Christmas Scavenger Hunt Clues
Three groups of Christmas clues — riddles around the house, easy clues for kids, and a present hunt — each with answers, and each opening in the card maker as its own printable hunt.
Make printable cards from all 32 cluesOpens the card maker with every clue of the 3 groups (32 cards, 53 points in all). Edit any card, choose a find-it list or a clue trail, set the number of teams and print the cards and answer key.
Use one group for a short hunt or load all of them for a long one. Every group ends at the card maker's Finish box, which starts as "behind the sofa — your present is there": hide the present first, then change the finish to its real hiding place, and leave out any clue that points to the same spot. With several children, each child or team starts at a different stop of the loop, or set up one hunt per child with a different finish for each.
The 32 clues and answers
Around the house (12 clues)
Make printable cards: around the house| # | Clue | Answer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | I stand in the corner every December and hold up the shiny things. Look at the back of my stand, on the floor, away from the lights. | Christmas tree stand | 2 |
| 2 | I have a little door for every day until Christmas. | Advent calendar | 2 |
| 3 | Paper snowflakes and lights hang in me so the whole street can see them. Look on my sill. | Front window sill | 2 |
| 4 | Friends far away sent us these. Read the one on top. | Christmas cards | 1 |
| 5 | Press play and I sing carols, but I never need a breath. | Music speaker | 2 |
| 6 | A tiny town lives inside me, and when you shake me it starts to snow. | Snow globe | 2 |
| 7 | The festive sweaters sleep in me for eleven months a year. | Sweater drawer | 2 |
| 8 | The ornaments came out of me and went on the tree. I wait, nearly empty, until January. | Empty ornament box | 2 |
| 9 | Peppermints and chocolates fill me for the guests. | Candy dish | 1 |
| 10 | Spare blankets for snowy nights are folded on my shelves. Look on the bottom one. | Linen closet | 2 |
| 11 | The holiday dinner will be served on me. Look underneath. | Dining table | 1 |
| 12 | I keep the house warm while the snow falls outside. Look on the wall just below me. | Thermostat | 2 |
For kids (10 clues)
Make printable cards: for kids| # | Clue | Answer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ho ho ho! Look by the plate we will leave out for Santa’s cookies. | Santa’s cookie plate | 1 |
| 2 | Santa’s elves love tidy toys. Look in the toy box! | Toy box | 1 |
| 3 | We brush our teeth before bed on Christmas Eve. Look by the toothbrushes. | Toothbrush cup | 1 |
| 4 | Look under the pillow in the room where the kids sleep. | Kids’ room pillow | 1 |
| 5 | Dirty socks wait in me for washing day. | Laundry basket | 1 |
| 6 | Crunchy cereal for Christmas breakfast lives behind this door. | Cereal cabinet | 1 |
| 7 | Make your best elf face in the big mirror. The clue is right beside it. | Tall mirror | 1 |
| 8 | Achoo! Look by the box of tissues. | Tissue box | 1 |
| 9 | Crayons and paper for drawing Christmas pictures live here. | Art supplies box | 2 |
| 10 | Lots of soft animals sleep together in me. | Stuffed animal basket | 2 |
Present hunt (10 clues)
Make printable cards: present hunt| # | Clue | Answer | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rolls of shiny paper wait here for wrapping night. | Wrapping paper rolls | 2 |
| 2 | Check the pockets of the biggest winter coat in the house. | Biggest winter coat | 2 |
| 3 | Batteries not included? Look where the spare batteries are kept. | Battery drawer | 2 |
| 4 | Last year’s gift bags are folded flat and saved inside me. | Gift bag stash | 2 |
| 5 | Snowy boots and shoes line up on me by the door. Look under the last pair. | Shoe rack | 1 |
| 6 | Pens, stamps and the address book for the Christmas cards live on me. | Desk | 2 |
| 7 | I lie flat in the hallway and people walk all over me. Look underneath. | Hallway rug | 2 |
| 8 | I roar along the carpet and swallow the pine needles. Check around my handle. | Vacuum cleaner | 2 |
| 9 | I stand flat and tall when the best shirts need pressing for Christmas dinner. | Ironing board | 3 |
| 10 | Dice, cards and boxes of rules wait on me for Christmas afternoon. | Board game shelf | 2 |
Tips for a Christmas present hunt
- Use only the places you have. Not every home has a snow globe, a candy dish or an ironing board; leave those cards out.
- Stay away from lights, candles and the fireplace. The tree clue means the floor at the back of the stand, away from the light cords; no clue points to the stockings, the mantel or the stove, and every stop is indoors.
- One card per place. Each of the 32 answers is a different spot, so you can load all three groups as one long hunt. Check that two answers are not the same place in your home (for example a desk that is also the board game shelf) and drop one.
- Keep other gifts out of sight. The present-hunt group goes into closets, drawers and a coat pocket; move any wrapped presents first.
- Hide cards the night before using the hiding list, then keep the answer key in your pocket.
How the printable cards work
Loading a group gives you one numbered player card per clue and a separate answer key. Played as a clue trail, the key adds a hiding list for the places; played as a find-it list, each team can print a tick-box checklist instead. Nothing is uploaded: the hunt is saved in your browser.
Planning the hunt
- Christmas Scavenger Hunt Ideas: 6 Formats Planned Out, From Present Hunts to Team Races: A planning table for six formats (who each suits, how many cards, how many teams, what the prize is) and how staggered starts keep teams apart.
- Christmas Light Scavenger Hunt: A Printable List Sorted by How Easy Each Display Is to Spot: 20 displays to spot from a car and 20 on foot, scored 1–3 by how much you have to check, with one colored checklist per car.
Questions
How do you do a Christmas present scavenger hunt?
Hide the gift, write its hiding place as the finish, then hide the clue cards backwards along the trail so the last card leads to the gift.
How many clues should a Christmas gift hunt have?
We suggest six to ten clues for a single present. The present-hunt group has 10; all three groups together have 32.
Are there easy Christmas clues for young children?
Yes. The For kids group has 10 short clues about places a young child knows, such as the toy box and the plate for Santa's cookies.
Can I use these for a family Christmas party?
Yes. Split guests into teams; the card maker staggers each team's starting stop and prints color-coded cards.
Are the clues printable?
Yes. Each group has its own Make printable cards button, and the card maker prints numbered cards and a separate answer key.
More clue sets
All sets on one page: scavenger hunt clues with answers.