How to plan a gift scavenger hunt
If you want to make unwrapping a present even more fun, there’s nothing better than a gift scavenger hunt. Send partners or kiddos searching the house for clues tucked carefully in pockets and hidden on shelves until they find their gift in the last place they’d expect.
To help you turn gift giving into an adventure, Hallmark artists share their hints—and some printable clues—below!
Inspired? Create and share by tagging @HallmarkStores.
First, choose a path
Do you want to send your gift-givee searching all over the house, or keep them in one room where you can watch them look? Once you know the general area for your gift scavenger hunt, look for hiding places. Qualities of a good hiding place include:
- Places to stash a clue where it will stay put: A pocket, the pages of a book or inside a container.
- Things with a story or memory attached, like a favorite picture, nook or book.
- Easy answers to a simple question or description.
- Appropriate to the hunter’s deductive skills and attention span.
List the locations for your clues in order, like this:
1. Hall closet—blue jacket
2. Kid’s bedroom—under pillow
3. Front door—under mat
4. Pantry—broom
5. Hall bathroom—behind soap
6. Family room bookshelf—tucked in All the Ways I Love You
7. Dog—taped around collar
8. Kid’s bedroom—inside lampshade
9. Shoe rack—inside dress shoe
10. Kid’s closet
This is especially handy if you tend to forget things five minutes after you do them.
Pro tip: Enlist your pets. Wrapping a gift scavenger hunt riddle around a dog or cat’s collar means your clue is on the move.
Next, write your gift scavenger hunt riddles
Do it the easy way and use the list above and our already-written clues—just print them here and cut them out. Or use this blank template and write your own.
Some hints for writing riddles:
- Make the challenges age-appropriate—simple riddles for little ones, more thinking and inside jokes for older kids, super-complex gotcha questions and bad puns for grown-ups.
- Decide whether it’s OK to have multiple potential answers for a single clue.
- Experiment with different ways to create your clues: Playful rhymes. Fill-in-the-blank descriptions. Illustrations. Limericks with the last word (and answer) left blank.
Pro tip: Take it from our professionally trained greeting card writers, doing riddles in verse seems like a great idea until you get to the 10th one. Make it easier on yourself by choosing hiding places that are easy rhyming words.
Finally, hide your gift scavenger hunt clues
When you know where everything goes and it’s almost time to start the quest, put all your clues and the gift in place. Here’s how to make sure you’ve got the perfect spot for the gift:
- The gift is unlikely to be discovered between the time you hide the clues and the hunt begins.
- The space is big enough to conceal the gift.
- You can’t see the gift by casually walking by it.
- If you want people to witness the discovery and unwrapping, there’s space in the area for the witnesses.
- Your pets will not find and eat the gift.
- Your big reveal will not be ruined if someone decides to start the dishwasher, turn on the dryer or drive off with the car.
Pro tip: Make sure your clues stay put. Here are some ways to do it:
• Use washi tape to attach the clue to flat surfaces—it removes easily, so you won’t have to scrub off adhesive after the hunt.
• Try clothespins and safety pins to stick the clue on curtains, pillows and clothing.
•. Punch a hole in the top and add a string to tie it on like a tag.
One more thing: Don’t feel like you have to limit your gift scavenger hunt to one day, one house or one city, even. Go big and have fun!
Want more ideas to make gift giving easier or more fun? ‘Kay…
Shop Gifts
See allYou may also like
See more-
Halloween Halloween treat boxes
Download these fun Halloween printables to make your own little monsters—Halloween treat boxes, we mean.
-
Christmas The ultimate Christmas to-do list to help you get a jump on holiday planning
For some of us, the Christmas spirit is a year-round lifestyle. Whether it’s decorating the tree with pretty lights ...
-
Dessert Cookie flowers
Bake up some smiles with these adorable cookie flowers. Hallmark cookie expert Bernard Shondell shares his chocolate ...
-
Thanksgiving 4 free printable Thanksgiving activities for the kids table
The kids’ table is the place to be at Thanksgiving: all the fun and none of the responsibility. And because sometimes...
-
4th of July Free printable 4th of July decorations
Most of our ideas for summer entertaining include the words "casual" and "easy." But on patriotic holidays, we gotta ...
-
Birthday Free birthday coloring pages to add more fun to the celebration
The best birthdays are the ones filled with lots of little treats and fun activities, from sunup to sundown. If you’r...
-
Lifestyle Free printable When Calls the Heart Bingo card to celebrate the Season 11 premiere!
Who's ready for a Heartie Party? You know we are! So much so, we created a bingo card to add a whole extra layer of f...
-
Arts, Crafts & DIY Free printable classroom posters to brighten the school day
Are you a teacher, or do you know a great teacher? (Um, who doesn’t?) Here’s a simple way to encourage kindness and c...
-
Kids DIY teacher appreciation gift: personalized zine
For Teacher Appreciation Day, you want a gift that says “thank you” for all their hard work, patience and general awe...
-
Back to School DIY back-to-school zine: free download to personalize
While kids are counting down the last days of summer, parents are gearing up for the first days of school. We’re shop...
-
Back to School Free printable lunch box notes to send them back to school with love
We all love sending our kiddos off to school with just a little extra love. Or a few encouraging words. Or sometimes ...
-
Father's Day Free printable Father’s Day writing prompts for kids
When it comes to Father’s Day, we love finding new ways to celebrate the dads we love for all that they are. The joy,...
-
Mother's Day Free printable Mother’s Day writing prompts for kids
We like to think of Mother’s Day as a time to make moms feel special, celebrated and showered in love. And one of our...
-
Father's Day Free printable Father's Day coloring pages for Dad's #1 fans
Dads take so much pride in their kids’ talents. And if you know a dad who’s been claiming his son or daughter was the...
-
Summer Free printable summer coloring pages to help you beat the heat
In summer, when it’s impossibly hot outside and all you wanna do is stay inside, it can be hard to find things to do....
-
Mother's Day Free, printable Mother's Day coloring pages to make Mom's heart melt
Moms treasure their kids’ art like no one else. So what better way to brighten up Mom’s special day than by gifting h...
-
Spring Free Printable: Cute DIY cross-stitch monogram to decorate envelopes
We love the feeling of finding someone that perfect card—one that says exactly what they need to hear or is sure to m...
-
Spring Spring coloring pages to help you celebrate brighter days
It’s spring! And in our book, spring means color. It’s in the flowers that pop up, the birds that come back and the o...
-
St. Patrick's Day Free Printable St. Patrick’s Day Coloring Pages for Your Little Leprechauns
If you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, then you know it’s all about sharing love, luck and fun. And what could be more f...
-
Easter Free printable Easter coloring pages to brighten up your celebration
One of the best things about Easter—in addition to faith, family and food—is all the colors. So we figured we’d throw...