18 Best Escape Rooms in Maryland (2023)
If you’re looking for a thrilling and unique experience, then an escape room in Maryland is the perfect choice. Escape rooms are physical adventures where teams of players must solve puzzles and challenges within a set time limit to “escape” from the room.
Escape rooms are also one of our top things to do in Maryland!
They combine elements of problem-solving, teamwork, strategy and communication into an exciting game that tests your wits and creativity. Maryland offers some of the best escape rooms around with themed room experiences such as horror films, spy missions, treasure hunts or even supernatural mysteries!
Whether you’re playing alone or with friends and family members, there’s something for everyone in these fun and challenging games. So get ready to test your skills – it’s time to see if you can make it out alive!
18 Escape Rooms in Maryland to try
1. Escape This, Frederick, MD
This is a nice Escape room located in Frederick. It comes with 5 unique and immersive escape rooms. They have rooms like haunted house, Carnival, crime scene etc. Players have just 60 minutes to complete the mission and escape the locked room.
They usually allow walk-ins but would prefer you call ahead to ensure there is an open room.
The vibe and aesthetic are really well done and give a bit of an eerie vibe. They also offer occasional tips and hints when you get stuck without revealing too much
The staff is very friendly and very professional the entire time.
2. Escape Quest in Bethesda
This is known as the number 1 escape room in DC and has locations in Bethesda and Virginia. It has several rooms like the Pitfall, Lost Temple, Black widow, and more.
There is street parking available on certain streets near the Escape room.
The locked rooms are high quality and are challenging but not unnecessarily difficult. It is also set up in a way that it is completely immersive where it feels like you’re in the game setting!
It is also a great location for birthday parties especially because you can bring your own food compared to other places.
3. Escapology, Rockville
The location offers a real life escape experience with all private rooms with varying levels of experiences. Some of the rooms are Antidote, Mansion murder, Budapest express etc.
Each room has its own series of puzzles and clues to unravel before time runs out.
All the rooms are well decorated to match the themes, for example a plane interior to a mansion. They are fun to explore and hide the hints for each puzzle in fun and clever ways.
It does take a bit of work and problem solving skills to solve the series of puzzles as they are very challenging and you may even find yourself unable to finish. The staff however try their best to help you through as much as they can without messing the experience up for you.
4. Mission Escape Rooms
Mission Escape Rooms: Mission Escape Rooms has three locations in Maryland, offering escape rooms with themes like “The Wizard’s Apprentice,” “The Cabin in the Woods,” and “The Lab.”. They also have a mobile escape room.
Mission Escape Rooms – Annapolis
It has 4 rooms with varying difficulty from beginner to advanced. The rooms go on for 50 minutes with different numbers of players. There are rooms like battleship, Once upon a time, The Bureau, Legend of the Sasquatch.
Mission Escape Rooms – Gambrills
This is located in Gambrills and has two rooms that take 1-8 players and go on for 50 minutes with ranging levels of difficulty. The two rooms are Mad Dog’s Speakeasy and the Lost Temple. It is located in the shopping center thus lots of parking is available.
Mission Escape Rooms – Arundel Mills location
This is currently their newest location and has 5 rooms with varying difficulties. There is the Forest Haven Asylum, The Upside Down, Medieval Crimes, Dinosaur island, and Last Showing.
It is located in Arundel Mills mall which means there is a ton of parking. It’s best to park in the lot between Medieval Times and Burlington Coat factory.
5. Clue IQ: An Escape Room Experience, Frederick, MD
Now Clue IQ has got to be the best escape room company in Frederick! It is hands sown always a great experience everytime. They have games like Excalibur, Crane manor, Operation Jingle bells etc.
They are currently only open by appointment so book in advance.
They even have a mobile escape room where if you are unable to come to the location, they can bring the fun to you.
The staff were super fun and very helpful and friendly and give you unlimited clues if you need, without deducting time.
The location has lots of space with great and thoughtful puzzles that involve multiple people and teamwork to solve. It also comes with many rooms with multiple puzzles to work on simultaneously.
Each room has amazing and cool effects, lighting, theme, sounds and more to make the experience super immersive and really put you in that setting.
6. Escapomania, Ocean City, MD
Another escape room in OCMD is Escapomania. This location is across the bridge and therefore is a bit of a distance from the Boardwalk, but only a block or two from the beach. It is also a nice size.
It’s located within a shopping mall so there is ample FREE parking.
For the game, I believe you get one hour and 10 minutes to solve it and escape the room.The rooms can be quite challenging but still fun, plus the Game Master is always available to help you out.
If you are in the Ocean City, area, there are also many other fun things to do with kids and family in OCMD.
7. Escape Proving Ground, Pasadena, MD
This is a really nice escape room in Pasadena. You are limited to 3 hints as opposed to unlimited which is still nice because I think it forces you to figure out the puzzle and challenge yourself.
One thing to note is, you are allowed to take breaks or go to the bathroom but the timer would not stop which is also good so you do not ruin it for others if you really need to leave.
8. Big Escape rooms, Silver Spring
This location in Silver Spring has escape rooms like Outbreak, Clown, Pharaoh, Basketball with varying levels of difficulties, escape rate and clues. The rooms have escape rates ranging from about 25-50%.
The staff are very helpful, especially one named Brandy who was very helpful throughout the game. I recommend calling in advance to find out how to get in, because from hearing some other customers, it was a struggle to get inside.
9. Captive Rooms, Ocean City
They have two venues in Ocean City. One in Downtown OC and one in midtown OC. There are seven adventures with varying difficulty levels and number of players. They have very Friendly staff, challenging rooms which are still fun and addicting.
The puzzles are also well thought out making it very exciting to get the next clue!
10. Exit Strategy Escape Room, Cumberland
Located in Cumberland, this escape room has 4 rooms of fun: The Blizzard escape, The untouchables, The cursed treasure, and Through the looking glass.
They are closed on Sundays and also close at 7:30pm which is earlier than some other escape rooms. Might be helpful to have more signs as the location is a little tricky to find.
The concepts of the rooms seem very simple but are complex ideas.
11. Charm City Clue Room, Inner Harbor
Located in Inner Harbor, this escape room provides guests with 3 rooms to choose from. They are open till 10pm daily and the rooms are very challenging. Due to its location, its perfect for a day out at Inner Harbor exploring all the great things to do.
12. All in Adventure Escape Rooms
It is available in two locations, White Marsh and Bowie. They offer two hints to help you out with the challenges. One common issue though is that the rooms are quite low tech and not electronically controlled like other escape rooms.
The staff however are really nice and are willing to help you out.
13. Escape Rooms Southern Maryland
They recently moved to a new space right next door to the old one. Like several other escape rooms, the staff here is really amazing. There are 3 rooms, the Rest easy motel, Cat burglar, and Leonardtown manor.
You can take breaks or bathroom breaks but the time does not stop.
14. Escape Salisbury Escape Room
This is the first and only Escape Room located in Salisbury. They do not accept walk-ins so guests have to register at least 2 hours in advance. For some of the rooms, it’s a lot of puzzles and pieces to work through so might be better for bigger groups of people
15. Laurel’s House of Horror
Some of the rooms in this house of horror include Jigsaw, Escape the movies cult classic, Original horror movie themed rooms. One of the rooms, the freakshow, is currently closed so call in advance if that is what you are interested in.
This is quite a scary escape room so it’s not one I would recommend going to if your party includes younger kids.
16. Escape Time Escape Rooms
EscapeTime has three locations in Maryland: Severna park, Columbia and Easton, offering a variety of themed escape rooms, including “The Heist,” “The Prison Break,” and “The Game Show”.
There is also the ultimate mobile escape room experience where the trailer experience is brought right to your doorstep.
17. Breakout Games
It has two locations, Columbia and Timonium and guests can choose from themes like Mystery Mansion, Runaway Train and more. The number of hints you can get is unlimited which is nice if you find yourself getting stuck often.
18. Surelocked In Escape Games, Frederick
Some of the rooms available include The Wild Wild West, The Witching hour etc. They even have scavenger hunts for various events or activities. In my opinion, the Wild Wild West is probably the best one that I recommend trying out first.
Things to know about Escape Rooms in Maryland
Here are some additional things to know about escape rooms in Maryland:
- Most escape rooms in Maryland have a set time limit of 60 minutes.
- Some escape rooms offer private sessions, while others are open to walk-ins.
- The cost of an escape room varies depending on the location and the number of players.
- Escape rooms are a great way to test your problem-solving skills, teamwork, and communication skills.
- They can also be a fun and exciting way to spend an afternoon with friends or family.
FAQS on Escape Rooms in Maryland
What are 3 common escape rooms?
3 common escape rooms are:
- The Bank Heist, which is where you act as a member of an elite team of thieves, you must work together to infiltrate a highly secure bank vault, crack intricate codes, and disarm sophisticated alarms.
- The Haunted Mansion which is where you navigate through a spooky manor filled with hidden clues, supernatural puzzles, and ghostly encounters in order to unravel the secrets of the mansion and escape before time runs out
- Prison Break which is where you and your team members are locked in a prison cell and have to work together to find a way to escape before the guards find you.
Can you leave an escape room to go to the bathroom?
In most escape rooms, it is generally not encouraged to leave the room to go to the bathroom once the game has started.
The concept of an escape room revolves around immersing yourself in a challenging environment where you must work together with your team to solve puzzles, find clues, and ultimately escape within a given time limit.
However, it’s worth noting that different escape room venues may have varying rules and policies. Some larger escape room facilities may have designated breaks during longer game sessions, where participants are allowed to use the restroom if necessary.
What should you not do in an escape room?
- Do not be destructive
- Overlook communication and teamwork
- Waste time on unrelated distractions
- Share spoilers or solutions
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help
- Don’t give up
- Do not use your phone
Wrap up: Escape Rooms in Maryland
Escape rooms are a great way to test your problem-solving skills, work together as a team, and have some fun. If you’re looking for a unique and exciting experience, then an escape room in Maryland is definitely worth considering.
There are many different escape rooms to choose from in Maryland, so you’re sure to find one that’s perfect for your interests. Whether you’re a fan of history, mystery, or science fiction, there’s an escape room out there that’s perfect for you.
So what are you waiting for? Gather your friends and family and book your escape room experience today! You won’t regret it.
