Locations of Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunts

Locations & Differences

This page contains details and differences between our 6 Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunts.

You should read the Description Of Scavenger Hunts page before reading this page.

LAGUNA BEACH

Maximum # of teams: 10
Average time to complete: Approx 4 hours
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 5 hours.
Travel on foot: Approx 4 miles. Some hills, but mostly flat terrain. (Generally, you don't have to travel more than a couple blocks between each of your stops).

Shortened versions are available for LB:

Weekend events open to the public: We can remove 1 hour and about 1 mile of the walking... The game plays the same and you can still get the satisfaction of revealing the murderer, but this this will remove you from the competition. Just ask for this version after the orientation.
Private events: We can customize in several ways. Contact us for more info.
Corporate teambuilding events: We recommend removing 60 minutes and 1 mile of the walking. But we can remove anywhere from 15 minutes to 90 minutes depending on your needs. Contact us for more info.

This is the original Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt, which premiered in 2013, after a full year of planning and designing.

The layout of this beautiful beach town is perfectly spread out for a Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt. You’ll explore the Downtown LB area (Forest Ave, Ocean Ave and Coast Hwy), walk through beautiful Heisler Park, and go as far south as the scenic ocean lookout of Brown’s Park.

Starting points are assigned to spread out the teams, but after that first location you'll investigate the other locations in any order you want.

It's a great way to tour Laguna Beach. You don't need any knowledge of the city. And even locals often tell us they've seen interesting parts of Laguna they never noticed before.

SAN CLEMENTE

Maximum # of teams: 8
Average time to complete: Approx 4 hours
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 5 hours.
Travel on foot: Approx 4 miles. Some steep inclines, so the walking is more strenuous than the other locations, especially the walk between the pier and the shops on Avenida Del Mar.

Shortened versions are limited for SC:

Weekend events open to the public: We do not offer a shortened version.
Corporate teambuilding events and private events: We can only remove a maximum of about 30 minutes from the SC course. There is no way to reduce the walking by much!

The second Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt was unveiled in 2014, designed with lots of new surprises!

This course includes the pier, beach and downtown areas of SC. Unlike our other locations, this course guides you through all locations in a specific order. (Each team still gets their own starting point).

Though not intended to be more difficult than the other locations, the percentage of teams revealing the murderer is slightly lower for SC – maybe because of the clues, maybe because the walking is a little more strenuous. But it’s still ok for most first-time players.

3/7/20 Update: Normally, all of our public scavenger hunts, at all cities, start at a restaurant with a 30 minutes orientation. However, due to issues with the restaurant we have used in San Clemente, and that there is no suitable replacement in the area, we will be starting all public San Clemente scavenger hunts outside. (This change does not affect privately booked events, which can still be based from a restaurant). Rather than having the orientation, all instructions and rules will be emailed to players two days before the event. It will be your responsibility to read all of it before you arrive! When we meet, you will be given the materials you need for the hunt, and we will answer any questions, but no instructions will be given. In addition, we will not have a closing presentation of the winning teams. The rankings of teams will be emailed after the event. This is not ideal, but without an indoor place to gather all teams, this is the only way we can run the San Clemente scavenger hunt.

OLD TOWN SAN DIEGO

Maximum # of teams: 10
Average time to complete: Approx 3 hours 45 minutes
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 4 hours 45 minutes
Travel on foot: Approx 2 miles. Mostly flat terrain. (Generally, you do not have to travel more than a block between each of your stops).

Shortened versions are available for SD:

Weekend events open to the public: We can remove 45 – 60 minutes... The game plays the same and you can still get the satisfaction of revealing the murderer, but this will remove you from the competition. Just ask for this version after the orientation.
Private events: We can customize it in several ways. Contact us for more info.
Corporate teambuilding events: We recommend removing 45 minutes. But we can remove anywhere from 15 minutes to 75 minutes depending on your needs. Contact us for more info.

4/27/15: We are SO proud to announce... There has been a murder in Old Town San Diego.
Old Town is absolutely perfect for a Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt. Whether you're very familiar with Old Town, or this will be your first trip, you'll explore a truly unique and historic area.

This investigation follows the same format as the Laguna course: All team gather for a briefing at Cafe Coyote, starting points are assigned by raffle, and after that, you'll investigate the designated areas of Old Town in any order you want.

And because Old Town is so condensed with interesting landmarks and historic sites to serve as clues, this course involves about HALF THE WALKING as the other courses – only about 2 miles total.

MURDER MYSTERY ESCAPE ROOM

2/17/17 Click HERE for info about our portable: MURDER MYSTERY ESCAPE ROOM!

We bring the crime scene to your home or office.

NEWPORT BEACH

Maximum # of teams: 9
Average time to complete: Approx 4 hours
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 5 hours.
Travel on foot: Approx 3 miles. Flat terrain. (Generally, you do not have to travel more than a couple blocks between each of your stops).

Shortened versions are available for NB:

Weekend events open to the public: We can remove about 1 hour... The game plays the same and you can still get the satisfaction of revealing the murderer, but this this will remove you from the competition. Just ask for this version after the orientation.
Private events: We can customize it in several ways. Contact us for more info.
Corporate teambuilding events: We recommend removing 45 minutes if you want to have the ferry and Balboa Island in the game, or 60 minutes if you want to remove the ferry and Balboa Island. But we can remove anywhere from 15 minutes to 90 minutes depending on your needs. Contact us for more info.

8/2/18 Newport Beach is ready!
In this investigation you'll explore the areas of Balboa Village, The Fun Zone, The Balboa Pier, Peninsula Park, and you'll even take the Ferry to Balboa Island and back. It really is a wonderful area to spend the day and solve a murder.

For Newport Beach, we've added some new dimensions to go with the murder mystery theme. Not only will you need to determine who the murderer is, but this time you'll need to determine the LOCATION of the murder & the MOTIVE...

I know, you may think this resembles the board game 'Clue'... You won't think that after you play it. It's as different as checkers is to chess. There's no guessing here. This is all about logic, clue-solving, and getting off the couch for the day to explore a beautiful area.

The walking is about 3 miles, which is about a mile less than Laguna and San Clemente.
Also note that each player will need to bring $3.50 cash for the ferry.

SHERLOCK IN YOUR HOMES: Solve A Murder Mystery From Your Home!

4/28/20 Inspired by Covid-19... A version of our Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunts you can play at your home, far from all the germy humans.

If you've enjoyed our scavenger hunts, you will love this too.

It's hours and hours of FUN for 1 - 4 people!

Solve at your own pace: in one marathon session, or spread out over several days.

Click the logo at the bottom of this page for more info or go to www.SherlockInYourHomes.com

DANA POINT

Maximum # of teams: 9
Average time to complete: Approx 4 hours
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 5 hours.
Travel on foot: Approx 4.5 miles. Mostly flat terrain but there is are two very long flights of stairs to get up to the two parks.

Shortened versions are available for DP:

Weekend events open to the public: We can remove about 1 hour, and about 3/4 mile of the walking... The game plays the same and you can still get the satisfaction of revealing the murderer, but this this will remove you from the competition. Just ask for this version after the orientation.
Private events: We can customize it in several ways. Contact us for more info.
Corporate teambuilding events: We recommend removing 60 minutes and about 3/4 mile of the walking. But we can remove anywhere from 15 minutes to 90 minutes, and possibly some of the stairs, depending on your needs. Contact us for more info.

8/15/20 is the date of the first official Dana Point Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt!
In this investigation you'll explore the areas of Dana Point Harbor, Doheny Beach, Dana Island, Lantern Bay Park, Heritage Park, and landmarks along Pacific Coast Hwy.

You'll solve clues to determine The Murderer, The Location of the Murder and The Murder Weapon.

But wait, there's more... We added 4 bonus questions to add suspense to the event! These questions will deduct time from your finishing time. So, the first team to finish may not have the fastest time after bonuses. And we're not telling until all teams are back.

HUNTINGTON BEACH

Maximum # of teams: 9
Average time to complete: Approx 3 hours and 45 minutes.
Full event, with orientation and announcement of winning teams: Approx 4 hours and 45 minutes.
Travel on foot: Approx 3 miles. Mostly flat terrain.

Shortened versions are available for Huntington Beach:

Weekend events open to the public: We can remove about 1 hour. The game plays the same and you can still get the satisfaction of revealing the murderer, but this this will remove you from the competition. Just ask for this version after the orientation.
Private events: We can customize it in several ways. Contact us for more info.
Corporate teambuilding events: We recommend removing about 30 minutes. But we can remove anywhere from 15 minutes to 60 minutes. Contact us for more info.

9/23/23 was the date of the first official Huntington Beach Murder Mystery Scavenger Hunt!
In this investigation you'll explore the areas of Huntington Beach Pier, Downtown Shops, Beach Walking Trail, Pacific City, Triangle Park and more.

You'll solve clues to determine The Murderer, The Location of the Murder and The Murder Weapon.

Solve A Murder Mystery From Your Home

Click Here