Christmas scavenger hunt: 85 ideas, 30 clues and a free printable
Generate a Christmas scavenger hunt for the office, for remote teams or as rhyming clue cards, then print it. Every idea is work-appropriate and nothing needs buying.
A Christmas scavenger hunt is the easiest holiday game to run at work: teams race to find festive things, pose for silly photos and learn something about each other. Use the generator for a ready list, or pick from the 45 office ideas, 40 at-home ideas and 30 rhyming clues below.
Christmas scavenger hunt generator
Pick where you're playing and how long it should be. Generate shuffles a new mix; Print gives you a team checklist or cut-out clue cards with an answer key.
- 1.The tallest decoration in the building
- 2.A gingerbread-style house built from things on one desk
- 3.A mug with a winter or holiday design
- 4.Count every ornament on the office tree (closest count wins)
- 5.A bell that actually rings
- 6.The most festive desk in the office, with its owner
- 7.A candy cane, or anything striped red and white
- 8.Write a four-line holiday poem about the office and perform it
- 9.Something that smells like pine, peppermint or cinnamon
- 10.Your team's holiday card photo, matching poses
- 11.An ornament that isn't on the tree
- 12.Collect one holiday wish from someone in every department
- 13.Tinsel or garland
- 14.A sticky note wreath on a door (removable)
- 15.Someone wearing a holiday sweater or festive socks
45 Christmas scavenger hunt ideas for the office
Find it, photograph it with a teammate in the frame, leave it where it was. Mix all three kinds for a good hunt.
Festive finds
- A string of lights anywhere in the office
- An ornament that isn't on the tree
- Something red and something green on the same desk
- A snowflake: paper, sticker or printed
- A candy cane, or anything striped red and white
- A holiday card someone has on display
- The tallest decoration in the building
- A mug with a winter or holiday design
- Something that smells like pine, peppermint or cinnamon
- A bow stuck on something that isn't a present
- A star: on a tree, a card or a sign
- Something gold or glittery
- A reindeer in any form: mug, sticker, sweater
- Tinsel or garland
- A snowman in any form
- A bell that actually rings
- A holiday song playing somewhere in the office
- Someone wearing a holiday sweater or festive socks
- Something shaped like a tree that isn't the tree
- Wrapping paper, a gift bag or a roll of ribbon
Photo challenges
- The team recreating a holiday movie poster
- A human Christmas tree decorated with sticky notes
- A snowman built from paper cups
- A five-second video of the team caroling to the printer
- A gingerbread-style house built from things on one desk
- A sticky note wreath on a door (removable)
- Santa's sleigh: one Santa, everyone else a reindeer
- The loudest holiday sweater in the office, owner smiling
- A Santa hat on the most serious-looking object you can find
- A "nice list" of your team written on a whiteboard
- A paper snowball fight, caught mid-throw
- A teammate posed like a toy elf somewhere unexpected
- Your team's holiday card photo, matching poses
- A gift wrapped using only printer paper and tape
- The most festive desk in the office, with its owner
Team tasks
- Learn a coworker's holiday tradition you'd never heard of
- Collect three coworkers' favorite holiday foods
- Get a leader to name their favorite holiday movie
- Find someone with a December birthday
- Find out who is traveling farthest for the holidays
- Write a four-line holiday poem about the office and perform it
- Collect one holiday wish from someone in every department
- Count every ornament on the office tree (closest count wins)
- Get everyone to sign a card for the facilities or cleaning team
- Hum a holiday song until someone from another team names it
40 holiday scavenger hunt ideas for remote teams
For a hunt on Zoom or Teams: call out an item, give everyone 60 seconds, and have them show it on camera. The team votes on the best find.
Things to find at home
- Your favorite ornament, and the story behind it
- The oldest decoration in your home
- Something you only eat in December
- Your coziest holiday socks or slippers
- A holiday mug, filled with something warm
- A cookie cutter in any shape
- A roll of wrapping paper
- A snow globe
- Something that lights up
- A holiday card you've received
- A pinecone, a pine branch or anything from a tree
- Something that jingles
- A winter hat, scarf or pair of mittens
- A holiday movie, book or album you own
- A candle with a winter scent
- Three things: one red, one green, one gold
- A kitchen tool you only use for holiday baking
- Something handmade that you got as a gift
- A photo of you from a past holiday
- The tackiest decoration you own
On-camera challenges
- Put on the most festive thing you own in 60 seconds
- Build a snowman from things in your kitchen
- Make a tree out of objects on your desk
- Show your pet in something festive, or a stuffed animal stand-in
- Wrap a random object in 60 seconds, on camera
- Recreate a holiday movie scene with what's at home
- Cut a paper snowflake and hold it up
- Tie the best gift bow you can, from scratch
- Set your video background to your dream winter trip
- Draw Santa in 30 seconds without looking at the paper
Share with the team
- Hum a holiday song for the team to name
- Share a family tradition in one sentence
- Show the view out your window right now
- Hold up one ingredient from your favorite holiday dish
- Show a family recipe card or a favorite recipe
- Find a gift you've kept since you were a kid
- Show something you'd happily regift (no names)
- Make a hot drink and raise a toast to the team
- Spell JOY with objects from around your home
- Show the last thing you baked, or a photo of it
Want prompts for the rest of the year? Our virtual scavenger hunt ideas work on any video call.
30 Christmas scavenger hunt clues that rhyme
Each clue points to a hiding spot most offices have. Hide each card at the answer to the one before it, and the clues become a trail.
- Santa's sleigh would never fit, but your lunch stays cold in it.Answer: The fridge
- I hum and spin and warm your plate. Your next clue's here, so don't be late.Answer: The microwave
- I print the list of who's been nice. Check my tray, and don't look twice.Answer: The printer
- Elves need fuel to work till late. Check where the coffee beans await.Answer: The coffee machine
- When elves get thirsty, here they go. Fill a cup, then look below.Answer: The water cooler
- I'm green all year, not just December. Water me, if you remember.Answer: A potted plant
- Need some tape to wrap a gift? Open me and have a sift.Answer: The supply cabinet
- Santa needs a place to rest. Check beneath the chair that's best.Answer: Under the chair at the head of the table
- Turn my handle, swing me wide. Your clue is on the other side.Answer: The back of a meeting room door
- Frost may paint me, snow may blow. Check my sill for what to know.Answer: A windowsill
- Every guest who comes to call says hello to me first of all.Answer: The front desk
- I hold the plates, the cups, the spoons. Peek inside, it's almost noon.Answer: A kitchen cupboard
- Boxes, cans and paper too: I take them all. Beside me, find your clue.Answer: Beside the recycling bin
- Up and down all day I go. Wait by my doors for the clue below.Answer: The elevator lobby
- Twelve days of Christmas? I count each hour, up on the wall on battery power.Answer: A wall clock
- Twelve can sit around my top. Look underneath before you stop.Answer: Under the meeting table
- Stories, manuals, binders too: pull out the red one for your clue.Answer: The bookshelf
- Flyers, menus, notes and more: I'm pinned with news right by the door.Answer: The bulletin board
- Slides and video calls all play on me. Look behind me and you'll see.Answer: The big screen in the meeting room
- Cold outside? Then hang me here. I hold your coat and scarf all year.Answer: The coat rack
- Cookies, chips and snacks piled high: take this clue and pass them by.Answer: The snack shelf
- Write to Santa? Type it here. Lift me up, the clue is near.Answer: Under the organizer's keyboard
- Sweets inside, a lid up top: lift me gently, don't let me drop.Answer: Under the candy jar
- I'm green and tall but never grow. Check my branches, hanging low.Answer: The lowest branches of the office tree
- Cards and letters, parcels too, pass through me on their way to you.Answer: The mail tray
- One lost glove and one lost hat: look in the box where we keep all that.Answer: The lost and found
- Ice for drinks and treats that freeze: your next clue's chilling, if you please.Answer: The freezer
- Wipe your boots of slush and snow. Your clue's beneath me, down below.Answer: Under the doormat
- Step by step, one, two, three: halfway up is where I'll be.Answer: The stairwell landing
- Gifts are stacked beneath my lights. Look among them, left and right.Answer: Under the tree
Need clues for a hunt at home, outdoors or for adults? See 85 scavenger hunt clues with answers.
How to run a Christmas scavenger hunt at work
- Pick the format. A checklist for teams to race through, or clue cards that lead from spot to spot.
- Generate and print. Use the generator above: 15 to 20 items fills 30 to 40 minutes.
- Make mixed teams of 3 to 5. Split departments on purpose. Remote players join one team each.
- Set the boundaries. Name the rooms in play and the no-go zones: private offices, drawers, anyone on a call.
- Collect photos in one place. One chat thread per team, so you can score as photos arrive.
- Start the clock, then score. Give 1 point per find, 2 per photo, 3 per team task. Show the best photos on screen.
Running it with clue cards
- Generate 6 to 10 clue cards. The answer key tells you where each card goes.
- Hide them in order. Card 1 goes to the team. Card 2 hides at card 1's answer, and so on.
- Put the prize at the last answer. The final clue leads to the prize, so the finish is a moment.
- Run one chain per team. For more teams, start each one on a different card so nobody follows anyone.
Rules to read out first
- Find it, photograph it, leave it where it was.
- No drawers, no private offices, nothing unplugged.
- Every photo needs a teammate in it.
- Nobody has to wear, sing or pose for anything they don't want to.
- Back at base when the timer ends, or lose 5 points.
For a hunt with no holiday theme, the office scavenger hunt list has 60 year-round items and a scoring table.
Christmas scavenger hunt prizes
Small, visible prizes land better than expensive ones. Give every member of the winning team the same thing.
- A traveling trophy. A spray-painted gold ornament on a base, passed to next year's winners.
- First pick of the gift exchange. Easy and free if a Secret Santa or white elephant follows.
- A late start. The winning team starts an hour late on a day of their choice in January.
- A hot cocoa bar delivered to their desks. Mugs, cocoa, marshmallows, candy canes.
- Gift cards. Small and equal for every winner, so nobody compares.
- A cookie box. A dozen cookies per winner from a local bakery.
- Naming rights. The winners name the next meeting room, a channel or the office plant.
- The best parking spot for a month. Free, and everyone sees it.
- A donation in the team's name. To a charity the winners pick.
- Holiday gift boxes for remote winners. Shipped to their door, so remote players win something real too.
Shipping prizes to remote winners? See corporate holiday gifts we deliver to each address.
Want someone to run the hunt for you?
A live host runs a themed scavenger hunt for about an hour, with challenges on screen, breakout teams and scoring handled for you. It runs on Zoom by default (Teams, Google Meet or Webex on request), so office and remote people play together. See hosted virtual scavenger hunts or the full virtual holiday party lineup.
Two hosted hunts, with today’s prices. Book about 2 weeks ahead.
More for the party: holiday party games for work and a free Christmas escape room. Planning for a big group? Get a free quote.
