big tree
you are now passing. Imagine how deep and strong its roots
are. How strongly connected do you feel to Jesus? Take some
time to pray for him to take deeper root in your life.”

Decide how players will be given the first clue

The clue to the first treasure will be given directly to players.
Decide how this will happen.
If players are gathered in the one location, you can simply
hand out an information sheet to each player, or you can
show some information on a screen to get them going.
If players have internet-enabled devices, you can display a QR
Code they can use to get their first clue.
Either way, this needs to be created in advance and ready to
give out or use when the game starts.

Set up your hunt and test it

Set up all your information sheets, making sure they are in
the right order and your starting information sheet leads to
the first treasure, which leads to the second treasure, and so
on.

Treasure Hunts | 30
Once you think it’s all correct, play the hunt carefully yourself
to check everything’s in place and it’s all in the right order.
Even better, ask someone else to test it. Other people will
often discover problems you might not have noticed!

Decide if you have a time limit

Decide if there will be a time limit for players to reach the
destination so you can instruct players to arrive by then, even
if they haven’t finished.
It's often good to have an activity for players to arrive at or
join into – such as a picnic or a game of frisbee.

Decide how you will help players who are stuck

In a step-by-step scavenger hunt, if a player gets stuck on a
particular clue, or they make a mistake then it’s possible for
them to be unable to continue without help.
Decide in advance how you will make help available to the
players.
• They might be able to return to a central location for a
clue.
• They might be able to send a text message to get a clue.
• You might send them out with a set of sealed envelopes
containing different clues, and if they get stuck, they can
open one of them.
• You might decide that no help is available, and players
who get stuck are out!

Treasure Hunts | 31
Starting your step-by-step hunt
Make sure all players understand:
• What the clues or information sheets look like, so they
can recognize them.
• What the time limit is, and where they must be at a
certain time even if they haven’t completed the hunt.
• How they can seek help if they need it.
• Any special instructions for your treasure hunt.
Then give them the clue for the first treasure and send them
off!

Important!

Players will often travel in a group, all following each other, if

released from the same place at the same time.

It can be helpful to stagger the starting time of different

players and teams. Or even start different teams from
different locations!

Treasure Hunts | 32
 How to Use QR Codes
QR Codes are a way that players with
internet-enabled devices can be
directed to any kind of content you
want. Video, audio, pictures,
documents, websites, maps – anything that can be
published online!
If using QR Codes for any purpose, make sure
players are warned to bring their devices, which
should be charged.
You should also check there is good phone signal or
Wi-Fi in the area you will be playing. If the phone
signal is bad, avoid using phones entirely. If there is
phone signal but no Wi-Fi (common for outdoor
treasure hunts) players will need to be told to bring
actual phones or devices with their own sim card.
To create a QR Code, make sure your content is
online and create a QR Code for the content’s URL
(web address). Print it or display it on a screen for
players to read.

Treasure Hunts | 33
Getting Content Online
If you make content and you need to get it online,
ask yourself if there is an existing site or platform
that hosts this kind of content.

I want to share Ideas for putting it online

A video YouTube, Vimeo

An audio file SoundCloud

A picture Imgur

Create a document and

export a PDF to a cloud
Words and pictures
storage site such as Google
Drive

Create a document, with

Multiple videos,
the words and pictures and
Multiple audio, clickable links to any video
or audio. Save a PDF to a
Or Multimedia with
cloud storage site such as
words or pictures
Google Drive.

Treasure Hunts | 34
Generating the QR Code
Once your content is accessible online, you need to
get the web address (URL) that will take users to it
and create a QR Code for it.

Important!

If you make a file available online by saving it to a cloud

storage site such as Google Drive, when you create a link to
share your content, make sure you give “View” access rather
than “Edit” access!

Once you have the URL, you can use any QR Code
generator to create the QR Code image. An
example of an easy-to-use generator is
www.qrcode-monkey.com.
Create and save your QR Code, and then include it
in the information given to players.

Important!

If creating a QR Code at QR Code Monkey, make sure

“Statistics and Editability” is off. Otherwise, you will need pay
for a subscription to keep your QR Code working after the
free trial ends.

Treasure Hunts | 35
Other Treasure Hunt Resources
Our Treasure Hunt
Our Treasure Hunt is – at time of writing – a free application
that allows you to create a treasure hunt on their web site
that players can play through an app.
The app can use GPS to show players where to go for the next
treasure. Clues for the next treasure can be any combination
of basic text, a picture and/or a pin on a map.
In Our Treasure Hunt, every treasure must give players a
code word which they enter into the app. Once they do so, it
will start directing them to the next treasure.
The app does not currently support displaying any kind of
media or document when players solve a treasure, so it’s best
used with a puzzle or story or activity at the location that
players must find. They then engage with the material, which
in turn leads them to learn or solve the code word which they
enter to move on to the next treasure.
The GPS feature works well, although could be clearer.
Typically, when you have your first clue that uses GPS, you
may want to explain to players in the text (or even in the
picture) that they need to press the Map icon to see the map,
and then close it again once they have arrived at the location.
The GPS feature is best used for outdoor hunts, even if they
are within a small outdoor area.

Treasure Hunts | 36
ARE YOU BLESSED ENOUGH TO OWN A BIBLE?
MILLIONS AREN’T...
By the grace of God and with the faithful support of our
donors, mission partners and volunteers, we are able to
make resources such as the Jesus, All about Life
programme, freely available. At the same time, much has
been done to continue our endeavours to make Bibles
available and affordable around the world. Now, more
than ever, we feel the calling to go above and beyond to do
more to reach people, with the life-changing message of the
Bible. Will you join us?

Join our Bible a Month

Regular Giving program and
help gift a Bible, every
month. For every $15 you
give, you give the greatest
gift ever, a Bible, to those
who need it most.

REGULAR GIVING

www. biblesociety.org.nz CC22121