Hunt for treasure in the oceans of Minecraft - International Day of Seafarers
Explore Minecraft ocean biomes to hunt shipwrecks and buried treasure using maps, teamwork, and safe online play to celebrate seafarers.
Step-by-step guide to hunt for treasure in the oceans of Minecraft - International Day of Seafarers
"Day of the Seafarer 2025 🚢 | Tribute to Our Ocean Warriors 🌊"
Step 1
Gather your team and agree on online safety rules and how you will play politely.
Step 2
Open Minecraft and join or create a world that has ocean biomes to explore.
Step 3
Invite friends or family to join your Minecraft world to play together.
Step 4
Choose simple roles for each player like captain navigator diver and map-reader.
Step 5
Craft a boat in the game so your team can travel across the ocean.
Step 6
Collect food and torches so your team stays fed and can see underwater.
Step 7
Sail out from shore and search the ocean by moving in straight lines or a grid pattern.
Step 8
Stop the boat when you spot a shipwreck or underwater debris and mark its location in your notebook.
Step 9
Send the diver to swim to the wreck and open chests to look for maps and treasure.
Step 10
If you find a treasure map bring it back to the boat and show it to your team.
Step 11
Look at the map together and point to where the X is located on the map.
Step 12
Move your player so the map marker lines up with the X location.
Step 13
Dig carefully at the X until you uncover the buried treasure chest.
Step 14
Build a small flag or display with your loot to celebrate and honor seafarers.
Step 15
Share a screenshot and a short story about your treasure hunt on DIY.org.
Final steps
You're almost there! Complete all the steps, bring your creation to life, post it, and conquer the challenge!
Help!?
What can we use if we can't find a boat, torches, or a physical notebook like the instructions suggest?
If you can't craft a boat because you're low on wood, switch to Creative mode or ask a friend to spawn one, use sea pickles, glowstone, or lanterns for underwater light instead of torches, and use an in-game map, a screenshot, or the chat to mark wreck locations instead of a physical notebook.
What should we do if the diver keeps drowning, chests are hard to open, or we can't find shipwrecks while following the search and dive steps?
If the diver is drowning, equip a turtle shell or bring a Potion of Water Breathing and Night Vision and use doors to create air pockets, open chests quickly with those items, and widen your search grid or use ocean explorer maps to find rarer shipwrecks.
How can we adapt the activity for younger kids or make it more challenging for older players while keeping the roles and treasure hunt steps?
For younger children, simplify roles to Captain and Diver, play in Creative mode and have an adult craft the boat and dig at the X, while older players can play in Survival, add time limits, require real crafting of the boat, or score finds from treasure maps and chests.
How can we enhance or personalize the treasure hunt after we dig up the chest and celebrate with a flag and story?
After uncovering the buried treasure at the X, build a custom banner flag from colored wool and banners to display your loot, create a seafarers' exhibit with signs at your base, and compile screenshots plus the short story to post on DIY.org for sharing.
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Facts about Minecraft ocean exploration
⚓ About 80% of the world’s trade by volume moves by sea, which is why International Day of the Seafarer honors people who keep ships sailing.
🗺️ In Minecraft, buried treasure maps are often found inside shipwreck chests and underwater ruins and lead you to hidden loot.
🌊 Minecraft oceans include warm, lukewarm, cold, and frozen variants—each has different mobs, blocks, and secrets.
🔒 Playing on private servers, using whitelists, and enabling parental controls helps teams explore online safely together.
🚢 Shipwrecks can contain treasure chests with goodies like emeralds, gold, enchanted books, and maps to explore.
How do you organize a Minecraft ocean treasure hunt for International Day of Seafarers?
What materials and in-game items do I need to hunt shipwrecks and buried treasure in Minecraft?
What ages is a Minecraft ocean treasure hunt suitable for?
How can this activity teach kids about seafarers and stay safe online?
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