We could all use a more thrilling activity sometimes. Somewhere where we can lift the weight of the world off our shoulders and play the role of a hero, super detective, or champion escape artist.
Escape rooms in Toronto are growing in popularity because they play host to precisely that concept. They’re easy to book, great for groups, and offer something different outside the traditional social activities.
There are many escape rooms worth visiting in Toronto, but we’ve selected a few that offer the best experiences. Read on to learn more about escape rooms in Toronto and the ones you must try!
How Did We Choose the Best Escape Rooms?
There’s no question that these rooms are becoming one of Toronto’s preferred group activities. That rise in popularity has seen experiences grow all over town, with plenty of games to choose from.
Escape room enthusiasts and curious activity planners may need help choosing their experience with the ever-growing number of games in Toronto. We wanted to narrow down the number to the best on offer, helping anyone seamlessly pick one that would impress their group.
We used a series of criteria to define the best Toronto escape rooms, as seen below:
- The number of positive reviews from customers
- The quality of the experiences available
- The value for money in the escape rooms
- The uniqueness of the experience
- Diversity of the games
- How accommodating the experience is to the group
These six factors laid the groundwork for our research, and we incorporated them into all our escape room analyses. After searching far and wide, we came up with the six best Toronto escape rooms.
Discover more about why these were chosen using the above pillars.
Here are the 6 Best Escape Rooms in Toronto
Let’s elaborate more on our choices for the six best escape rooms in Toronto.
Curious Cases at Levelup Reality
We’re going to start our list with one of the more unique escape rooms out of our selection. Why is Curious Cases our premium choice? Because it’s an entirely virtual reality experience, placing you right into the thick of the action, something that transcends the physical barriers of standard escape rooms.
This 3-chapter mystery escape room puts into the shoes of Thomas Moore, picking up a dead-end case of a groundbreaking scientist that’s mysteriously disappeared after his latest discovery. You can play solo or with up to 6 other friends trying to unravel the curiosities behind the investigation, solving puzzles, and moving through this immersive Victorian manner.
So why are Curious Cases so fun? Visit Levelup Reality, and you’ll know why. This game-changing arcade specializes in VR, and its team fully understands how to immerse players in their games. It’s a unique escape room experience that places you right into the heart of this thrilling story.
Check out the game trailer here:
Pros:
- You won’t find a more immersive escape room experience than one that places you inside the story world.
- Little time or training needed to jump right into the action
- A rich tale with compelling puzzles to solve
Cons:
- It’s a bit pricey for a short period of gameplay
- You’ll need to book ahead because it can get busy
- Some escape room enthusiasts may prefer physical environments
The reviews speak for themselves regarding the Curious Cases VR game and the Levelup Reality location. The experience has received positive reviews from players and critics on the Steam platform, with the arcade rated as one of TripAdvisor’s most fun Toronto activities. Hard to argue with a 5-star experience across the board!
Levelup Reality will cost $39.99 for an hour’s play session (10 minutes of training, 50 minutes of gameplay) on weekends, with a discount rate of $34.99 on weekdays. It’s a little more expensive for what feels like a short escape room, but trust us when we say it’s worth
Looking Glass Adventures
Now let’s move on to the more traditional escape rooms, where Looking Glass Adventures is one of Toronto’s premier purveyors of the games. This team offers a hybrid of in-person events, or remote play, in escape rooms played over video conferencing software.
Looking Glass Adventures boasts three different escape room experiences, all with unique settings, including classic detective, secret agent infiltration, and wizarding. Each setup is perfectly suitable for all ages, and the adventures are flexible according to budget and occasion.
The customizability and accommodating nature of these escape rooms make Looking Glass Adventures one of the experienced leaders. It’s challenging to win, yet the fun never drops, creating the ideal of adventure for birthdays, team-building exercises, and more.
Captive Escape Room
Captive is a series of escape room adventures that only host physical experiences. Their focus is delivering narrative-heavy adventures that bring some intensity and urgency within the 60 minutes of gameplay, solving puzzles and unlocking mysteries.
As of this article, five games are available for groups; Dracula’s Library, The Farm, Charlotte’s Attic, 13 Doors, and the Blind Tiger. Each follows a more eerie theme to push the sense further and immerse into the game world.
Captive range their escape rooms according to difficulty and the maximum number of players, so groups can choose whether to maximize the fun factor or the challenge. The experiences are extremely popular with corporate team-building retreats, where some of Toronto’s leading firms often use the games for exercises.
Pros:
- The story behind each escape room sets a great atmosphere
- The range of challenges for all ages and skillsets
- There’s a variety of different games to play
Cons:
- The setup hasn’t been correct on some occasions
- Comments on the cleanliness
- Many groups complete the tasks quickly
Captive Escape Room ranks highly on trust platforms despite some critical feedback, averaging 4.5 stars across 136 reviews. Many customers praised the diversity of the experiences and that they accommodate all ages despite being a bit more challenging than other family-friendly escape rooms.
Visitors to Captive Escape Room can expect to pay $33 per person, which currently applies to every game available. Considering the variety and challenge, it’s a good deal for anyone seeking a team-building location or a birthday party!
Secret City Adventures
Suppose physical immersion is your number one driving factor to a great escape room. In that case, Secret City Adventures might be your ticket. They are another escape room specialist that offers both remote play and in-person games, but with a fundamental difference; these adventures feature live actors!
Should you prefer remote play with your group, Secret City Adventures offers two games. You can enjoy a sit-in experience with a trivia night and a virtual puzzle-solving adventure called ‘The King of Bootleggers.’ If in-person is preferred, there are many experiences (7 in total) ranging from rescue missions to uncovering a dragon egg’s secrets.
We’ll argue that a live actor in the experiences makes the difference in physical escape rooms. Having a guide that provides wit and charm and promotes that game atmosphere can raise that immersion factor to the fullest extent. That may be why Secret City Adventures has been named the ‘#1 immersive escape room in Toronto’.
Pros:
- Plenty of diverse escape room experiences to choose from
- Live actors bring the game world to life
- One of the more theatrical escape rooms in Toronto
Cons:
- More expensive than other experiences
- Feedback advises more of a performance than an escape room
- Quality is dependent on the actor’s enthusiasm
Secret City Adventures is an emerging escape room purveyor with only 45 reviews providing a 4.5-star rating. However, the comment on quality is nearly universal, with feedback focusing on the immersion of the experience through the acting.
Because more assets are involved in setting up these adventures, the price goes up. Secret City Adventures isn’t the cheapest escape room, with $50 per person on weekends and $42 on weekdays.
But anyone who enjoys the more theatrical side of escape rooms is bound to love all the experiences Secret City Adventures offers.
Mysterious Minds Escape Rooms
A name like Mysterious Minds certainly sets a curious atmosphere, which is a factor that drives a quality escape room. They live up to standards, offering one virtual experience and two in-person ones.
Despite the comparatively limited number of games on offer, the premise of each is compelling. The virtual experience of Cupid’s School of Valentines is accessed through the web portal, featuring escape room puzzles with a mix of printed and interactive material. The two other in-person experiences, The Cryptic Cabin and the Grand Carnival pit your puzzle-solving skills in respective wood and circus environments.
There’s a focus on bringing a couple of escape rooms to life through a well-curated narrative and an immersive environment. Mysterious Mind Escape rooms are a challenge, but pinning your group heads together can overcome the puzzles in store!
Pros:
- A strong focus on quality rather than quantity
- Great for groups that enjoy a challenge
- Particular praise for the customer service and organization
Cons:
- The virtual experience is pricey with not as much value
- There’s a minimum age of 15 to play
- The games need patience as they are challenging
Mysterious Minds has one of the most consistently excellent ratings of the best escape rooms in Toronto. TripAdvisor reviews show five stars across 204 reviews, with none falling into the negative categories.
Pricing for the virtual experience is questionable at $30 per person. However, the in-person escape rooms are pretty reasonable at $25 per person. Considering the quality you get for the 60 minutes, it’s easy to see why Mysterious Minds offer the best value for money.
Escape Manor
Finally, we’ll list an escape room from which you can make a night rather than just a time-limited experience. Escape Manor is a space that offers a series of different games and a lounge bar, where drinks and meals are available in between, before, or after playthroughs.
Choose between 6 different in-person experiences with eerie, urgent undertones, forcing your group to get their thinking caps on. There’s even one escape room that features axe throwing at the end, taking the physicality of the escape room to a whole new level!
Escape Manor is best suited for older groups, parties, team-building, and corporate retreats. It’s a place where you can enjoy the games, then share a few laughs and memories in the themed lounge with cocktails and snacks.
Pros:
- An escape room you can build an evening around
- Well-designed, versatile experiences
- Great for team-building and corporate events
Cons:
- Food and drink are expensive
- Confusion over promos
- Only 45-minutes to complete the room
Escape Manor has yet to garner as much feedback as other top escape rooms in Toronto. However, it does see an average 4.5-star rating with 44 reviews from TripAdvisor, with most enjoying the uniqueness of the offered experiences.
Prices per person for Escape Manor are at a reasonable $36 per person. The shorter game time of 45 minutes has been a point of contention for the cost, but most value the escape room experience as high-octane, compensating for the limited time.
So there we have our list of the best escape rooms in Toronto. Have you decided on your location to visit? Are you going to make an escape room bingo card? Whatever the case, we can’t recommend these six choices enough!
Immerse Yourself in a Fantastic Toronto Escape Room
Escape rooms are a great activity to immerse a group in a fun-filled experience. They are great for corporate retreats, team-building exercises, birthday parties, and even bachelor/bachelorette parties.
Are you looking for something to create memories with your friends? Why not transcend to another world and solve the mysteries of a parallel universe? Visit one of these top escape rooms in Toronto for one of the best group activities in the city.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an Escape Room?
Escape rooms are physical games where a group is locked into a room, and the only way out is to solve puzzles and complete tasks. Teams generally have a limited time to win, usually around 60 minutes, where a game host guides the group through the objectives.
Today, the term ‘escape room’ has stretched to include a diverse palette of themed experiences. Beyond the physical barriers, escape rooms are now transcending into the digital sphere with online games available.
So what’s featured in a typical escape room? Most will have the following:
- A themed room, such as a Victorian Manor or an Underground Bunker
- Props that are used for puzzles
- A backstory that supports the escape room
- A series of progressive puzzles and clues leading to victory
- A time limit to complete all the objectives and ‘unlock’ the room
Players will combine their thinking skills to work out the provided clues that fit along with the game’s narrative. The team wins the game by solving the final clue, ‘unlocking’ the door before the clock runs out.
Do You Need Anything to Visit an Escape Room?
One factor contributing to an escape room’s popularity is you don’t need anything to attend. You’ll need your group to strap your thinking caps on! While most escape rooms require booking, it’s perfectly feasible to drop in with a few friends to fill a day’s or night’s activity.
How Much Will an Escape Room Cost?
Escape rooms are usually priced per person, with the best experiences costing between $25-40 for each group member. Some games will offer discounts for larger groups, such as corporate parties or team-building, so it’s worth enquiring if you’re planning an event with a significant guest list.
Escape rooms have become a prevalent group activity because of their immersion factor, encouragement of critical thinking, and getting everyone involved. So why the rise in popularity throughout Toronto?
Why Does an Escape Room Make a Fantastic Group Activity?
Toronto is always full of great activities, but finding something a group can enjoy takes time and effort. Escape rooms in Toronto have started to lead the way in choice because they accommodate everyone.
Everyone can get involved, regardless of age, thinking skills, or physical stature. It’s an immersive experience that transcends your team to another plain, where over sixty minutes, you’re group can work to be the heroes of that world.
Visits to escape rooms are rewarding for groups, creating bonds, memories, and a few laughs to share. That’s why many team-building exercises and corporate retreats pick an escape room to accomplish workplace targets.
So now we’ve established that an escape room is an excellent group activity, how do you find the best ones to visit?