Are you looking for a fun Christmas tradition & holiday activity for the family? Download these printable Christmas scavenger hunt clue cards. Included in this fun activity are 20 rhyming riddles for kids solve and uncover a fun treat or gift. Use over Christmas break or to uncover a Christmas Eve box!
When the holidays roll around, there’s no better way to get into the spirit of the season than by playing together with a Christmas scavenger hunt. This game is a great way to engage your entire family in some friendly competition and spend some quality time together.
Whether you want to play during a Christmas party or another holiday gathering, this guide will help you get started. Simply follow the steps and ideas below to plan your own holiday scavenger hunt that everyone will love.
What are some good Christmas Scavenger Hunt Ideas?
To add a bit more of the holiday spirit, here are a fun cute ideas that you can pick and choose from:
- Have an Elf on the Shelf or Santa deliver the first clue.
- Wrap the first clue as a present that’s opened on Christmas Eve.
- Encourage your team to dress in festive holiday attire or an ugly Christmas sweater.
- For every clue that’s solved, a team member gets to take a piece of Christmas candy or a holiday treat from the prize bowl.
- Hide a small holiday-themed toy in with the final clue for the winner.
- Have players carol or sing Christmas songs while they search.
- Set up a cocoa bar to enjoy when the players find the last clue.
Now that you have all the tips and ideas for planning your own Christmas activity, let’s talk about some fun clues.
What are some clues for a scavenger hunt?
While a Christmas scavenger hunt checklist is fun (see some in our Christmas Traditions), having Christmas scavenger hunt clues is just a bit more fun. Kids will race around the house solving Christmas riddles. It just makes it more interactive and engaging.
Take a look at some of these fun Christmas rhyming riddles we include as clue cards in our printable Christmas scavenger hunt.
Clue 1
Ready or not, this Christmas treasure hunt has begun. Find the first clue where the stockings are hung.
Clue 2
Christmas carolers sing beautifully in a choir. Go to the family car and look behind the tire.
Clue 3
Red and white stripes and a cool minty taste; these striped candies, they never go to waste!
Clue 4
To stay on Santa’s nice list, don’t be a grouch. You next clue can be found, under the cushion on the couch.
Plus sixteen more for a total of twenty Christmas clues for a scavenger hunt. You choose the order for your holiday fun.
What are good prizes for a Christmas scavenger hunt?
There are two ways to incorporate gifts or small trinkets with holiday scavenger hunt. You can have a gift with each new clue or keep a big gift, like a Christmas Eve Box, for the end of the treasure hunt.
Small Prizes
Small gifts are perfect for a scavenger hunt. You can have a small trinket for each scavenger hunt seeker. Christmas party favors or candy canes are perfect to place with each clue. Perhaps your small prizes can be placed together into something larger. For example, have all the ingredients and supplies needed to create a gingerbread house or cookies for Santa.
Christmas Eve Box
You might ask what’s in a Christmas Eve Box? A Christmas eve box is a gift given the day before Christmas. Often it contains Christmas pajamas, a Christmas movie, a Christmas book, hot chocolate and other night before Christmas ideas.
Christmas Presents
If you hold a Christmas scavenger hunt on Christmas morning, consider having a Christmas present with each new clue. This would make a fun Christmas morning activity for the kids and instead of the Christmas tradition of opening all the presents underneath the Christmas tree, you are moving around the house finding a new present with each clue card.
Elf on the Shelf
If you have an Elf doll, an Elf scavenger hunt is the perfect idea. Simply have your Elf on a Shelf bring the first clue and then let your kids hunt for the rest of the clues. You can use the Christmas scavenger hunt below or use a similar treasure hunt meant for an Elf on the Shelf scavenger hunt.
How to Plan a Christmas Scavenger Hunt
The first step in planning a Christmas scavenger hunt is printing a copy of the Christmas scavenger hunt clues. You can download the festive printable PDF here. It contains both clues & an answer key.
Once you have those printed out, you’ll cut them apart and choose which clues work before the the locations you want to include in your Christmas scavenger hunt. You can also make sure the fun last longer by making sure you include more cards.
The cards are Christmas themed with cute patterns and rhyming clues that will take players all through out the house looking for their next clue.
The second step is to place the clues around your house, yard or apartment. You can be as creative as you want with this part. You can make it easy by placing the clues in obvious places or get creative and hide them in harder to find spots.
If you’re hiding the clues inside, we recommend that you put them in locations that are safe and not too difficult to get to. You can also pair teens or older kids with younger children, so all hunters are on an equal playing field.
The third step is to gather your family or group of friends together and explain the rules of the game. You’ll want to go over how many people will be playing, what the goal of the game is and any other important details.
Once participants understand the rules, you’ll be ready to start the game. If you’re playing as a team, when all the clues are found, the team that has found the most clues wins the game.
If you’re playing as an individual, the first person to find all of the clues and make it back to the starting point is the winner. You can even set a stop watch or give a time limit and let each person run the clues one at a time.
No matter how you play, a Christmas scavenger hunt is a great way to get everyone in on the holiday fun.
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With these simple steps, you’ll have everything you need to plan your own Christmas scavenger hunt.
Printable Christmas Scavenger Hunt PDF
Santa is about to come, but before he does, it’s time for the whole family to have some fun!
Follow these Christmas treasure hunt clues. 20 fun Christmas Themed Scavenger Hunt Riddles that are perfect for an at home scavenger hunt. Christmas Treasure Hunt rhyming riddles will lead your kids indoors and outdoors.
Choose the order of scavenger hunt clues and omit clues that do not fit your home or seeker. At the end of the treasure hunt, find a surprise gift, candy or even a fun Christmas treat.
What you get with purchase:
- 20 Christmas Scavenger Hunt Clues Instant Download
- Christmas Themed Scavenger Hunt Riddles Answer Key
Click here to download and printable Christmas Scavenger Hunt Clues. You can also get the Christmas clues in the Year-round Scavenger Hunt Set.
Download the Christmas Scavenger Hunt Printable PDF
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How to Print at Staples
Don’t have a printer? You can print at your local print shop or your Staples Printing Center. Watch this video for how I print my PDF documents at Staples.
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For more Christmas fun, try these holiday season ideas:
Traditions are routine activities your family does every year. Take a look at these 25 Christmas Traditions to start now! Some really cute ideas you might use year after year. Pin to Pinterest.
Want to fill the day before Christmas with some family fun? These Christmas Eve Traditions including holiday activities the whole family will enjoy. Pin to Pinterest.
If you have a North Pole visitor, instead of the Christmas hunt, get the Elf on the Shelf Scavenger Hunt! This set includes 22 treasure hunt clue cards that are fitting for your Elf on a Shelf doll. Pin to Pinterest.
With these fun Christmas activities and Christmas scavenger hunt game in hand, you’re ready to start planning an epic holiday scavenger hunt for your friends and family.
Merry Christmas!
WHAT’S TRENDING? Looking for a few engaging activities? Grab Minute to Win it Games – Traditional, Holiday, Group, and more! Use these fun activities in the office, classroom, or at your next birthday party.
Last Updated on September 27, 2022 by Ashley at Frugal Coupon Living