It's time to spice up your game night with a Zoom scavenger hunt. Scavenger hunts will have you and your crew competing to find the items on your list before the clock runs out, and the best part is, it's so easy to create one with Zoom. Here are 11 Zoom scavenger hunt ideas to challenge your friends during your next virtual hangout.
While you might associate scavenger hunts with the outdoors or summer camp, holding one indoors works just as well and they don't require much work to start. Even if you and your friends aren't together IRL, you can compete in a scavenger hunt together over video chat with a bit of planning. To hold one on Zoom, you don't need anything but a computer, a decent internet connection, a pen and paper to keep score, and a printable scavenger hunt sheet.
A Zoom scavenger hunt requires little setup. To start, you'll need to create a scavenger hunt list. Since you're all hunting for things inside your homes, these should be things you may have lying around your place. A good mix will include varying levels of difficulty. The host can come up with extra rules to make it more challenging, too, by incorporating time limits for each item on the list.
After you've got a list of items, pick a date and time to schedule your Zoom scavenger hunt, and have everyone print out or download a copy of the list. If you don't have a Zoom account yet, you'll need to create one beforehand. It's important to note that if you're using the free option on Zoom, you'll have a limit of 40 minutes of group video chatting with three or more people unless you have a Zoom plan (starting at $14.99 a month) with unlimited group chatting.
When it's time to start, set a timer on your computer or phone. While the clock is ticking, you and your friends will search for the items on the list. When the time is up, you can all return to your screens to tally up who gathered the most items. Some Zoom scavenger hunt ideas can include tricky items or fun themes to make the night more interesting.
Most of the ideas below are inspired by what I'd like to see in a Zoom scavenger hunt with my friends, and a couple come from suggestions I found from searching online. You'll find that if you search for ideas, some suggestions for children's scavenger hunts can easily work for adults, too.
1. Word-based scavenger hunt
Sometimes an abstract item list can help switch up the game. The Android Soul describes a word-themed scavenger hunt as one for kids and family, but it would be just as fun for adults if you choose the words wisely. Using a word theme, you can have your friends search for items that represent the word. For instance, the word win could be an old trophy or a photo of a day you felt lucky. Love could be a picture of your best buds or your partner. This theme means the sky's the limit, and you actually might learn more about your friends along the way.
2. A ticket stub from the last three years
While you and your friends may have a few ticket stubs lying around from a favorite concert or event, if you limit it to the last three years, it's a bit more challenging to track down.
3. A photo of your first pet
Whether you had a dog named fluffy or a goldfish that only lived for a month, odds are, most people have old pet photos in their closet.
4. A pair of yellow flip flops
Most of your crew owns flip flops but by making an item a specific color, it makes it a lot less likely they'll even own it, let alone locate it during a scavenger hunt.
5. An alphabet-inspired scavenger hunt
PlayPartyPlan.com has an example sheet for this idea of using an alphabet as your theme. The scavenger hunt has participants find an item for each letter of the alphabet. A for an apple, B for a loaf bread, C for a coaster, and so on. It might yield some hilariously unexpected results, especially if your friends accidentally misspell.
6. Create your wildest outfit
Give your friends a time limit to create a totally out-there outfit, by purposely pairing things that don't go together. You can award the point for this to whoever came up with the most wild look.
7. Find a screenshot of a text
Extra points if that screenshot is over a year old, no points if someone tries to cheat by taking a screenshot during the game. You may ask for proof on this one.
8. A red bowl or plate
While you may have dishes that span the rainbow, not everyone in your group will be able to find a red bowl or plate.
9. A '90s-themed scavenger hunt
Millennials may find *NSYNC or The Backstreet Boys CDs tucked in their closet. The possibilities here are endless, as long as you can think of quintessential '90s items, like scrunchies, old cell phones, posters, and gel pens.
10. A food-scented candle
Not everyone likes the smell of butterscotch, doughnuts, or cupcakes pervading their entire space, but that doesn't mean you should be surprised if most of your friends come back with a caramel cupcake candle to check off their list.
11. An item in your fridge you'd label as BAE
The foodies in your friend group should easily be able to find something that they consider a top priority item in their fridge. It could be peanut butter, Oreos, or a half-empty bottle of rosé.
