Secrets of · Scavenger hunt

Secrets of Harderwijk Self-Guided Scavenger Hunt & Walking Tour

4.4 on Google (24 reviews)

Friends explore Catharina Chapel during a City Game Harderwijk City Quest.

Players celebrate at the Old Town Hall during a City Game Harderwijk Escape Game.

A couple uses a smartphone map to explore the cobbled Vischmarkt, surrounded by historic architecture in central Harderwijk.

Friends play a City Game Harderwijk Scavenger Hunt beside the landmark Vischpoort.

A visitor pauses with her smartphone to admire the distinctive brick Linnaeus Tower and its historic gateway in Harderwijk.

1.5–2 hours
A different story in every city, with its own characters: every city is a new game.
1–4 players per team
On your own phone, no app
Language of the game: English +2
Start any time within 12 months
Free cancellation until you start

Explore Harderwijk on a self-guided walking tour with puzzles, photo tasks and stories about the Markt, the Vischpoort and the town wall.

On the route

12 places, in this order

Linnaeustuin (Linnaeus Garden)
Vismarktpoort Area
Academiestraat (Linnaeus Tower Area)
Vitringasingel
Molen De Hoop
Havendijk (Historic House)
Oude Stadsmuur (City Wall)
Academiestraat (Facade Detail)
Vischpoort Area (Roman Numerals)
Grote Kerk
Oude Stadsmuur (Fortress Remnant)
Roofline Poetry Building

Secrets of Harderwijk Self-Guided Scavenger Hunt & Walking Tour

Step into the story

Find the sheets. Beat him to the box.

In that week I hid something in this town: eleven pressed flowers on eleven sheets, each in its place, each labelled in my hand. Nobody ever found them.

1.5–2 hours
1–4 players per team

Start the mission

It begins
Carl Linnaeus. Born in Sweden, 1707. Botanist, doctor, the man who put the living world in order and gave every plant its name.
It goes wrong
Tonight a dealer, the Collector, is on my trail with a buyer waiting at midnight. If he gets there first, the sheets are cut up and sold one by one, and Harderwijk loses the only thing I left here.
Your move
My first sheet waits by the sea gate, where I came ashore. The Collector was seen there an hour ago.

Secrets of Harderwijk hands you the streets themselves as a puzzle. It is a self-guided scavenger hunt on your own phone, no guide, no group, no departure time.

The game reads your position, so each location arrives with its own riddle, puzzle or photograph to take. None of it can be answered from a screen, what you need is in front of you in Harderwijk, in whatever happens to be standing there. You finish knowing a set of things most residents never picked up.

Linnaeustuin (Linnaeus Garden), Vismarktpoort Area and Academiestraat (Linnaeus Tower Area) come up along the way. The stretches between the stops are where most of the looking gets done, at things that are hidden only by being ordinary.

Other stops include Vitringasingel and Molen De Hoop, enough of them that the group ends up arguing about answers rather than asking what to do next.

A Self-Guided Walking Tour of Harderwijk, With Riddles Instead of a Guide

Everything a self-guided tour of Harderwijk gives you, minus the narration. The route is real and so is the history behind it, but you get at it by solving rather than listening, and nobody is standing at the front of a group. You walk, you look, you work it out. Intermediate difficulty, so most things fall and the rest makes for a decent argument. Riddles, code-breaking, and photographs you would not have taken.

Had great fun playing secrets of Haarlem!

Martin M.

Planning a Fun Scavenger Hunt in Harderwijk?

This is one, and it takes about a minute to set up: book a date, open the play link from your email and start whenever you are ready. There is nothing to print, nothing to hide in advance and no list to write, the route, the riddles and the photo tasks are already built around Harderwijk, 3 to 4 km on foot, about two hours, and one ticket covers a group of up to four on a single phone for €19.95. If you were about to spend an evening making one yourself, this is the version where somebody else did the work.

An Outdoor Scavenger Hunt That Works for Any Group in Harderwijk

Adults. Nothing about this resembles a printable list of things to find. It runs at intermediate difficulty, the riddles want things read properly rather than glanced at, and two hours passes without anyone checking their phone for other reasons.

Couples and friends. No umbrella to follow, no group to stay with, no fixed pace. Stop where you like, take as long as you like, and finish knowing things about Harderwijk that most residents never learned.

Teams. One ticket covers four people, so a department divides straight into groups running the identical route through Harderwijk. No host to hire, no venue to reserve, no departure time. Put three or four teams on it together and the competition takes care of itself.

Families. Children walk it without trouble and are usually the fastest at the photo tasks. The riddles are the part you solve together, which is what makes it work for a group with a wide spread of ages.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the Secrets exploration game work?

Book a date and a link arrives by email. The play link does the rest. You start it at the first location in Harderwijk, and from there your position drives everything, each stop brings a riddle, a puzzle or a photograph to take, and answering it opens the next stop.

Is this a walking tour or a game?

Both, and that is the point. It follows a walking route through Harderwijk the way a self-guided walking tour does, and you pick up the history as you go, but instead of a commentary in your ear you get riddles to solve. Nobody walks in front of you holding a sign.

What do we need to bring?

Just a charged phone and comfortable shoes for 3 to 4 km. You get a link when you book and open the play link at the first stop; nothing to print, nothing to plant beforehand, nothing to pick up anywhere.

How long does it take?

Roughly two hours across 3 to 4 km of walking. Nothing counts down. The date is set at booking and the hour is yours, so a group that stops for lunch just finishes later.

How many people can play on one ticket?

€19.95 buys one ticket, one phone and one to four people around it. Larger groups split across two tickets and end up competing, which most of them prefer.

Is it hard?

Intermediate. Observation and sideways thinking do the work; you do not need to know the city, and nothing on the route is built to stop you permanently.

Is it suitable for children?

Yes, the 3 to 4 km is no obstacle and the photo tasks are where younger players get ahead. The riddles sit at intermediate, so families tend to solve them as a group, which is the intended way round.

Do we need to book a date?

Not a slot, just a date. When you start on that date is entirely up to you, and there is nowhere to assemble and nobody to find.

What happens if it rains?

Rain is a pause, not a problem. Duck inside, let it pass, and carry on from the stop you were at, nothing is counting down.

Will we actually learn something about Harderwijk?

It is the whole design. Every riddle sits on something real, the history of Harderwijk, the people in it, the details nobody points out, so you come away with more than a visitor normally does. If a plot appeals more than a route, the other city games in Harderwijk have one.

More City Games: city games across the Netherlands · Secrets of Eindhoven

How it works

BookYour ticket arrives by email.
Go to the startThe start point is in your email. Any day within 12 months.
PlayOpen the link on one phone per team and press start.

What players in other cities say

4.4 on Google (24 reviews)

★★★★★
Wir (Mein Mann, unsere 9-jährige Tochter und ich) haben heute ganz spontan das Spiel "Moordmysterie Düsseldorf" gebucht und gespielt. Die Buchung verlief schnell und reibungslos. Es hat super viel Spaß gemacht! Die Story, die Rätsel, das Konzept, die Route, die Gestaltung der App... richtig gut!!! Das Spiel würde ich vor allem Familien mit Kindern empfehlen. Für Erwachsene waren die Rätsel (meiner Meinung nach) zu einfach. Aber trotzdem wegen der schönen Route durch Düsseldorf, der Story, den lustigen Anweisungen zwischendurch eine schöne Aktion, die man zusammen machen kann.
Lingling Z.October 2026 · via google
★★★★★
Had great fun playing secrets of Haarlem!
Martin M.March 2026 · via google
★★★★★
Game in Amsterdam was fun!
Enzo L.March 2026 · via google
★★★★★
Had So much fun playing while exploring the city
Philip C.March 2026 · via google
★★★★★
I had a fantastic experience with CityGame! The concept is creative, engaging, and a great way to explore a city in a completely new way. The games are well-designed, combining puzzles, storytelling, and adventure so you’re constantly discovering something interesting around every corner. What I especially love is how CityGame turns a normal walk through the city into an interactive experience. It’s perfect for friends, families, or team outings, and it makes sightseeing much more exciting than the usual tours. Everything was easy to use, the challenges were fun and clever, and it really encouraged us to look closer at the city and its hidden details. Highly recommended if you’re looking for a unique and memorable way to explore!
Jessica S.March 2026 · via google
★★★★★
This is an interesting way to conduct a self-guided Amsterdam city tour. It used the GPS on your phone to guide you to stops on a route. There are mini quizzes once you arrive at the stops on the path. The quizzes draw your attention to features in front of you or to a brief history of the place. In many cases, we visited a spot that would not have been obvious as a regular passer by. The tour as a whole was interesting to us as newcomers, but I would have liked more information on many locations we visited - a few links outside of the app for each place would have been helpful. Beyond that, the interface was a bit clunky and sometimes awkward to navigate. We definitely don't regret trying this out and feel like we got our money's worth on the experience.
JaibhijaiJune 2024 · via google

How we check reviews

These reviews were left by players on Google and other review sites and are copied from there as they are, with their source.