Quarantine scavenger hunt for kids has became increasingly popular recently due to the pandemic, and for very good reasons. We had actually never done a scavenger hunt for our son before until all of this happened.
But because my son enjoyed the Easter Scavenger Hunt we did for him so much, we decided to do the same for his birthday. Except this time, instead of hiding multiple clues and one final treasure (aka the Easter basket), he was searching for clues AND presents.
Find out what I mean and how you can throw your children the best birthday quarantine scavenger hunt they’ll never forget!
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Indoor Scavenger Hunt for Kids
Inside scavenger hunts are something we barely started doing this year due to being stuck indoors. However, since this has became one of his favorite surprises, we will probably continue this tradition moving forward, coronavirus or not.
Typically, we don’t get my son many birthday presents since we throw him a party with friends and family (who he gets enough presents from LOL).
But since we weren’t able to throw him a regular birthday party this year, we decided to get him a few and make it special. So instead of just handing him his presents, we had a quarantine scavenger hunt where he had to find them!
Scavenger Hunt Birthday Present Planning
Before you start shopping for birthday presents, there are a few things you should keep in mind.
What is your budget for presents?
Of course you don’t want to overdue it on the presents so it’s good to set a budget. If you have an idea of what is on your child’s wish list, this would be a great way to help you determine your budget.
How many presents do you want to hide?
In addition to the budget, you also want to keep in mind how many birthday presents you want to hide. Each scavenger hunt clue will come with a present. And no, not all the presents have to be big ones. Some of ours included character undies and socks (which he needed anyway LOL).
The presents can be a mix of small, medium and large presents so decide on how many presents you would like your child to find. Of course, the more presents there are, the longer the indoor scavenger hunt will last.
Where are some potential hiding spots for presents?
Keep in mind that these presents will be hidden throughout the house. For this reason, it would be a good idea to begin brainstorming of some hiding spots they wouldn’t normally pass through or see.
Could you hide it in the coat closet? Laundry room? In the garage? Inside a basket? Inside their least used toy box?
The gift sizes would depend on these potential hiding spots to make the scavenger hunt more successful.
Alright, now with these things in mind, you can finally start shopping for your child’s birthday presents.
Scavenger Hunt Birthday Present Ideas
Like I said, these presents don’t need to be big or expensive. It can range from small, inexpensive items to things they already need. However, it would be nice to give them 1-2 very special gifts of something they reallyy want. But this is all entirely up to you! Having a quarantine scavenger hunt will already be a special surprise in itself.
Here are a few affordable gift ideas you could use for your birthday scavenger hunt for kids that will also keep them entertained while social distancing at home. Click the links below to see more details.
Games:
Games are obviously a great way for the entire family to enjoy some fun. We ourselves have tons of family games and has been the main activity we’ve been doing these social distancing days.
– Uno cards (various versions)
– Trouble (various versions)
– Monopoly (various versions)
Click the links above to see the various versions available and additional details.
Backyard Activities
Alright let’s face it. We need to let kids go outside to burn up some of that energy of theirs to avoid us parents from going crazy LOL! So here are some backyard activities that will help do just that .
Click the links above to see more details.
Indoor Activities
But what about on rainy days? Or when it’s way to hot outside? Here are some fun indoor activities for kids to do indoors that also make great quarantine scavenger hunt gifts.
– Lego set
– Puzzles
– Play-doh
Click the links above to see more details.
Other Gift Ideas
And like I said, not all the gifts need to be a toy or activity. Some of our gifts included essentials he needed anyways like clothes, undies, socks, toothbrush etc. The fact that they are wrapped as a present is what makes it exciting for the children. ?
Alright, so once you have selected and wrapped a few presents for the birthday boy or girl, it’s time to plan your inside scavenger hunt!
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Scavenger Hunt Clues Preparation
Okay so now that you have the presents ready to go, it’s time to start getting things ready for your indoor scavenger hunt, beginning with the scavenger hunt clues.
Here are three easy and simple steps you can follow to plan your own birthday indoor scavenger hunt for kids.
1) Select hiding spots
Since you brainstormed earlier, you should already have a good idea of a few potential hiding spots. But now that you have wrapped your gifts, you know the size and where are some good places to hide them.
When choosing where to hide, keep in mind what time you plan on doing the scavenger hunt. Is it as soon as your child wakes up? Is it after breakfast? Later in the day? This way, you can envision his or her route and know what they usually pass through, which cabinets and rooms they open etc. (so you can avoid those).
A few areas where we’e hidden our quarantine scavenger hunt gifts include: the coat closet, underneath the bed, inside the pots and pans cabinet, in the laundry room, inside a toy box, in the garage etc. You choices are endless! Take a walk through your home and choose the best spots.
2) Create or download scavenger hunt clues
So you have the option of either creating your own scavenger hunt clues for kids or downloading some here.
If you choose to create your own, try your best to make the clues rhyme. It will feel a bit more kid-friendly and fun.
The scavenger hunt clues should also direct your child to the next clue without telling them exactly where it is. For example – “you’re almost done. The next clue is waiting where you have fun in the sun!”
Depending on where you plan on hiding the gifts and how many you choose to hide, will depend on the number of clues you create. But lucky for you, you can avoid this hassle by downloading the ones I created here.
3) Hide the presents
Alright, the final and easiest step – hiding the presents!
I recommend you do this step the night before your quarantine scavenger hunt after your kids have gone to sleep. This way, there are no distractions and no accidental sneak peaks of what’s coming.
One thing to note when hiding the presents is to have the clue visible on the outside of the present. This will keep them from stopping in the middle of the scavenger hunt to open each present (unless of course, this is the way you would like for it to go).
Another tip when hiding the scavenger hunt clues and presents is to scatter them throughout the house. For example, if you have a two-story house, put the first clue upstairs, then downstairs, then back upstairs. Or if you have a one-story, start from one side of the house to the other and then back. This keeps it more exciting and fun for everyone involved (plus they usually run to the next spot LOL). So the farther the clues are from each other, the better.
Once you’ve finished hiding all the scavenger hunt clues and presents, you are done for the night. Get some rest for the big day tomorrow!
Now You’re Ready for the Quarantine Scavenger Hunt!
Once they’ve found all the clues, they’ll be so eager to open up all their presents so don’t tell them about the scavenger hunt until you will want them to open them up. Otherwise, you’ll be hearing “is it time yet?” over and over and overrrr again LOL!
So when you’re ready to begin the scavenger hunt, give your birthday child the first clue to begin! Don’t forget to bring out the camera as I promise you’ll have some pretty big smiling faces to capture!
Have Fun Scavenger Hunting!
So this year, do something different for their quarantine birthday to make it special. Honestly, we may just continue this new tradition every year as my son has loved it so much so I know your kids will too!
Have you done your own quarantine scavenger hunt for kids? Will you be doing your own birthday scavenger hunt for kids this year? Please share your thoughts below as I would love t hear from you!
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So fun! We just did this for my son’s 8th birthday and he loved it!
Such creative ideas! Well done for making lemonade out of a quarantine birthday
Thank you so much! We have to do something to keep these birthday memories special ?
This is such a fab idea! I love little hunts like this we love doing them around Easter but never thought about doing it for birthdays! I had my birthday in lockdown at the end of March – the weather was lovely though so it made it so much nicer! Caitylis x x
We did our very first one for Easter also and was the inspiration to doing this one ♥ aw and happy belated birthday!
This sounds like a lot of fun. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, it really was!
What a great idea! My siblings and I did a scavenger hunt for our mom, since we couldn’t take her out!
Oh how fun! I hope your mom really enjoyed it!
What a fun idea to keep the kids busy and have some fun!
Yup, it’s like a win-win LOL
This is such a cute idea and really makes the gifts more fun. Love this !!
Yes it was so much more fun than just handing him gifts like we would normally do, thank you!
What a great idea for a quarantine birthday! I may have to do this myself if things don’t change soon.
even if things do change, I think we’re going to do this tradition for other holidays as well lol it has definitely helped put a smile on my son’s face each time 🙂
Such great ideas especially while a lot of people are still quarantined during this time!
Yup, being quarantined sucks but it’s nice to know our family is safe at home and can find a way to make celebrations special ♥
This a really cute idea! My daughter’s birthday is Friday and I’m going to download your clues to do this! Thanks ?
aw yay! I hope she absolutely loves it!! and happy early birthday to her! 🙂
Such a good idea. We’ve been to a couple of “Zoom” birthday parties. Good to see people are adapting and still finding ways to celebrate.
Oh I haven’t had Zoom parties yet but have been curious to know how they went. And yes, we have to! lol
This was a great list of ideas and very detailed! Good to keep in mind with my little ones birthday just around the corner.
Ohh yess give it a try, it’ll be such a nice surprise for them! ♥ I’d love to know how it goes!