Tips and tricks for nailing your Easter egg hunt

There's nothing quite like the joy and fun of an Easter egg hunt bright and early in the morning.

But if this is the first time you're planning one, or feel like you're a bit stuck on what to do, we've got you covered.

From the essentials you need to how to make it fun and even some tips for keeping it fair – especially if you've got different aged kids – here's everything you need to know.

Get your Easter egg hunting essentials

OK so this might seem like a no brainer but before the hunting even begins, you need the stuff.

You'll need eggs to hide, baskets, a suitable place to hold your hunt if you just want to go with the basics.

For those wanting to ramp up the fun you could include arrows or signs pointing your hunters in the direction they need to go, bunny ears or even riddles and clues – which might be a good idea for older kids to make it more engaging. And if you really want to go all out, why not make a map for your hunters.

READ MORE: Depressing reality causing a generation of burnt-out mums

READ MORE: Moment animatronic character collapses at Disneyland Paris

READ MORE: How you can actually save big money at this year's Easter Show

What can I hide instead of chocolate?

Not every parent wants their Easter to be a sugar loaded extravaganza and we get it.

And we can all agree that the price of chocolate this year has made it seem a bit ridiculous to go out and spend a fortune on eggs too.

So, the next best thing? There are a lot of places that now sell plastic coloured eggs which you can open up and hide other prizes inside to keep the fun of an egg hunt.

Other things you can put inside the eggs or instead of eggs include:

• Stickers
• Toys
• Hair clips
• Cars
• Mini erasers
• Slime
• Lego Mini Figurines
• Playdough
• Mini stamps
• Small figurines of their favourite characters – the best part is they often come in a set meaning you'll get a few
• For older kids you could do written vouchers for things like a movie night, a café milkshake, or other special activities
• Money. A $10 note in one lucky egg will definitely get the older kids wanting to take part it in a hunt.

Keep it simple

If your kids are preschool age you need to remember that making things too long or too difficult will end up with them getting bored and no one having fun.

Hide the eggs in obvious places, rather than under or inside other objects and remember anything up too high probably won't be seen either.

Visual clues are also great for younger kids, like big arrows pointing towards the eggs, but for older kids basic riddles or rhymes would be engaging enough as well.

You might want to think about some rules for your Easter egg hunt

If you've got a big mix of ages one of the easiest things you can do is get each kid hunting for a specific colour of eggs. It will mean the older kids can't just rip in and grab everything and sets it up to be a fair experience.

Another thing to consider is rules for where to hunt, like 'No eggs in the front yard' to keep little ones away from the road, or 'No eggs under the deck' or other places that little people could get into a bit of trouble.

Know where all of your Easter eggs are

This might seem like a no brainer but count the number of eggs you're putting out before you do it and create a list of where they're all going.

That way you can always go back and 'help' find more or grab them later before they turn into melted blobs covered in ants next week.

This also lessens the risk of any hidden spares being eaten by the family dog next week.

Keep your pets safe

Lastly, we all know Easter is a time for family to celebrate, but this is definitely not the time to let your dogs get involved.

When the hunt is on and while you're placing the eggs around – especially if it's out in the backyard – keep your dogs inside.

Chocolate can make dogs really sick so best to keep them away while there's plenty of the sweet stuff around.

FOLLOW US ON WHATSAPP HERE: Stay across all the latest in celebrity, lifestyle and opinion via our WhatsApp channel. No comments, no algorithm and nobody can see your private details.