It was my birthday a couple of weeks ago and for my 27th, I really wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. However, my decision was made for me when Toast PR got in touch and offered me and my friends a chance to try out Trapped, an immersive escape room experience. Now I’ve been to a few escape rooms and I have to say, I bloody love them. I find it hilarious that these didn’t pop up into existence sooner but maybe us 90s kids were too invested in board games like Monopoly to care. Like, the internet tells me the first live room concept was only established back in 2007. That’s not too long ago either. So I gathered up some friends and we did the Escaping A Prison Van scenario.
We ate locally and unfortunately we were running behind schedule because this restarant just around the corner from the escape room setup, was taking forever to bring our food and so we all ended up wolfing down our food in less than 15 minutes so we could get over there in time. A few of my friends, including my fiance had never done an escape room before so I was excited for them to try out this experience.
Each escape room typically gives you an hour to escape and this one was no different. It was a temporary set-up with what I think is just an empty plot of land, with a worksite office-type building where we were introduced and got changed. We donned these lovely orange prison jumpsuits and chained our feet and our wrists with real handcuffs. The ‘prison officer‘ warned us not to put these on too tightly and I think I had with my left one which resulted in it being slightly painful, but that’s my own doing.
We each had to make up a persona and a reason as to why we had ended up in jail. There were some funny ones like trying to blow up Parliment and then another person trying to succeed in the other person’s attempt to blow up parliment. Mine was that I robbed my nan, but my nan’s a saint in real life btw.
A quick group snap before we got changed and we lined up inside the waiting area of the escape room reception. We were led out in a single file and we were then ushered into the police van. Now this van wasn’t very big and the cells themselves were super small. I expected them to be bigger cells but then again, some of us didn’t remain in the cells for that long anyway.
There was also another ‘in-mate’ that wasn’t part of our group and although we were told not to look at her or speak to her, she became a real integral part of us getting out. The room itself was probably the most difficult one I’ve done so far in my two other experiences. With a 20-25% rate, I didn’t think we would stand much of a chance of getting out. The prison van itself is actually real but was refurbished by Trapped. I think that in itself really adds to the atmosphere of the escape room and that it certainly felt we were racing against the clock to escape from being taken to prison.
So did we escape?
OF COURSE WE BLOODY DID! But guys, we literally had seconds on the clock to get out and at one point, I certainly didn’t think it was going to happen. What I loved was that at the end all three of those who played the person on reception, the police officer and the convict, were all really cheering for us and that they said we deserved to win because we were working so hard.
It was such a great escape room and I think for the first time, I really found myself immersed in the game. They have a couple more experiences, one where you’re trapped in the room with a zombie and one where you’re trapped undercover. This one was really well organized and definitely felt like a great achievement when we we won.
Have you ever done an escape room before? Let me know in the comments below.
*Disclaimer – This escape room was complimentary in return for an honest review. All words are my own and are not influenced by the gift.
