Came here for a private group and we had a great time! You start in what looks like a candy store and then you're in charge of finding the way to the main room. The staff was super friendly and helpful as well. We did the murder room which has various riddles, clues in hidden places, and puzzles. The level was easy but I think we could have done a harder level. We also had a larger group of 11, but we didn't feel crowded in there. We completed with 25 minutes to spare! The phone speaker in the room was a little hard to hear. Some physical exercise is needed for one of the clues. Won't give anything else away, but we had a good time and I'm glad I got to experience Escape in Time again years later. read more

Escape In Time - Madison - Escape Games Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

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I came here for my bachelorette and it was such a blast, we did the Haunted Mansion. And not to give anything away, but will confirm that it was scary and a really great time. We got out in 35 minutes as a group of 10, would definitely go here again. The staff was super friendly and they got into character really well, I appreciated the theatrics read more

Escape In Time - Madison - Escape Games Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

5 star production quality, 3 star puzzles. Right off the bat, you're greeted with a tiny puzzle to get into the lobby of the escape room. It's cool, but we didn't know we could enter, so ended up waiting outside for a bit which led us to being a little late in starting the room. If you arrive 15 minutes early like they recommend though, you'll be fine. We did the haunted mansion, which was one of their newer rooms. The thematics we're great, and everything looked really cool! The puzzles didn't have a smooth logical flow all the time though, so there was a disjoint between motivation - cause - effect. Sometimes the hint you had to ask for would be standard linking clues that you would find in other rooms. One in particular required a meta assumption on ghosts that didn't really track, and things could have been set up environmentally to guide players, but weren't. That same puzzle also requires a frustrating amount of quick movement, in a way that I'd be worried if a differently abled group would even be able to complete it. The volume could be turned down a bit as well. Thematics of a puzzle are great, but when they're loud enough that it's difficult to talk to your teammates about it, that's too much. The jump scare (they mention this in the room description) was really well done, although the final resolution felt sudden. We found ourselves asking "oh, did we just finish this?" That being said, the effects were great, and the atmosphere was really well done, from before you enter the lobby! The game assistants are friendly and the entire operation is set up in a fun thematic way as well, which was fun to experience. All in all, we would go back to check out more of their rooms. read more

Escape In Time - Madison - Pre-lobby lobby. This is where you can enter if your full group is there - Escape Games Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

I've been to this place about 4 times now, but I gotta say that this time was easily the best. I came for my 17th birthday with some friends to do the Haunted Mansion room. Even though some of the noises in that room were a bit too loud, it was still fun to solve the puzzles. And the game master we had was easily the coolest out of every game master I've had here so far. Whoever that guy was who was running the Haunted Mansion room at 1:45 pm on Saturday, Sept 17, 2022, you need to get paid more, man. read more

Escape In Time - Madison - My friends and I after successfully completing the Haunted Mansion room. (I am second from left.) - Escape Games Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

Fantastic time! Really engaging escape room the whole family could enjoy. We had 8 of us and it worked out, but you need to set some family rules. Have fun - great holiday event. read more

Went here with a group of 11 for my 20th birthday and had a blast. You have to find your way into their "staging area" which is so fun! We played Gold Rush and managed to get out with 4 min to spare! Will definitely be going back to play more rooms - probably the coolest escape room i've been too! read more

Super fun!!! We did the Cryosleep room and it was super fun but kinda scary since it was a little darker. There were 2 things that were wrong with it 1. it was really dark so it was harder to see things and 2. I was disappointed that it was only one room but I understand since it was a smaller building but other than that it was so fun! we did escape to!! read more

We went to Escape in Time with some friends and had so much in the haunted mansion escape room! When we got there, we had to go through a candy shop and find the door into the check in area. We found it and entered to another dimension where we were able to check in. Shortly after we entered our mission briefing area where we watched a video with some backstory about our mission. After the video, we entered the haunted mansion and started our mission. The rooms was super spooky and we loved the theme! Some of the clues were helpful and made logical sense to us. Other clues weren't as fluid as other escape rooms have been to. Some of the technology didn't work the first time either. The phone we needed to use to get to the next step, took about 10 times to finally work. We also had to run a lot for one step which was hard and not really conducive to anyone with mobility issues. We made it through and escaped with plenty of time. There was one jump scare that got me good and definitely gave the group a laugh after. Overall, we had a lot of fun and would love to come back and try out another escape room at Escape in time! Thanks for a fun time! :) read more

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Really fun, but make sure you see the level. We thought bc it said 7+ it would be easy... it in fact was not. But the person running the party was so nice and have some good hints. read more

The kids had a great time in the captain's cove escape room! Mission success! The room was fun, but challenging. Staff was interactive, fun and helpful. We will be back again. read more

Staff were very friendly and patient with our group of 8 10 year old girls. I was impressed and very grateful for how accommodating they were. The girls had such a fun time for my daughter's birthday party. Thank you! read more

I've gone to this escape room multiple times now (all taking a little over an hour drive to get there) and I am never disappointed. From the friendly staff, to the detail in each room, including the lobby. I would recommend buying the replay tickets, when offered after your room. For a small mom & pop business to be this well done, is very impressive. You can tell that the staff loves what they do, and they even sometimes get into a character, to enhance your experience. They excel at answering any questions you may have and are very thorough with the rules. 10/10 would recommend to anyone that loves escape rooms or puzzles. Not to mention, you get to help a small business that thrives in what they do. read more

I've done escape rooms before and had a blast. Not saying i didn't have a great experience here, but there are some things that definitely could be improved. but lets start off with the great parts. First: the entrance. you'll understand when you go. Second: the theatrics, lots of intricate detail in the rooms. Third: The story lines and the price, if you get a groupon and find one of those extra 25% off codes. Those are all great parts. I will have to critique the fact that with a group of 6 we were paired with a random group of 2 and the room barely fit us. They said they can fit up to 12, which I find hard to believe. We were running into each other left and right and just yelling with no things really getting solved. That being said as well, we finished the room in 35 minutes, even though we were allotted a full hour. then we found that the room we did was one of the hardest rooms. It just seemed like it was missing something and when we solved the last clue, we all couldn't help but say...thats it? Granted this is a great experience, especially for the price (we got it for under $15) and its a good introductory to escape rooms if you've never done it before. But it's best if you can get the room for just you and your friends. read more

Fun experience definitely challenging I think the amount of people should be limited to six at most !because rooms are so small. I would recommend going with a group of people you know! Will definitely return to do a different theme maybe a little more challenging. read more

From the moment we arrived, this was a great experience. The styling of the entrance, lobby, and rooms is creative and fun. I'd reached out ahead of time for some special accommodations for our group, and they were kind and responsive. The room was wonderful! We tried Captain's Cove for our first visit and it was a great puzzle--perfectly PG for those who don't like anything scary, this was just right for our kids. We'll be back! read more

We did the Piarate Cove and were paired with a trio of women.  All was fine when we started.  My daughter admitted to the group she had done this room before but wouldn't share what she knew unless they wanted her to.   As far as we knew, the whole group of us were having a good time and they had asked my daughter at a few points to help of she knew what to do.  She offered out what she could when asked.  These women apparently changed their mind about the experience upon exiting after we successfully escaped the room.  They never said anything to us or even looked at us. They never let on they felt that way or I would have smoothed it out with them personally like an adult.  The female associate who asked for them to separate off at the end then flagged us down upon exiting the area and proceeded to accuse my daughter of ruining the other party's time. She was annoyed she had to give away 3 free tickets to them.   I am annoyed we were treated so rudely by the staff and my daughter was in tears for an hour after we left.  We were not even given a chance to explain our end of it, just accused of ruining three adult women's time.  Room was cool, but the staff and treatment after the fact ruined the whole experience and makes us not want to try the other rooms. read more

This is the nicest escape room we have ever been to. Very cute lobby with fun entrance to get in! Super friendly staff and good variety of challenges Highly recommend!! read more

I booked the Eat or Be Eaten room with 7 other friends and we had a blast! I felt that there were lots of little details, including the entrance to the front desk (won't spoil it!). I also felt like the staff had great enthusiasm and really enjoyed what they were doing and explaining to us the storyline and congratulating us when we had finished! The room itself was very detailed and made you feel like you truly were stuck! I was a little bummed about the price - without any coupons we paid $33 - I highly suggest looking around for Groupon or other discounts! read more

The second you open the door to this place, before even checking in at the front desk, you are in an immerse, fantastical, adventure. Every area is well themed and decorated, with very little details missed. The employees are always in character and create a positive, safe, and fun experience. The puzzles are just the right level of challenge, making you have to really explore your environment. The person who gives you hints and assistants is always in character and is fairly forgiving in helping you while also making you have to put the pieces together on your own. Nothing is handed to you but you ate never lead astray. I was so impressed (and spooked) the whole time, having such a fun and immersive experience. I will most definitely be back with my friends and family. Best escape room in Madison! read more

Escape In Time - Madison - Escape Games Near Me - Madison, Wisconsin

We came here for my brothers bachelor party and had an absolute blast. Starting out with the not obvious entrance looking like an office building (gave off a Doctor Who vibe). The staff was fantastic, they were friendly, helpful, kept in character, and you could tell they loved their jobs. The room itself was great! Loved the theming and the game. We will be coming back even if we don't have a big group! Can't wait to try a different room! read more

Awesome time with friends for my birthday! I booked here with a Groupon, which filled a room for 10 for 30% cheaper than their normal rate. The building was tough to find, but the suite of their office wasn't. The entrance was super fun to wrap my head around (I won't spoil it, though!). It's hard to review without giving too much away, but overall we were very pleased with the aesthetic, the difficulty level, and the range of skills required to solve each puzzle. I really liked the hosts and our game master, who met our level of skill when giving clues (we got stuck three times before solving the entire room). I absolutely would go back here to try out another room! It's a very standard price to participate, and the rooms, while some are smaller, hold many tricks and puzzles to keep 10 experienced gamers busy for an hour! 10/10 would recommend. :) read more

Cool entrance and interior design. Friendly staff. Puzzles could use some work. This was my second escape room experience. We were assigned to a horror-themed room with flickering, scant lighting. It was pretty difficult to communicate with each other and the sequence of puzzles was not very intuitive. Some were just insanely difficult like trying to find the one screw in the entire room that could be opened with a specific screwdriver. We had to ask for help quite a few times, which sort of shows that the puzzles aren't intuitive enough or have too many false leads. For instance, tons of items in the room did nothing at all including ones with what looked like complicated puzzles to solve like rewiring a circuit breaker. My wife did a separate room and complained that at some point in their puzzle solving, they solved a puzzle that opened a door only to have it lock behind them and trap half of the team, which had to solve the puzzle again. Overall, both of us thought the puzzles were a bit unfinished. read more

Had a wonderful time!! The place is clean, the challenges are challenging. I went with my young kids.

This was so much fun. Having had a subpar experience at a previous location I was nervous about Escape in Time, but they were amazing! We also came as a group of four and were paired up with two strangers, but that only added to the challenge and fun of the escape. The design and thought behind the room far exceeded my expectations and I will definitely eye trying out their other rooms in the near future! read more

This was our first time in any escape room, and we did not know what to expect. Needless to say, we had a blast and enjoyed every minute. The staff was cordial, friendly and lots of fun. Well worth the money, and we would definitely do it again. read more

We went for our teen sons birthday. We took 2 friends and the hubby and I. We all had a great time. We did the Eat or be Eaten room, it was hard, but very fun. We escaped with 50 seconds to spare. Highly recommended!! We will definitely be back again soon. The staff was very helpful and the place was very clean. Can't say enough good things about this place. Go, you won't regret it!! read more

We enjoyed our first time this escape room, and were very exited about the discount "Replay" option they described, which they said we had a year to book. So now, just 2 weeks later I call to book our "Replay" discount and they say, "Sorry, too late! You had to do that on the spot!" Would have been nice to be told that at the time! None of us heard anything about it being now or never. All they can say is sorry, our mistake, but no discount. read more

Escape In Time is great! We got there a little late for the last escape room for the evening and the staff where very accommodating in getting all of our party oriented to the game. They made even a failed mission super fun. read more

Went here for a coworkers going away party. Didn't know what to expect when coming into it.l as I had never done an escape room before. I was worried that it would be difficult working together to get stuff accomplished but it was such an amazing experience and we were all able to come together to get the puzzle solved. I would highly recommend Escape In Time. The experience was completely immersive and unsettling. As soon as all of us left we just kept thinking about how much we wanted to go back and do another room. Make your reservations and go! I would definitely say that you wouldn't want to go with less than three people, we had 6 and it seemed to be the perfect amount. Seriously a fun and great team building experience. read more

My boyfriend and I who are in our early 20's have completed 3 of the 5 rooms, and we loved them all! The whole theme of the facility is fun and gets you in the mood to escape. Staff is super friendly. The rooms that we completed (cryosleep, eat or be eaten, captains cove) were definitely a little easier than escape rooms at different facilities, but if you don't use any hints they become challenging. Would recommend to first timers or experienced escapers! read more

We did Bunker, Wizard & Goldrush. The most unique entrance of any escape room! We have done close to 200 rooms and these are in the top. Stories are good and enough puzzles to keep four people busy. read more

Had such a great time doing the Eat or Be Eaten Room! It was the first time here for all of my group. The staff was super friendly. The room itself was so incredibly detailed and the entire experience was very immersive. Can't wait to go back soon! They offered a very nice discount to come back but even if that wasn't an option, I'd 100% still come back. Highly recommended for anyone looking for an escape room in the Madison area! read more

We rented the water landing room for my 9 year olds birthday party, and they had a blast. This is all they have talked about for three days and my older son wants to do his birthday party there now too. read more

This past weekend was my second visit with my two boys (ages 8 & 10). Not only was it clean and well spaced with the groups playing the rooms are an absolute blast! We did Captain's Cove this visit and HIGHLY recommend it! The staff are friendly (and helpful with the clues!) and it was a welcome escape (pun intended) during COVID-19. read more

We escaped in time! It was a fun group activity. I did the captains cove. I would highly recommend this to you and your family. It was a little pricey but worth it. I hope to come back. PS this was my first escape room! read more

Really well thought out, designed, and built! Clever puzzles and extremely realistic. Plus they have the best vr I've ever seen. Great staff! read more

I have done 2 escape rooms here so far (Water Landing and Eat or Be Eaten) with family and friends. We all love the entrance and waiting room. They really set the stage and get you excited. The rooms themselves are extremely detailed and thematic. Eat or Be Eaten was especially fun for right before Halloween, and we laughed a lot at the props and hiding places in the room. The puzzles themselves are not *super* hard, but can be frustrating if you miss one important piece or didn't appropriately scavenge the room upon entry. There are some great teamwork puzzles in each room, as well. The rooms do contain many "red herrings" so do beware of those time eaters. If you are thinking too far outside the box on how it could be used, you should ignore it. I have loved my experiences here. I look forward to each time we do a room. It's a great alternative to a movie and time well spent with family and friends. It's something we continue to laugh and tell stories about long afterwards. read more

This is the second escape room venue that we have experienced. Overall, the mood was very good and they set the scene well, even upon your initial arrival. The room itself was rather disappointing, puzzle-wise. The puzzles were very redundant and inconsistent. When you requested a clue, you could tell that they had not been watching you and they had to get caught up on where you were in solving things. There was also too much information. They gave you access to most of the clues all at once, so you had too much to sort through. The room we were in also had a lot of things that were just there for aesthetic purposes, that detracted from the authenticity of the room (for example, there was an electricity generator that wasn't needed, even though you needed electricity to open a cabinet.) Any escape room is going to be a fun experience, but if you're looking for original and inventive puzzles, I'd pass on this one. read more

Cool entrance, great staff. Rooms beautifully designed and immersive. Pro tip: Unlike some other escape rooms, this place lets you bring your belongings into the room with you, which is really nice if you're worried about missing an emergency call or need a personal item. I've now done two rooms at Escape in Time. The first was Water Landing. Highly recommend! We took 7 family members and had a blast, it was fun for *everyone* in our group. It was just a great time and totally worth it (even without a Groupon!) 5 stars for sure. I liked Water Landing so much, I booked another outing for a group of friends. We did Captain's Cove the second time. It was *completely* disappointing compared to Water Landing. One star. Which is why I've averaged to 3. Let me try to explain why I felt Captains Cove was so much worse than Water Landing, in case it is helpful in some way to the owners (without giving anything away!) 1. In Water Landing, there are clues that everyone could talk about and work on together. Even if you weren't the one physically holding the object, or whatever, it was possible to weigh in on things to try or do. It felt very collaborative. Captains Cove has a higher ratio of puzzles where you have to physically manipulate something so only one or maybe two people can really work on it at a time and everyone else kind of sits around waiting. 2. In Water Landing, one part of it required an extra shove, which we didn't expect or try given how many times they tell you not to use brute force. But, for the most part, the clues were "fair," kept with the theme, and were fun to solve. In contrast, it seemed like many of the Pirates Cove puzzles did not make sense. There were a ton of red herrings, which would've been OK if the rest of the clues were solid. But most of the clues really were not solid. Particularly on one of the puzzles, there is absolutely no way we would've guessed what to do. I cannot believe *anyone* would figure it out without being pretty much explicitly told. And even after the staff member explicitly told us what to do, it didn't work. We had to try it a few times and she had to keep clarifying *exactly* how to do it before it finally did what it was supposed to. That was just disappointing/frustrating. It kind of felt like there was no point in trying to solve things for yourselves and instead had to just wait for hints. I feel like there would be some simple fixes that could make Pirates Cove a *ton* better. I'll suggest 4: 1. Lowest-hanging fruit: it seemed oddly anachronistic to have plastic pieces for one of the clues. Would be so much better with wood or metal ones in terms of trying to maintain the illusion of time travel they were going for (and achieved so well elsewhere in the room). 2. If they'd written some cheesy poems or something and hid them , that would've helped make it clearer what to do to at least get people in the ballpark on the "hard" puzzles. (They weren't hard so much as just so odd you'd never guess to do the things you were supposed to.) And it'd help steer people away from the red herrings more. I think in general it would've made things a lot more fun, and still kept with the theme. To make it more challenging, torn/burned up poems you have to unscramble? Something like that would go a long way toward making it more fun and getting more of the people more involved; it would allow people to (in theory) make progress simultaneously and talk things over a bit more. 3. Make it more obvious when one thing triggers another thing. Our group honestly didn't know we'd "won" the game, because no one noticed something open to reveal the treasure. All of a sudden, a staff member just came in to congratulate us on solving the game. ("Um, but, we didn't solve the game? We didn't find the treasure, nor did we escape?") ("But you did find it! You just didn't know you'd found it! And now you escaped!") ("???") We had 15 minutes to spare, and it just seemed completely anticlimactic to be told the game was over suddenly(?) We wondered later whether we really won, or whether they were just trying to rush us out because other rooms were finishing...(?) Unsatisfying. 4. I cut my hand at one point, I'm not even sure exactly where. It was just completely not obvious what to do at certain points (so many red herrings!) so we were trying everything. There were lots of places it was possible to reach into, but were filled with sharp things(?) Like, poky wires or metal or something? I don't know. At some point my hand was just stinging and then bleeding a little. Seems potentially hazardous to have people bleeding and touching things? I was careful not to touch anything, but that kind of took away from the experience. Time for a tetanus booster!? read more

We were visiting from Chicago and on a whim we decided to try an escape room. My husband and I did one in Chicago and didn't love it but the kids have been wanting to try one. Based on their ages (12 and 9) Alien Autopsy was recommended. We were blown away by the experience. On a six day road trip full of activities, the escape room was voted the #1 spot. The staff, facilities, clues, all of it, spot on. We won't hesitate to come back next time we are in Madison. read more