A beach scavenger hunt is a great way to make a trip to the beach even more exciting. Especially if there’s a group of you with lots of young kids!
We’ve put together this checklist of things to find at the beach. While scavenger hunts are for all ages, this free printable will be best for 3 – 7-year-olds. We recently used it at our 5-year-old’s beach birthday party and it went down a treat! Download these beach treasure hunt ideas below.
Beach Scavenger Hunt Printable
This scavenger hunt has 21 different things to find – some will be very easy, (like the dog), and some will be more difficult (like the fish, potentially).
Some may be near impossible depending on where you live. Most beaches near us, for example, don’t have starfish, so we cross that one out beforehand or instead write in a local creature.
We recommend laminating the printable and the children can then tick the items off with a dry-erase marker or similar. However, there’s nothing wrong with just printing out a copy to use once. There are so many great beach treasure hunts out there it’s fun to try a new one each time.
Beach Treasure Hunt Ideas
We live on the coast and there are a number of different beaches we can go to – some are totally deserted while others can be quite busy.
This particular scavenger hunt will be easier to complete on busier beaches, though you should be able to find most items on any beach around the world!
This treasure hunt is suitable for use at birthday parties at the beach, picnics with family and friends, church gatherings at the beach, or even just as a family. Whatever occasion you need a printable beach treasure hunt for, we’re sure this one will do the job!
I’m sure we don’t really need to say this, but make sure you’re supervising your kids while they do the hunt. Treasure hunt items like seaweed, limpets, and starfish will likely take them closer to the sea or have them on rocks and we don’t want any accidents!
If you’re downloading our printable beach scavenger clues for a vacation, check out our friend Donna’s beach vacation packing list. There are plenty of items on there that are easily forgotten!
And if you like free printables, check out this lifecycle of a pumpkin worksheet or these Very Hungry Caterpillar images.
Alternative Beach Clues
If you need to replace one or two items from our free beach treasure hunt printable, here are another 120 ideas that can be substituted!
- Seashell
- Piece of driftwood
- Crab
- Sand dollar
- Starfish
- Seagull
- Sand castle
- Kite
- Beach ball
- Sunglasses
- Beach towel
- Lifeguard
- Beach umbrella
- Picnic basket
- Beach bag
- Flip flops
- Sea glass
- Bottle cap
- Beach chair
- Surfer
- Sunscreen
- Ice cream
- Frisbee
- Fisherman
- Plastic bucket
- Beach comb
- Fishing net
- Lighthouse
- Dune buggy
- Cooler
- Seaweed
- Volleyball net
- Jellyfish
- Dolphin (if you’re lucky!)
- Beach bonfire
- Sand piper
- Boat or yacht
- Beach hat
- Beach picnic
- Sand crab
- Wet dog
- Palm tree
- Snorkel gear
- Paddleboard
- Sea turtle (if you’re really lucky!)
- Swimsuit
- Barefoot prints
- Seagull footprints
- Dog footprints
- Someone reading a book
- Child building a sandcastle
- Family playing beach games
- Someone applying sunscreen
- Sailboat in the distance
- Waves crashing on the shore
- Person wearing a bikini
- Person wearing a one-piece swimsuit
- Hermit crab
- Person wearing a hat
- Someone wearing a beach cover-up
- Sea oats
- A colorful beach towel
- A striped beach umbrella
- Sea sponge
- Watermelon
- Picnic sandwich
- Beach bbq grill
- Beach cruiser (bicycle)
- Baby in a beach tent
- Kayak
- Seashell necklace
- Surfer van
- Metal detector
- Scuba diver
- Lobster
- Shrimp
- Octopus
- Whales in the distance
- Sand toys
- Sand shovel
- Child wearing floaties
- Bucket and spade
- Seagull eating
- Sand footprint
- Igloo cooler
- Cocktail
- Beach music speaker
- Person listening to music
- Ice cream truck
- Beach shop
- Fishing rod
- Seagull in flight
- Beach fence
- Sunset
- Sunrise
- Hot sand
- Cold water
- Beach pebbles
- Beach path
- Rope swing
- Message in a bottle
- Buoy
- Public beach sign
- Flotsam and jetsam
- Terns
- Coconuts
- Coral piece (don’t remove from the beach!)
- Mangrove trees (if you’re near a lagoon)
- Conch shell
- Pelican
- Beach berry bush
- Stingray (in water, do not touch!)
- Oysters
- Clams
- Pearl (inside an oyster, if you’re very lucky!)
- Sand flea
- Sea cucumber
- Sea urchin
- Mermaid purse (shark egg case)
- Osprey or another coastal bird
And lastly, check out this Star Wars scavenger hunt for a different list that can be done around the home.
