A holiday photo scavenger hunt gives your community something to do together that isn’t just attending an event and leaving. Participants move through a destination, photograph specific moments, earn points, and compete for prizes — all while generating the kind of authentic, location-specific content that no marketing budget can replicate. For destination marketers and community managers, it’s one of the most cost-effective activation formats of the holiday season.
Here are 41 holiday photo scavenger hunt ideas to build from, plus a quick guide on how to structure and run one.
What Is a Photo Scavenger Hunt?
A photo scavenger hunt is an interactive activity where participants find and photograph items or scenarios from a list. For the holidays, this means snapping photos at iconic festive locations, holiday events, or with themed items. Participants check off items from the list and share for prizes, points, or simply holiday spirit.
How to Create a Holiday Photo Scavenger Hunt
1. Define Your Theme and Goals: Increase foot traffic to local businesses? Celebrate community traditions? Encourage exploration? Define objectives first.
2. Select Locations and Activities: Map key locations: decorated parks, holiday window displays, festive food stands.
3. Design Your Hunt: Customize activities: “Take a selfie with Santa,” “Snap a photo at a holiday light display.”
4. Engage and Reward: Add digital badges, discounts, or prize raffles. Leaderboards create friendly competition. Seeker XP handles the badge, leaderboard, and photo check-in mechanics out of the box.
5. Promote the Hunt: Use email, social media, and a branded hashtag to spread the word.
Benefits of Holiday Photo Scavenger Hunts
Community Engagement: A fun, interactive way to engage your local community or visitors.
Increased Foot Traffic: Drives visitors to businesses and attractions that might otherwise go unnoticed during the holiday rush.
User-Generated Content: Participants share photos that serve as authentic UGC for social media promotion — content your destination didn’t have to produce.
Economic Impact: More foot traffic leads to higher spending in local shops, restaurants, and attractions during the busy holiday season.
Brand Awareness: Holiday-themed challenges build the kind of positive association with your destination that outlasts the season.
Looking to build a broader holiday campaign around this? Our guide to top digital passports to launch this holiday season shows how to layer gamified check-ins on top of holiday content to turn it into a full engagement campaign with first-party data collection.
41 Photo Scavenger Hunt Ideas for the Holidays
1. Snap a selfie with Santa Claus. 2. Take a pic of your favorite holiday window display. 3. Capture a photo of your favorite holiday lights display. 4. Snap a pic with a festive cocktail. 5. Take a photo at the community tree lighting. 6. Find a (rein)deer and snap a pic. 7. Visit a Christmas market and snap your favorite artisan. 8. Snap a photo with a snowman (real or inflatable). 9. Capture a holiday-themed food or drink. 10. Take a picture of a car decorated for the holidays.
11. Take a picture of unique holiday decorations. 12. Take a photo with a holiday treat. 13. Snap a pic of a holiday wreath. 14. Take a photo on a holiday train ride. 15. Snap a pic at the local ice skating rink. 16. Take a picture with a festive pet. 17. Find a holiday-themed book at a local bookstore. 18. Take a photo playing in the snow. 19. Snap a pic at the holiday pop-up bar. 20. Find a snow-covered park or bench.
21. Take a photo doing a holiday tradition. 22. Take a photo of the community Hanukkah menorah. 23. Snap a pic while watching a classic holiday movie. 24. Visit a Christmas tree farm. 25. Take a photo wearing your favorite holiday sweater. 26. Take a photo with a gingerbread house. 27. Take a selfie with your favorite holiday ornament. 28. Find a holiday-themed public art display. 29. Get a picture of an elf on the shelf. 30. Find a holiday street sign and take a picture.
31. Take a selfie with Christmas carolers. 32. Take a photo with a holiday gift wrapping station. 33. Snap a picture of your holiday shopping haul. 34. Take a picture at a holiday toy drive or charity event. 35. Take a photo of your first snow of the season. 36. Capture a photo of a holiday parade float. 37. Take a selfie while making holiday cookies. 38. Take a picture with a holiday-themed board game. 39. Participate in a holiday-themed event and document it. 40. Take a photo of your family wearing matching holiday pajamas. 41. Take a photo at a local ice sculpture.
Run these ideas as a digital passport program and participants can check in, earn badges, and compete on a leaderboard as they go. Seeker XP is built for exactly this format. Book a demo to see what a holiday scavenger hunt looks like as a full participation program.