Six to eight teams, one phone each, 60 to 120 minutes on foot. €5 per pupil, teachers free.
More than 3,000 classes and groups have played Questo together.
Real students playingMore than 3,000 classes and groups have played Questo together.
We are a group of language students and we played the game with our teacher: a great and fun way to practise, and learn interesting stuff about our city that we didn't know.
Perfect with a group of A Level pupils. Loved it.
Quests for classes
A field trip with Questo in Washington, D.C. can stay in the monumental core or move to the older streets of Georgetown. On Capitol Hill, Washington National Mall Mystery: The Philip Reid Time Capsule leads elementary students from Columbus Circle past the Library of Congress, the Supreme Court and the Capitol. Middle school classes can start at the National Museum of Natural History for The T.Rex that Vanished from Washington, which crosses the National Mall to the National Archives. High school groups can play Murder Mystery: Death in the Shadows among Georgetown's churches and the C&O Canal. Quests cover ages 8 to 18 and take about 60 to 120 minutes.
100 min · 4 km · 12 stops
Starts at Columbus Circle
Philip Reid, the enslaved foundry worker who helped cast the Statue of Freedom on top of the Capitol dome
66 min · 3.9 km · 11 stops
Starts at Ulysses S. Grant Memorial
Pennsylvania Avenue as the link between the White House and the Capitol, with the Department of Justice and the National Archives along the way
62 min · 3.5 km · 10 stops
Starts at J. Edgar Hoover F.B.I. Building
How law enforcement fits into government, at the FBI Building and the office of the US Attorney General
90 min · 2.5 km · 12 stops
Starts at Point 1
90 min · 2 km · 12 stops
Starts at 1 Smithsonian American Art Museum
Ford's Theatre, where President Lincoln was shot in 1865
90 min · 1.8 km · 12 stops
Starts at Point 1
70 min · 2.7 km · 10 stops
Starts at Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History
How the Smithsonian museums are laid out along both sides of the Mall, from Natural History and Air and Space to the Castle and the Enid A. Haupt Garden
90 min · 2.3 km · 12 stops
Starts at Point 1 - LBC
90 min · 2 km · 12 stops
Starts at Pinstripes
Teams of 3 to 5 students share one phone.
For under-14s, have one chaperone per 2 to 3 teams with agreed checkpoints; for ages 14 to 18, follow your school's policy.
WMATA Metrorail has no group ticket; each student aged 5 and over needs their own SmarTrip card, which groups can order by mail.
The DC Circulator ended in 2024, so walk the Mall.
Free National Park Service restrooms are at the Lincoln, Jefferson, King, FDR and WWII memorials, Constitution Gardens and the Washington Monument Lodge.
Away from these, Smithsonian museums are the reliable fallback.
The National Mall has no designated picnic areas but plenty of open lawn, so eat on the grass and take all litter away.
Federal law bans eating and drinking inside memorial spaces.
Smithsonian museums on the Mall are free; Natural History needs no pass, but Air and Space needs a free timed ticket.
If rain spoils the day, replay the quest free within 30 days.
Caution: The Mall is wide open with little shade and long walks between memorials, and summers are hot and humid. Carry water, take breaks inside museums and avoid the hottest midday hours.
The Civil War and its aftermath at the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, the Peace Monument and Ford's Theatre, where President Lincoln was shot in 1865. Philip Reid and the building of the Capitol. World War II on the home front at the National Japanese American Memorial. Colonial and early Georgetown at the Old Stone House and along the C&O Canal.
The planned layout of the monumental core, from the Capitol along the National Mall to the Washington Monument and the Jefferson Memorial. This compares well with Georgetown's older street grid, canal and waterfront. Students practice map reading and orientation as they find each stop.
Teams read clues and instructions closely, sort out relevant details and agree on answers. For world language classes, Kid Quest: Solve the case of the lost senses is also available in Spanish and French.
Students see where the three branches sit, at the Capitol, the Supreme Court and the White House, along with the Library of Congress, the National Archives, the Department of Justice and the FBI Building.
Price and terms
No minimum group, no time slot.
A class of 30 on one quest: €150.
Choose a questTell us the quest or city, the class size and the dates. We send an invoice to the school.
In short
A school trip to Washington, DC with Questo is a self-guided city quest. Pupils in teams of 3 to 5 follow a route of 10 to 13 stops on foot, solving a puzzle at each, in 60 to 125 minutes. 18 quests suit classes aged 8 to 18. There is no guide and no time slot: the class starts when it arrives. The price is €5 per pupil, and teachers play free.
Pupils are an estimate: groups of four or more teams starting one quest together, at about four pupils a team, across all cities since 2018. Ratings are from players of these quests.
In a randomised study of 10,912 students, a single cultural trip raised critical thinking, tolerance and interest in culture weeks later.
458 Amsterdam pupils walked the medieval city in teams, solving tasks on phones at real locations. They learned more than classmates taught the same topic in lessons.
Source: Huizenga et al., Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 2009
Across hundreds of studies, game-based learning beats non-game teaching on knowledge and retention; story and playing together are what make the difference.
Source: Sailer and Homner, Educational Psychology Review, 2020
| A Questo quest | A guided walking tour | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is active | Every pupil, in a team | 30 pupils listening to one guide |
| Start | When you arrive | 10:00 sharp |
| Pace | Each team at its own, pause for lunch | The group moves on |
| What the teacher gets before | Plays the whole route free | A confirmation email |
| Price | €5 per pupil, teachers free | €12–€25 per pupil, teachers often charged |
Teacher FAQ
Your next story starts outside.
Get the Questo app. Pick a quest, follow the clues and make the city your playground.
