TravelFamily2015
Jan 2017
We were looking for a fun, unique experience for our son's 14th birthday. As we looked for San Francisco Scavenger Hunts online, we came across City Clues Adventures. They offered scavenger hunts in Chinatown/North Beach, Fisherman's Wharf, and Japantown. Beth, of City Clues Adventures, was very helpful in recommending a hunt for our group. We ended up choosing the Chinatown/North Beach scavenger hunt, and Beth let us know where it would begin and end so we could best decide where to park our car.
We met Beth, our tour guide, at St. Mary's Square. After splitting our group (our son and his five buddies) into two teams, the hunt was on! There were about 20 questions in the Chinatown section, and each question was unique. Some questions asked you to go to a certain place and note a detail or take a picture. We enjoyed the questions. They required some thinking but weren't too challenging.
One of the groups was able to complete all the questions in about 30 minutes, and the other group only had a few questions left after that time. Both groups had fun! The Chinatown portion of the scavenger hunt ended at the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory. Everyone went inside to see how fortune cookies were made. It was interesting to see how each cookie was shaped by hand. Afterwards, Beth gave us three common Chinese treats that are uncommon in America. They tasted good. We enjoyed the look on everyone's faces, especially after seeing the third treat!
The second part of the scavenger hunt took place in North Beach. The questions there were just as off-the-beaten-path, if not even more, than in Chinatown. After answering the questions, both groups raced over to Washington Square Park, the ending point of the tour.
Our favorite two questions overall were the two translation questions. Each group had to find someone who spoke Chinese and Italian and ask that person to translate a phrase. The translations were very funny and creative!
At Washington Square Park, both teams competed against each other in a trivia round. All of the questions were related to San Francisco, like naming the only moving landmark. The kids knew most of the answers. They were fun questions! At the end, Beth gave us a sweet surprise to help us remember one of the answers.
After the scavenger hunt and trivia round was over, we participated in the optional walk up to Lombard Street. It's only a few blocks to the bottom of the street, and one additional block to the top. The view is something you don't want to miss.
We really enjoyed the scavenger hunt. Beth was a great, knowledgeable tour guide, and the questions were creative and well-written. Both the kids and parents enjoyed the tour, and all ages would, too. We would definitely do anther scavenger hunt from City Clues Adventures again. What can beat learning, exploring, and having fun in San Francisco, all at the same time?