• Downtown Houston provides a fun background for scavenger hunts.smith street - houston image by Daniel Gillies from Fotolia.com
  
  Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States. Located in southeastern Texas, Houston has interesting neighborhoods and sites that work for scavenger hunts---from team-building activities to birthday parties. Aside from such attractions as museums and outdoor parks, Houston offers a free trolley system and an underground tunnel system downtown.
  
  

Downtown

• A scavenger hunt through downtown Houston could include a program or showtimes from the Alley Theatre, a kayak launchpad name from Buffalo Bayou, a film director's name from the Angelika Film Center, or specific exhibit or shark information from the Downtown Aquarium. Other items for the scavenger hunt list are "Write the names of five historic structures from the Heritage Society" and "Get a brochure from the Houston Visitor Center."
  
  

Houston Heights

• Houston Heights is the site of a popular annual bike scavenger hunt and can serve your private scavenger hunt as well. The neighborhood features a city bike trail that covers 20 miles through the Heights, the Sixth Ward, the West End, Oak Forest and Timbergrove. The professional organizers typically include a checkpoint and water station near the midpoint of the hunt, as well as time limits. The scavenger hunt list can use a list of clues describing objects and buildings along the bike route, such as Sew Crafty, a craft studio and sewing lounge. Some people plant items such as gnome statues along the route.
  
  

Montrose

• The Montrose neighborhood is a popular shopping and dining location in Houston. Attractions include the Byzantine Fresco Chapel Museum's two 13th-century Byzantine frescoes (ask participants to write down the title of one of them) and the Lower Westheimer Shopping District (try telling players to buy a $5 purse at the Fashion Recycler store).
  
  

Museum District

• The Museum District features the Houston Zoo in addition to various museums. With a Houston CityPass, scavenger hunt participants can enter as many as six attractions to find list items in specific exhibits. As of April 2010, the CityPass costs $39 for adults and $29 for children ages 3 to 11. The zoo, the Health Museum, the Children's Museum of Houston, the Houston Museum of Natural Science and the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, are among the CityPass attractions.