Imagine this scenario: You hand your child or child-at-heart a map with a big red X on it, explaining how you think it leads to treasure! The map leads to a sandy beach, where the treasure hunter digs about … ultimately finding a treasure box actually buried in the sand!
My son has been treasure hunting like this at Disney since he was about 3 and loving it! He’s 9 now and we still do it! You can do this with your child — or anyone fun enough to play along — on your next Disney trip. It just takes a wee bit of planning on your part — less than you think — and some sandy beach time. And don’t we all need a little beach time?
What You Need:
- A good, sandy location
- A map
- Treasure
- Sand shovel (optional)
What is a good location?
Your best spot will be a sandy spot without a lot of other people in the immediate vicinity. If you’re going on a Disney Cruise, Castaway Cay is an excellent spot — I recommend the family beach, down by the Heads Up Bar. If you’re going to Walt Disney World, you’ll find sandy beaches at every Disney resort except the value resorts — if you happen to be staying at a value resort, I recommend you visit the Polynesian Resort and take advantage of their beach. The Polynesian has a wide, relatively quiet beach and it’s easy to get to from the Magic Kingdom. If you’re bound for Disneyland, you’ll have to visit a California beach as there’s no sandy beaches on the Disneyland Resort property that I know. Here’s a list of nearby Disneyland beaches.
Making a treasure map
Start a recent copy of the location you’ll be visit. If you’re visiting Castaway Cay on a Disney cruise, you can view a map here. If you’re visiting the Polynesian Resort at Walt Disney World, you can view a map here. Maps for other Disney resorts are readily obtainable with a Google search. Get a high resolution map and print it out. Then take a red marker and put a big X on it in a location that is clear, but not located in a popular area (i.e., right next to the pool). Here’s a good spot for the Polynesian:
If you’re feeling like taking extra time, you can “weather” your treasure map a bit — tear the edges a bit, wipe it with a wet tea bag, crumple it up, and let it dry overnight. Or, go in the other direction and laminate your map.
Tip: If you haven’t time to download and print a map, or you get this idea while you’re AT Disney (as I did the first time I did it), you just need to get yourself a map of the resort, island, or beach, put a big X in a likely spot, and present it to your treasure hunter. Simple as that.
Preparing the treasure
I highly recommend a treasure chest for hiding any treasure. Not only is it what your treasure hunter is expecting to find, but it’ll make it so much easier for you to hide. If you can find a small wooden treasure chest, go for it — otherwise a simple plastic one will do the trick. You do want it to close well to avoid sand and possibly moisture getting in during it’s burial. I’ve always managed to find little treasure chests in the Disney gift shops, because I rarely plan this in advance. But if you’re reading this at home before you go, look around for a cool, little treasure chest at your dollar store, “import” store (like Pier 1 or World Market), or toy store. If you’re at Disney, check the gift shops or head over to Disney’s Hollywood Studios and get a Treasure Chest Cupcake which comes in a little plastic treasure chest (see photo to the right)! We found these earlier this year at Studio Catering Company, but I believe they are also at the stand outside the Jack Sparrow Experience and at Starring Rolls Bakery. If you just can’t find a treasure chest, get creative — use a bag, a refillable mug, or a toy with a compartment.
Now that you have a treasure chest, you should fill it! Put yourself in your treasure hunter’s place and imagine what would be most magical to find inside. In the past, I’ve filled my son’s treasure chests with coins, gems, shells, pirate-themed toys, and a ship in a bottle! Use your imagination.
Once you have your filled treasure chest, you need to wrap it in a bag (get one from a gift shop) and hide it in a shoulder bag or backpack. Now comes the fun!
Presenting the map
You can go two ways here. Just hand them the map and head out to hunt. Or discover the map (or let them discover it) right before the hunt would begin. I’ve done both. My favorite was definitely the time I let my son discover the map, however. We were on the Disney cruise, relaxing in the Lobby Atrium before we disembarked for Castaway Cay. I surreptiously stashed the map next to his chair when he wasn’t looking, then asked him what it was. He picked it up, saw the big red X immediately, and said — without prompting — “I think it’s a treasure map, mom!” Yeah, that was good.
You could slide it just under your hotel room door, as if someone from the outside did it, and let them discover it. You could stash it in their backpack to accidentally discover. You could roll it up and stick it in the sand (when their back is turned) at the beach. Do what feels right for your situation.
Begin the Hunt
Once the treasure map is in hand, the hunt can begin! This is where the sneaky part comes in. Here’s what you do: survey the beach and bury the chest in a likely spot (I like to do it under a tree) right then and there. You have to wait until they are distracted and be quick. I don’t recommend burying it in advance — not only might someone else see it, but you could worry other guests and Disney security! So do it while you’re right there, so you can keep an eye on the spot. You may also want to mark the spot you buried it, because later you’ll probably need to lead your treasure hunter there and you don’t want to forget where it was!
My son hones in on the spot marked on the map right away, and then just digs in the general area (I bury it while he’s digging). Then if he doesn’t find my spot after 10-15 minutes of sand digging fun, I lead him there with little hints, such as “If I were a pirate, I’d probably hide my treasure under a tree so I had shade.” I’ve also actually put a big X in the sand, to make it really obvious.
It’s really quite fun and simple, and is a way to make magic for your child that doesn’t require any luck or special treatment on Disney’s part. My son and I remember these treasure hunts as a highlight of our Disney trips!
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Give it a try and let me know how it works for you! I’d also love to hear if you’ve already done something like this.