Unlock the Top 10 Escape Rooms South Africa

Escape rooms have become a global sensation, offering participants an immersive experience filled with puzzles, mystery and excitement. In South Africa, the escape room scene is thriving, with a variety of venues offering unique challenges and adventures for all ages.

Let's delve into the top 10 escape rooms across South Africa, each promising an unforgettable experience for thrill-seekers and puzzle enthusiasts alike.

1. HintHunt

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by HintHuntAfrica (@hinthuntafrica)

Starting in 2013, HintHunt has become Africa’s most popular escape room, with over 200 000 players since its opening. Famous for its immersive stories, challenging puzzles and diverse selection of rooms, Hint Hunt offers an adrenaline-fueled adventure for participants of all ages at all difficulty levels.

Looking for a different type of adventure? HintHunt also offers many other thrilling experiences, including Amazing Race, Online Escape Games, Outdoor Escape Games and Mobile Escape Games.

Here are the different escape rooms HintHunt has to offer:

• Marble (5/5 difficulty)

• Escape Plan (4/5 difficulty)

• The Old Hotel (4/5 difficulty)

• Cursed Treasure (5/5 difficulty)

• Shipwrecked (3/5 difficulty)

• Torpedo (5/5 difficulty)

Price: R315 - R395 per person

Location: V&A Waterfront, Cape Town

2. Unlock Escape Rooms

Located in the heart of Stellenbosch, a small student town in the Cape Winelands, lies one of South Africa’s best escape room adventures.

Unlock Escape Rooms came into being as the crazy idea of three friends who shared a love of puzzles. Now, they have established themselves as top-tier escape room designers, creating expert immersive real-life escape game adventures.

Unlock’s escape room options include:

• Evil Doctor (3/5 difficulty)

• Oak City Wine Heist (4/5 difficulty)

• Safari (4/5 difficulty)

• Plague (4/5 difficulty)

Price: R300 per person

Location: Stellenbosch

3. Escape Room

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Escape Room South Africa (@escape_room_sa)

As the first escape room in Johannesburg, you can be sure the team at Escape Room knows what they’re doing.

Combining the genius of Owen Spear and Ali Cheetham from Escape Room Melbourne with an obsession with escape rooms, and you’re guaranteed an immersive and thrilling experience that’s perfect for friends, corporate team-building and birthday parties.

Check out Escape Room’s puzzle rooms:

• Disappearance (4/5 difficulty)

• Mine Escape (4/5 difficulty)

• Kellar’s Magic Emporium (4/5 difficulty)

Price: R700 for 2 people, R1005 for 3 people, R1280 for 4 people, R1475 for 5 people, R1680 for 6 people, R1960 for 7 people

Location: Dunkeld West, Johannesburg

4. The Gr8 Escape

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by The Gr8 Escape (@gr8escaperooms)

Embark on a thrilling adventure at The Gr8 Escape, where participants must use their problem-solving skills to overcome a series of challenges and puzzles. With its immersive storytelling, mind-bending challenges and collaborative puzzle solving in each of their unique, escape rooms, you’re guaranteed a Gr8 time!

The Gr8 Escape offers 5 escape rooms to choose from:

• Asylum Escape (7/10 difficulty)

• Trapped (8/10 difficulty)

• The Hunted (8.5/10 difficulty)

• Nightmare (9/10 difficulty)

• The Basement (10/10 difficulty)

Price: R295 per person

Location: Sandton, Johannesburg

5. Hashtag Escape

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by #Escape - Joburg, South Africa (@hashtag_escape)

Hashtag Escape is one of the many escape room adventure games based in Johannesburg. All the rooms and puzzles have been hand-crafted by a team of South African puzzle masters to create a truly challenging and unique experience

Offering 4 different escape rooms and 6 competition time chambers, Hashtag Escape provides players with the widest selection in Johannesburg.

Here’s a look at each of Hashtag Escape’s rooms:

• The Rebel Room (8.5/10 difficulty)

• Closure (6/10 difficulty)

• Hack Out (9.5/10 difficulty)

• Red Moon (7/10 difficulty)

• Timed Escape Chambers (7/10 difficulty)

Price: R250 per person

Location: Norwood, Johannesburg

6. Mindgame Escape

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mindgame Escape (@mindgameescape)

Prepare to be captivated by Mindgame Escape, Durban’s premier escape room venue offering a diverse range of themes and challenges.

With 2 different locations, Granada Square and Pavilion Mall, Mindgames Escape is accessible to all. Rated #1 on TripAdvisor for things to do in Umhlanga, you cannot miss this riveting adventure in Durban.

Mindgame Escape offers the following escape rooms:

• The Order of the 9 (4.5/5 difficulty)

• The Forgotten Temple (4/5 difficulty)

• Bunker 51 (4/5 difficulty)

• Escape to Treasure Island (4.5/5 difficulty)

• The Great Time Escape (3/5 difficulty)

Price: R280 per person for 2 players, R260 per person for 3-4 players, R240 for 5-7 players

Location: Umhlanga, Durban

7. Breakout

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by BreakoutQUEST S.C. (@breakoutquestgamessc)

With escape rooms across the US, Breakout brings its legendary challenges to South Africa at Sun City Resort, promising an exhilarating escape room experience that will push your limits and test your problem-solving skills.

Offering the traditional physical escape rooms that people know and love, Breakout takes it one step further with its outdoor escape games which transform Sun City Resort into your own adventure map with hidden clues you must find and a secret mission to complete in time.

Breakout’s escape rooms include:

• The Kidnapping

• Hunted

• Airplane Mystery

• Operation Mindfall

• The Magic Portal

Price: R335 per person

Location: Sun City Resort

8. Elude Escape Rooms

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Elude Escape Rooms Bloemfontein (@eludeescaperooms)

Elude Escape Rooms offer a unique escape room experience to people who love riddles, puzzles, codes and deduction. With 60 minutes to beat the room, you can test your wits with either a partner, a group of friends or your colleagues.

As a top-rated activity in Bloemfontein, Elude Escape Rooms is a must for anyone seeking an adrenaline rush in this peaceful town.

Here are Elude Escape Rooms' options:

• Lockdown (7/10 difficulty)

• Forgotten Holocaust (7/10 difficulty)

Price: R280 per person for 2 people, R230 per person for 3 people, R180 per person for 4-6 people

Location: Bloemfontein

9. Xcaped

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Xcaped (@xcapedmargatekzn)

Located in the small coastal resort town of Margate, Xcaped is the perfect escape to bring a little bit of thrill to your beach holiday.

Xcaped is driven to provide our community with fun-filled yet challenging, think-out-the-box entertainment. They currently offer 2 escape game experiences that will give you the full spectrum of emotions to remember!

Xcaped offers the following 2 escape rooms:

• Basement (4/5 difficulty)

• Stop the Bombs (5/5 difficulty)

Price: R200 per person

Location: Margate, KZN

10. Brainwaves Escape Room

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Brainwaves Escape Rooms (@brainwavesescape)

With South Africa’s biggest variety of immersive escape rooms with challenging puzzles for the whole family and your company, you can never go wrong with Brainwaves Escape Room.

Run out of ideas to keep you occupied at home? Brainwaves offers the best virtual alternative out there! Escape in one of Brainwaves’ online escape rooms over a Zoom session with family and friends from all over the world.

Challenge yourself with one of Brainwave’s following escape rooms:

• The Abandoned Theatre (4/5 difficulty)

• Saving Sherlock (4/5 difficulty)

• Cabin in the Woods (4.5/5 difficulty)

• Race to the Sacred Jewel (4/5 difficulty)

• Around the World in 60 Minutes (3.5/5 difficulty)

• The Fast and the Curious (4/5 difficulty)

Price: R295 per person

Location: Centurion, Pretoria

Conclusion

The escape room scene in South Africa offers a diverse range of experiences, from heart-pounding suspense to mind-bending puzzles. Whether you're a novice seeking thrills or a seasoned escape artist craving a challenge, these top 10 escape rooms across South Africa are sure to delight and entertain.

So gather your team, sharpen your wits and embark on an unforgettable adventure filled with mystery, excitement and fun. The keys to unlocking these captivating experiences await you — are you ready to accept the challenge?