Hi,
The event will be at a farm with 30 high school students attending. I am thinking of combing the outside hunt with some of the digital photo ideas. I've enjoyed getting many ideas from this creative source.
Thanks,
Elizabeth Meyer, Montana, USA
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Hi Nikki,
Our treasure hunt on the 4th of July was a lot of fun. We had 35 kids(and adults) running all over the yard in the rain.!! After they solved their riddles the hunt then took them into the woods with compasses and shovels and they had to find the "buried" treasure. It certainly was a memorable day--thanks for the help in getting me organized.
Sharon Kloter, Connecticut, USA
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The kids loved the treasure hunt, and it was great to have the clues age-appropriate.
Thanks!
Elizabeth Dessen, Pennsylvania, USA
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Hi,
The party is this Sat. for a group of 17-18 year old teenagers. My son just turned 18 today. We are hoping to do the video scavenger hunt if the weather cooperates. I'll let you know how it went.
Juliane Lewis, california, USA
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it was a hit and I will be using it again in June and September. :-)
Sandy Andrew, Wisconsin, USA
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Nikki
Here are some details of our successful treasure hunt.
It was for our church, at a farm, during our Fall Harvest Festival. We wanted a harvest theme, but not so much a Halloween theme. We also wanted large motor activities so small children would participate in the whole thing. And, we wanted a few team building activities since families were encouraged to sign up as a team. So, our 6 stations were:
1. Ship's Cove: each member of the team had to walk the plank looking backwards through a pair of binoculars.
2. Walleye River: each member was given a "stepping stone", and they had to get to a certain point only using the stones.
3. Spider's Web: We created a 4' x 4' spider web out of twine and attached bells. Each team picked 2 people to pass through the web without ringing the bells.
4. Hide Away Cove: We hid 15 stamps, and they had to find 10 of them and stamp a piece of paper
5. Mummy Cave: We wrapped one person in the group with Toilet Paper
6. Apple Lake: One apple per team mate needed to be bobbed. Not everyone had to bob, someone else could bob for you.
I gave everyone an envelope with their starting spots. As they completed the stations, the station judges would give them a stamp on their envelope (we had 6 station judges) and they had to be completed in the correct order.
We had 9 groups of 4-8 people
We buried 1st, 2nd and 3rd place treasures, and gave them each a map when they completed the journey. Everyone else got a glow stick when they completed.
It was great watching the families really enjoy themselves! They were running from point to point (kids dragging laughing parents) and working together to complete the tasks. They had to think and
challenge themselves a little, and we had a 100% smile-success rate. What a fantastic idea, and thank you for all your work. We'll be using it again. I think I just set a new standard at our yearly Fall
Harvest Festival. I'm already planning the next one!
Blessings,
Rebecca Walsh, USA
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Hi Nikki,
Thank you for your email, our party was on Saturday, the 22nd. As it turned out, I did not bury the treasure, I modified the party plans provided in your game and the party was a great success.
Thank you for your help.
Sherry Staub, Indiana, USA
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Hi Nikki! We had our treasure hunt yesterday. It was awesome. The kids had a blast. Age ranges were from 7 to 10. Since my daughter had a dog theme going, I changed the team names to The Pink Poodles, the Golden Doodles, and the Blue Bulldogs. Kids laughed at the names and were proud to be one of the 3. I also structured the activities you suggested to include the dog theme. For ex, the toilet paper wrapping... I pretended that one person was a hairless dog and the kids needed to put fur on by covering themselves with the toilet paper. Then they would create a furry doggy! Also, instead of a pirate flag, we made a dog flag by putting dog stickers, words to describe puppies, and drew bones. As for the treasure, we actually buried it in our yard and gave them shovels. They had a ball! Not only was it fun for the kids, it was fun for the adults watching the kids run all over the yard to complete the 6 stations.
Thanks so much for a great party idea! This is a keeper!! What a memorable experience!
Sherri Shaner, Ohio, USA
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Dear Nikki,
We had a wonderful "Americal Halloween Party" in the midst of Austria (Europe). I teach english for kids with a program called "Show Me The World" and like to do some extracurriculum activities with the kids. I tought them about the jack-o-lantern and where the name halloween comes from. we made stuffed apples, i brought pumpkin pie and after the scavenger hund we broke the jack-o-lantern piniata and had a great time.
The scavenger party planner I found to be very useful, would you have anything on treasure hunts as well?
best wishes,
Genia Lackey, Austria
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We had a Mall Scavenger Hunt for my daughters 12th birthday last Friday. It was a blast. I used some of your ideas and then added some of my own. They divided up into two teams by pulling a color out of a basket. Each team was given a gift bag with $2, a digital camera (we have keepsake photos), a pen and the list of items they needed to obtain. I gave them one hour. Some of the items were pictures of different things with the group. They were very cute and the girls had a blast. Each team came back with stories and as the evening went on at our home, the stories got funnier and funnier. Thanks for the help. It was a really good time. We are going away this weekend and there are 3 families traveling in 3 different cars. We are thinking of doing the interstate scavenger hunt. Just not sure if I will have the time to get it together before we leave.
LouEllen Michel, Maryland, USA
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Dear Nikki,
We had a great time!! The treasure hunt took about 3 hours to set up. I had 25 children over. We used compasses and shovels. The groups of kids went from clue to clue. Some were even tied on a balloon and placed an a pond to float around. (The actual clue was in a ziplock bag tied to a balloon) Each clue had an additional piece of a 'clue'. When each group collected all 6 pieces of their additional 'clue' we met at the main pirate ship (the garage, which was decorated). Each team put their 6 pieces of the 'clue' together (we had 6 teams so 36 pieces total). The 'clue' was Spongebob's theme song. They had to sing it. The reason for the additional clues was that a Spongebob pinata actually held the real treasure map and a key to the truck the treasure was hiding in. All the kids took a swing at spongebob and finally it broke. Candy and a treasure map an key came out. They read the map and unlocked the trunk for their treasure. The party was 3 hours long.
Thanks
Chantel Prater, Indiana USA
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Hi Nikki,
Yes our birthday scavenger hunt was a GREAT success. Your material gave me lots to choose from and I was grateful. I used the treasure map for the invitations and rolled them up to hand out. The list was on the treasure map and it was 8 items to look for or info to find and 8 photos to take to make memories & proof of it getting done. It was a teen girl team against teen guy team and the playing field was the city of Wichita, KS so they had a certain time to be back complete or not and the one with the most done was the winner. They all came back with wonderful stories and had lots of fun. I learned though that the guy against girl wasn't the best cause the guys were too COOL to do some of the list, but the things they did they had FUN! Whereas if they had had mixed teams the girls would have persuaded them into doing everything!!
3 of the top things they talk still about doing were:
1) Photo with policeman (extra points if he'll let you all in his car) He did but didn't thing they would all fit & they crammed in the back seat - he took the picture.:)
2) Signature of fireman (the girls took it a step farther and asked if he could bring the truck to their house for EXTRA points) they couldn't
3) the most daring (per girls) was going to get 2 balloons from some restaurant and giving one away to a kid and bring one home (this was Fri. night during busy evening meal and they went into Applebees asked for 2 balloons and went up to a family that had a girl and asked to take her picture while they were eating & the little girl was sooooo happy.
On the other hand the guys said the police they stay away from so it was crossed off their list from the start NOT to do. They like going to the mall and riding the merry go round. They also liked finding a statue to take a picture with came back with MANY statue pictures it was funny. They also didn't have a hard time finding hats & taking pictures except they were worried about messing their hair up (what's up with that!)
While planning this double birthday party it has prompted other ideas one for our leadership Christmas party at church promoting unity & working together to accomplish a task. Also I have talked with our
Coordinator who is up for the idea of a scavenger hunt during next summer's Family Reunion. Should be loads of fun.
Thanks for the great info! I am going to try to send a photo let me know if it makes it.
Dena Hudson, Kansas USA
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Thank you for your interest. Our National Treasure Hunt was a success.
We had an awards ceremony and the winning team received medals. We also had a balloon toss, horseshoe games, a coloring contest and a chili cook-off, all those contestants receiving awards. A magic show capped the evening. 60-70 people were in attendance, ages 2-80 years old.
Our event was a success. Thanks.
Sandra Stegen, USA
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Hi Nikki,
The treasure hunt we had for my 6 year old daughter was one of the best party experiences we've ever had. It went off like a fire cracker with both adults and children electrified by the teamwork, the clues, the race, the map, the treasure and most of all the fact that the hunt was switched at the very last moment from outdoors to indoors due to torrential rain. The game strategy is flexible enough to allow the whole shooting match to be moved from an outdoor setting over 1 acre to an indoor setting in 20 minutes. We had 5 teams moving between 6 rooms and the fun side of the game was enhanced tremendously. The game was more intense and nobody felt left out though some people somehow managed to leave the house while following their clues ! It was another testament to how well thought through the treasure hunt game actually is. I have subscribed to your database for future use, in fact I suspect we'll have a treasure hunt for every birthday from now on.
There's enough clues in the database to keep us going over their entire childhoods.
Thanks again for the support and good luck with the site/game/business.
Steve Tee, Kildare Ireland
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I used the Treasure Hunt Game ('The Great Hunt for Summer Vacation') for a group of 1st through 5th graders (about 80 kids) as part of our last day of school activities. They had a great time. Several kids asked me if we'll be able to do it again next year. Some of the parent volunteers and teachers encouraged me to keep all the props and signs so we can use the game again. The teachers really enjoyed it.
I'm planning to use the game once again for a class party for my son this summer ... probably with a different theme. It was easy to set up, and the challenge ideas were awesome. Thanks!
Julie Keller, Wisconsin USA
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Thank you - "It was the best birthday - -EVER" - my 15 year old had a total of 6 girls and they went around the neighborhood to 6 different house to complete the tasks. We had the party last week and the girls at school are still talking about it. Thank you sooooo much.
Siobhan Fox, Florida, USA
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Dear Nikki,
We had a wonderful "Americal Halloween Party" in the midst of Austria (Europe). I teach english for kids with a program called "Show Me The World" and like to do some extracurriculum activities with the kids. I tought them about the jack-o-lantern and where the name halloween comes from. we made stuffed apples, i brought pumpkin pie and after the scavenger hund we broke the jack-o-lantern piniata and had a great time.
The scavenger party planner I found to be very useful, would you have anything on treasure hunts as well?
best wishes,
Genia Lackey, Austria
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Hey Nikki
I did another one for a 13 year old birthday party that was pretty cool
I took a bunch of magazines, poster board, scissors and glue,
And I made a list of things to find in the magazine.
Something you would need for college
A boy
A girl
Something red
Something bright
…..
And then they made a collage on the poster board….
So then I took this one step further, and I am sure you have heard of the movie and the book "the secret"
Well we did one to talk about the law of attraction, for a group of adults. It was awesome !
Thank You
JoAnn Seckus, Illinois, USA
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Dear Nikki, many thanks. The party is over, and the treasure hunt went well. It was a very nice change from my usual treasure hunts. Good product. I actually bought and downloaded three different hunt games, and yours was by far the best. The calculator worked brilliantly! I changed it to match the combination on the lock which I already had, and it worked like a charm. How long did it take you to work out all the connections so every team would wind up with the same combination?
Thanks again
Laura Gordon, Pennsylvania USA
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Thank You for your quick response. I will definatley recommend to anyone I now planning a party interested in scavenger hunts.
Jodi Hoines, North Carolina, USA
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Thank you - "It was the best birthday - -EVER" - my 15 year old had a total of 6 girls and they went around the neighborhood to 6 different house to complete the tasks. We had the party last week and the girls at school are still talking about it. Thank you sooooo much.
Siobhan Fox, Florida, USA
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Hi Nikki!
Thanks for a great product and an even better time with friends and family enjoying our treasure hunt! We did this just yesterday for Easter and the youngest person in the group was 12. Everyone else was 15 and older, so I used a mix of adult/teenage clues. It was great. I stumped my kids....made others look like geniuses and the adults had just as good of a time watching the kids go crazy!
Overall, this was a huge success. I especially like that I was able to alter some of the clues to make them more personal to my family. I am certain that a lot more huge parties with many more great hunts are in our future.....
Thanks for everything!
Yvonne Kessel, Germany
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Hi Nikki -- I'm finally getting around to answering your emails! We finally completed our Treasure Hunt last week! We had so much fun -- thank you for the great kick-start!!!
I ordered your Treasure Hunt software package way back in February.
Your software was just what I needed to get started, get me thinking about what I wanted to do -- and it was GREAT fun! Everyone, from kids to adults, had a great time! For me, it was like Christmas, having chosen wonderful presents for all -- and watching everyone Ooooh and Aaaah. My participants had a ball! Of course, now that everyone had so much fun, next year I have to come up with a game for EVERYONE -- the grownups want to play, too!!!
Ah, the challenge!
Here's what I did with your ideas:
I used your ideas for the 6 teams and 6 ports -- to avoid them running into each other. However, since I knew I'd be running the treasure hunt during out group camping trip (4 families, 26 people), I had to wait until we got to this year's campground to set it up. Didn't know where I'd bury the treasure or what the site was like until I got there!
I had six adults manning the six 'ports' of call... and four teams. I paired the two teenagers with younger same-sex kids (girls and boys ages 7 - 10)plus a teen = (2 teams). A third team was the moms and 'little ones' under age 2, and the fourth team was the dads and little guys (two boys age 4).
We had the 'group campsite' for 40+ people, so we had our six stations spread out throughout the campsite, in the woods, and on the trail leading to our campsite.
At each location, each young pirate could earn a doubloon by completing the task. After each trial, they had to bring their doubloons to the Master of Arms to buy a piece of the puzzle for their team. After collecting all six pieces of the puzzle -- they then had to use the puzzle to find the treasure map. Once they found the treasure map, they had to use the map to search for the buried treasure.
I made several copies of the treasure map, so as each team completed their puzzle, they could find the parchment map and begin the search for the treasure. You should have seen them combing through the woods! (I made parchment maps ahead of time from wrinkled, coffee stained paper -- then used burgundy marker to draw on the map once we were in the campsite and I knew where the treasure was -- I had one of my sons pace out the path to the
treasure.)
I worked it out so that each group could search for the treasure, but the team that found it had first pick of the treasure. The 'treasure' was a box of gifts from the dollar store. After the first team picked over the treasure, the rest of the teams chose their treasure, in youngest to oldest order.
This is what we did:
Pirate Beach -- each young pirate had to decorate a pirate head-scarf to wear and create a team Pirate flag to carry on their journey.
Doubloon Inn -- Learn to tie a pirate's ship knot -- all pirates need to know how to tie ship's knots. We had the younger children learn to tie a square knot, and the older children learned to tie a bowline. Each child received an 8 ft. length of rope to learn their knots, and wear as a pirate belt. Their ropes went with them everywhere!!!
Gold Digger's Island -- The 'logic' island. (The captain needs a pirate crew that can think!) Sudoku puzzle for the older kids (4 and 6 square for kids, 9 square for adults, 25 piece jigsaw puzzle for non-number kids.) This was the log-jam station. Too hard for most -- I'll change it next time I do this.
Five Mile Lookout -- I had 4 boxes sealed with one of the puzzle-pieces inside. Each box was tied up in 100' of rope knots... they had to really work to untie the knots to get into each box! My husband and son spent an evening tying up these boxes!
Smuggler's Cove -- this is where they had to learn to walk the pirate ship's rope rigging for the sails. Rope stretched out on the ground, the young pirate's must walk the rigging looking through the wrong end of binoculars.
A great favorite!
Hideaway Harbor -- Set up two rope swings (age appropriate). The young pirates in training needed to learn how to run and jump with a rope swing and land on the King's treasure ship (at target on the ground) -- ready to do battle for treasure! (Also a great favorite.)
I used the gold foil wrapped chocolates for doubloons, and although I had expected (and built) the game for three teams, I ended up with four teams.
This meant that the teams had to negotiate (with doubloons) near the end of the game to form a melded team with enough pieces of the puzzle to find the treasure map.
We had great fun!
Eileen Blackwood, Minnesota USA
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Nikki,
Due to the size of our treasure hunt (140 participants) we found it difficult to use everything that was in the kits. We did use the pattern for the puzzle and made our own clues. We had to run two games at the same time. Both having 7 teams in each game with 10-14 players on each team. We used ciphers, cryptograms, Mad Gab clues, riddles, word searches you name it. We had the games travel all over our town. The games took about 2 1/2 hours to complete. At the end location, no matter where a team ended up, their last clue sent them on a final trek to gain the last puzzle piece. The timing worked out great. This was my greatest concern. Cars/buses you name it started rolling in one right after the other. Remember I told you weeks ago that our theme for the weekend was the Bailout.
Jesus Christ bailed us out. There was no way that any of us could pay the debt that we owe for our sins. He paid it for us.
Keeping with the theme, our last clue on a list they followed read like this. To "B" or not to "B" that is the question. Whether tis nobler to.... Oh forget it, I need a bailout! Go to the bucket and draw out your last clue. Once they climbed up into our "B" lettered bucket truck and gained the last piece, they were frantically taping them together. The first team from each game to read it to me out loud me got an envelope that declared them the winner of their game. They however needed to follow another map to the location to gain the treasure map. Cars were frantically driving everywhere. The energy was amazing. Everyone was having a great time, even when they didn't win. Once they got their respective treasure maps. The hunt was on. We buried two treasures with a backhoe and when they
finally found the right location, the digging began. The girls were able to pull their box out without a big mess. The guys team saw the lid and pulled it out letting all the dirt fall in on the treasure. The note in both boxes read. Jesus Christ died one for all and the treasure is to be shared by all.
There was a grand prize for the winning teams which was CDs from the Christian Band that was here for the weekend. There were thumbs up from everyone. Good game. My only fear now is that I know they are going to want another one.
Thanks for getting us started.
Karen Bowles, Alabama, USA
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Hi Nikki,
We had our Treasure Hunt game yesterday & had loads of fun...... I had planned this treasure hunt for the baby shower of my sister & we had loads of fun & people really loved it....it was well planned, very simple & easy to use.
I really didn't have lots of time to sit down & make my own treasure hunt & wasting lot of time in planning the game.....but with this game it made my life easier & the party lovelier.....
Thank you for all the help.
Heena Kapdi, Bedfordshire, UK
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Nikki,
It is Sunday and we are recuperating from the Halloween Party we hosted for our 10 year old son. The boys loved the treasure hunt! Thank you.
I had the boys eat and drink gross looking candy ( a bug, blood and vomit). I also bought 2 paint guns (they are manual and without CO2 or battery) and had them shoot at a skeleton that I painted on a piece of plywood (very easy). I am considering an adult party next year. Any advice? Thank you,
Patty Lamp, Illinois USA
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Dear Nikki, many thanks. The party is over, and the treasure hunt went well. It was a very nice change from my usual treasure hunts. Good product. I actually bought and downloaded three different hunt games, and yours was by far the best. The calculator worked brilliantly! I changed it to match the combination on the lock which I already had, and it worked like a charm. How long did it take you to work out all the connections so every team would wind up with the same combination?
Thanks again
Laura Gordon, Pennsylvania USA
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Nikki,
I have read through the game planner and it was helpful. I am having a 9th birthday party for my son this month and I have invited 13 other guests. It is a road rally scavenger hunt, so we will be driving around in teams. I am currently compiling the list. I've decided to set a time limit and have plenty of tasks that are each worth a point value. I hope this works well. I'm not sure how long to make the game, it's difficult to judge how long it will take to drive around and do each task. The list isn't meant to be completed. I am planning on having 3 teams of 4-5 boys each. I have purchased bandanas in 3 colors and will have the boys pick one out randomly from a bag to choose teams. We also plan on having them decorate the cars with glass paint and streamers. If the weather here in Chicago area is terrible the day of the party, we have a back-up plan to move the party to the mall. Because I am so insane, my 12 year old daughter is having her party the next ni ght and we are also doing a neighborhood scavenger hunt for that (15-18 boys and girls). Not as complicated, but we are trying to keep them occupied until the DJ arrives for a 2 hour dance party at our home. Wish me luck!
Cathy Wilson, USA
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Hi, Nikki! I have received the party planner The party will take place in Concord, North Carolina, USA, and it will be on August 5th 2006. The occasion is our 40th wedding anniversary party. The age range, I think, will be 'no kids', but I'm not sure about that, yet. And the theme of the treasure hunt is your pirate theme! We think it's going to be a lot of fun!
Judy Quickel, North Carolina USA
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Dear Nikki,
We are planning a Block Party at our church and your ideas really started my creative juices flowing!! Here are some "stations" we are considering as a way to involve the whole family in some fun together. Thanks so much for your great ideas! The planning/organizing part was THE BEST!
(These are some ideas for station activities. The activities on the lists would be shuffled around so everyone does not head for the same station at the same time. A few simple prizes would be awarded using the completed papers for a drawing. Older children could help younger ones and families could do the activities together. Volunteers would place simple bug stickers on the papers to show that a station was completed. Some of the stations are easy enough for one person to handle two activities. Each station would be clearly marked with its name and directions on how to complete the activity. Nobody complained about the bug theme so I just ran with it!!)
Nothings Bugging Me!!
Family Activity Stations
Move to each station in the order listed on your paper. Complete the activity and receive a sticker from the "Pest Control Officer". Turn in your completed paper for our prize drawing.
Ladybug Station Make a bug cookie
Buzzing Bee Station Sing a bug related song
Exterminator Station Use a spray bottle(Pressurized) to knock over
the "bugs" (Empty bottles decorated like bugs)
Bug Infested Swamp Cross the "swamp" by walking on a
plank(a long board) and hopping over bugs
Bug Tattoo Station Choose your favorite bug for a tattoo
Fly Swatter Station Move (plastic)bugs to a bucket using a fly
swatter
Fill the Hive Use a paper cup to fill your "hive"(small bowl)
with "honey"(water)
Bug Search Find at least 5 plastic bugs hiding in
the church lawn
Pat Swanson, Minnesota, USA
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Thank you - "It was the best birthday - -EVER" - my 15 year old had a total of 6 girls and they went around the neighborhood to 6 different house to complete the tasks. We had the party last week and the girls at school are still talking about it. Thank you sooooo much.
Siobhan Fox, Florida, USA
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Hello Nikki,
Thanks for the e-mails and suggestions. I have enjoyed your treasure hunt ideas and games and gave them a try at my daughters birthday party. She is 9 and the girls had a ball. We had a backwards party and it was definately the hit of the party. I also run a kids program at a guest ranch in Colorado and look forward to using many of your ideas with them. I have done many "on skis" treasure hunts and look forward to incoporating many of your ideas with my own outdoor twists. It is a nice way to spark new ideas as well as using the ones you provided.
Thank you for the follow up!
Kelli, Colorado, USA
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Hi Nikki,
The scavenger hunt is taking place in NYC on May 6; it is a night time activity for a corporate event during that week. Age range is 22-50's and there are about 25-35 people participating.
The part I am still trying to figure out is if groups should just use their phone cameras to take pictures or something else. Any thoughts?
The theme is really just sight around the city - this is the list of places and the clues that I have so far. I got a few ideas from the planner and most of them are just from research. I am trying to keep it to midtown and lower manhattan and will provide subway cards for each person but I tried to keep some of the sights within walking distance of each other.
Whitney Chernoff, New York, USA
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Thank you Nikki. We had a fantastic time the last time we did the treasure hunt. I even got carried away with the fun and hid the birthday present for my son to "hunt" down. Thank you.
Cherie Bracher, Texas, USA
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Dear Nikki,
We are planning a Block Party at our church and your ideas really started my creative juices flowing!! Here are some "stations" we are considering as a way to involve the whole family in some fun together. Thanks so much for your great ideas! The planning/organizing part was THE BEST!
(These are some ideas for station activities. The activities on the lists would be shuffled around so everyone does not head for the same station at the same time. A few simple prizes would be awarded using the completed papers for a drawing. Older children could help younger ones and families could do the activities together. Volunteers would place simple bug stickers on the papers to show that a station was completed. Some of the stations are easy enough for one person to handle two activities. Each station would be clearly marked with its name and directions on how to complete the activity. Nobody complained about the bug theme so I just ran with it!!)
Nothings Bugging Me!!
Family Activity Stations
Move to each station in the order listed on your paper. Complete the activity and receive a sticker from the "Pest Control Officer". Turn in your completed paper for our prize drawing.
Ladybug Station Make a bug cookie
Buzzing Bee Station Sing a bug related song
Exterminator Station Use a spray bottle(Pressurized) to knock over
the "bugs" (Empty bottles decorated like bugs)
Bug Infested Swamp Cross the "swamp" by walking on a
plank(a long board) and hopping over bugs
Bug Tattoo Station Choose your favorite bug for a tattoo
Fly Swatter Station Move (plastic)bugs to a bucket using a fly
swatter
Fill the Hive Use a paper cup to fill your "hive"(small bowl)
with "honey"(water)
Bug Search Find at least 5 plastic bugs hiding in
the church lawn
Pat Swanson, Minnesota, USA
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It went well. Kids loved digging up the box and splitting up the booty. Your guide was helpful, nice not having to reinvent the wheel.
Michele Currie, Oregon, USA
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Nikki,
We are planning a company picnic on July 30 of this year in Morrison, Illinois, USA. We usually have around 175 people there with ages ranging from 0-70. I'm sure not everyone will want to play, so everything should work out well.
I read the book over once on Friday, but today I will actually sit down with a committee and start planning.
Thank you for support!
Christy Hackett, Illinois USA
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Nikki - You are patience personified. Thank you for your excellent customer service. I will download now. Hooray!
Martha Wiedersheim, New York, USA
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I used the Treasure Hunt Game ('The Great Hunt for Summer Vacation') for a group of 1st through 5th graders (about 80 kids) as part of our last day of school activities. They had a great time. Several kids asked me if we'll be able to do it again next year. Some of the parent volunteers and teachers encouraged me to keep all the props and signs so we can use the game again. The teachers really enjoyed it.
I'm planning to use the game once again for a class party for my son this summer ... probably with a different theme. It was easy to set up, and the challenge ideas were awesome. Thanks!
Julie Keller, Wisconsin USA
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Nikki,
It is Sunday and we are recuperating from the Halloween Party we hosted for our 10 year old son. The boys loved the treasure hunt! Thank you.
I had the boys eat and drink gross looking candy ( a bug, blood and vomit). I also bought 2 paint guns (they are manual and without CO2 or battery) and had them shoot at a skeleton that I painted on a piece of plywood (very easy). I am considering an adult party next year. Any advice? Thank you,
Patty Lamp, Illinois USA
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Hi Nikki,
We had the Halloween treasure hunt party the day after we ordered your planner. It was my son's 12th birthday party and he complained that he didn't want to play any games, but I didn't want 10 children running through the house for 3 hours. Our party was held in an old convent in Pennsylvania, USA. The guests were aged from 6 to 35. We had a Halloween theme, since Shane's birthday is October 31st. The guests had to search for Uncle's Seymour's Last Will & Testament.
The rooms were named Mad Scientist's Lab, The Doomed Room, The Porthole to the End of the Universe, The Asylum, The Chamber of Horrors and The
Graveyard. We followed all your suggestions for the challenges, teaming older players with younger ones. The puzzle pieces led the players to the chapel (we have a real chapel with stained glass windows and oak pews in our home), where we had hidden the Last Will & Testament with directions to Uncle Seymour's most treasured worldly possessions.
My two sons, my husband and I dressed in Halloween costumes and supervised the rooms. Even after one team had located the treasure, the others were having so much fun that they asked if they could complete the remaining challenges (the one with the peas seemed to be everyone's favorite). Everyone had a great time, but what made me happiest was that my son kept thanking me the next day, telling me how much he loved me for throwing such a great party for him. Thank you for the great plans - they were well worth the money!
Gratefully,
Ildiko Mulligan, Pennsylvania USA
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Hi Nikki
We used the instant treasure hunt outdoors for My Daughters 8th Birthday Party - I used the 5-7year old hints and they were perfect
Thanks
Richard Rude, Connecticut USA
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I am in Montreal, NC, USA planning a birthday party for my grandson and his friends ages 10-12, though some younger brothers and sisters and parents will probably join in. I am the grandmother writing on the grandfathers e-mail. We live on the side of a mountain with steep slopes, lots of stone steps, a creek, a large goldfish pond and lots of good places to hide things. The party is an annual occasion with most of the children running wild, chasing each other, in what appears to an adult to be an aimless fashion. A few stay inside quietly playing board games. So...
this year the treasure hunt seems like a good idea and maybe all will engaged. I think they are definitely old enough! The party is scheduled for Sunday, June 5. I like the fact that you are interested in feed back and so enthusiastic about what you do! Sincerely,
Gale Hussey, North Carolina USA
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Hi Nikki,
I was in a bind for a party TODAY that I promised my daughter a scavenger hunt for. I was not able to focus on any ONE idea to get me started when I pulled your info up on the internet. I'm so excited because we are the "party home" of both my daughters' schools and now I feel I can do this by tonight. Thanks for sharing--and you're right...it's well worth the money in hours of time saved in planning alone. And all this is said before I've even gone through all your info. I can tell it's been well-planned though and that's huge to me.
Shelley Springhetti, Wisconsin, USA
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My kids love the treasure hunts. I am getting ready to print out the THIRD on today!!
Michele Hippensteel, Pennsylvania USA
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Hi Nikki
Thanks for being so prompt in replying to the problem I had downloading the e book. I used some ideas from the e book and it gave me a good idea on how to plan the party. I then modified it to suit our party, which we held around our local area.
My son loved the party and I think his friends will be talking about it at school today!
Yvette Atkinson, Auckland, New Zealand
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Nikki- The scavenger hunt is tonight. we are so excited. We are hosting a New Years Eve Party for our oldest daughters soccer team and their parents. Each family will be a team and will have two hours to complete the hunt through our town. The last item on the hunt requires each family to visit their favorite pizza place and bring back a large pizza to share with every one. My husband and I complied a list on 36 items that need to be gathered, made or have a picture taken of it. Most of things have to pertain to things that relate to the soccer team. I will let you know how it goes. Thank you for all your helpful information.
Tanya Stoney, North Carolina, USA
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Hi Nikki -- I'm finally getting around to answering your emails! We finally completed our Treasure Hunt last week! We had so much fun -- thank you for the great kick-start!!!
I ordered your Treasure Hunt software package way back in February.
Your software was just what I needed to get started, get me thinking about what I wanted to do -- and it was GREAT fun! Everyone, from kids to adults, had a great time! For me, it was like Christmas, having chosen wonderful presents for all -- and watching everyone Ooooh and Aaaah. My participants had a ball! Of course, now that everyone had so much fun, next year I have to come up with a game for EVERYONE -- the grownups want to play, too!!!
Ah, the challenge!
Here's what I did with your ideas:
I used your ideas for the 6 teams and 6 ports -- to avoid them running into each other. However, since I knew I'd be running the treasure hunt during out group camping trip (4 families, 26 people), I had to wait until we got to this year's campground to set it up. Didn't know where I'd bury the treasure or what the site was like until I got there!
I had six adults manning the six 'ports' of call... and four teams. I paired the two teenagers with younger same-sex kids (girls and boys ages 7 - 10)plus a teen = (2 teams). A third team was the moms and 'little ones' under age 2, and the fourth team was the dads and little guys (two boys age 4).
We had the 'group campsite' for 40+ people, so we had our six stations spread out throughout the campsite, in the woods, and on the trail leading to our campsite.
At each location, each young pirate could earn a doubloon by completing the task. After each trial, they had to bring their doubloons to the Master of Arms to buy a piece of the puzzle for their team. After collecting all six pieces of the puzzle -- they then had to use the puzzle to find the treasure map. Once they found the treasure map, they had to use the map to search for the buried treasure.
I made several copies of the treasure map, so as each team completed their puzzle, they could find the parchment map and begin the search for the treasure. You should have seen them combing through the woods! (I made parchment maps ahead of time from wrinkled, coffee stained paper -- then used burgundy marker to draw on the map once we were in the campsite and I knew where the treasure was -- I had one of my sons pace out the path to the
treasure.)
I worked it out so that each group could search for the treasure, but the team that found it had first pick of the treasure. The 'treasure' was a box of gifts from the dollar store. After the first team picked over the treasure, the rest of the teams chose their treasure, in youngest to oldest order.
This is what we did:
Pirate Beach -- each young pirate had to decorate a pirate head-scarf to wear and create a team Pirate flag to carry on their journey.
Doubloon Inn -- Learn to tie a pirate's ship knot -- all pirates need to know how to tie ship's knots. We had the younger children learn to tie a square knot, and the older children learned to tie a bowline. Each child received an 8 ft. length of rope to learn their knots, and wear as a pirate belt. Their ropes went with them everywhere!!!
Gold Digger's Island -- The 'logic' island. (The captain needs a pirate crew that can think!) Sudoku puzzle for the older kids (4 and 6 square for kids, 9 square for adults, 25 piece jigsaw puzzle for non-number kids.) This was the log-jam station. Too hard for most -- I'll change it next time I do this.
Five Mile Lookout -- I had 4 boxes sealed with one of the puzzle-pieces inside. Each box was tied up in 100' of rope knots... they had to really work to untie the knots to get into each box! My husband and son spent an evening tying up these boxes!
Smuggler's Cove -- this is where they had to learn to walk the pirate ship's rope rigging for the sails. Rope stretched out on the ground, the young pirate's must walk the rigging looking through the wrong end of binoculars.
A great favorite!
Hideaway Harbor -- Set up two rope swings (age appropriate). The young pirates in training needed to learn how to run and jump with a rope swing and land on the King's treasure ship (at target on the ground) -- ready to do battle for treasure! (Also a great favorite.)
I used the gold foil wrapped chocolates for doubloons, and although I had expected (and built) the game for three teams, I ended up with four teams.
This meant that the teams had to negotiate (with doubloons) near the end of the game to form a melded team with enough pieces of the puzzle to find the treasure map.
We had great fun!
Eileen Blackwood, Minnesota USA
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Hi Nikki,
So, just to let you know, everything went well. Easter is a big deal at our house.....always has been. My husband and I don't have any kids, but my sisters do, and have been coming to our home for Easter brunch for years...probably 15 years or so. I have always made a game of some sort for the kids...there are 8 of them. When they were little we had yarn woven in, around, under, on top of etc furniture, and knick knacks within our bottom two rooms....family room and recreation room. Slightly hidden along the trail where gifts/chocolate etc for the kids. As the kids got bigger it became more challenging. I've done Kim's games with them, word quizzes....oh many things....just can't think of them off the top of my head. I keep kidding the kids, that they are getting too old for this...the game...the gifts...the treats. But of course, they don't think so :) So, each year, it takes me awhile to come up with something a little different. Basically, what I'm looking at are 8 kids, each of whom is getting about 10 gifts (my Mum and sisters drop off their gifts to me to be included). This works out to 60 "places" within our home that I need to identify as the prize location somehow.
I don't know if this is making much sense to you, as I'm writing it. So I'd thought of a scavenger hunt of some sort for some time. So, I bought yours this year....and I was able to use the ideas. I took suggestions from the "Scavenger Hunt - Around the Home" and the "Memory Hunt". The kids
range in ages from 10 to 18. The oldest 2 brought their boy friends this year! I came up with 60 questions (5 questions per kid) ranging in difficulty eg. "How many holes are in the air tub?", "What brand name toaster oven is in the kitchen?" to "What was tested on November 13, 1996?". The answer to the last one is "the gas regulation pressure test". There is a tag that hangs off the gas pipe in the laundry room. Another one that had one of them stumped for awhile was, "Where do you find the number 39615119?". The answer is the "water meter". The kids like the challenge...they won't give up. I also had them each find 5 particular items in the house. For example....everyone had to find a tea light. These are normally around the house, but by the time eight kids have picked one up, kids #9 and 10 are having more difficulty finding one. I had a couple of other things for them to do as well.
So, it went well. I think they'll be 30 years old and I'll still be doing it. I'll read through your material again next year and come up with something else for them to do.
Thanks for the hunt/games and your emails. As I said, it went very well.
Tracey Stamp, Ontario, Canada
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I really appreciate the game. We used the game for youth church activity. The group ranging from 12- 18 years old had a fun time together. The puzzle pieces had a riddle on it that led them to the key to the treasure chest. We had a wonderful time.
Justin Peters, Massachusetts USA
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Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the instant treasure hunt game-it was a blast and so much fun! For next time, we will need to better prepared-my daughter wanted to do it all and selected 45 clue-too many for this party. She also wanted to have colored envelopes which I made from paper-that was fun but too time consuming. I am looking forward to using this again for my little one's 6th birthday in October. Or maybe we will try out the scavenger hunt.
Thanks so much!
Karen Kruidenier, Pennsylvania, USA
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Hi, Nikki! I have received the party planner The party will take place in Concord, North Carolina, USA, and it will be on August 5th 2006. The occasion is our 40th wedding anniversary party. The age range, I think, will be 'no kids', but I'm not sure about that, yet. And the theme of the treasure hunt is your pirate theme! We think it's going to be a lot of fun!
Judy Quickel, North Carolina USA
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Hi Nikki,
The treasure hunt was a success. Some of the kids were just a little confused in the beginning, either they were not listening to the instructions (typical teenagers) or my instructions were not clear. I should probably have shown samples of what they were supposed to look for like the station's names, next destination and the challenges.
But finally they got it and everybody had a great time. Thanks.
Catalina Alter, Hong Kong
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Nikki,
Due to the size of our treasure hunt (140 participants) we found it difficult to use everything that was in the kits. We did use the pattern for the puzzle and made our own clues. We had to run two games at the same time. Both having 7 teams in each game with 10-14 players on each team. We used ciphers, cryptograms, Mad Gab clues, riddles, word searches you name it. We had the games travel all over our town. The games took about 2 1/2 hours to complete. At the end location, no matter where a team ended up, their last clue sent them on a final trek to gain the last puzzle piece. The timing worked out great. This was my greatest concern. Cars/buses you name it started rolling in one right after the other. Remember I told you weeks ago that our theme for the weekend was the Bailout.
Jesus Christ bailed us out. There was no way that any of us could pay the debt that we owe for our sins. He paid it for us.
Keeping with the theme, our last clue on a list they followed read like this. To "B" or not to "B" that is the question. Whether tis nobler to.... Oh forget it, I need a bailout! Go to the bucket and draw out your last clue. Once they climbed up into our "B" lettered bucket truck and gained the last piece, they were frantically taping them together. The first team from each game to read it to me out loud me got an envelope that declared them the winner of their game. They however needed to follow another map to the location to gain the treasure map. Cars were frantically driving everywhere. The energy was amazing. Everyone was having a great time, even when they didn't win. Once they got their respective treasure maps. The hunt was on. We buried two treasures with a backhoe and when they
finally found the right location, the digging began. The girls were able to pull their box out without a big mess. The guys team saw the lid and pulled it out letting all the dirt fall in on the treasure. The note in both boxes read. Jesus Christ died one for all and the treasure is to be shared by all.
There was a grand prize for the winning teams which was CDs from the Christian Band that was here for the weekend. There were thumbs up from everyone. Good game. My only fear now is that I know they are going to want another one.
Thanks for getting us started.
Karen Bowles, Alabama, USA
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Hi Nikki,
Thanks so much for your info! We had a beach party for 3 graduates with all ages attending and had a great time.
Since we weren't in a familiar area, I made a list of "Something (with) ______." The small kids had a wonderful time and felt very included.
With appreciation,
Gail Fletcher, USA
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Hi Nikki! We had our treasure hunt yesterday. It was awesome. The kids had a blast. Age ranges were from 7 to 10. Since my daughter had a dog theme going, I changed the team names to The Pink Poodles, the Golden Doodles, and the Blue Bulldogs. Kids laughed at the names and were proud to be one of the 3. I also structured the activities you suggested to include the dog theme. For ex, the toilet paper wrapping... I pretended that one person was a hairless dog and the kids needed to put fur on by covering themselves with the toilet paper. Then they would create a furry doggy! Also, instead of a pirate flag, we made a dog flag by putting dog stickers, words to describe puppies, and drew bones. As for the treasure, we actually buried it in our yard and gave them shovels. They had a ball! Not only was it fun for the kids, it was fun for the adults watching the kids run all over the yard to complete the 6 stations.
Thanks so much for a great party idea! This is a keeper!! What a memorable experience!
Sherri Shaner, Ohio, USA
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Hi,
The event will be at a farm with 30 high school students attending. I am thinking of combing the outside hunt with some of the digital photo ideas. I've enjoyed getting many ideas from this creative source.
Thanks,
Elizabeth Meyer, Montana, USA
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Nikki,
We are planning a company picnic on July 30 of this year in Morrison, Illinois, USA. We usually have around 175 people there with ages ranging from 0-70. I'm sure not everyone will want to play, so everything should work out well.
I read the book over once on Friday, but today I will actually sit down with a committee and start planning.
Thank you for support!
Christy Hackett, Illinois USA
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Hi Nikki!
It went very well. Because we are a heritage building, I was able to find lots of unusual and interesting questions. For example there are pictures of the classes on the three floors dating back to 1907. One question was how many colours had the double front doors been (class pictures were always taken on the front steps). There are many facts/stories lining the walls up to the attic so I was able to pick out a few interesting questions from there. Anyway the students had a blast. I had also created a treasure map puzzle and as they searched for answers to the scavenger hunt they were also looking for puzzle pieces. At the end they put all of the pieces together and there was a riddle about where to find "treasure". They loved it!
Beverly Ruberg, British Columbia, Canada
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I used the Treasure Hunt Game ('The Great Hunt for Summer Vacation') for a group of 1st through 5th graders (about 80 kids) as part of our last day of school activities. They had a great time. Several kids asked me if we'll be able to do it again next year. Some of the parent volunteers and teachers encouraged me to keep all the props and signs so we can use the game again. The teachers really enjoyed it.
I'm planning to use the game once again for a class party for my son this summer ... probably with a different theme. It was easy to set up, and the challenge ideas were awesome. Thanks!
Julie Keller, Wisconsin USA
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