These 21 Outdoor Easter Egg Hunt Ideas Are Super Creative & Really Easy

This outdoor Easter egg hunt idea is perfect for older kids who need an extra challenge. Write up some riddles to guide them along on their hunt. You can either leave eggs at each spot along the riddle path, or leave a series of riddle clues that will eventually lead them to a giant mound of eggs as a prize. Since writing up riddles can require a bit of work, you can save some time by using some of these pre-written clues from Kid Activities.

If you have a big group of kids, have them hunt on teams relay-style. Each team gets assigned a certain color egg and one team member hunts at a time. Once the person who’s “it” has found an egg, they race back to their team to tag in the next person until all of their eggs are found. Whoever finds all of their eggs first, wins.

Attention parents of dinosaur lovers: turn your Easter egg hunt into an archeology adventure by burying the eggs instead of simply hiding them. Stake out some squares in the garden, sandbox, or somewhere in the backyard where you don’t mind kicking up a bit of grass, and put out some tools to help the kids dig and dust off their treasures. If you really want to lean into the theme, pick up an authentic-looking toy digging kit like this one from Amazon.

If you want to try something super fun, try hanging your eggs instead of hiding them. This great DIY Egg Popper tutorial from Studio DIY suggested that you fill your plastic eggs with candy, wrap them in crepe paper, and then tie them to tree branches in your yard with twine. You can use colorful paper to create an inviting and exciting Easter hunt activity for kids of all ages.

Kids love obstacle courses, so why not incorporate one into your outdoor Easter egg hunt? You can create one big course with eggs to be found along the way, or you can take Purple Trail’s suggestion and place little challenge stations throughout the yard. Make it a little extra fun by keeping things Easter-inspired, like a “bunny ladder hop” balancing an Easter egg on a spoon, or have the kids partner up for a relay race where they have to pass off a set of bunny ears instead of a baton. Kids can pick up eggs throughout the challenges and there can be a grand prize egg at the end for the winner.

This Easter egg hunt idea from Play Party Plan suggested writing activities like “A trip to the dollar store” or “stay up 15 minutes later” on little slips you stuff inside the Easter eggs. Subbing fun activities for candy is great if you’re trying to avoid all the extra sugar, and it’s perfect for warmer weather, where candy can melt outside within minutes.

Make your egg hunt a little more fun by adding music to the mix. Think musical chairs, but instead of sitting, they get to hunt for eggs until the music stops. Imagiplay suggested making it more competitive by choosing a winner based on who has the most eggs at the end of the game.

Younger kids can have a hard time finding eggs. They tend to get easily side-tracked or frustrated, no matter how easy you make it. With this genius idea from Celebrations at Home, you can tie helium balloons to each egg, so that your child can see it from far away. Not only does a sea of balloons and eggs look inviting, it also amps up the festive feel of the holiday

If you are planning on having an evening Easter celebration, you can easily try this DIY Glow in the Dark Easter Egg Hunt tutorial from Smart School House. All you need to do is place small, battery-operated LED tea lights into large plastic Easter eggs. You can add candy, money, or any other rewards you can fit inside with the tea lights. Not only will it make your yard look magical, it will be extra fun and exciting for the kids to hunt for these glowing eggs at night.

You can also buy some glow-in-the-dark paint and paint a bunch of plastic eggs.

To add a little challenge to your egg hunt, you can strategically place the eggs around your yard and create a corresponding treasure map with clues. You can have one special egg as the treasure, or if you have multiple kids partaking, you can hide a variety of special eggs around the yard.

This idea from Kidspot is perfect for little ones. You just draw things like a tree, shrub, or house with a box next to each. You hide eggs in those areas, and when your kids find them, they can check off each box.

Sure, hunting for eggs is fun, but what if your egg told you to hop like a bunny? This brilliant idea from Alice and Lois suggested adding little fun activity slips to your eggs, like “Sing your favorite song” or “Oink like a piggy.” If you have been working with your kids on a nursery rhymes, the alphabet, numbers, or colors, you can add those into your activity slips, too.

Reverse the roles for your egg hunt this year, and and let your kids have some extra fun. While you get to sit back and relax, let your kids fill and hide the eggs around the yard. Once they're done, the parents can go hunting for eggs. Your kids will definitely get a kick out of it, and you can always share your loot in the end.

Kids develop at crazy speeds when they’re younger, so while skill level between eight and nine-year-old kids may be similar, the same cannot be said for a two and three-year-old. To help make the egg hunt fair for your kids, no matter their development, assign each of them a color egg to hunt, suggested Deeper Kidmin. This way, you can basically just “hide” eggs in plain sight for your 18-month-old but get a little more creative for your four-year-old without having to worry the older sibling will snatch all of their brother or sister’s eggs.

Instead of candy and toys, hide puzzle pieces in your kid’s eggs so you can all work on putting the puzzle together after the hunt, as recommended by It's Always Autumn. To make it a little more fun, try to put most of the puzzle together before the hunt, and then as your child finds their eggs with different pieces, have them figure out where the piece goes before they can move on to find their next egg/piece. If you have more than one kid, you can have them work on one puzzle together.

There’s a reason Veruca Salt wanted a golden egg so badly in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and that was because they’re extra special. Channel your inner Willy Wonka as detailed on Say Yes and hide a few golden eggs among the rest (with the most coveted gifts or candy in them). If you have more than one kid with different hunting abilities, assign different metallic colored eggs to each if you want everyone to get a special egg (or just want to avoid tantrums).

Switch things up for your kids by numbering each of their eggs and making them hunt them in order. It will be like a little game of memory for them and force them to practice restraint. Plus, if you hide just a few in really tough-to-find spots, it will be entertaining to watch your child try to resist picking up the other eggs out of order.

Try this activity from Lakeside View: Hide different LEGO pieces in your kid’s eggs and, once they’ve found all of them, challenge them to build a certain figure before they can get their prize (whether it’s their Easter basket or some other separate prize you have for them).

If you’re hosting the hunt in your backyard and you’re low on space, use a kiddie pool for help. The Road Less Traveled suggests filling the pool up with Easter grass and eggs and putting babies who can’t quite walk yet into the pool so they can still get to experience the thrill of the hunt. You can also use a kiddie pool for big kids by filling it up as a ball pit and tossing some eggs in there so they have to sift through everything to find the eggs.

Instead of the traditional egg hunt, Play Party Plan came up with a really fun scavenger hunt idea for kids. To do it, buy some plastic eggs and decorate them with stickers or markers and create a master list of eggs for the kids to search for and check off their list like a striped egg, polka dot, or covered in gold stars. Once the kids have found them all, they’ll have a prize waiting for them. This is a great game if you have a mix of ages, because you can create two hunts; one that’s easy and one that’s hard.

Inspirational Laboratories came up with an idea that’s especially great for toddlers and preschoolers who are doing the hunting. Hide the eggs in easy-ish spots that are near something distinguishable, like a bird bath or hammock and create a key with pictures of those things. So, kids will see a picture of a swing set and go racing towards it in search of their egg before they move on to the next object.

For younger kids, Modular Walls suggests putting bunny prints in your yard to create a little map to where the Easter eggs are hidden. Kids can follow the prints to each destination to make the hunt a little easier. How you put the prints down depends on where you’re at. You could use sidewalk chalk for pavement, cookie cutters for muddy or sandy areas, or grass paint if you’re primarily on a lawn.