15 Puzzle Walks in the UK Worth Booking

1.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Manchester with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 253 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20Our pick

Join Captain Bess on a private, self-guided Manchester treasure hunt from Piccadilly Station. Use your phone to follow maps, solve clues, request hints, and uncover stories at St Peter’s Square, Castlefield, St John’s Gardens, John Rylands Library, and Chinatown.

“Loved recommendation for the pub and lovely way to see the city without clues being too hard. Only issue was at clue 13 there was scaffolding on the library which meant we were unable to see the answer. Also roadworks meant we crossed at a different point impacting on clue 14.”

Check availability →Read our full review

2.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around York with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 248 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides your private group around York by smartphone, sending maps, cryptic clues, hints, facts, and stories. Start when you like, follow a route through Museum Gardens, York Minster, the Shambles, and more, then pause for food or drinks along the way.

“The Treasure Hunt was good fun but we should have started earlier. Tip to others would be to make sure you have plenty of time as clues are quite tricky!”

Check availability →Read our full review

3.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Bath with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 208 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides your private group by phone around Bath, from Bath Abbey and Pulteney Bridge to the Roman Baths. Solve cryptic clues, follow digital maps, ask for hints, and pause for shops or drinks. The English-language hunt lasts about 2.5 hours, costs $20.83 per person, and needs no app or printed tickets.

“No SMS received PDF could not be access Help Centre did not respond Waste of time & money Highly disappointing”

Check availability →Read our full review

4.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Oxford with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 202 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Follow Captain Bess on a phone-based treasure hunt through Oxford, from Oxford Castle to Carfax Tower. Solve cryptic clues, request hints, pause for food or pubs, and learn city stories at your own pace. The private, self-guided route lasts about two and a half hours.

“Quite boring!!! Clues are confusing until the very last one…and you need to get to the last one, believe me. Tour isn’t that interesting, historical spots are not so interesting or the best. Anyway, if I could ask my money back, I would.”

Check availability →Read our full review

5.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Birmingham with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 167 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess, a snarky pirate, leads your private group through Birmingham by mobile web link. Solve cryptic clues at Birmingham Town Hall, Centenary Square, the Library of Birmingham, the Jewellery Quarter, and St. Paul’s Church. You walk about 2½ miles at your own pace, with hints when needed.

“We spent a thoroughly enjoyable day exploring Birmingham while doing this treasure hunt. A great way to see the city and parts of it that we would otherwise have missed. This is about the 5th one of these types of hunts that we've done and there will be more! Highly recommended!”

Check availability →Read our full review

6.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Chester with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 162 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides you by phone from Chester Town Hall Square through the cathedral, city walls, Roman sites, Grosvenor Park, the River Dee, Storyhouse, and Chester Rows. Solve cryptic clues, ask for hints, stop for lunch, and finish in about two hours or spread the hunt across several days.

“The technology worked pretty well throughout the hunt, although right at the end it stopped working for all of us - frustrating. The route was well chosen and interesting but we thought some of the clues were too hard, children got frustrated”

Check availability →Read our full review

7.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Brighton with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 154 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides your private group by phone through Brighton, sending maps, clues, facts, and hints as you walk from the Royal Pavilion through North Laine, the piers, Theatre Royal, and The Lanes. Start when you like, pause for shops or pubs, and finish at India Gate.

“Good value and easy to book. Some of the clues were very difficult to solve without the hints, particularly in a small group of only two people. I think a group of 3-6 people may be better. Some of the locations on the tour were also rather obscure and not the tourist spots I was expecting to see! This perhaps suits someone who knows Brighton well already and wants to see some of the less well-known things”

Check availability →Read our full review

8.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Cambridge with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 142 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Follow Captain Bess through Cambridge on a private, phone-based treasure hunt lasting about 2.5 hours. Solve cryptic clues, use maps, and explore King’s College Chapel, Trinity College, the Backs, the Corpus Clock, and more. Start anytime between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

“Great fun. Did in an extended family group aged 24-75 which worked really well. Took it in turns to read the info in a pirate accent which was fun. Most of us are from Cambridge and we still learnt a thing or too! Very well put together.”

Check availability →Read our full review

9.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Liverpool with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 141 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides your private group by phone through a 3.5-mile Liverpool route linking the cathedral, docks, Mathew Street, Bold Street, and the Three Graces. You solve cryptic clues, request hints, and start when convenient, with no app or printed map required.

“Great fun. Good way to explore a city. Allow yourself a full day, so that you can visit all the places en route, and get a bite to eat.”

Check availability →Read our full review

10.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Bristol with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 101 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Follow Captain Bess through central Bristol on a private, phone-based treasure hunt. Solve clues at Castle Park, St Nicholas Market, Bristol Cathedral, Queen Square, and Bristol Old Vic, with hints, stories, and the freedom to pause for shops or a pub.

“What a lovely way to see and learn about this area of Bristol. Great clues and lots of titbits of info. Been to Bristol many times, but still learnt more about it.”

Check availability →Read our full review

11.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Newcastle with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 78 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $20

Follow Captain Bess around Newcastle from Grey’s Monument to the Tyne Bridge, Black Gate, Cathedral, and Grey Street. Your phone delivers maps, clues, hints, facts, and pirate-style banter. One purchase covers up to six phones, and you can pause for shops, pubs, or photos.

“Despite calling in advance and specifically enquiring about the enjoyability for non native speakers we were surprised to find that the experience was not a good match for 5 adults who all speak English for their profession on a daily basis. The tour is presented in pirate slang which does not translate well. We'd like to suggest to have a regular english language option next to the current option so that foreign tourist will be able to enjoy this tour too.”

Check availability →Read our full review

12.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Leeds with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 63 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $20

Join Captain Bess and your private group for a self-guided Leeds treasure hunt starting at Leeds Art Gallery. Follow digital maps to Victoria Leeds, Kirkgate Market, arcades, churches, and civic sights while solving clues, requesting hints, and pausing whenever you like.

“Really clever and fun way to do a self guided walking tour. Really liked the fact it was completely at our own pace and the riddles were really fun.”

Check availability →Read our full review

13.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Sheffield with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 61 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $20

Captain Bess guides your private group by phone from Tudor Square through Sheffield landmarks, including Kelham Island Museum, the Crucible, Winter Garden, and Peace Gardens. Solve cryptic clues, request hints, pause for food or drinks, and finish with a useful city overview.

“Had a really good time! We stopped for lunch and coffees along the way and really explored the city. The treasure hunt focuses on general observation and you don't need to have knowledge of the city to do it as it tells you snippets along the way. We really enjoyed it, thank you!”

Check availability →Read our full review

14.Fun, Flexible Treasure Hunt Around Edinburgh with Cryptic Clues & Hidden Gems

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 49 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $20

Use a WhatsApp-style phone game led by Captain Bess to follow maps and solve clues around Edinburgh. The route links Edinburgh Castle, St Giles’ Cathedral, the Royal Mile, Greyfriars, Grassmarket, and other central sights. Start when you like, ask for hints, and pause for shops or pubs.

“Fun activity for us to start the day with few other people but mid morning, was crowded so that dampened our spirits. Overall great experience.”

Check availability →Read our full review

15.The Pirate’s Riddle: An Outdoor Treasure Hunt

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 41 reviews · 2 hours 45 minutes (approx.)

You and your private team of up to seven follow a map and pirate kit around Calton Hill, solving physical clues tied to Captain Kidd and local seafaring stories. The game takes about 2.5 to 3 hours, uses your phone only for help, and ends back at Nelson Monument.

“Somehow we got lost in the system and no one turned up to do our tour. They did refund us and gave us the opportunity to do a different event for free which we were not able to do. They were very pleasant to deal with but it was disappointing.”

Check availability →Read our full review