.A-hoy mateys! Scavenger hunts are fun for all ages, and our new pirate treasure hunt clues riddles is sure to be a quick new favourite game at home. It’s interactive, allowing your children to have an adventure at home while they search for the clues, just like pirates. The best part is that there are real prizes involved, so your children are bound to be excited to search for their own treasure.
Scavenger hunts are perfect for kids as they encourage teamwork, problem-solving, and using their brain to think. It also gets them up and moving, which is more important than ever as we find ourselves still homebound.
Helpful Hint: Want to truly immerse yourselves in the game? Why not dress up as pirates? Bonus points if you speak like a pirate too. Shiver me timbers!
Set Up:
- Depending on the number of players, print and cut out the clues.
- Place the 10 clues around your house. For example, if the clue is about the sofa, you would want to place it there. On the instruction sheet it has all the answers so you know exactly where to place the clues.
- Place prizes in their designated spots.
- Make sure everyone keeps the clues as they find them, they’ll need it later!
How to Play: Using Our pirate treasure hunt clues riddles
- After everything is set up, go over the reminder with your children.
- Clues can be found after your children collect the items on the Find Me sheet. These include socks, a doll, a pillow, and other ordinary household items that most of us have around. Feel free to tailor it as needed! Once all of these are found and ticked off, the first clue can be found.
- Each clue has a descriptive hint about where to find the next one.
- Clue #5 is a code breaker. Don’t worry, it’s not too difficult to decode, we promise! The answer can be found on the instructions page just in case your children need an extra hand in solving it.
- Clue #7 is a puzzle, which once solved reveals the place of the next spot in the treasure hunt.
- Clue #10 leads you to the treasure! What is awaiting your children?
Prizes:
The prizes are completely up to you. Sweet treats, a family movie night, being able to pick what to have for dinner, these are all easy to do prizes that your children will love. Anything goes, Mum and Dad!
Fun Pirate Themed Games:
Looking for more pirate themed games? We’ve got you covered. Check out these great ideas for more family fun.
- Captain’s Treasure Chest: Remember the classic school yard game What Time is Mr Wolf? This is a fresh update with a swishbuckling twist. Choose a pirate to guard their ‘treasure chest’. Just like in the classic version, have them stand with their back against the rest of players. “Can we have your treasure?” The players shout, taking a step closer to the designated captain. The pirate captain responds with, “No one gets my treasure!” When the pirate captain is ready to, they turn around to chase the would-be treasure thieves away. If someone gets tagged, they join the captain’s side to defend the treasure chest. Whoever manages to reach the treasure chest, or reminds free from being caught, becomes the next captain.
- Pirate Relay Race: A good old fashioned three-legged race. Divide racers into pairs and tie one of their legs together to create the effect of having a peg leg. First one to cross the finish line wins!
- Capture the Flag: Another school yard classic. Divide two teams, aka ships. Each ship picks a ‘secret island’ to hide their flag. The object of the game is to capture the other ship’s flag and safely make it back to your own home ship before getting caught. If players do get caught, they are marooned at a neutral zone until either they get rescued by a fellow crew member or until the game ends. The team to successfully capture the other’s flag wins.
- Pin the Eye-Patch: Pin the tail on the donkey but with a pirate twist. On a large poster or piece of paper, print or draw a enlarged pirate on it. Cut out an eyepatch and see if your children can successfully pin it in the right place!
Pirate Arts and Crafts:
- A good pirate captain needs a telescope in order to see ships and land on the horizon! Decorate a paper towel roll with markers, stickers, glitter, whatever you have on hand. Add clingfilm to one end, securing it so it doesn’t fall off. What can your kids spot ahead?
- Design your own pirate flag. Everyone is familiar with the classic skull and bones. Why not make your own? Paper, cloth, towels, t-shirts, whatever you have lying around and don’t mind getting decorated can all be wonderful canvases for a flag. Give your child paint or markers and see how creative they can get! Be sure to ask them what their ship is called too.
- Newspaper Pirate Hat: Transform an ordinary page of a newspaper into a colorful and creative pirates hat. Fold the piece of newspaper in half after making size adjustments with scissors. Fold the outer corners down, having them meet in the middle. Use tape to keep the triangles in place. Take the extra pieces of newspaper and fold them upwards, securing with tape. Decorate the hat with stickers, markers, pirate themed cutouts, whatever suits your fancy.
Bonus: How to talk like a pirate
Here are some of our favourite child friendly pirate lingo. More can be found here
- Matey = friend
- Ahoy! = hello
- Shiver me timbers = shock, disbelief
- Plunder = to take what you want
- Yo ho ho = a call to attention
- Coffer = a chest full of treasure
- Booty = another word for treasure
- Blimey = another expression for surprise
- Scallywag = an insult usually aimed at an inexperienced pirate
- Swashbuckler = a daredevil
- Hearties = friends
- Landlubber = a person who isn’t familiar with, or comfortable at sea
Are you ready to start your treasure hunt? Download the free pirate treasure hunt clues riddles template here. Good luck, treasure seekers! As always let us know how you enjoy our activities. We love hearing about all the fun you have. Please check out our other indoor and outdoor scavenger hunts templates here.
