Organizing a team-building event for over 200 people might sound daunting, but a scavenger hunt can turn it into an unforgettable gamified team-building event. Scavenger hunts inject fun, competition, and collaboration into corporate gatherings and with the right plan (and a little tech), even a 200+ person hunt can run smoothly.
In fact, large-scale scavenger hunts have proven to be incredibly engaging; in one PlayTours-run event, over 83% of participants reported feeling engaged throughout and more likely to mingle with teammates afterward. We’ll walk you through step-by-step how to plan and execute a large group scavenger hunt for corporate team building, highlight the benefits for your company culture, and share tips and tools (like PlayTours) to make it manageable and fun.
Start by pinning down the basics of your event. Ask the “five W’s”:
To stay organized, outline a planning timeline. For example:
This timeline is a guideline, adapt it to your organization’s needs. The key is to plan ahead, especially for a large headcount. Early planning prevents last-minute scrambles and ensures you have the right tools and team in place.
Think about a theme or scavenger hunt ideas that fits your company culture or event goal. It could be as simple as “Explore Our City Landmarks” for an outdoor hunt, a holiday or seasonal theme, or something quirky like a spy mission or adventure storyline. A theme helps you craft challenges that feel connected and memorable. For a corporate team-building twist, you can even incorporate company values or inside jokes into the challenges.
Make sure the difficulty level of the tasks is appropriate for your crowd. With 200+ participants, you’ll likely have a wide range of ages and job roles, so aim for variety: include some easy, some moderate, and a few more challenging tasks to keep everyone interested. The goal is to have everyone contribute and have fun, nobody should feel left out because a task is too hard or too easy.
You’ll want to break 200+ people into manageable team sizes so that everyone has a chance to participate.With 200 participants, that means you might form anywhere from 25 to 50 teams. Smaller teams (e.g. 4-5 people) maximize involvement, while slightly larger teams (7-8 people) can add more brainpower, choose what fits your goals and venue. Also, assign a few roving facilitators or game marshals on event day; for example, 4 volunteers (1 per 50 participants) who can answer questions or solve any issues for teams during the game. This way, teams are supported even in a large crowd.
Photo & Video Missions: Encourage creativity and fun. For example, “Take a team selfie in front of the company logo doing a silly pose,” or “Record a 10-second team cheer in a historic spot nearby.” These challenges get people moving and laughing together.
Puzzles and Riddles: Include brainteasers related to your theme or company trivia. Solving a riddle that leads to the next location or clue adds a puzzle-solving element.
Location-Based Clues: If your hunt spans a physical area, use landmarks. “Find a plaque commemorating X and note the year on it,” or GPS check-ins where teams must physically go to a location to unlock the next clue. This adds an adventurous scavenger feel.
Team Bonding Tasks: Since this is about team building, you can add tasks that require teamwork beyond finding items. For example, “All team members form a human pyramid and snap a photo,” or a quick mini-game like a trivia quiz they must complete together.
Managing a game for 200+ people is nearly impossible with pen-and-paper, this is where technology becomes your best friend. A digital scavenger hunt app will automate and streamline the event.
PlayTours uses a simple device-based pricing model, plans start at $49 for up to 10 devices, $79 for up to 60 devices, and $159 for up to 120 devices, making it affordable to host big events without breaking the bank.
Once you’ve chosen your platform, spend time building your game within it and test everything. Run a small test game with a few colleagues or interns acting as players. This will help confirm that all your clues display correctly, GPS locations are accurate, point scoring works, and that the game flow makes sense.
With your scavenger hunt ready to launch, it’s important to finalize the logistics that support a seamless experience. For large corporate events, offering attractive prizes is one of the best ways to motivate participants and spark excitement. The right team building rewards, such as digital gift cards, company swag, or even an extra day off can create a strong sense of competition and boost employee engagement. Make sure to announce the prizes at the start of the event to build anticipation and keep players focused on their goals. By planning the right incentives and handling logistics early, you’ll set the stage for a smooth, high-energy experience from start to finish.
In a quick 5-10 minute briefing, cover how to join the game (e.g. “scan this QR code or visit this link to access the scavenger hunt on your phone”), the timeframe of the game, how scoring works, and any important rules (like safety guidelines or boundaries if the game area is large). During the hunt, monitor the action from your organizer dashboard.
Then announce the winners. You can pull up the final leaderboard from the app and drumroll the top 3 teams. Before ending, take a few minutes to open the PlayTours gallery exhibit mode to display memorable submissions (photos, videos, etc.) on a big screen as a shared reflection moment. Use the built-in analytics dashboard to quickly show team scores, task completions, and engagement data; helpful for internal reports or planning future events.
Now, hand out prizes and encourage a round of applause. Closing the event on a high note reinforces the positive energy and camaraderie you’ve just built.
Q: What tools or software do I need to manage a large group scavenger hunt?
A: The most important tool is a scavenger hunt app that can handle a large number of players. This will automate scoring, clue distribution, and tracking. Look for features like team management, live leaderboards, photo/video uploads, and GPS challenges. For example, PlayTours is a popular web-based scavenger hunt app designed for large events, it allows all players to join via their phones (no app install required) and gives the organizer a real-time dashboard for oversight. Besides the scavenger hunt app, you might use a group communication tool (like WhatsApp) as a backup for announcements. Overal l, leveraging a specialized scavenger hunt platform will save you a ton of time and avoid the need for paper clues or manual scoring.
Q: Do we need multiple facilitators to manage 200+ people?
A: Surprisingly, you don’t need a huge staff to run a large scavenger hunt if you use the right tools. A single well-prepared facilitator can oversee a digital game for hundreds of players, since the app handles tracking and scoring. That said, having a few extra helpers is beneficial. Consider assigning 2–5 facilitators or volunteers for a 200-person event: one main host (emcee and tech monitor), and others as roaming supporters or judges. These helpers can assist teams with troubleshooting (e.g., if someone can’t log in, or a QR code isn’t scanning).
Q: How many people should be on each team for a big scavenger hunt?
A: For a group of 200, you’ll want to create many small teams. Typically 4–8 people per team is ideal. Teams smaller than 4 might struggle to complete tasks (and you’d have too many teams to manage), while teams larger than 8 can get chaotic or leave some members less involved.
Ready to transform your next corporate event into an epic scavenger hunt adventure? With the right platform and plan in hand, you’re set up for success. Give PlayTours a try, it’s built to handle large group games and make the process easy for organizers. You can even start with a free trial to design your game and see the magic for yourself. Kickstart your own gamified team-building event by signing up for free on PlayTours and let the adventures begin.
That's it! If you need help, do email us at hello@playtours.app
