Fun Halloween Scavenger Hunt Ideas, Clues, & Printables

Of all of the ways there are to celebrate Halloween, the most enjoyable experiences tend to happen in groups. Trick-or-treating with a gaggle of kids, a monster mash bash with your besties, or a trip to a pumpkin patch are all best enjoyed in the company of friends and family. When it’s time to gather with other ghouls and goblins this spooky season, a Halloween scavenger hunt is one way to make the most of the holiday.

The best thing about putting together a scavenger hunt is that you can tailor it to your liking. If you fancy an adults-only Halloween gathering that’s equal parts creepy and cool, you can adjust the clues and prizes of your Halloween scavenger hunt to fit that theme. The same is also true for kid-friendly festivities where pumpkins and candy take center stage.

Whether you want to celebrate the holiday with a neighborhood-wide seek-and-find or a treasure hunt-style search with themed clues, these Halloween scavenger hunt ideas and tips have you covered.

Tips for indoor Halloween scavenger hunts

If the weather is less than ideal to celebrate outdoors, hosting an indoor Halloween scavenger hunt can be a great option for families who still want to enjoy the haunted holiday despite rain or snow. How you set up an indoor Halloween scavenger hunt will depend on the amount of space you have available, but the tips below can give you a good starting point.

• Hide clues in various places around your home with each clue leading to the next and ending with a prize. This works well for siblings to do together as a group, and it actually encourages them to work together.
• Give your scavenger hunt a designated theme (like Hocus Pocus, vampires, or pumpkins) and plan your clues and prizes accordingly.
• Choose a prize that can also be enjoyed indoors like a Halloween cake to share or a fun Halloween craft to make together.
• Instead of a clue-based hunt, have a hunt for obscure items around the house that have a Halloween-esque feel like a spare black button or exactly 31 cents in loose change.
• Adjust your hiding spaces according to who is playing. For example, your kindergartener won’t be able to easily access something on the top shelf of your pantry, but they could squeeze into a tight space better than most adults.
• Combine your hunt with a round of Halloween trivia questions. Whoever answers the most questions correctly gets a head start on the scavenger hunt or gets to open the first clue.

Outdoor Halloween scavenger hunt tips

Many of the tips above will also work well for outdoor scavenger hunts. You can certainly apply a fun theme or pick hiding spots for clues based on who is playing while outdoors. With so many Halloween decorations out and about, setting up an outdoor scavenger hunt can be especially spooky if you play in the dark.

• Hide glow-in-the-dark eggs filled with trinkets for kids to find. (Like an Easter egg hunt!)
• Split up into groups and look for specific Halloween decorations around the neighborhood like a cartoon character inflatable or a jack-o’-lantern with a real candle inside. Snap photos of what you find and meet back up at a designated time. Whichever group finds the most wins.
• Have a door-to-door scavenger hunt for adults to do while kids trick-or-treat. Make a list of items to collect or borrow from neighbors while trick-or-treating (like a flashlight, a cup of sugar, a balloon) and whoever has the most at the end of the night wins.
• Assign points for items collected, photographed, or found based on their level of difficulty for an added twist.

Halloween scavenger hunt clues & printables for adults

Best enjoyed with a bubbling mug of witches’ brew in hand, an adult Halloween scavenger hunt can be a total blast. Of course, you can also mix in some adult clues with kid-friendly ones to make your Halloween scavenger hunt an all-ages affair. The clues below are fun for adults to try and figure out — whether outdoors or inside — and there are also a handful of printable options to choose from.

Halloween scavenger hunt clues for adults

• This scavenger hunt is getting dull, better look inside something that goes on your skull.
• You can cut me open, but I won’t bleed. Inside of me you’ll find the next clue you need.
• This Halloween, you’re in for a treat. But first, you’ll need to find something that keeps the house nice and neat.
• Where your next clue is hidden, I cannot say. But a hint you may find under branches that sway.
• Witches cast spells and curses, but to find what you seek, perhaps check your purses.
• Cheers to the ghosts and goblins in this room. To start our haunted hunt, you’ll first need a broom.
• Is this game giving you a fright? If so, better hurry and collect a flashlight.

Scavenger hunt printables for adults

Halloween scavenger hunt clues & printables for kids

Trick-or-treating is probably at the top of most kids’ October to-do list, but a Halloween scavenger hunt to search for candy indoors when it’s rainy out or other tricks and treats set up outdoors can be just as fun. You can make your own clues using the ideas below to inspire you, or choose from a variety of printable options to make things a little easier on yourself.

Halloween scavenger hunt clues for kids

• Trick-or-treat, smell my feet, the next clue is hidden where we eat.
• Halloween means you get to stay up late, but you’ll find your next clue underneath a plate.
• What should we do about these goblins and ghouls? Maybe they hid the next clue where we keep our tools.
• I hear a wolf howl, there must be a full moon. You can find your next clue where you get a spoon.
• Don’t let a black cat cross your path, but head to find your next clue where you might take a bath.
• You’re good at this game, hot on a witches’ tail. To find the next clue, just go look for mail.
• Like a mummy, that’s a wrap. This is your last clue — you didn’t even need a map!
• Ghosts like to dress up in all white. You’ll find the next clue where there’s a shade on a light.

Scavenger hunt printables for kids

Halloween scavenger hunt prizes

If you’re going to have a Halloween scavenger hunt, you’re going to need scavenger hunt prizes. You probably know what kinds of things your kids and their friends might like, but things like pencils, rings, vampire fangs and more are easy to hunt down at any gimmicky store like Party City or Oriental Trading.

Scavenger hunt prizes

There’s really no wrong way to go about planning a Halloween scavenger hunt. Whether you have it indoors or out, plan clues for kids, adults, or a mix, it’s all fair game. Keep it simple or go all-out — whichever way you go, it’s sure to be hauntingly good fun.