One of the best times for me to do a scavenger hunt is during a lock-in. I always have at least one “outside” activity that the youth do such as bowling, laser tag or mini-golf. Then after the activity I set up a scavenger hunt for the trip back to keep the sleepy heads awake. I’ve done several versions of scavenger hunts from ‘clue leading to clue’ to a video hunt. Just about the only ones that work for me during a lock-in is either a video hunt or one called Sum It Up!
The problem with hunts during a lock-in is that by the time you can schedule one in, the only store that is open is Wal-Mart. So, I made a list of some general items with hardly any details. Such as, soft drink, diapers, shoes, jewelry item, and if you are fortunate enough to have a Supercenter – vegetable, cereal, deli meat…of course, the list can be as big and as detailed as you wish.
The object is to find the cheapest AND the most expensive. You add up ALL of your most expensive items and then SUBTRACT all of your least expensive items and this gives your team a final score.
For bonus points you can have each team try to find the most expensive item in the whole store.
This hunt does take a little bit of research but then, how many times do you go to Wal-Mart each week? It helps to get a general idea of what each of the items the youth will put down will cost. This is to make sure that the youth will not try to put down that Huggies are $25. (Although, it does seem like it sometimes.)
For the most part, you will have duplicate answers in a lot of the categories if you have detailed information to look for, but usually the ‘whole store’ item will seperate the teams. One year three of the four teams went to the electronics section for the BIG screen TV while the fourth team went to the often forgotten lawn and garden section for the riding lawnmower and won. Enjoy!