We've never been big on traditional birthday parties. In the past, we've done alternative give-back donation birthday parties and even a "backwards party" where we gave the guests gifts on the girls' birthdays. But this year, my daughter wanted to skip hosting a party, so we got creative and...
We told her there would be no birthday gifts this year and then locked her in a room, literally.
Yes, we still sang and ate cake. Deliciously-crazy, giant hamburger-shaped ice-cream cake...
But inside that gift bag, instead of a regular store-bought present, she found this...
... and this, a homemade-coupon her sister designed.
My daughter loves playing escape the room on the iPad and our family's been reading Harry Potter together, so we were stoked when my husband found the opportunity to Escape Snape - The Mysterious Potions Room at a local Escape Room. There are a variety of different themed rooms at the facility, but the description of this particular literary adventure caught our attention:
In this scenario, you have 45 minutes to escape the mysterious potion room. Grab your cloaks and practice those spells. This room could get a little Harry!
Designed for teams of up to 6 players, this real-life Exit Game is a new kind of interactive experience where players are placed in a locked room and together, using logic and teamwork, must discover the way out.
Will you find the correct spell and escape the room before Snape returns?
How cool is that?!? We invited Nana & Papa to secure a full group of six for our Escape Snape adventure.
I admit, when I booked the reservation, I thought the price was a bit high for an activity that only lasts 45-minutes. However, the minute they opened the door to Snape's dungeon and we stepped in ... I knew it was worth every penny. This would be something my daughter would always remember.
The dungeon set just blew me away. The aura felt like stepping into the movie. The excitement was palpaple. Our guide gave us general instructions, our timer began, she closed the door and then locked the room.
We immediately began searching for clues. What I loved most is that EVERY PERSON played a roll in moving forward figuring out how to escape. The task is a conglomeration of puzzles, riddles, physical tasks, group tasks, challenges and more.
The Escape Wisconsin rooms are geared for kids 10+ but, if you reserve all six slots with family members, I think slightly younger kids would still enjoy the experience. While, of course, I can't say all escape the room companies are family-friendly, I urge you to do a little research in your neighborhood. There are so many cool options out there.
When our 45-minute timer ended, and our guide came back in, we found out that we were ONE CLUE away from escaping the room. Cest la vie. We had an amazing, memorable time collaborating together.
After our Snape Escape adventure, we headed over to The Melting Pot and enjoyed each other's company over a four-course meal that ended with flaming chocolate fondue.
The day ended with a "best birthday gift ever" comment and a hug.
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