Video Scavenger Hunt
A Great Party Game

A Video Scavenger Hunt is a great activity to have at a birthday party, family reunion, holiday gathering, or anywhere people are getting together to have fun.

The basic idea is simple: Look for scavenger hunt items or activities, but with the added twist of recording what you find with your video camera. See Video Scavenger Hunt Lists for ideas about what to look for.

Any kind of scavenger hunt is a fun activity, but a video scavenger hunt lets you do things you can't do in a regular scavenger hunt -- and part of the fun is watching and enjoying everyone's entries when the teams get back.

Tips for a Successful Video Scavenger Hunt

• Like a regular scavenger hunt, try to divide teams up so each team has a mix of abilities and personalities. Often teams of 4 or 5 people are best.
• Make sure every team has something that can record video (camcorder, digital camera, video cell phone) with something to record on (tape or card) and a freshly charged battery.
• If it's a youth group activity that requires a car, arrange for adults with vans to carry the teams around. The adults should not help or provide suggestions.
• The amount of time you give the teams to complete their tasks depends on how much time you have — and you will usually want a scavenger hunt list that is more than they could possibly do in the amount of time, so they can pick and choose. The time for making the video could be just a half hour, but usually one to four hours is good. It could also be part of a weekend retreat or week-long camp, so the teams can decide how much time they want to put into it.
• Plan video activities that require the teams to be doing something, not just finding something. If you can get "innocent bystanders" involved, even better. (Check out video scavenger hunt lists for specific ideas.)
• Try to plan the scavenger hunt so the video can be shown as soon as the teams get back to a central location. That is, no editing should be required — unless your activity spans several days, and computers with editing software are available to everyone.
• Try to have a big-screen TV or a video projector and screen for the viewing, so everyone can enjoy the show.
• If you are planning for instant viewing, make sure the cameras can be hooked up directly to the projector or viewing screen.
• Arrange for an official judge or team of judges. Usually, arguing, bribing, etc. is allowed and encouraged, but at some point, the decision of the judge should be final.

You can just award points for tasks completed, including points for style and originality, or you can include different awards — most original, most people used, best theme music, most frantic. There are lots of possibilities.

Video Scavenger Hunt Lists

To get more ideas for scavenger hunt lists, go to the Video Scavenger Hunt lists page.

"Green Eggs and Ham" Video Scavenger Hunt

Try this video scavenger hunt based on the Dr. Seuss classic, Green Eggs and Ham.

Christmas Video Scavenger Hunt

If you're planning a video scavenger hunt around the Christmas Holidays, take a look at the Christmas Video Scavenger Hunt, based on the song "The 12 Days of Christmas."