Subterfuge and excitement at the church treasure hunt!

Nikki,

I decided to bury the treasure right at the edge of the woods on our property.

I've written a clue that will bring the searchers to the map (or final clue). I haven't written the last step of final instruction, but I'm partial to little rhymes rather than maps. I'm sure I'll have no trouble coming up with something once I give it a few minutes.

The party is for the deacon and pastoral staff for my church. I used the idea you gave me to name each station for a city in Paul's journeys.

Here's a fun thing I've added. The guests are aware that there's a church leadership party and they know the date and time, but NOT the location. In fact, they haven't been told who is hosting the party--only that it is a church leadership party.

On the night of the party, they go to a local fountain and bench to meet a man with a black trench coat and hat who will give them a clue that leads them to my house (where the party and hunt will be).

I have reservations from 14 families who have called a cell phone number and left reservations following a message from a voice that isn't mine. People with questions have been directed to the church secretary who is in on the secret and can answer questions or ask me and get back with the guests.

I'm having a ball with it. Thanks, Nikki, for your great ideas and your well-written plan.

Kim Bickel, Indiana USA

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Party is great success

Thank you for your help, the party was a great success!! I look forward to using it again for my son's party next spring. Have a blessed day,

Therese Teilmann, USA

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Youth group bonfire and night treasure hunt

Yes. we are well on our way. I absolutely LOVE what you have put together.

With a couple of minor tweaks, we are set for our big Youth Group Bonfire and Night Treasure Hunt. We are hosting it on a farm outside with the stations and some added riddles to spice up the hunt and excitement. The date is October 28th and the kids are really getting excited.

Thank you again for such a great product and for checking in on me, I really appreciate it.

Sincerely, Bridget Taft

Youth Director, Abiding Word Church

Bridget Taft, Illinois, USA

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Writing own rhyming clues for treasure hunt

Hello,

I recently ordered both the treasure hunt and pirate package from you. The material I received helped because this Treasure hunt is for 25 of my two sons close friends ages 12-14, which means the hunt is in a 3 mile area around our neighborhood and the clues (15 in all) need to be challenging.

I drew out 4 maps ( with burned edges !) giving the familiar landmarks different names, i.e... a church is renamed The Holy Ground, the firehouse is named The House of Hose and Ax, a big clay mound located near a baseball field is called Blood Mt.... The teams will have different colored bandannas and each team member will be giving a title and responsibility during the hunt.( I want this to be a team building experience) so..

The Captain holds and read the map, The Scholar is read all the clues out loud and hold on to them, the Pathfinder holds and uses the compass for the team, the Musician plays and holds an instrument (a plastic

flute) when called upon, the 1st Mate?s job is to make sure all rules are followed and to keep the team together.. etc...

Coming up with the clues was very time consuming because I wanted them to be challenging and to rhyme. (The first clue for one of the teams is 'Proceed SW as swift as you can, till thou is standing on sacred land. Get close to the bronze statue made up of three, then search for a clue below the knees' ) Also, the clues couldn't be the same because each team?s path is different and I had to make sure that the distance traveled was fair (there are hills), as well as having them come from a different direction towards the 'treasure', and I walked each path myself.

The treasure is a real wooden chest, a size of a bread box, filled with play jewels and candy. It will be hidden near a bank of rocks under some foliage.

I'm excited for The Hunt to begin and I hope everything goes as planned!! If this turns out to be a big hit among the kids, I might start my own business planning treasure hunts!

Thanks,

Lisa, Alabama USA

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Pirate treasure hunt at bowling alley

Dear Nikki,

We are holding my son Andrew's 7th birthday party at a bowling alley. The theme is "Pirate Bowling". I am not quite sure where I will hide the treasure (which will be an actual wooden priate chest filled with rinestone "jewels", plastic "gold coins", and ring pop lollipops), but it will have to be somewhere in the party room we have been delegated, so... I thought maybe I would hide it under one of the tables inside a cardboard box, then the last clue could be: "This very last clue will lead the way, and you will find the treasure today. Set sail right away for the party room, to sing a happy birthday tune, then dig through cardboard if you are able, to find the chest buried under the table."

We are also giving out "party bags" in the form of small plastic treasure chests (that lock with a key) filled with plastic gold coins, skull lollipops, gem gummies, pirate rings, and a small keychain compass (that actually works), as well as a pirate map, rolled up and tied with a red ribbon.

The invitations are the Oriental Trading Company's "Invitation in a bottle" that comes with an eye patch. I am also considering hiring a "pirate" to come to the party and "lead the treasure hunt". I purchased a lock for the chest and a bunch of "dummy keys" and I thought we could put all of the keys in a glass bowl and let each child pick one, then when the treasure is "found" each child can attempt to unlock it with their key. When even the birthday boy's key will not open the lock the pirate will reveal that he actually has the key around his neck on a red ribbon. He then gives the key to Andy to open the chest revealling all of the goodies.

Thanks

Laura Greenberg, California, USA

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Halloween party planning is such fun!

Nikki,

We did our treasure hunt for a Halloween party we hosted. It was a huge success. I had 14 boys, ages 5-10, and we did it in the house. I spent countless hours after my kids went to bed getting prepared. I couldn't wait and was hoping the kids would have as much fun doing it as I had planning. I had great parent helpers. Surprisingly, the winners were the "little" guys team.

You are a genius!!!! As a non-creative thinker, I could never have come up with something so much fun. The only major change I made was the bobbing for apples station. I felt it would be too messy, and not so sanitary. Instead, I had them remove some "body parts" from the patient in the Operation game. They got a big kick out of that. Otherwise, I followed the Halloween version very closely.

Thanks again!

Gretchen Birch, ohio, USA

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Treasure hunt based on pirates of the Caribbean

Our treasure hunt was based on the pirates of the Caribbean II dead mans chest characters. It was a swarm of fun for all and a huge hit, participants and watchers alike enjoyed the games and puzzles and the treasure at the end!! Thank you for the kit it was a big hit. A lot of work transforming it to my theme on the computer. But so worth it. We had three teams of 3-4 boys ages 11-14. Thanks again

Monique Rogers, Georgia USA

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Girl scout treasure hunt

Hi Nikki,

The treasure hunt went well. I ran 7 of them in 4 days at Girl Scout Camp with girls aged 6-11. I managed and fun was had by all. I even heard from some of them that my station was the best one at the camp.

Thanks again.

Lisa Long, Virginia, USA

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Fun for 8 year olds at treasure hunt party

Nikki,

The treasure hunt was a great success.... I adapted your plans. I had about 12 8 year old boys and girls.... I put them into teams of 3. Each team had a color,... so the clues led to colored poker chips (with the teams corresponding color) which they then found and turned in to get their next clue (each team had an official "clue giver" who held all that team's clues in numeric order)......

For little people this made management of clues and adult supervision much easier. After every two successful clues...the team had a physical challenge ( for example, diving into our pool....swimming through some hoops and picking up gold coins)....The "clue givers" were official judges of the challenges and distributed next clues. The last physical challenge involved a relay race with balloons....the last clue was a puzzle piece (as you suggested) inside the balloon.

When the kids popped their team balloon they realized they needed to come together with the rest of the teams to construct the last clue. They loved the race, the competition, but in the end they were all together as they went -shovels in hand - for the treasure. The treasure was buried in a plastic box in the woods.....amongst all the shiny stuff (beads and gold coins) was a pinata of a treasure chest. The pinata was hung from a tree... and every one had a chance to take a shot at busting it open. Parents loved it.....kids loved it more... they were focused, challenged, excited, and busy.....it took a total of about 55 minutes. Could have gone on longer...but we were a bit generous with the help.. and the kids were a lot smarter and resourceful than I expected.

Good luck with your web site. It was really helpful.

Jamie Jensen, New York, USA

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Mystery Island Family Reunion

I have read through the planner and know this is going to be lots of fun. We are having a family reunion July 27, 28, 29, 2007 and I am planning this treasure hunt. I am so glad I found you and the treasure hunt that is all put together for me. The theme of our reunion is mystery island, it is located on a lake and we have never been there as a family before. I have been there twice now to plan /set up the reunion. There will be about 100 people of all ages. There is a beach area and dock and woodsy area on about 5 acres of land where we will have a treasure hunt. I feel this is going to be a perfect setting for a treasure hunt. I am so excited that I got this great tool to make everything so much easier.

Thank you

Sheila Jeffcoat, Texas, USA

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Treasure hunt kids running around like crazy

Hi Nikki,

Thanks for the Treasure Hunt. My son's 8th birthday party was great. All the kids loved the hunt and the last clue was a treasure map that lead to a buried treasure. They all were running around like crazy. My son still talks about it a week later. He wants to do it again next year.

My daughter is having her 16th birthday in November, I was wondering if I would have access to the site to make a treasure hunt for her party?

Thanks

Denise Feldle, New York USA

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Mystery treasure hunt

Mystery treasure hunt in Georgia for 7 year old's birthday party

Sean Bates, Georgia USA

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Scavenger hunt in limo

Hello Nikki,

I have read through your scavenger hunt planner and have gotten some good ideas. The party is in Ann Arbor, MI for my daughters 14th birthday this weekend. My husband got a limo to truck 14 girls around. I think I want to go with a photo theme around town. Any thoughts? I'm sure they'll have fun no matter what.

Debi

Debi Kacznski, Michigan USA

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Thirty teenagers kept busy in treasure hunt

Thank you for the planning kit. The treasure hunt was a success. We named the stations Cannibal Island, where they had to eat flesh bottom feet with Rat Scat and whisker sauce (sushi with soy sauce) and Baby Rat eyeballs for dessert (Boba gelatin balls), Mexico Mathematico, where they completed a series of problems, Tour De France, Where they completed a bicycle obstacle course, Kansas City, where as a group they raced to bite the corn off the husk and fill their group cup with corn for the hungry crows, St.Francis Hospital, where they completed a "name the human bones" drawing and each took a turn on the game operation to remove the bones, Figi Island, where one person from the group needed to retrieve fresh water balloons ( water balloons) and bring them back to camp!

They all had a good time. We had about thirty teenagers, both boys and girls, so it was a great activity to bring them all together. Thanks!

Susan Vazquez, California, USA

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Already setting up the treasure hunt

Yes, I'm working on setting up the Treasure Hunt. Have read it through twice and am making lists of things to do and items to buy, and understanding how to begin the game and follow through.

The party will be in Fairview Park (a suburb of Cleveland), Ohio, on Saturday, December 9, 2006 in my home.

The special occasion is the 43rd Annual Donahue Family Party- for immediate family only: parent, 5 children, spouses, and grandchildren. There will be a total of 22 people. The age range is 10 years to 70. There are 7 teenagers, 12 adults, 3 children. The theme of the party is 'Memories.' The theme will be played out with old photos, funny family experiences, music and penny candy from the eras of the attendees.

The party consists of cocktails and appetizers, followed by games, dinner, gifts, more games, and sometimes entertainment. Last year we had a juggler/magician. This year I think the Treasure Hunt, Mystery game, and a couple of other games will be enough.

I am still working on clues and challenges. I think I understand how the game works but will email you if I have a problem. Sounds like it will be fun.

Thank you for your email

Julie Donahue, Ohio USA

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Pirate treasure hunt ideas for Quilter's group

Hi Nikki,

Your planner is great! On Thursday of this week is the annual picnic for my Quilt Guild. I had been in charge of our picnic for 4 out of the last 6 years and this year, nothing was said about it so I really didn't think about it. When the Guild asked me what I was going to do for the picnic this year, I was kinda on the spot and didn't want to say that I wasn't doing anything, so on a whim I said "we are going to have a pirate theme this year with a treasure hunt", not having one clue how to pull this off. That was in early June.

I started searching for anything that could help me with this. We have a range of ages from mid 20's to late 60's and wanted something to accomodate all. I came up with the idea to make up invitations using scrapbooking paper with a map printed on it and rolled it up and put it in an empty glass bottle with a cork. (they went over well!). On the invitation, I put that costumes were optional, and I have a prize for the best dressed. A few have told me they will be in costume. I found wooden treasure chests that I stained and I'm using little ones for the favors and a big one is going to have the prize in it. I found a pattern to make sails to fit on a picnic table in one of my children's party books, so I made up one of those to put on the food table. So I had somethings started, but had no clue on how to do an actual treasure hunt.

I searched the book stores in my area, and found nothing. I even asked the clerks if they had any idea if there was a book out there that could help me with this. Aparently there are several on scavenger hunts, but nothing for a treasure hunt. I was getting pretty desperate, so I googled it. Your site came up on the third attempt and when I found it, I thought that I hit the jackpot!. I was not wrong. I have read the entire book and have started to make my plans. I will let you know how things go after Thursday.

Sincerely,

Johanna Ramsden, Pennsylvania, USA

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Treasure hunt completed!

My event is done - it was great!

Amy Tuttle, Massachusetts, USA

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Players wanted to do treasure hunt again

Hi Nikki

It was a big hit at my son's 7th Birthday party. It was a pirate themed b-day and I used some of the riddles and I made a treasure map that at each station had gold coins to collect and then ended at a real treasure chest that my son had ask for filled with treasures and gifts for him and his friends....he loved it and they all wanted to play again.....thanks for the help!

Jennifer Troutman, Pennsylvania USA

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Treasure hunt for last day of school

We are planning the hunt for May - the last day of school for my 11 yr old daughter there will be 10-15 children for the hunt and they are very excited!, We have a 75 acre farm so the hunt will keep them busy finding the clues and especially the treasure!

My daughter loves pirates, and the whole concept of treasure hunting, can you give me some more ideas on what to put in the treasure box?

I plan on burying the treasure by an old cabin that's been here since before Oklahoma was a state! I call it blackbeard's haunted hideout! Makes things more interesting for the kids!

Rob Waddle, Oklahoma USA

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Scavenger hunt planning book is a wonderful resource

Hi Nikki,

What at wonderful resource your scavenger hunt e-book is. The hunt is tonight and I have already spent about three hours prepping with at least 3 more to do. It's raining here so we are keeping game inside the house, on the porch and in the screen in porch too.

The boundaries, rules and age appropriate list were extremely helpful. Our group is ages 8-9 girls. There are 9 girls coming all of whom will be randomly divided into three groups of three. Unfortunately one of the babysitters cancelled last night so I'm now wrestling with three teams and two supervisors.....

Got to go, but I will f/u with news and feedback.. You are amazing to have the care and concern to email me.

I dearly appreciate it.

Thanks,

Lee Anne McClymont, North Carolina USA

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Treasure hunt party in historical park

Hi Nikki-

I am planning a 'treasure hunt' party. There will be around 10 kids between the ages of 9 and 12. Some parents may stay for the party as well. We are having the party (in one of the outdoor pavilions) at a local state park. I plan to set up several stations (in the pavilion itself) where the kids have to complete a 'challenge' in order to continue (as you suggest in the original plan). The park is a historical civil war site, and has a rather long trail and about a dozen historical markers scattered along the trail. I obviously can't dig a hole at the park, and I am hesitant to place the 'treasure' along the trail for fear that someone else will encounter it and either take it or move it. Ideally, I would love for each of the kids to have a more individualized 'treasure hunt' at the end of completing the activities at the tables in the pavilion. I also thought that maybe the kids could work in pairs, and that would be good.

So here is my idea at the moment...... After breaking up into pairs, the kids would complete each of about a half dozen activities in the pavilion area. They would pick up a piece of the puzzle at the completion of each activity (again, I have no problem with devising 4 or 5 different puzzles - one individualized for each team). So, at the completion of the activities the kids will have either a map or a picture (or both) of their final destination. They would have to locate this destination and answer a question, or some other challenge type thing in order to get the treasure. Once the kids complete the final question or 'challenge' they would return to the pavilion and turn in the answer (or whatever) in order to receive their treasure. The treasure itself will be a little box that includes the party favors, so each child will get a 'treasure'. The part where I have the dilemma is what the actual final destination or challenge would be. I want it to be fun for t he kids, and not like work or a school field trip, for example.

Time hiking the trail with the markers could be an issue as well. I hiked the trail this morning, alone, and at a pretty good pace, and it took me about an hour. I only have about 3 hours for the party in all. Although I don't mind hiking a portion of the trail, and we will probably end up letting the kids do that, I don't want to be rushed, or hiking around in the woods for a large part of the party. I would rather the kids and parents relax and enjoy themselves in a more freeform way.... if that makes sense.

If you have any ideas, that would be great. I love the initial plan. It's perfect. I'm going to modify it a little to meet our particular needs.

Thanks.

Sam Neil, Virginia USA

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Great scavenger hunt

Our scavenger hunt was GREAT!!!!!!!!! Thanks. The book was priceless :)

Sherita McLamore, Maryland, USA

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School treasure hunt

Hi Nikki, Thank you for your treasure hunt book. We held our treasure hunt a couple of weeks ago and it consisted of 12 groups of 10 year old children, a total of 110 kids. The treasure hunt was a culminating activity of our term's unit 'What is your treasure?' We had 6 stations and made up fun challenges at each stop, the children received a piece of the last puzzle each time they successfully completed a challenge. The teams eventually ended up in the principal's office where they found a spade and a beautifully tea-stained treasure map that directed them to a sand pit on the school property where the treasure was buried. The winning team received the contents of the treasure chest and each participant a love heart with the words 'Where your treasure is, there will be your heart also' Matt 21:6 with a chocolate bar attached to the back. The children absolutely loved the hunt and it was a highlight of the term. Your book was so helpful in setting up the treasure hunt, wh ich was quite complex with so many children involved. We will definitely use all of the tips again when we run the treasure unit next year. Thank you for all of your help and your follow-up emails which ensured the day was a huge success!

Anna Payne, Queensland, Australia

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Family Christmas treasure hunt

Dear Nikki hope you had a great Christmas,

The treasure hunt went really well - especially the challenges. Of course the losing team had to do a forfeit, we dressed them in Santa outfits and the rest of us were their reindeer - the forfeit was that Father Christmas had to go to the nearest post box and post his travel receipts back to Lapland and ask the first passer by if they could take a photograph of us all as proof that father Christmas had been to Croydon Surrey England - we did it, but not before mum and dad had run off into a neighbour?s garden to avoid all possible chance meetings with anyone they knew!

And just to get everything into context I am 43 mum is 65 and dad 75 - why haven?t we played this years ago?

I have taken pictures to send to you. Thanks very much.

Nick Wahla, Croydon England

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Pirate treasure hunt has fantastic feedback

Hi Nikki,

I just wanted to let you know that we had our Pirate Party this past Saturday and had 160 in attendance. We followed your suggestion of only having the 6 stations, making sure to have enough room and supplies for two teams to be at any given port at one time. Because of the size of our party and the broad range of age groups from 4 to 15, we slightly modified the activities at some of the ports, and the party went splendidly following your schedule. Each color team had an arm or headband in their team color and the team carried a team flag which we affixed to 5-ft sticks (so if anyone had to take a break to go to the bathroom they could easily find their team flag when they came back into the room.)

As each guest arrived we gave them their arm/headband based on the child's age, then sent them to the tattoo parlor for a fake tattoo. We had a professional photographer ready to take individual photos, then fed them a nautical lunch of fish sticks, macaroni and cheese, and tator tots, following by dirt cups (choc pudding with crushed Oreo on top and a gummy worm stuck in) and also pirate cookies. Once everyone finished eating, our team leaders held their flags high in the air so all of the participants could find their team and then the fun began.

We gave out a puzzle piece at each port once the team completed each activity, and once they finished all, they put their puzzle together. The little ones' puzzle gave a simple clue to directly go to find their treasure. The older kids puzzle was the first clue in a series of clues that led to their treasure. We had a different treasure location for each color team.

The feedback on Monday at work was unbelievable. Everyone had a fantastic time. The parents loved it too and still say 'ARRRRR' to me every time they pass me at work. Parents said the kids were thrilled with their treasure bags and most did not want to take off their pirate outfits when they got home. Our next party will be a Halloween party in October. I don't know how we are going to top this one!

Our photographer took over 300 pictures at the party and we get them back tomorrow. I can't wait!

A million thanks!

Judy McEvoy, New York USA

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Is Nikki Wilson real?

Nikki- So you are a real person. What a nice surprise.

Actually this is part of a larger fundraising event for

Orphans of Aids Victims in Africa. I have a 60 acre

piece of property with about 5 acres of woods with trails etc I was thinking of burying the treasure in the woods. I have not had a chance to thoroughly go through what I down loaded from you but I will soon to make sure it applies.

Thanks, I will definitely contact you if I need to.

Liza Lightfoot, Wisconsin USA

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Scoobie Doo in the Scavenger Hunt

Hi Nikki

I just wanted to give you an update on my Scavenger Hunt. It was a great sucess. Thanks for all of your help. We had one team come dressed as the scoobie doo gang and they even painted the van to look like the mystery machine. I have attached a few photos for you to see.

Everyone said that I had to do it again next year. Thanks again it was a blast

Kelly LaPorte, Ontario, Canada

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Plans to have a lot more scavenger hunts

Hi Nikki,

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 were 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 mixed teams the girls would have persuaded them into doing everything.

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 the 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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Customer appreciation party treasure hunt

My Party is for July 1. It's 1 year customer appreciation for a tanning-hair salon preps are going great have not really got all details worked but seems very straight forward.

Denise Siddall, Ontario Canada

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Teenage scavenger hunt

Thank you for checking on the party progress. We had the party and played a couple of the games. The kids (thirteen year olds) loved the scavenger hunt. One of the girls said she wanted to do the same thing for her party.

The party was a success. Thanks for your help,

Kelly Taylor, California USA

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