Scavenger Hunt
Teams race to find items, complete challenges, and solve clues across physical or virtual environments. Builds collaboration, creative problem-solving, and communication under time pressure.
45-90 min
8-100 people
high
basic
About This Game
The Scavenger Hunt is a timeless team building activity that transforms any environment into an adventure playground. Whether racing through office hallways collecting bizarre items, photographing landmarks around the city, or hunting for digital treasures in virtual workspaces, scavenger hunts ignite competitive energy while requiring genuine collaboration. Teams must strategize how to divide tasks, communicate discoveries, think creatively about where to find unusual items, and occasionally solve riddles or complete mini-challenges along the way. Modern scavenger hunts have evolved beyond simple object collection—they can incorporate photo/video challenges ("Take a team selfie with a stranger wearing red"), trivia questions that unlock the next clue, or acts of kindness that must be documented. The time pressure creates urgency and excitement, while the variety of challenges ensures every team member can contribute their unique strengths. Virtual scavenger hunts have emerged as equally engaging, asking participants to find household items, share screenshots of specific files, or complete creative tasks on camera. Whether in-person, virtual, or hybrid, scavenger hunts deliver laughter, problem-solving, and stories that teams will reference for months.
Objectives
- Develop strategic thinking as teams decide how to allocate resources and divide tasks
- Practice communication and coordination under time pressure with clear task delegation
- Encourage creative problem-solving when traditional approaches to finding items don't work
- Build team cohesion through shared adventure, laughter, and collaborative challenge completion
- Energize participants with physical or mental movement, breaking sedentary meeting patterns
- Create memorable shared experiences and inside jokes that strengthen team bonds
How to Run This Game
Facilitator Script:
"Welcome to today's Scavenger Hunt! In a moment, you'll receive a list of items to find, challenges to complete, and possibly some riddles to solve. This isn't just about speed—it's about strategy, creativity, and teamwork. You'll work in teams of 4-6, and you'll need to decide together how to tackle the hunt most efficiently. Do you split up? Stay together? Prioritize high-point items? That's up to you! Let's form teams now. I'm mixing departments intentionally so you'll work with people you might not collaborate with daily. Teams, take 2 minutes to introduce yourselves and assign roles: maybe a navigator, a photographer, a runner, a creative thinker. Ready? Let's form up!"
Actions:
- Divide participants into teams of 4-6 people (mix departments/seniority)
- For virtual hunts, assign breakout rooms as team "home bases"
- Give teams 2 minutes to introduce themselves and assign roles
- Explain time limit (typically 30-60 minutes depending on scope)
- Clarify boundaries: where are teams allowed to go? (office only, campus, neighborhood, their homes)
- Mention point system: different items/challenges worth different points
Tips:
- • Mix teams intentionally to build cross-functional connections
- • For in-person hunts, establish clear physical boundaries and safety rules
- • If doing a virtual hunt, ensure everyone has a phone/camera for photo submissions
- • Consider accessibility: not everyone can run up stairs or move quickly—build in options
Facilitator Script:
"Here's your scavenger hunt list! [Share document/slide with all items and challenges.] You'll notice items have different point values—the harder or more creative, the more points. You have exactly 45 minutes. All items must be photographed or brought back here to count, depending on the item. Photo submissions go to this shared folder [or chat/email]. You can divide and conquer, but remember—some challenges say 'whole team must participate.' Read everything carefully! Bonus points for creativity: the funniest photo submission for each category wins an extra 5 points as voted by all teams at the end. There are also three riddles hidden in the list—solve them to unlock bonus challenges. No breaking rules, no trespassing, be respectful to everyone you encounter. The hunt begins when I say 'Go!' Questions before we start? [Answer briefly.] Ready... set... GO!"
Actions:
- Share the complete scavenger hunt list (digital or printed)
- Explain point system clearly, highlighting high-value items
- Specify evidence requirements: photos, physical items, videos, etc.
- Clarify submission method: shared folder, email, returning to base
- Highlight any "whole team" challenges that require everyone in the frame
- Explain bonus creativity points to encourage fun over speed
- Set clear start time and return deadline
- Establish rules: stay safe, be respectful, no cheating
Tips:
- • Display the list on a shared screen or send a clickable link for easy access
- • Include variety: easy quick wins, difficult rare items, creative challenges, team collaborations
- • For virtual hunts, include items found in typical homes plus creative tasks
- • Sample items: "Something orange," "Team photo doing a pyramid," "Receipt showing you helped someone," "Screenshot of team on a video call with a pet"
- • Have the list ready to project on return so teams can check off what they found
Facilitator Script:
"[During the hunt, the facilitator monitors submissions, answers questions via phone/chat, and tracks progress. If teams are in-person and dispersed, stay at home base to receive items and photos. If virtual, monitor the submission folder and provide encouragement in the main Zoom room or via chat. Send periodic time updates: '30 minutes left!' '15 minutes—time to start heading back!' '5 minutes—last call for submissions!' Stay available for rule clarifications and safety check-ins.]"
Actions:
- Monitor time and send periodic updates: 30 min, 15 min, 5 min remaining
- Stay available for questions, rule clarifications, and issue resolution
- For in-person hunts, remain at home base to receive items and photos
- For virtual hunts, monitor submission folder and engage in main video room
- Track submissions in real-time using a scoring spreadsheet
- Send encouragement and playful competitive updates to teams
- Ensure safety: check in if a team goes silent too long
- Prepare for scoring: download all photos, organize by team for judging
Tips:
- • Have a co-facilitator help with real-time scoring if possible
- • Create a simple spreadsheet to track each team's submitted items and points
- • If doing creative judging at the end, pre-select categories during the hunt
- • Celebrate funny/creative submissions as they come in to build excitement
- • Have backup challenges ready if teams finish early or are struggling
Facilitator Script:
"Time's up! Everyone back to home base—or back to the main Zoom room if virtual. Welcome back! I've seen some absolutely hilarious photos coming in. While I finish calculating scores, let's take a moment for each team to share their favorite find or funniest moment. Team 1, what was your most creative solution or funniest encounter? [Each team shares briefly—2 minutes max per team.] Amazing! I'm now going to show you some of the best photo submissions. Let's vote on the funniest team photo for the pyramid challenge... [Display top 3, everyone votes via emoji reaction or raised hands. Repeat for 2-3 categories.] Those creativity bonus points could change the leaderboard!"
Actions:
- Welcome teams back and confirm all submissions are in
- Give each team 2 minutes to share their highlight or funniest moment
- Display standout photo submissions on screen for everyone to see
- Conduct quick voting on "creativity bonus" categories (funniest, most creative, etc.)
- Award bonus points based on group voting
- Finalize score calculations while keeping energy up with storytelling
- Celebrate clever problem-solving and unexpected finds
Tips:
- • Have a slideshow of highlights ready to display—this is the most memorable part
- • Encourage storytelling: "How did you find that?" "What was the reaction when you asked?"
- • If time is tight, show only top 3-5 photo highlights instead of every submission
- • Make voting quick: thumbs up, emoji reactions, or quick hand raises work well
Facilitator Script:
"Okay, the scores are in! This was incredibly close. Before I announce the winner, let's appreciate the creativity, problem-solving, and teamwork we saw today. In third place, with [X] points... [Team Name]! In second place, just [Y] points behind, [Team Name]! And your Scavenger Hunt champions, with [Z] points and some truly creative submissions, congratulations to [Winning Team Name]! [Lead applause.] Now, quick reflection: What strategies worked well for your team? What would you do differently next time? [Take 2-3 responses.] The best teams divided tasks but stayed in communication. Great job, everyone—you brought fantastic energy and collaboration today!"
Actions:
- Announce final scores from third place to first
- Celebrate winning team and highlight specific clever submissions
- Lead applause for all participants
- Facilitate brief reflection: What strategies worked? What did you learn?
- Connect the activity to workplace skills: communication, delegation, creative problem-solving
- Thank everyone for their enthusiasm and sportsmanship
- Optional: Share full photo album later via email or team channel
Tips:
- • Even small prizes (certificates, gift cards, bragging rights trophy) make wins memorable
- • Capture team reflections—they often reveal collaboration insights applicable to work
- • Create a shared photo album so teams can relive the fun and share with others
- • If doing this as a series, keep a championship leaderboard across events
- • End on a high note—reference the funniest moment as a closing laugh
Facilitator Tips
- Customize the scavenger list to your culture: include company-specific items, inside jokes, or values-based challenges
- Balance the list with easy wins (so no team feels hopeless) and difficult items (so skilled teams can shine)
- For virtual hunts, test your submission process in advance—make sure photo uploads work smoothly
- Include variety in task types: finding objects, solving riddles, creative performances, acts of kindness, team photos
- Set clear boundaries and rules, especially for in-person hunts in public spaces—safety first
- Consider offering a few "challenge swap" tokens teams can use if they're stuck on something
- Have a scoring assistant or use a collaborative spreadsheet for real-time point tracking
- Build in "whole team required" challenges to prevent one person from dominating
- For large groups (50+), consider doing semi-finals with top teams advancing to a final round
- Debrief afterwards—scavenger hunts reveal a lot about team dynamics and problem-solving approaches
- Take lots of photos during the event for sharing in team communications afterwards
Common Challenges & Solutions
Variations & Adaptations
No physical items—everything is captured via photos or short videos. Challenges might include: "Team doing a specific pose at a landmark," "Video of team performing a 10-second dance," "Photo with a stranger giving thumbs up." Emphasizes creativity and performance.
Each clue is a riddle that, when solved, reveals the location of the next clue. Teams must solve puzzles sequentially to progress through the hunt. Final clue leads to a treasure or meeting spot. More cerebral and linear than traditional scavenger hunts.
Items and challenges revolve around helping others or community engagement: "Collect 10 canned goods for food bank," "Help an elderly neighbor with a task and get their signature," "Pick up litter and photograph the before/after." Combines team building with social impact.
Teams move through stations completing physical or mental challenges to earn their next clue (e.g., "Stack 10 cups in a pyramid in under 20 seconds," "Correctly answer 3 trivia questions," "Complete a minute-to-win-it game"). Combines scavenger hunting with skill challenges.
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