SmartHunts® since 2010
The corporate scavenger hunt, on our own app since 2010
SmartHunts® are corporate scavenger hunts played on iPads we bring, scored live and hosted by our facilitators in any city. Teams follow clues, shoot photo and video missions and watch the leaderboard move while they are still on the course. Five thousand hunts in, the app is still ours.
- Group size
- 30 to 1,800
- Length
- 2 to 2.5 hours
- Setting
- Indoors or out, any season
- Where
- 150+ cities, or your venue
- SmartHunts delivered
- 5,000+
- Cities and locations
- 150+
- Team iPads
- 400+
- Customer TrustScore
- 5/5
Our story
From Polaroids to iPads
Our facilitators were running scavenger hunts for corporate groups long before there was an app for it. Teams went out with a clue sheet and a Polaroid camera, later a digital camera, and the winner was decided at a table after everyone came back.
The iPad launched in April 2010. That same year we built the first SmartHunts® app for it, so a team could read clues, shoot photo and video missions and see the score change while it was still out on the course. A second app for the facilitator followed, which is why the person running your event can see every team on a map and send a surprise Road Block to all of them at once.
SmartHunts® grew up as a sister brand to Best Corporate Events, run by a small team of event people and developers who kept rebuilding the app as the devices changed. In July 2025 it became part of BEST outright, so the hunts, the app and the people who run them now sit under one roof.
Since 2010
From the first iPad to today, in six moments
- 2010The first SmartHunts® appBuilt for the first iPad the year it launched, so a team could read clues and shoot missions on one device and see its score move.
- 2012One iPad per teamTeams stop sharing phones. Every team carries an iPad, and a facilitator app arrives to run the hunt from the sidelines.
- 2013Las Vegas and New YorkEntertainment hunts open on the Strip with celebrity look-alikes at the stations, and SmartHunts® arrives in Manhattan.
- 20161,800 on Hollywood BoulevardSmart Meetings writes up the largest hunt to date: 1,800 people from Prudential on one SmartHunt® down Hollywood Boulevard.
- 2018Escape Room SmartHunt®The escape room made portable. The puzzles run on the app, so the room can be any room in your venue.
- 2025Part of BESTOn 8 July 2025 SmartHunts® became part of Best Corporate Events outright, alongside TrainingPath, under one roof.
The app
What the SmartHunts® app does on event day
We develop the app ourselves, so each hunt is built around your group, your city and your venue.
Missions scored as they happen
Clues, trivia, photo and video challenges are answered on the team iPad and scored live, so the leaderboard moves during the hunt, not after it.
A GPS map of every team
The facilitator app shows where each team is, so nobody gets lost and the finish can be timed to the minute.
Road Blocks by text
Surprise challenges arrive mid-hunt by text message, which keeps a team that is ahead from coasting.
Your brand on the screen
The app is white-labeled with your logo, and missions can feature your products, your values or the points of interest you choose.
The slideshow at the finish
The best photos and clips from every team are cut into a slideshow that plays at the awards ceremony, minutes after the last team is in.
In person or remote
Larger groups get a facilitator on site. Smaller or spread-out teams can play a hosted hunt over video conference on the same app.
Pick your hunt
Three hunts, one app
Every SmartHunt® runs on the same app with the same facilitators. The difference is where the missions send your teams and what they find there.
City SmartHunt®
30 to 1,000+ people · 2 to 2.5 hours
Best when your group is new to the city. Missions send teams to the landmarks, food and stories of the neighborhood you are meeting in.
Amazing Chase SmartHunt®
30 to 1,000+ people · 2 to 2.5 hours
Best when you want a race. Teams move between staffed activity stations, and the Road Blocks and time limits keep the pressure on.
Locate & Donate SmartHunt®
30 to 1,000+ people · 2 to 2.5 hours
Best when the event should give something back. Teams collect surprise packages along the route and learn at the finish that they have been gathering donations for a local charity.
Event day
How a SmartHunt® runs
- 0:00
Icebreaker
The facilitator opens with a 15 to 20 minute icebreaker while teams of 8 to 10 form and collect their iPad.
- 0:20
Briefing
Rules, scoring and the map, then the countdown.
- 0:30
The hunt
90 to 120 minutes on the course. Missions, Road Blocks and the live leaderboard keep every team moving until the finish.
- 2:15
Awards
The slideshow plays, the winning team takes the medals, and you leave with every photo and video from the day.
We bring
- Team iPads, charged and loaded with your branded hunt
- A lead facilitator and staff scaled to the group
- The route, missions and Road Blocks written for your city or venue
- Medals for the winning team and the finish slideshow
You provide
- The group, from 30 to 1,800 people
- A room or open spot to start and finish
- About two and a half hours on the agenda
1,800 people
The biggest one yet
One hunt, all the way down Hollywood Boulevard
Prudential brought 1,800 people to Los Angeles and we ran a single SmartHunt® for all of them, the largest hunt we have staged. Smart Meetings wrote it up.
What clients say after a SmartHunt®
The competitiveness was the most fun. The facilitator was very energetic and engaged. The group enjoyed it and had lots of fun!
Jennifer
Viega LLC
Thank you so much, we had lots of fun on our City SmartHunt and the pictures of South Beach and the art deco hotels are helping us relive everything. This is a great activity and we are receiving lots of great comments.
Alejandra
Millicom
Our company enjoyed participating in the City SmartHunt in the Gaslamp District of San Diego. Your lead facilitator was very professional and led a fantastic and flawless event. All of the teams will be talking about their experiences and moments of laughter for a while. We are already looking for ideas for another event in San Antonio, TX. Thanks for a great event!
Kelly
Vibra Healthcare
I can’t express how thankful I am for your team! From the very beginning your team was MORE than accommodating and truly a pleasure to work with. Every request was met with a “yes” which is such a welcomed response in this industry. The client was thrilled with the day overall and they loved how competitive their teams were during the City SmartHunt! I have passed along the feedback to my staff, and we hope to be working together again soon! Kind Regards,
Kimberly
Destination Partners, Inc.
I really enjoyed exploring Chicago with my co-workers on our City SmartHunt. Taking group Selfies was a fun team bonder. Our entire group loved it despite the raining weather!! This is a great event for building teamwork and having fun while doing it
Jennifer
Pfizer, Inc.
We just finished up a Boston City SmartHunt from Best Corporate Events. Whoever found them and proposed them, THANK YOU! It was such a seamless, great process. They were so incredibly responsive and it made my life a lot easier. I would highly recommend them. Just wanted to share!
Lauren
DPI Events, a DMC Network Company
Our City SmartHunts was a really great experience. Having our groups work in teams toward a single goal was a great team builder. It was fun seeing people’s personalities change when you got them on equal playing fields. As a whole, our group enjoyed the activities very, very much.
Carrie
Pariveda Solutions
Best Team Building experiences to date! Our City SmartHunt was extremely organized. The video challenges on the iPads were really fun and our group loved all the activities. We can’t wait to receive the finish video of the photos and videos you had playing at the end of the event.
Carmen
DCPS
Our New Your City SmartHunt was extremely organized and we loved the massive opening icebreaker you called Entourage – it really got the crowd going. The hunt itself was really fun and our group all had an amazing time. It was great from start to finish!
Joy
UNTUCKit
Questions people ask about SmartHunts®
How big a group can a SmartHunt® handle?
Do participants need to download anything?
Where can you run a SmartHunt®?
What happens if it rains?
Can the hunt be branded for our company?
How is a SmartHunt® priced?
Ready to send your team out?
Tell us your city, group size and date and a planner will send a same-day quote for the hunt that fits.