From January 1 – February 28 the scavenger hunt for Island Treasures is back!
Every year, a group of artisans create an array of stunning, handworked glass globes, just for Jekyll Island. For two months “Beach Buddies” hide plastic ones across Jekyll Island for lucky visitors to scavenge. If you’re lucky enough to find a hidden plastic globes, take it to the Jekyll Island Guest Information Center to trade it in for a hand-crafted glass masterpiece.
Fun facts about the Island Treasures tradition:
- For centuries, local fishermen used glass floats keep track of their fishing nets. From time to time, their floats would come loose from a net and would wash up on the shore. Beachcombers, who scoured the beaches would find these glass wonders that the vast ocean carried to them to treasure. Collecting these rare, highly sought after glass floats became a hobby in the 1950s.
- Today, Jekyll Island hand-picks artists from across the country to create one-of-a-kind glass floats for its annual Island Treasures event. The glass floats are part of a hide-and-seek style game played on Jekyll Island throughout January and February.
- Each day, volunteers called Beach Buddies will hide clear globes around the island for lucky guests to find and redeem for a real glass float. Gather your friends and family to search for globes that can be exchanged for dazzling handcrafted glass floats.
Spoiler Alert!
If you want a hint of some of the Beach Buddies favorite hiding spots, try:
- St. Andrews Picnic Area & Beach
- Glory Beach
- Great Dunes Park
- Jekyll Island Miniature Golf
- Horton House
- Jekyll Island Landmark Historic District
We encourage everyone to explore Jekyll Island in January or February and go on this family-fun scavenger hunt. You may be lucky enough to take a Golden Isles glass globe home with you.