Escape room tips

Are you thinking of doing an escape room with your friends? If you’ve never done one before, it can be helpful to know what to expect beforehand. Puzzle rooms come in different styles and difficulty levels, but the tips we’re about to give you can apply to all escape rooms. Keep reading to learn more!

What to expect from puzzle rooms

Escape rooms are physical adventure games where players are locked in a room and need to solve clues and riddles to escape. Usually, you will have 60 minutes to do this. The puzzles require creative thinking to solve, as well as working as a team. They’re designed for small groups of people – at TimberVault, all of our escape rooms are suitable for 2-6 players. This makes them ideal for close team building, birthday parties, or just a fun day out!

Upon arrival, you’ll be briefed by a game master on the scenario and objectives. You’ll then be left in the room to solve each puzzle as a team. Usually, you’ll have the option to request clues throughout the game – sometimes a small hint can help to guide you in the right direction. It’s okay to get stuck! Escape rooms are designed to be challenging, so it’s okay to ask for some help, especially if it’s your first escape room. It’s important to enjoy yourself and get the most out of the experience, so have fun and don’t be too hard on yourself if you need a hint!

Tips to successfully escape the room

It can be helpful to have some basic escape room tips before you try one out. Here are our top five tips on how to be successful in an escape room:

Don’t panic!

It can be easy to start panicking or feel claustrophobic when you’re trapped in a room. Don’t worry – it’s a normal reaction. However, it’s best to try and stay calm and work through the clues logically. Panicking will only make the puzzles harder to solve.

Search for clues

No matter which escape room you choose to do, there will always be clues to find. Some clues will be easier to find than others, so it’s important to spend some time carefully searching the room for potential solutions.

Work together

Working as a team is a crucial aspect of escape rooms. Everyone has different skills and strengths, so it’s best to listen to everyone’s ideas. Communication is key – if you have an idea, make sure to share it with your team! You never know, it could be the answer.

Keep it organised

It can be easy to lose track of the clues and become disorganised in an escape room. This can make it more difficult to solve the puzzles, though, so try and keep track of everything! You could designate one player to organise the clues so you know exactly where to find them.

Don’t give up hope!

You might feel disheartened if you haven’t solved a puzzle in a while, but it’s important to keep going. Sometimes the solution isn’t obvious, or you might be overcomplicating it. Either way, take a break and come back to it. Everything could suddenly fall into place, so stay persistent! Don’t forget – it’s okay to ask for a hint if you need one.

What should you wear to an escape room?

It’s best to dress comfortably when doing an escape room. You’ll likely be doing a lot of standing, walking, and maybe even crawling through spaces, so you should wear clothes that you’re comfortable moving around in. Jeans and a t-shirt are ideal! Trainers are also your best bet for footwear – don’t show up in your best pair of heels. We have themed costumes in some of our escape rooms if you really want to get in the zone.