This room instantly went into our Top 10 and it will be there for some time. Strong puzzles, hilarity, and wonderful GM, this is a room not to miss. Flash Gordon for the win!
South East
List of the rooms we have reviewed in the South East. In date order from newest to oldest
TimeTrap: Imaginarium (Reading)
A really fun room that encapsulates the spirit of Alice in Wonderland perfectly. Puzzles on theme, set looking great, generally just a good room all round
TimeTrap: Station X (Reading)
TimeTrap have created an excellent experience with clever puzzles, excellent set design, and a massive amount of fun. I’m only disappointed that it took us so long to make it to Reading; Station X is one not to miss!
Ready Escape Rooms: Escape the Vault (Brighton)
A 40 minute room that won’t challenge enthusiasts (we got out in 12 minutes) but it is a whole lot of fun and we thoroughly enjoyed it. A great warm-up or cool-down room and definitely one to add to the list if you’re in Brighton!
The Curious Cabin, Knockout Escape Rooms (Reading)
This is one of those rooms that you enter and think you know what you’re getting but then it finds ways to surprise you and fill you with excitement. On the surface it looks like a simple room but behind the scenes there is a lot of tech working hard to keep you on your toes
Deadlocked: The Testing Chamber (Reading)
There are no less than four ways this game could end, depending entirely on the choices made by the players, which could cause many to have a love/hate relationship with this room, and some might find that the existential dilemma created for them by the room is perhaps the most difficult aspect.
The Phoenix Research, Deadlocked (Reading)
In places this was a very hard room, at times it was frustrating, but in the end it was fun. A lot of time was spent on immersing you in the story, and the ending was something a little different
Escape Experience Windsor: Area 51 (Windsor)
We got possibly our quickest ever escape time in this room, partially because the puzzles just clicked, but also because there wasn’t that many of them. A fun room but don’t do it in a large group or you may not have much to do
Escape Experience Windsor: Crown Jewel Heist (Windsor)
This is a fun room, although arguably on the easier side. If you’re in the area anyway, you’ll have a good time, but don’t go with a large and experienced team
Bewilder Box: Judgement D.A.V.E (Brighton)
The rooms at The Bewilder Box are more than just escape rooms, they are experiences where everything works together to immerse you in their world. Each time you think you know what to expect they do something different, wonderful, and unexpected.
Bewilder Box: The Bewilder Box Initiative (Brighton)
If you’re like us, and putting off a visit to Bewilder Box, stop right now, and find the time to just do it! The Bewilder Box Initiative instantly became a favourite of ours
Tulleys Escape Rooms: Dodge City (Crawley)
Another beautiful Tulleys room but ultimately let down by reset issues. Give the room a try, but probably wait a while for them to get it running smoothly – we should have waited.
Escape60: Serial Killer’s Lair (Folkestone)
A fun room but generally nothing exciting to reflect on. Probably a good beginners room but enthusiasts will have seen better.
Escape 60: The Compactor (Folkestone)
The compactor had a very industrial feel, and was certainly visually impressive. There were a few surprises here and there, which kept things interesting, but generally it didn’t live up to expectations.
Get Lost Escape Rooms: The Abandoned Cottage (Dover)
Get Lost Dover currently have three rooms and each is fun in their own way. This was my least favourite of their rooms, but don’t let that fool you, it’s worth doing and does enough to keep you on your toes
Get Lost Escape Rooms: The World Fair Hotel (Dover)
Have you ever done a room where every puzzle just clicked for you? Like you were in the mind of the room’s designer? That’s exactly what happened for us in this room and we enjoyed every minute of it
Get Lost Escape Rooms: The Krevokar Programme (Dover)
Our first room at Get Lost Escape Rooms and it set the bar high for the others. This room felt like we were experiencing a Resident Evil in real life. A fun game from start to finish
Elusion Rooms: The Pandora Heist (Southampton)
This is a fun room with a slightly different twist to most escape rooms. We weren’t a big fan of the format, but like Marmite, you’ll probably love it or hate it
Ctrl Alt Esc: Detention (Margate)
Detention was beautifully designed, with a good flow, and just simply, good fun, ticking all my boxes for a wonderful room.
Clever Dilemma: Dracula’s Chamber (Faversham)
A great room with welcoming hosts and a very good GM. Faversham is beautiful, but this room really makes it worth visiting
Tulleys Escape Rooms: Mutiny (Crawley)
According to Tulleys’ website, this is the easiest of their rooms. I would tend to agree, and think it would be an excellent choice for both enthusiasts and newcomers, alike
Tulleys Escape Rooms: The Outfitters (Crawley)
Probably the third best room at Tulleys, strangely we found this one harder than Nethercott Manor despite this being classed as easier by Tulleys
Tulleys Escape Rooms: Nethercott Manor (Crawley)
Tulleys have clearly spent an inordinate amount of both time and money to make this an experience that you are not likely to forget, and it has certainly paid off
Ctrl Alt Esc: Frankenscape (Margate)
We thought their other room ‘Spacescape’ was great – this was better! A solid room with an impressive ending
The Escapement: Egyptian Exodus (Margate)
The team have clearly put a lot of thought into this experience, and Exodus is one not to be missed.
Ctrl Alt Esc: Spacescape (Margate)
A tech heavy room that has a very impressive ending. One of the many rooms that is worth doing in Margate
The Escapement: The Pit (Margate)
Even when you’re receiving the briefing for this room you know it is going to be something special. This isn’t just a 60 minute experience, this is a game changer.
The Escapement: Pirates of Polaris (Margate)
This room is beautiful, it really is, and when a room uses genuine artifacts there is no doubt you are in for a treat
The Panic Room: Defective Detective (Gravesend)
This room didn’t feel up to the same level as the other Panic Room rooms, and although it was fun, we left feeling a bit flat
The Panic Room: The Sacrifice (Gravesend)
A great introductory room for inexperienced players, or a nice little warm-up / cool-down after a long weekend of full length escape rooms.
The Panic Room: Prison Van (Gravesend)
For our final room of the day, we found ourselves back at The Panic Room’s Gravesham Market location, but this time outside, in a prison van!
The Panic Room: Wizard Of Oz (Gravesend)
Don’t be fooled by the theme, this room will give both families and enthusiasts entertainment, and is challenging enough for both.
The Panic Room: The Dollhouse (Gravesend)
Although this room is creepy, and it certainly is creepy, I wouldn’t really call it a scary room and it is definitely fun
The Panic Room: Old Father Time (Gravesend)
Of the rooms that we completed at The Panic Room, this was (in my opinion) the most beautifully designed room
The Panic Room: Mind Pod (Gravesend)
£5 per team 10 minutes of your life = a wonderfully relaxing alternative to a traditional escape room.
The Panic Room: Enigma (Gravesend)
While Enigma is lacking the WOW-factor of other rooms at The Panic Room, it is still a solid, and enjoyable room
The Panic Room: Loop (Gravesend)
What a room! This room is not just a must-do room in Gravesend, but definitely one of the top rooms in the country.
The Panic Room: The Don (Gravesend)
A solid room, which enthusiasts and new players alike will enjoy. A lot to do for a team of two, but plenty of space for larger teams
The Panic Room: Secret Of Pocahontas (Gravesend)
Although not the most advanced or impressive room in The Panic Room’s arsenal it’s still a solid room and one that’s definitely worth doing.
The Panic Room: Dino Land (Gravesend)
Dino Land was the perfect way to kick off an entire weekend of escapes, and lived up to all of my childhood dreams of visiting Jurassic Park.
XScream Escapes: Satan’s Grotto (Ashford)
This 45 minute room shouldn’t be a hard, but for us it was. If you’re looking for a slightly different Christmas room then this one is a lot of fun.
XScream Escapes: The Corpsewood Killer (Ashford)
This was a really enjoyable room, but no real wow factors for me. It isn’t particularly scary, just a bit dark
XScream Escapes: Bedlam: Escape the Asylum (Ashford)
With a background in Thorpe Park Fright Nights you’d expect this to be a scary room, it isn’t. It’s creepy but I wouldn’t class this as a scare room (or it wasn’t when we did it)
Knockout Escape Rooms: Mad Scientist (Reading)
This room is light on backstory, but you definitely leave the outside world and become absorbed in your puzzle solving. At times a challenging room, but always fun
Knockout Escape Rooms: Prison Break (Reading)
The area this room stood out on was not the puzzles, but the set design. They did a good job of avoiding the readily done ‘split-start’ system and have made a truly enjoyable game.
Bust Out 360: Taken (Slough)
It’s easy to be the best room in Slough when you’re the only room in Slough, but it’s still close.
Guildford Escape Rooms: The Case of the Missing Gun
A small room that has enough to keep you going and somehow still manages to surprise you.