We did the X-Files escape room for a friend's birthday. It was a great time. A bit harder than I thought it would be, but we had a really great crew. We escaped! Thanks to a lot of extra clues. Would definitely come back to try another room in the future. read more

Cinema Escape Rooms - Challenge Courses Near Me - Escondido, California

We did not like this at all. Not kid friendly. The poor kids couldn't get through any of the clues as they kept getting "locked out" and couldn't enter new codes. The gals weren't much help to our group. I think this is more for adults. It is in an art gallery which, in our opinion was a little weird. Unfortunately, for us - this is a pass. read more

ArtHatch was a really fun and well needed outing with friends. Connor especially made it an amazing experience!!! He was so funny and it made the escape room that much more enjoyable to escape. He really was so helpful and kind and it wouldn't have been the same experience without him! He said we can request him for the next time we come and we definitely will. We were hilariously bad at our escape room but in our defense there was only 3 of us! Even though we were very bad, it was still a great time. We even bought a 10 pack at a discounted rate at the end of our escape room. Ask about the group discounted rate when you finish your escape room! Can't wait to come back! read more

If you're even thinking about booking Arthatch Escape Rooms' "Nightmare Before You Escape Christmas" room -- stop thinking and just do it! The theme is genius. As a huge fan of "The Nightmare Before Christmas," I had high expectations -- and this room blew me away. From the moment you step inside, you feel like you're in Halloween Town, with spooky-yet-festive decor, creepy ornaments, eerie lighting, and so many clever little details that fit the theme perfectly. And then there's Cole, our operator -- he was phenomenal! Cole greeted us with energy and enthusiasm, set the scene beautifully, and really got us into the story. Throughout the game he was attentive, giving us perfectly timed hints when needed, and even adding some in-character humor over the intercom that kept things fun and engaging. You can tell he really loves what he does, and it made the whole experience even better. The puzzles themselves were creative, challenging, and satisfying to solve. They required teamwork and thought, but nothing felt frustrating or unfair. There were even a few delightful surprises along the way that made us laugh and cheer. We escaped with just seconds to spare and left feeling absolutely thrilled. This is easily one of the best escape rooms I've ever done -- immersive, fun, and unforgettable. Cole really made it shine, and I'd recommend asking for him if you can. Thanks to Cole and the Arthatch team for an amazing night. We'll definitely be back! read more

We had a great time working through Annie's footsteps. Looking forward to trying the other rooms. Our game master was great, fun to do with kids. read more

Cool room great puzzles. Staff was very helpful with everything. Can't wait to try the other room

My son recently had a birthday party over at our house with eight 15 year-old boys looking for something to do, and we thought of having them try an escape room. We called ArtHatch and they happened to have an opening so we took it. They tried Annie's Footsteps and had a blast! From the beginning when they are told to wear search and rescue vests before going in, and the moderator wears a ranger hat and glasses for effect, the whole thing was great. I was a little skeptical that they would be able to finish given they were a little distractible, but surprisingly, they immediately started working together to solve the puzzles, and were able to finish. I would highly recommend this for a similar event or just fun with family and friends. One word of caution. This place is located in the back of an art studio called Art Hatch, so do not look for something saying escape room when driving to go there. You look for the Art Hatch Art studio and walk into the art studio and then walk toward the right and down the hall, though when we got there, someone was expecting us and came to the front to show us the way. read more

I have done Head Trip and Annie's Steps. These rooms are so innovative and clever! The puzzles are unique and a good challenge. The tech is very discreet, and unassuming, yet reliable. I think Annie's Steps was a little simpler, while Head Trip is more advanced (in my opinion). My game masters Jada and Dylan were also wonderful. Jada did well at staying in character and keeping us suspended in the room's story. She was also good at giving us gentle nudges when we asked for help, without giving away too much information. I can't wait to do the other rooms! read more

This was so much fun and challenging. This place is awesome and Dylan the host was amazing. I would definitely recommend and will be back to do the other rooms!! Clean and safe too! read more

Great time, fun puzzles and just the right level of complexity for our group size

We were one adult and two kids. Annie's Footsteps was great for us, just the right amount of difficulty.

Came here with a group of coworkers for Head Trip. Such an incredible experience for our first time escapees! I would say that the set design was incredible with the amount of space we had to work in with 7 people. Definitely great. I was only disapointed because we didn't exactly solve a puzzle the way it was intended to be solved. Definitely not something that should have happened which confused even our game master in the end. I do hope that gets fixed since our group did something we didn't know was possible. Also, the art exhibit was an added bonus that added to the theme of the room. Note: If flashing lights is something that doesn't sit well with you medically, then I suggest trying one of their other rooms. read more

I gotta say I've been to a lot of escape rooms I really was excited about the story line of Annie's room. The puzzles were not challenging. The story in the room made no sense. And you had to get a hint because the room just made 0 sense. Also in my opinion the host of the room is a part of the experience to really set the mood and the story line. Just throwing on a hat and reading from a piece of paper really kind of killed the excitement for me. I've been to escape rooms that really immerse you into the story and experience. This was not it. I would be willing to try the other rooms if changes are made read more

Gina was super energetic as our guide. Room was clean. Experience was fun! Would recommend as a go to for family activity! read more

My husband and I's wedding anniversary was today and we wanted to do something that would be challenging and unique. So we came here and it did not disappoint! We have never done an escape room before but Brad, our game master, was super friendly and explained everything really well. The puzzles were challenging but nothing we couldn't handle. The rooms are meant for groups of three or more so I was worried that we wouldn't finish since it was just my husband and I, but we made it with 5 seconds to spare! We will definitely be back read more

Cinema Escape Rooms - Annie's Footsteps - Challenge Courses Near Me - Escondido, California

This review is based on my 47 previous escape room experiences... so if you are a first timer, you may really enjoy this. That being said; as far as the Villains lair room goes, it's very "busy", LOTS of puzzles and distractions and so much in the room that's it's hard to know what is a puzzle and what's not, not at all linear and it definitely needs a face lift, so to speak. The last puzzle needs to be replaced entirely, among several others that just need to be revamped. It's a pretty basic escape room, as in, not like a lot of "NextGen" or cool techy type stuff, with the exception of a few cool things in it that made it "entertaining". Mostly lock and Key. This room should be a charge of max $25 per person, and $15 if you're getting a 'deal'. Connor did a nice job as game master and navigating us through the many clues we had to ask for because of being so confused as to whether to go this way or that way and was definitely ready to help, although I wish more clues would've been offered sooner cause when we realized we had about 60% most puzzles to go, it was 20 minutes left to the game, but a job well done regardless. Re: booking, we tried coordinating with the receptionist via phone call and text, but they're not the most responsive, it took me several calls and texts to hear back. And then when I was on the phone with them, two times the phone happened to hang up, I don't think it was on my end, but either way I didn't get a call back, i had to call or text them back. I did ask for a promo/discount since it was 6 of us, (bc personally I think, unless it's an exceptional room, $35 for an escape room is way too much) and we also wanted to do it at a 12pm time frame And we wanted to do two rooms, they ended up offering us the Groupon rate, which at $29 pp for this room, is still way too much. The Groupon price was fine at the time and we paid that. But Overall, it was disappointing. Didn't walk away feeling that joy of an exciting and challenging escape room (whether I escaped or was trapped), we walked away feeling more frustrated because it was so hard and convoluted with so much "noise", so to speak, in the room. read more

Group of 6 of us with various levels of skill tried Dreamscape room. We all had a great time. Fun clues and challenges. Needed a couple hints, but managed to get out with a few minutes to spare. read more

It was super fun! We went as a group for a friend's birthday and we had a blast. Definitely a great experience for a group as you'll be able to challenge your thinking skills and team work. We'll definitely be back! read more

Our host Connor was friendly, helpful, and funny! The entire experience was well run and coordinated. Definitely recommend. Great for a special occasion or casual night out! Fun fun fun! read more

Cinema Escape Rooms - Winners - Challenge Courses Near Me - Escondido, California

Such an awesome escape room experience! This room is unique because it is located in a super cool art gallery in the heart of Escondido. I highly recommend coming back to check out the vast array of art! Beautiful, fun, inspiring, & more. My friends & I had the pleasure of meeting the owner Sam & he was such a joy. He is so passionate & excited about the art gallery & even more about his escape room, as he should be because both were awesome! He is currently in the works of making a second room & we will sure be back to check it out. The theme of the room is psychedelic & it was so neat! I will not spoil the room but just know that you will have a ton of fun! Pay attention to your surroundings & communicate with your team. Also, Sam plays music so make sure to pay attention to the lyrics because they are not just for grooving, they are also hints! We did their 645p room this past Wednesday & there was plenty of street parking. read more

We took six 11 year old boys here for our son's birthday. The kids loved it!! It was a perfect mix of eerie but not too scary, as well as complicated but not too hard because the staff stepped in & gave clues. The boys had to give it an effort & work together so that was nice to watch. We went to Grand Pizzeria afterwards for some excellent food! Great way to spend an evening birthday. read more

My group of 4 are major escape game fanatics (The Four Horsemen) and we were super excited to try ArtHatch after reading great reviews, and I'm pretty torn on the way I feel about the room so I'll break it down here. There might be some mild spoilers (depending on what you consider a spoiler). BOOKING: booking online is super easy and it was $30 per person which is the standard price. It's easy to find and we got a spot right in front on the street. Checking in is a little weird because there was no real "front desk" since you walk right into the art studio, so we ran into Melissa in the hallway and she was expecting us. ArtHatch is amazing, the art gallery is worth the visit outside of the escape room! I enjoyed being there for over an hour appreciating all the art. Melissa was friendly and welcoming, but it didn't seem like she had done a lot of room intros. Her introduction of the room was a little awkward, but i think her husband does that most of the time. THE ROOM: this is difficult for me for a couple reasons. The room decor was phenomenal!! There was so much to look at and so many cool lights and effects, and the usual cool tech. HOWEVER, as far as an actual "escape game", it was very lacking. There was no followable story line and besides hearing the back story they have posted online, there is absolutely no tie to that theme in the game. I understand that it's non linear but this had no direction at all and was just a series of puzzles to solve. Normally as you unlock puzzles, a little more story is also unearthed, but this was not the case. I also did not like the hint system. It was confusing and distracting, and overall I felt as though it did us a disservice in our overall escape. OVERALL: as bad as what I just said might sound, I still had a great time in the room and would definitely recommend everyone try it, just because it's an amazing escape for the experience inside the room. I think this room has so much potential and I'm excited to see what's to come! OH, AND WE ESCAPED IN 49 MINUTES! THE FOUR HORSEMEN CAN'T BE LOCKED! read more

Cinema Escape Rooms - Escaped with 11 minutes left on the clock! The Four Horsemen - Challenge Courses Near Me - Escondido, California

Fun! Wish we were able to finish it. We didn't get very far, because we were still in the first room. I think if you see them struggle for too long, maybe go ahead and give a clue and don't wait for us to ask because you get so invested on what you're looking for, you forget to ask. It was a hard one, but it was a lot of fun! Would do again and would recommend. read more

Super fun experience at a great venue. The staff was awesome. Def recommend and will go again!

My 12yo daughter did this with two of her friends for her 12th birthday. They came out raving about it. They said it was scary and weird, and talked a lot about the "creepy deer" and the mannequin. They ended up finishing with two minutes to spare. I would highly recommend it. read more

The escape room was fun and challenging and kept us on our toes the entire time! We were so excited to make it out with four minutes to spare read more

Cinema Escape Rooms - Look ma, we did it!!! - Challenge Courses Near Me - Escondido, California

First off the location was awesome, it was pretty cool to walk through the art gallery to get to the different escape rooms. I went into the Annie room with some friends on a double date and it was a great size for the four of us. I enjoyed that many aspects needed us to communicate well and really work together. Dillon who was taking care of us that night did an amazing job at being extremely entertaining and inviting. Amazing vibes from him which really set the tone for us to have a great night. Cannot wait to try out the other room! read more

Connor was such a gracious and amazing host. My boys and I had a great time and highly recommend this escape room.

My son and his friends did Annie's Steps. Check-in was smooth and they started on time. It was nice to be able to take care of the waivers ahead of time so we don't have to scramble at the last minute. We had initially booked Head Trip but turned out one of us had done it a couple of weeks earlier. I called ArtHatch Escape and they were happy to change to Annie's Steps. My favorite thing about this business is that they sent us a complimentary photo via email after the appointment. My husband took the kids & I couldn't be there so it was nice to be able to see how much fun the kids had. My son wouldn't have taken a picture himself. I think the price is competitive - I love that we only pay for the number of participants, not for the entire room. It's a bit far from our house but we'll definitely return. read more

This was the first time my group did it with six people (adding on my friend's gf and her nephew), so some of my experience might be skewed given that I was not used to trying to escape with six people. It felt fairly cramped, and I think it might have been better with a smaller group given the size of the room. However, at the same time, the puzzles were very difficult and required a little thinking out of the box, so it helped having others with different though processes participate, especially the 11 year old! The escape room being in the lobby of the Arthatch Gallery was pretty cool, it deserves a visit on that alone. There is some pretty cool art here! Sam was super nice making his introductions and giving us a little "absinthe" to drink to help us with solving our problems in rescuing the Botanist. I don't think if the eleven year old weren't with us we might not have gotten out in time! I think it helps to think differently - my friends and I tend to think similarily most of the time. I think my favorite part was the last puzzle. You could tell the owner put a lot of time into the visual experience. However, even said that I don't think the room was too difficult or too easy. I'd say it was a good balance, and a great one for escape first timers. I'm looking forward to their next room! read more

I have to start with saying that Sam and Melissa and incredible people. The funds they raise with their art gallery and escape room is for their non profit that helps kids/teens pursue art. I mean, how amazing is that? The room is located in an art gallery. It is pretty neat because you can check everything out before you start your room. We had 9 people in our group and Melissa was very accommodating. She was easy to communicate with and made booking so easy! The room was small, but for us, we never felt like it was too tight for 9 adults. 4 out of 9 of us have done escape rooms before. Without giving anything away, this is definitely a "different" room. It makes you think on a new level. Other rooms we have done in the past...you think more linear but not this one. We found it pretty challenging but was able to get out with a little over a minute left. This room was so fun! You can tell they put so much time and energy into the room. Everyone in our group raved about it and now our first timers want to go and play rooms everyday. We would highly recommend this to anyone. Will be spreading the word! read more

I had more fun than I was expecting. It was our first time and our group got into the mystery. The staff was great and the room was filled with unexpected surprises. Great fun for a birthday or other celebrations. read more

We had a wonderful time working our way through Annie's Footsteps today. Our game master, Kendall, was very helpful and made it really fun. We were there to celebrate my son's 5th birthday and he did get a little scared at a couple parts, but it was very family friendly. Our almost 10 year old wants to go back soon. read more

We did Annie's Footsteps and it was really fun. Challenging and interesting story. Highly recommend doing this escape. read more

Found it on yelp at random, my wife and I have tried out hand at a few rooms in the past. This time we went with us + 2 more sai 4 total. We tried Annie's footsteps and it was a blast. I thought it was a perfect size room for the 4 of us. It was difficult enough, i we will definitely be going back to a different room (they have 4) sometime soon read more

We just did the Annie's footsteps and had an amazing game master named Dillon who very nice and enthusiastic about the game. He filled his role with ease and was very encouraging. Annie's was the easiest room and we will be Beach for the next hardest. When you do a room they offer a discount to buy a gift card once your done to get you to come back. We were a family of 4 and had a Great time. read more

Room: Head Trip The location of this might be hard to find, but if you see an art studio, you are in the right place. There is local artist art displayed and it is amazing. The room set up is really cool, brought me back to my raver days, hah. The reason for the 4 instead of the 5 is you can easily get hung up on something that leads to nothing and some of the puzzle didn't line up perfectly giving us a lot of issues, even though we figured out the puzzle. We did not get out of this room, but so close...+2 minutes. There is one more room at this location that I would like to try also. read more

The game master, Brad, made the whole experience amazing! We did Head Trip with a 13 year old and we all had a blast! The quips he had were great and he always stayed in character too! Would highly recommend going! read more

Took my boyfriend and my friend for their first time and they had a blast! We look forward to doing another room soon!

My family and I did the Annie's footsteps adventure. It was so much fun. Our hosts were Dylan and Connor. We loved that Dylan acted out a role before we went into the room. It made the experience so much better. We had a great time and will definitely come back. read more