Category Archives: Scavenger Hunt Ideas

Father’s Day Gift Idea

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Special occasions always seem to creep up upon us, and Father’s Day is no exception.  With Father’s Day being only a few days away, you may be starting to panic if you haven’t already thought up a gift to give to your dad. With a tool like TextClues, you should have no fear! TextClues will help you make a personalized gift (aka a scavenger hunt!) for your dad in minutes!! What will it involve?
– A cell phone
– Some scavenging on your dad’s part
– A trip down memory lane for the both of you

You can make it a bit more of a surprise for your dad by having the scavenger hunt end with something that he may find useful, something that he has been wanting for a while but hasn’t had a chance to buy, or even just a personalized card from yourself :)

Here’s an example to get you started with your Father’s Day gift today!

Clue: Happy Father’s Day! Let’s start easy. How old am I this year? Reply with answer.
Answer: 15
Clue: Great job! Where did we go on vacation last year?
Answer: NYC, New York, New York City
Clue: Yup, was pretty fun! Now, go to the place in the house that has a photo from that trip. Your next clue awaits! (paper clue would be found at the photo: What sport were you apart of when you were in university?)
Answer: Football
Clue: We’ll have to go throw one around later tonight with this great weather. What’s your favorite food?
Answer: Chicken
Clue: Yup, mom’s making your favorite meal right now :) Final question! What have you wanted to buy the last month?
Answer: Golf clubs
Clue: That’s right! Go find mom to find your new gift :D Happy Father’s Day!!

Use TextClues for your scavenger hunt gift for your dad and he won’t be disappointed! It only costs $15 for 100 clues so you can create many many scavenger hunts for all occasions (and not just for Father’s Day!) At the end of this hunt, your dad will be asking for more so the extra clues will be sure to come in handy ;) Try it today.

Father’s Day Scavenger Hunt Ideas

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Here’s an example of a Father’s Day text message scavenger hunt that you can send your dad on his special day. Just make sure he has his cell phone handy.

Clue: What’s your favorite bbq food?

Answer: Steak

Clue: Go check out back on the bbq. How many steaks are cooking?

Answer: Four, 4

Clue: Should be tasty! What’s your favorite beer?

Answer: Heineken

Clue: Go check in the fridge. There’s a few waiting for you! What sport is playing on the tv?

Answer: Baseball

Clue: Should be a great game. Look under the couch for your card. Reply ‘done’ when you’ve read it.

Answer: Done

Clue: How many types of potato chips are on the table?

Answer: Three, 3

Clue: What color are the napkins?

Answer: Red

Clue: Go look in the kitchen. What’s cooking in the oven?

Answer: Baked potatoes, potatoes

Clue: Now go down to the basement for a surprise. What is it?

Answer: Baseball cap

Winning Message: Happy Father’s Day!! Go watch the game and relax, steaks will be ready soon :)

Create your own text message scavenger hunt with our demo.

How to Make a Father’s Day Scavenger Hunt

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Father’s Day is coming up and this year you should give him a gift that shows how much you care. A gift he will be telling all his friends about and one that he won’t ever forget. Scavenger hunts make great creative and memorable gifts and are perfect for father’s day. Using TextClues you can send the clues and receive the answers automatically over text messages… now that’s something he will never forget!

The scavenger hunt you create for your dad should have prizes based of his hobbies and and interests.  The clues can be based on his habits around the house. If your dad likes to fix things around the house get him a few new tools. If he likes playing sports get him some new or upgraded equipment. The clues can lead him to the spots where he likes to spend time around the house.

Here’s a simple example hunt that you can modify for your own Dad:

Clue: Happy Father’s Day Dad! What tool is sitting in the seat where you like to eat? Reply with the answer

Answer: Hammer

Clue: Alright now what’s hiding on the grate where you cook your world famous steak?

Answer: Screw Driver, screwdriver

Clue: Last but not least. What’s lying down in the spot where you sit and read?

Answer: Drill, Power Drill

Winning Message: Congratulations you found all your gifts. Happy Father’s Day Dad, thanks for always being there for me.

You can customize the clues and prizes to fit you own Dad and give him a gift he won’t forget. If you don’t want to give him so many small gifts and want to focus on one big gift then you can make a slight adjustment. In the places the clues lead to leave a question written on a note rather than a prize. The answer to the question will be the answer for the scavenger hunt. For example you can ask him what’s his favorite band, movie, book, actor or vacation spot.

Whatever you do have fun! And don’t forget you can try our TextClues demo here.

Bachelorette or Girl’s Night Out

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It’s a girls night out – perhaps a bachelorette party or even just a night out on the town and you and the girls want to make things interesting ;) Why not make a little game/hunt out of the outing? It’s a hassle to have to carry a pen and paper out to a lounge/bar/restaurant however we all know that we MUST carry our cell phones and cameras on a girl’s night out/bachelorette party to capture the moments of the night (although, perhaps some of the photos may be a “what happens this night, stays amongst the group” kind of night :) TextClues is the perfect tool to use for your night out – all you need is your cell phone and away you go :)

How would this work? Start by thinking of different things you girls might want to capture and find of the night.  Once you have this in place, all you need to do is set up the clues on the easy-to-use TextClues screens, schedule the hunt for when you want it to occur, enter in the phone numbers of your friends, and away you go ;)

Here’s just a little example of how you would use the tool for your night out :)  We’ll assume that you are already at the venue that the party is to take place.

Clue: Welcome to Girls Night Out, Addition 1 of many. We’ll start easy – Head to the bar, each girl buys a shot, and get someone to take a photo of you girls. Type “done” once complete.
Answer: Done
Clue: Perfect! Next, one of the girls has to find a guy to dance with her. Take a photo to capture this. Type “done” once complete.
Answer: Done
Clue: Great! Get one or more girls to get on the stage or podium and dance away ;) Take a photo to capture this. Type “done” once complete.
Answer: Done
Clue: Head back to the bar. Get the bartender to make you girls a special drink. Take a photo WITH the bartender. Type “done” once complete.
Answer: Done
Clue: Time to head back on to the dance floor! Find a guy to give you a kiss on the cheek. Take a photo to capture this. Type “done” once complete.
Answer: Done
Clue: Great job! Now enjoy the rest of the night and make it one you’ll always remember :)

When you and the girls get back home, you’ll have all of your photos to re-live the night and remember how much fun you guys all had going out. Or, if it is for a bachelorette party, the bride-to-be will have photos to always remember this night out :) TextClues can help make this a night to always remember, so try it out today and you won’t regret it!

A Scavenger Hunt Down Memory Lane

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Here’s an idea for a text message scavenger hunt that takes your significant other or someone close to you down memory lane. All they need is a cell phone and you can send them a special scavenger hunt that shows how much they mean to you.

Clue: Are you ready for a trip down memory lane? Go hop in the car and look on the passenger seat. Where were we when that that picture was taken?

Answer: Hawaii

Clue: Wow that was so much fun! Chateau Gonflable Remember when we learned how to surf for the first time? Drive down to chestnut street and park at our old high school. What sport did I always come watch you play?

Answer: football

Clue: Those were good times. What was our music teacher’s name?

Answer: Mr. Jacobson

Clue: He was a riot! What instrument did I love to play?

Answer: Flute

Clue: Alright get back on chestnut and drive east to the pool we used to lifeguard at during the summer. Who was the head life guard?

Answer: Jeff

Clue: Jeff was awesome. That was such a laid back job. What color was my skin after my first day back then?

Answer: Red

Clue: Ya I got pretty burnt :) Alright, head back home. But take a detour to the park where we first kissed. What street is it on?

Answer: O’Connor, O’Connor street

Clue: When you get back walk around to the backyard. Who used to always come over for a beer out here.

Answer: Davis

Clue: We really should invite him over to catch up! Now head inside the house. What kind of flowers did you get me that are out in the hall?

Answer: Lilies

Clue: Now go into the dining room. Where did we get the wooden figurine by the table?

Answer: Jamaica

Winning Message: Now come up to the kitchen. I made something special for you :)

To see how to create your own trip down memory lane try out our free demo!

Anniversary Scavenger Hunt

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Anniversaries – They come once every year and each year, you want to make it that much more special for your significant other.  What more would your significant other want than the fact that you:

  • Actually remembered your anniversary
  • Took the time to plan something out
  • Tried to relive some of the fond moments and memories you guys have spent together

Absolutely nothing! ;) Now, what activity can incorporate all of the above into a fun/romantic/sweet gift for your significant other? A scavenger hunt of course! Now, with a text messaging scavenger hunt tool like TextClues, creating and Toboggan Gonflable executing scavenger hunts has never been easier.  Your partner will think you’ve spent lots of hard time and effort to make this special gift for them, but it’ll only be between you and me that we know that TextClues has helped to make the experience that much more easy to accomplish.

What do you need to do before starting your scavenger hunt?

  1. Think of some facts that are special and important to the both of you that you can include into the scavenger hunt
  2. Think of where you want the hunt to lead to at the end of it all
  3. Decide whether you want to incorporate little prizes in between the hunt

 Once you’ve got all the above collected, you are ready to go.

 Here’s a fun example!

 Clue: Hi baby! Happy Anniversary :) Let’s start with something easy. Where did we first meet?

Answer: The Plant Lounge, Plant Lounge, lounge, a lounge

Clue: Good job. Where did I take you on our first date?

Answer: Goon’s Seafood, Goon’s Seafood Restaurant

Clue: Yes! Delicious wasn’t it? ;) Head to the cabinet where you keep all your favorite treats. Whats inside?

Answer: Chocolate

Clue: Yup just for you :) Head to the front door for another surprise

…

This can continue on with a few more clues, or you can simply leave a bouquet of flowers outside the door, or you can be standing outside the door ready to give your loved one a kiss :) Your significant other will be so happy of the thought you put into their gift.

 

With TextClues, you can be creating a scavenger hunt like the above within minutes! Try it out today, and you and your significant other won’t regret it ;)

An Amazing Race using Text Messages

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Here’s an idea for a fun activity for a group of friends: set up an Amazing Race using TextClues. First, split everyone into teams. The leader of each team needs a cell phone to answer the text message challenges. You’ll want to have clues that lead the teams on an amazing race all over the city.

Before you start the race, you’ll want all the teams to compete in a contest to determine who gets a head start. This can be a trivia game or each team can dress up in matching costumes Parcours Obstacle Gonflable and you judge which team looks the best. Based on the scores, you can stagger the teams so that one leaves every 5 minutes, so they don’t all race off at the same time. You can schedule all the text hunts to start at the same time but just don’t give them the envelope with the first clue until they leave.

It’s up to you whether you want all the teams to have clues in the same order, but we do have a “shuffle” button if you want to randomize the clues for each team.You’ll want to come up with a scoring system. Each team has three tries for each clue, so you can give them 3 points if they get it right on the first try, 2 points on the second try, or 1 point on the third try. Finally, there should be a bonus for the time taken for each team to finish the amazing race and get back to the starting point. You could make this a percentage bonus to prevent teams from just guessing everything wrong but finishing first.

Here are some ideas for clues you could use:

Clue: Welcome to the 2012 Amazing Race. Check for the first clue in your envelope. (Inside the envelope you have the clue: Head west 10 blocks. What year was the church built?)

Answer: 1967

Clue: Head north to the park. Mike will be waiting for a game of bean bag toss. He’ll tell you the answer when you finish the game.

Answer: Mike is awesome

Clue: Good job. Now head to the fair trade coffee house where we always meet up with Liz. On the wall they have a picture of a plantation from what country?

Answer: Brazil

Clue: Head to the high school track and meet Jen. You guys will have to run some laps :) She’ll tell you the answer when you finish your sprints.

Answer: Jen rocks

Clue: How many tennis courts are on the other side of the school?

Answer: three, 3

Clue: Head south 6 blocks until you reach a park. What’s it called?

Answer: Jacob’s Park

Clue: Head to the baseball stadium. How many years has it been open?

Answer: 34

Clue: Use the pay phone to call Mike. Everyone on the team has to talk to him to make sure you’re all still there.

Answer: Subway

Clue: Yes hop on the subway and take it north 3 stops. Head into the shopping mall. What’s the name of the hair dresser up on the third floor.

Answer: Antonio’s

Winning Message: Alright you’re done! Now run back to the start of the race before the others make it back!

 

Try our demo to see how to create a text message amazing race.

Corporate Team Building Activity: SMS Scavenger Hunt

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With weather as nice as we have been having lately, there is no better time to have a team building or corporate scavenger hunt at your company! Instead of being confined within your office building, why not have the hunt occur out on the streets/within the city (if your location permits). A text scavenger hunt allows for people in your department to enjoy some fresh air, have a nice change of scenery, and have a fun day out with their team!

Now, when you first bring up “scavenger hunt” with your department, they may be a bit hesitant or unsure of how they feel about it – they may feel like it is childish, or would rather not participate in such events.  But I can guarantee you that once they get into the hunt, and become slightly more competitive by wanting to beat their fellow colleagues to win the hunt, they will be sure to have blast by the end of it all! Our website, TextClues, makes it super easy to create a scavenger hunt because you do not need to leave a paper trail of clues around the building or city (wherever the hunt is taking place) instead we let you send text messages to each team’s cell phone for the hunt, so the setup is quick and easy!

How should you set this all up?

  • Begin with finding out how many participants will be available to participate in your event (block off time in your teams calendar for a good two hours so that the team will have to join in on the team building experience!).  Once, you know the number of people, you can split off each team into smaller groups of 4 – 5 (or they can be larger or smaller depending on the number of people you are working with).
  • Determine the end location of your hunt
  • Where you want the hunt to take place? In your building, on your floor, or out on the streets
  • Think of whether you want to include any props within your hunt: e.g.: camera for your team to take photos during the hunt

Let’s give an example of how the hunt can work:

Clue: What year was the company founded? Hint: you may find this on a plaque on the outside of our building – respond with the answer

Answer: 2005

Clue: Great job! Now, go to our favorite coffee shop that we order coffee from for team meetings and take a team photo with the server. Reply with “done” when complete.

Answer: Done

Clue: Perfect. Head on over to the building where most of our town hall meetings take place and respond with the animal that appears outside the door.

Answer: Bull

Clue: Great! Now go on inside the building and find the stationary store. Purchase the cheapest possible item you can inside the store and respond with “done” when complete.

Answer: Done

Clue: Head back to the Thursday night pub that is a favorite of our department. First one back wins the prize, and gets first dibs on the appetizers! :)

 

Team building activities are an important part of any organization:

  • They help your department members get to know each other and have a fun time outside of a work setting to ensure morale is kept up
  • They let the department reward the time and effort the team puts into working with the company, and that you want to show them how much you appreciate their hard work

Scavenger hunts are the perfect team building exercise because it allows individuals within a team to work together to find out the answer to the next clue and build some overall team spirit. Use TextClues for your next scavenger hunt, and we can guarantee you that this will make scavenger hunts such a breeze for your company, and enjoyable for the employees, that you will be coming back each year for more!

Trivia Night

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You’re holding a trivia night with numerous people, however there are always a few challenges surrounding it.
1) If there are teams, and you are calling out the question, and the team that raises their hand first gets to answer, what do you do if multiple people raise their hand to answer the question first? Who gets to answer first?
2) If you are making individuals write out their answers individually to the questions, this requires time to collect team answers and mark the answers which wastes the time overall of people taking part in trivia night

Why not use a quick and easy program like TextClues to go through trivia night? TextClues is a text-message based program that can run on any mobile phone, so anybody with a cell phone can participate on the fun during Trivia Night :) With TextClues, you can have all of the questions and answers set up via the TextClues website. All *you* will need to do as the host is grab the cell phone numbers of participating individuals and away you go!

The best way to make this work is to have a few different rounds. One round can be trivia questions, another round can be “Name that song”, where you play a clip of a song and individuals need to figure out the title of the song. You can also use the Real-Time Dashboard on the website to determine who entered in the correct answers at the end of Trivia Night, if points are given based on the team with the most correct answers.

Let’s show you how this can be done. I’m using the word “pass” as an alternate answer to each question, so if the team does not know the answer to a question, they can type “pass” and  still continue on with trivia night

Question: Welcome to Trivia Night. Here is your first question. In what year did the War of 1812 end?
Answer: 1815, pass
Question: What was the name of the first Beatle’s album?
Answer: Anthology, pass

<song portion of trivia night>
Host: Now, we will play a clip of each song and you must type in the correct title

Question: Name song 1 <play clip of a song>
Answer: Sexy back
Question: Name song 2 <play clip of a song>
Answer: Hey Jude

At the end of it all, you can go through the answers with the crowd, while also looking at the Real-Time dashboard to see who got the most questions right.  Pretty easy to set up right? :) Try out TextClues for your next trivia night, and you won’t want to stop using it for future nights because we make it *that* easy!

A Mother’s Day Scavenger Hunt

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Mother’s Day is coming up fast! But don’t worry you’ve still got time to give you mom a great surprise. TextClues is here to help you make a scavenger hunt that your mom will never forget.

TextClues is great in so many ways:

  • It will save you time
  • It is easy to use
  • Uses new technology which is sure to surprise
  • Can be used with other ideas or on its own
  • Provides a more personalized gift

You can use a scavenger hunt a few different ways on Mother’s day.

You can use it to lead your Mom to the present you were already planning to get her. She’ll love that you’ve personalized a hunt just for her and you’ll turn an ordinary gift into an extraordinary one.

You can also create a scavenger hunt that is a gift in itself. Lead you Mom on a hunt down memory lane with clues about your past and present. You know how sentimental your Mom can get so give her the clues she will love.

For more ideas check out our how to guide for creating a unique Mother’s Day scavenger hunt.