Which San Francisco Museums Have a Scavenger Hunt You Can Book? (2026)
Six San Francisco museums and the zoo have a bookable scavenger hunt: hosted treasure hunts at $68.00 per person and self-guided versions at $39.00 per person, each checked against the live listing, plus the admission question nobody answers.
TL;DR
Six San Francisco museums and the zoo have a scavenger hunt you can book online: the Asian Art Museum, the California Academy of Sciences, the de Young, the Exploratorium, the Legion of Honor, SFMOMA and the San Francisco Zoo. Each comes in two formats from the same operator: a hosted treasure hunt at $68.00 per person and a self-guided version at $39.00 per person, both two hours long. Every price, group size and inclusion below was checked against the live Events in Minutes listing on October 1, 2026.
- Hosted hunts: $68.00/person, 10 to 500 guests, a facilitator on site, app-based scoring and an Amazon gift card for the winning team. Book at least three days ahead.
- Self-guided hunts: $39.00/person, 2 to 1,000 guests on the booking form, clue sheets and a route map emailed to your organizer, your own phones for the AR app, no host and no prize. Available around the clock, same-day start.
- Looking for an aquarium or science museum hunt? The California Academy of Sciences hunt is the one whose checkpoints include the Steinhart Aquarium and the Morrison Planetarium.
- None of the listings says whether museum admission is included. Ask the vendor before you book.
- The Great Art Heist is a seated, portable escape room game, not a museum hunt. Three more hosted museum hunts run in Mountain View, San Jose and at Stanford.
Last updated: October 2026
Which San Francisco museums have a bookable scavenger hunt?
If you search for a museum scavenger hunt in San Francisco you mostly find individual listing pages, one per museum, with no page that puts them side by side. This is that page. On the Events in Minutes marketplace one Bay Area operator lists a treasure hunt at seven San Francisco venues: six museums (the Asian Art Museum in Civic Center, the California Academy of Sciences and the de Young in Golden Gate Park, the Exploratorium on Pier 15, the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park and SFMOMA in Yerba Buena) plus the San Francisco Zoo. Every venue has a hosted hunt and a self-guided hunt, so there are fourteen San Francisco listings, and the operator runs three more hosted museum hunts in Mountain View, San Jose and Stanford. We read all eighteen listings (the seventeen hunts and one escape-room game whose name suggests a museum hunt) and checked each against the live page on October 1, 2026.
Two things are the same across all of them. Every hunt is two hours, and every hunt is request to book, so the vendor confirms your date before you are charged. What differs is the format and the price: $68.00 per person with a facilitator, or $39.00 per person on your own. The eleven cards are ranked 1 to 11 in the order they appear: the six hosted San Francisco museum hunts, the zoo, one escape-room game we checked because of its name, then the three venues outside the city. The seven self-guided hunts share their listing photo with their hosted twin, so they are linked by name in their own section rather than repeated as cards.
Hosted museum treasure hunts in San Francisco: $68.00 per person
These six listings share one format. Teams of three to six download a custom mobile application that guides them with location-based clues, historical photographs and photo missions; a professional facilitator runs the event with built-in scoring and instructions; and the winning team takes home a real Amazon gift card. All six are typed at $68.00 per person for 10 to 500 guests, run 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM daily, need at least three days notice, and carry a flexible cancellation policy up to seven days before the event. Four of the listings describe both indoor and outdoor checkpoints (the Asian Art Museum, the Academy, the de Young and SFMOMA pair galleries with the plaza, park or garden outside); the Exploratorium listing describes outdoor exhibits on the pier alongside the hands-on exhibits, and the Legion of Honor listing describes fine art interiors on a coastal bluff.
Asian Art Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Activity
A hosted two-hour hunt built around the Asian Art Museum in Civic Center. The listing describes indoor and outdoor checkpoints that move teams between the collection (the jade and ceramics galleries, the atrium, the contemporary wing) and the civic landmarks around the plaza, with a facilitator, app-based scoring and an Amazon gift card for the winning team. Minimum ten guests, at least three days notice.
Book nowCalifornia Academy of Sciences Treasure Hunt - Team Bldg
The closest thing to an aquarium scavenger hunt in this set: the California Academy of Sciences listing names the Steinhart Aquarium, the Osher Rainforest, the Morrison Planetarium, Tusher African Hall and the Living Roof as checkpoints, and pairs the indoor exhibit halls with Golden Gate Park pathways. The listing says the hunt works rain or shine in most Golden Gate Park weather conditions. Hosted, scored in the app, prize included.
Book nowDe Young Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Adventure
Fine art plus the park: clues at the de Young connect to the Hamon Observation Tower, the sculpture garden, the Music Concourse, the Pool of Enchantment and the Spreckels Temple of Music, so the route flows between the galleries and Golden Gate Park. The same hosted format as the other museum hunts, ten to five hundred guests, two hours.
Book nowExploratorium Treasure Hunt - SF Bay Team Building Hunt
The Exploratorium hunt uses the pier itself: the listing names the Tinkering Studio, the Living Systems Gallery, the Tactile Dome, the observatory pier and the Wave Organ at the pier's end as checkpoints, with Bay Bridge and Ferry Building views from the Embarcadero. Hosted, with a facilitator, in-app scoring and a prize for the winning team.
Book nowLegion of Honor Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Hunt
The coastal one. Checkpoints connect to the Thinker sculpture, the Court of Honor, the Beaux-Arts colonnade, the Lincoln Park trail, the Lands End lookout and the Holocaust Memorial, so expect coastal bluff walking between the Rodin galleries and the ocean views. Hosted format, ten to five hundred guests.
Book nowSFMOMA Treasure Hunt - San Francisco Team Building Adventure
The downtown option for a museum scavenger hunt for adults: the SFMOMA listing names the living wall, the Pop Art galleries, the rooftop sculpture garden, Yerba Buena Gardens, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts and the Children's Creativity Museum as checkpoints, a walkable cluster a few blocks from Market Street. Hosted and scored, with the winning team's gift card included.
Book nowZoo and aquarium scavenger hunts in San Francisco
The San Francisco Zoo has its own hosted hunt, below, and a self-guided version listed in the next section. If you were searching for an aquarium scavenger hunt, none of the eighteen listings we read is a standalone aquarium hunt; the California Academy of Sciences hunt above is the one whose checkpoints include the Steinhart Aquarium, alongside the Osher Rainforest and the Morrison Planetarium, and its listing describes the Academy as a living museum housing an aquarium, planetarium, rainforest and natural history museum under one roof.
SF Zoo Treasure Hunt - Family Friendly Team Building Hunt
The hosted zoo hunt (its $39.00 self-guided twin is listed below). Checkpoints connect to the African Savanna, Grizzly Gulch, Lemur Forest, the historic Dentzel carousel, the Children's Zoo and the Lion House, and the listing calls the oceanfront course family-friendly. Hosted, with a facilitator and in-app scoring, ten to five hundred guests.
Book nowSelf-guided museum hunts from $39.00 per person
Each venue above also has a self-facilitated listing at $39.00 per person, two hours, request to book, with the same flexible cancellation up to seven days before. After you book, your organizer receives an email with the clue sheets and a printable route map; you print one packet per participant, each team brings at least one charged smartphone for the augmented-reality app, and you start whenever you like, including the same day you book. The listings are explicit that no on-site host, coordinator or facilitator attends and that no prize is included. Availability is around the clock, and the marketplace booking form accepts 2 to 1,000 guests. These routes are described by their exterior landmarks, so treat them as a hunt around the museum rather than a guided tour inside it. The seven self-guided listings, each $39.00 per person:
- Asian Art Museum Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Civic Center route: the Asian Art Museum, City Hall, Civic Center Plaza, the main library and the War Memorial buildings.
- California Academy of Sciences Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Golden Gate Park route: the California Academy of Sciences, the Music Concourse, the de Young Museum, the Japanese Tea Garden and the park pathways.
- De Young Museum Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Museum concourse route: the de Young Museum, the Hamon Tower, the Music Concourse, the Japanese Tea Garden and the park pathways.
- Exploratorium Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Waterfront route: the Exploratorium, Pier 15, the Embarcadero, the bay-front promenades and the historic piers.
- Legion of Honor Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Lands End route: the Legion of Honor, the Lands End trails, Lincoln Park, the ocean overlooks and the Sutro Baths ruins.
- SFMOMA Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Downtown route: SFMOMA, Yerba Buena Gardens, the Contemporary Jewish Museum, Mission Street and the downtown galleries.
- SF Zoo Self-Facilitated Treasure Hunt & Team Building: $39.00/person, 2 hours. Oceanfront route: the San Francisco Zoo, Ocean Beach, the Great Highway, Sloat Boulevard and the seaside paths.
Is The Great Art Heist a museum scavenger hunt?
No. Its name makes it look like an art museum hunt, so we checked the listing. The Great Art Heist is a portable, app-driven escape room game from a different vendor, played seated at your own venue rather than inside a museum. It is the only instant-book listing on this page, the only one with a strict cancellation policy (up to 30 days before), and the only one priced as a flat fee plus a per-person rate.
The Great Art Heist
Not a museum hunt, despite the name. The Great Art Heist is a portable, app-driven escape room game from a different vendor: teams sit down (the listing calls it a seated, indoor-friendly format) and race to stop the art thief Le Papillon on a live leaderboard, in a conference room, office or event hall of your choosing. Priced as $150.00 plus $50.00 per person, instant book, strict cancellation up to 30 days before; the listing invites you to ask about adding an in-person emcee.
Book nowMuseum scavenger hunts outside San Francisco
The same operator runs the hosted format at three Bay Area museums beyond the city, at the same $68.00 per person for 10 to 500 guests.
Computer History Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Hunt
The Silicon Valley museum hunt: clues connect to the Revolution exhibit, the original Babbage Difference Engine, the working IBM 1401, the Cray supercomputers and the internet history wing. Hosted, scored in the app, prize included, ten to five hundred guests, two hours in Mountain View.
Book nowTech Interactive Treasure Hunt - San Jose Team Building
Downtown San Jose's science and technology museum, with checkpoints that connect to The Tech Interactive, Plaza de Cesar Chavez, the Hammer Theatre Center, the Hotel De Anza, San Pedro Square and the Children's Discovery Museum. Same hosted format and price as the San Francisco museum hunts.
Book nowStanford Museums Treasure Hunt - Bay Area Team Building
Two campus museums in one hunt: the Cantor Arts Center and the Anderson Collection, with the Rodin Sculpture Garden, the Papua New Guinea collection and the contemporary photography wing named as checkpoints. Hosted, with a facilitator and in-app scoring, ten to five hundred guests on the Stanford campus.
Book nowThe eleven carded hunts side by side
The table repeats the card facts in the same order; the seven self-guided hunts are listed in their section above at $39.00 per person each. Duration is the booking window on the listing; Group is the guest range the booking form accepts.
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
| Activity | Location | Duration | Group | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Asian Art Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Activity | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| California Academy of Sciences Treasure Hunt - Team Bldg | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| De Young Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Adventure | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| Exploratorium Treasure Hunt - SF Bay Team Building Hunt | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| Legion of Honor Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Hunt | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| SFMOMA Treasure Hunt - San Francisco Team Building Adventure | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| SF Zoo Treasure Hunt - Family Friendly Team Building Hunt | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| The Great Art Heist | San Francisco, CA | 2 hours | 10–1000 guests | $150.00 + $50.00/person |
| Computer History Museum Treasure Hunt - Team Building Hunt | Mountain View, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| Tech Interactive Treasure Hunt - San Jose Team Building | San Jose, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
| Stanford Museums Treasure Hunt - Bay Area Team Building | Stanford, CA | 2 hours | 10–500 guests | $68.00/person |
How do museum scavenger hunts work?
Hosted or self-guided: pick by who you want running the day
With a hosted hunt the organizer does not manage logistics during the event (the listings say the facilitator does), and the group reconvenes at the end for an optional scoring summary and debrief. With a self-guided hunt the materials arrive by email, the AR app runs on your phones, and nobody from the vendor attends, so the organizer is the host. The $29.00 per person difference buys the facilitator, the prize and the fixed 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM operating window; the self-guided version buys around-the-clock availability and a same-day start.
Ask about admission before you book
We read all eighteen listings and none states whether museum or zoo admission is included in the per-person price. Several hosted listings name checkpoints inside the galleries (the jade and ceramics galleries at the Asian Art Museum, the Pop Art galleries at SFMOMA, the Steinhart Aquarium at the Academy), while the self-guided routes name exterior landmarks. Send the vendor a message from the listing page asking whether tickets are included, and if they are not, budget each museum's own admission on top of the hunt price.
Group size, teams and the minimum spend
The hosted hunts need ten guests and take up to five hundred, so the smallest hosted booking is $680.00 before taxes and fees. Teams are three to six people, which means a group of thirty plays as five to ten teams. The self-guided booking form accepts two to one thousand guests, though the listing descriptions talk about groups of ten to five hundred, so a party of two should confirm with the vendor that a two-person booking is accepted. The Great Art Heist needs ten and takes up to one thousand.
Lead time and customization
Hosted hunts must be booked at least three days in advance. Both formats say a tailored augmented-reality experience (your company goals, team or event theme) needs at least two weeks notice so the app can be prepared. The hosted listings add that custom clues (company history, inside jokes, product references, themed prizes) can be woven in at no extra cost and that the route can be adjusted in length and intensity for mixed mobility, families with younger children or competitive teams.
Cancellation, insurance and weather
All seventeen hunts from the museum operator carry a flexible cancellation policy up to seven days before the event, include general liability insurance and a waiver form in the base price, and offer a certificate of insurance on request as a $50.00 flat add-on. The hosted listings say the hunt runs year-round and works rain or shine in most local weather conditions, which is where the museum venues earn their place over a purely outdoor neighborhood hunt: the Academy, the de Young, the Asian Art Museum and SFMOMA all have indoor checkpoints to retreat to. The Great Art Heist is the exception on cancellation, with a strict policy up to 30 days before.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which San Francisco museums have a scavenger hunt you can book?
Seven San Francisco venues have a bookable treasure hunt on Events in Minutes: the Asian Art Museum, the California Academy of Sciences, the de Young Museum, the Exploratorium, the Legion of Honor, SFMOMA and the San Francisco Zoo. Each venue has two listings from the same operator: a hosted hunt with a facilitator at $68.00 per person for 10 to 500 guests, and a self-guided hunt at $39.00 per person that the marketplace form accepts for 2 to 1,000 guests. All are two hours long, request to book, and carry a flexible cancellation policy up to 7 days before the event. Prices were checked against the live listings on October 1, 2026.
How much does a museum scavenger hunt in San Francisco cost?
The hosted museum, zoo and campus hunts on this page are all typed at $68.00 per person with a ten-guest minimum, so the smallest hosted booking is $680.00 before taxes and fees. The self-guided versions are $39.00 per person. Every hunt from the museum operator, hosted or self-guided, also offers a certificate of insurance on request as a $50.00 flat add-on. The Great Art Heist, which is a portable escape room game rather than a museum hunt, is $150.00 plus $50.00 per person, which comes to $650.00 for its ten-guest minimum.
Is museum admission included in the scavenger hunt price?
None of the eighteen listings states whether museum or zoo admission is part of the per-person price, and we checked each one on October 1, 2026. Several hosted listings name checkpoints inside the galleries (the jade and ceramics galleries at the Asian Art Museum, the Steinhart Aquarium at the Academy, the Pop Art galleries at SFMOMA), while the self-guided routes name exterior landmarks such as Civic Center Plaza, the Music Concourse and the Embarcadero piers. Ask the vendor on the listing page whether tickets are included before you book, and budget admission separately if they are not.
What is the difference between the hosted and the self-guided museum hunts?
The hosted hunts put a professional facilitator on site who runs the event with built-in scoring and instructions, teams of three to six play through a custom mobile application, and the winning team takes home an Amazon gift card. They run 9:00 AM to 7:00 PM, need at least three days notice and a minimum of ten guests. The self-guided hunts send your organizer the clue sheets and a printable route map by email, teams bring at least one charged smartphone per team for the AR app, no host, coordinator or facilitator attends, and no prize is included. They are available around the clock, the listing says you can run one the same day you book, and the price is $39.00 per person instead of $68.00.
Can a museum scavenger hunt in San Francisco be customized for a company or a birthday?
Yes. The hosted listings say custom clues can be woven into the hunt at no extra cost, including company history, inside jokes, product references and themed prizes, and that the route can be adjusted in length and intensity for mixed mobility, families with younger children or competitive teams. Both the hosted and self-guided listings run on an augmented-reality app whose experience can be tailored to your company goals, team or event theme, and both state that customization requests must be submitted at least two weeks before the event date so the app can be prepared.
Are there museum scavenger hunts outside San Francisco?
On the marketplace, yes: the same operator lists hosted hunts at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, The Tech Interactive in downtown San Jose and the Stanford museums (the Cantor Arts Center and the Anderson Collection), each at $68.00 per person for 10 to 500 guests and two hours. All three are hosted hunts with a facilitator, in-app scoring and a prize for the winning team, and all three need at least three days notice.