A team treasure hunt in Manchester that runs itself

Each team scans a QR code on their phone, which opens a chat with Bess, your pirate host. She sends cryptic clues and maps that guide them around the city centre. To answer the clues, they need to spot details on buildings, statues, plaques and other landmarks along the route. It works like a WhatsApp group chat — but it’s a web app, so there’s nothing to download.

Everyone in a team can join the game on their own phone and see each other’s messages. In practice, a couple of people tend to lead on the phone while others keep their eyes on the surroundings. The game encourages people to take different roles — navigator, clue-spotter, map-reader — so not everyone needs to be glued to a screen.

No. The clues are based on things you find by looking carefully, not local knowledge. We’ve had people who’ve lived in the city for decades and still been surprised by what they discovered.

There’s a scoring system and a live leaderboard, so it can be — some groups get properly into it. But the scoring rewards accuracy over speed, so there’s no need to rush. Plenty of groups treat it more as an enjoyable wander than a race.

Teams of 6–8 are ideal. Small enough that everyone’s involved, big enough that different people bring different strengths. You can go as small as pairs if you’d prefer.

No — the activity is entirely self-guided, which keeps it flexible and keeps costs down. You’ll receive an organiser pack with everything you need to brief your teams, set them off, and review the leaderboard together at the end. It’s straightforward, and we’re always on hand if you have questions beforehand.

Most teams finish in 2–2½ hours, depending on how many breaks they take. Some push through without stopping; others sit down at a café or pub along the way. It’s completely self-paced.

It starts from Piccadilly Station and finishes at John Rylands Library. We can also send you a spoiler-free route map if you’d like to plan the rest of your day around it.

Yes — every team follows the same carefully designed route through the city centre. We recommend each team starts 2–3 minutes apart so they aren’t on each other’s toes. If you’ve got lots of teams, just allow a bit more time at the start.

Absolutely — we encourage it. The game suggests a halfway stop at a pub along the route. Most teams take the chance to sit down for a drink before carrying on.

Around 3 miles, all on flat, paved city streets. It’s a gentle walk, not a hike — we’ve had teams with people in their late 60s alongside twenty-somethings and it works well for both.

Any day, any time — as long as there’s daylight. There’s no host to coordinate with. Most work teams play on a weekday afternoon, often after a morning of meetings.

£15 per person, including VAT.

You can add or remove people right up until the day before. You only pay for those who actually play.

By card online, or by invoice after the event. If you haven’t finalised numbers, request a quote and we’ll invoice you once everyone’s played.

No deposit and no minimum numbers. If your plans change entirely, you get a full refund.

Yes. We can send you a short deck covering what the activity is, how it works, and what it costs — a few clear slides you can forward to whoever needs to approve the spend.