How to Hide Treasure Hunt Clues at Home (With 40 Hiding Spots)

Most treasure hunts that go wrong do not go wrong because of the clues. They go wrong because a card was hidden in the wrong place, in the wrong order, or so well that nobody could find it, including the parent who hid it. Knowing how to hide treasure hunt clues at home is a small skill, and it takes about ten minutes to learn.

Here is the method, a long list of spots, and the mistakes worth avoiding.

The one rule: each clue lives at the previous answer

This is what trips people up. The clue that says "go to the bathtub" is not hidden in the bathtub. It is hidden at the stop before. The bathtub holds the clue that points to the next place.

So for a route of couch, bathtub, mailbox, treasure:

Clue 1 (points to couch): in your hand
Clue 2 (points to bathtub): hidden in the couch
Clue 3 (points to mailbox): hidden in the bathtub
Clue 4 (points to treasure): hidden in the mailbox

The backward method

Hiding in reverse order is the easiest way to get this right.

Number every card on the back in pencil.
Write your route on a sheet of paper: start, stop 1, stop 2, and so on to the treasure.
Place the treasure first.
Hide the last clue at the last stop. Then the one before it at the stop before. Keep walking backward through the route.
When you are done, one card is left in your hand. That is clue 1. If you have two cards left, or none, something is in the wrong place and you can fix it now.

Keep the route sheet in your pocket during the party. You will want it when a child asks for a hint at stop six and you cannot remember what stop six was.

Plan a route that crosses the house

Do not hide consecutive clues in the same room. Kids find the second one by accident while looking for the first, and the hunt skips a step. Send them back and forth: living room, bathroom, kitchen, bedroom, hallway, kitchen again. The running between rooms is where the excitement is, and it makes a small home feel much bigger.

Avoid sending them past the treasure spot early if it is visible. A box under a blanket in the corner of the living room will be discovered in the first two minutes.

40 hiding spots, room by room

Living room

Under a couch cushion
Inside a board game box
Behind a picture frame on a low shelf
Inside a book, with a corner sticking out
Under the TV remote
In a plant pot (on the soil, in a bag)
Under the rug corner
Inside a throw pillow cover

Kitchen

Inside the fridge door, in the egg tray
In the freezer, in a zip bag
Inside a cereal box
Under the fruit bowl
In an oven mitt
Inside a lunchbox
In the cutlery drawer, in the spoon slot
Inside a clean, empty mug in a low cupboard

Bathroom

In the bathtub, dry
Under the toothbrush cup
Inside a rolled towel
In the bath toy basket
Tucked into the empty cardboard tube of a spare toilet roll

Bedrooms

Under the pillow or inside the pillowcase
In the sock drawer
In a pajama pocket
In the arms of a stuffed animal
Inside a shoe in the closet
Under the bed, taped to the frame
Behind the night light
In a dress-up hat

Hallway and stairs

Under the doormat
In a coat pocket on a low hook
Inside a rain boot
In a folded umbrella
Taped under a stair tread or to the banister
In a backpack front pocket

Laundry and garage

Inside the washing machine drum
In the laundry basket
In a bike helmet

Outside

In the mailbox
Under an upturned flower pot or inside a watering can

Match the spot to the age

For ages 4 to 6, the card should be visible once the child is at the right place. Leave a corner showing. Keep everything between knee and chest height. For ages 7 to 10, the card can be fully out of sight as long as the clue is specific: "behind the tallest book" and not just "in the bookshelf." There is more on each age in a treasure hunt for a 5 year old and a treasure hunt for a 7 year old.

Spots to skip

Anything above a child's shoulder height. Climbing on furniture is how parties end early.
Cabinets with cleaning products or medicine, even if the card is just inside the door.
The oven, the stovetop, the toaster.
Near candles, heaters, or the fireplace.
Rooms you do not want eight children in. Close those doors and say they are out of the game.
Anywhere a pet will get to it first. Dogs eat paper.
Outdoor spots in wind or rain, unless the card is bagged and weighted or taped.
Places that need a guest to open someone's private things.

Fixing the card in place

A clue that slides behind the radiator is a clue nobody finds. Painter's tape holds a card and comes off walls and furniture cleanly. Clothespins work on curtains and coat hooks. For outside or the freezer, use a zip bag. If a card is fully hidden, like inside a shoe among twelve shoes, add a small sticker or a ribbon on the outside as a marker for younger kids.

The five-minute test walk

About 30 minutes before guests arrive, walk the route in order, reading each clue as if you were a child. You are checking three things:

Does each clue lead to exactly one place? "Where we keep things cold" could be the fridge or the freezer.
Is each card still where you put it? Siblings and helpful partners move things.
Can the shortest guest reach it?

Then take a photo of each hiding spot on your phone. If a card goes missing mid-hunt, you can show the photo as an emergency hint and keep the game moving.

When a clue goes missing anyway

It happens. Keep a spare blank card and a pen in your pocket. Write the next location on it, "find" it dramatically somewhere nearby, and carry on. No child has ever questioned this.

Let the spots write the clues

The hard part of a home hunt is that every clue has to match a real place in your own house. If you would like that done for you, X Marks The Party works from your hiding spots: you tell it where the cards will go, and each printed card shows an illustration of the next spot with a rhyme or riddle written for it. The PDF includes a parent sheet with the full route in order, which is the route sheet from the backward method, already filled in.

You can choose your hiding spots and see a free preview before paying anything.

FAQ

How many clues should I hide?

Six to eight for ages 4 to 6, about ten for ages 7 to 10. Fewer spots, well chosen, beat many spots in a rush.

How early can I hide them?

Thirty to sixty minutes before the hunt. Any earlier and family life moves them. If the birthday child is home, hide the cards while they are busy getting dressed or send them to pick up balloons with another adult.

Should the birthday child know the spots?

No. Hide them without help so the hunt is a surprise for them too. An older sibling makes an excellent assistant and hint-giver.

What if I live in a small apartment?

A hunt needs spots, not square meters. Ten spots fit in two rooms if the route zigzags. See birthday party ideas for small apartments.

For writing the clues themselves, see scavenger hunt clues for kids. Taking the hunt outside? See backyard birthday scavenger hunt.

Create a personalized hunt. Free preview, then print at home for $29.99.

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Personalized Treasure Hunt for Kids