Escape rooms are an exciting and thrilling adventure out with friends. The immersive entertainment is like no other, and it is perfect for all types of friend groups. You get to complete puzzles together, crack codes, and figure out riddles to help you escape. Some larger cities have many escape rooms, so you are unlikely to run out of local options.
However, for many of us, there are only a couple of local escape rooms, and I do not recommend doing the same one twice. Replaying the same room is boring, and you will ruin it for your group since you already know the twist.
That’s why you need to find some escape room alternatives that are thrilling and adventurous you and your friends can all do together. Don’t worry; I pieced together a list of the best activities like escape rooms for you and your friends! Let’s jump into it:
1. Go-Karting
Go-Karting is the perfect mix of immersion and adrenaline you and your friends need. You get to experience the thrill of speed without the extreme dangers that a real race track has. Your brain is constantly trying to decide “how should I take this next turn,” which makes racing a very mental activity.
Go-karting is different in the sense that you work alone in your own kart; you decide on how fast you drive and how quickly you turn. While in escape rooms, you must work together to win and escape from the challenge.
However, for those who’ve done plenty of escape rooms, the strategy element isn’t lost in go-karting. Picking when to overtake your friends, understanding the track, and adjusting to your kart is all part of the game. The thing is, you are not part of a team, you are in full control.
If you do want to step it up a gear, pun intended, then go-karts are the perfect group activity that will keep a smile on everyone’s face. Trust me, it is hilarious racing your friends!
Enjoy the extra thrill? Read our related post “17 Activities Like Go-Karting to Do With Your Friends” here.
2. Axe Throwing
Axe throwing has grown rapidly in the past few years, and that is for a good reason! This sport is the perfect outing for a group of friends looking to have a social and thrilling experience. During an escape room experience, you are constantly working, chatting, and yelling at your friends; axe throwing is quite similar.
You can choose to play in teams of 2 or play solo against each other. The goal of axe throwing is to get as many points as possible; you achieve this by tossing an axe at a target with the scores listed. You can play tournaments within your friend group to really put the competition on.
Playing in teams allows you to work together and cheer each other on. The friendly trash talks to opposing teammates are fully acceptable in an axe-throwing game. The facility is loud as axes are constantly smashing; you really get to let loose and enjoy your time with friends. A huge plus is many of these facilities sell food and beverages, so you can really make a night out of it.
Like axe throwing? Read our related post “19 Activities like Axe Throwing to Do With Your Friends” here.
3. Mysterious Package Company
If you love the suspense and intrigue escape rooms offer you and your friends will really enjoy the Mysterious Package Company. They send you a mystery right to your door! You get to choose from a number of games, and you can choose from various collections they offer, such as:
- The Mysterious Package Collection
- The Post Mortem Collection
- The Curious Correspondance Collection
- The Doomensions Collection
Each type of collection is different, and each experience within a collection is different too. This makes it easier to choose which types you prefer.
Some types of experiences they offer are role-playing games, adventure experiences, sci-fi experiences, murder mysteries, horror puzzles, and more. If you are on the search for something like an escape room, but from the comfort of your own home, then the Mysterious Package Company is for you.
4. Bowling
Bowling is a sport perfect for groups of friends looking to hang out together. The reason why bowling is similar to escape rooms is that anyone can participate in both of these activities. They both require some mental preparation to execute your next move. Bowling is just a bit more physical, as you are required to toss a ball down the alley.
The skills required are minimum, which is why it is a top recommendation on this list to be a related activity to escape rooms. You really do not need bowling skills to have a good time with your friends at the bowling alley. Plus, they often sell food and drinks, which can keep you non-bowlers happy.
Most local bowling alleys can provide group packages, making it perfect for larger groups on birthdays or special occasions. Toss your bowling shoes on together and enjoy your evening out in the lanes!
Love bowling? Read our related post “19 Activities Like Bowling to Do With Your Friends” here.
5. Boda Borg
With only 10 worldwide, Boda Borg offers a truly unique experience that is much related to escape rooms. However, they term it “Questing”. Boda Borg includes no video games and no virtual realities; it is a real-life problem-solving experience that includes physical challenges. Each quest at a Boda Borg location has a series of rooms, and the goal is to navigate through them all using only teamwork.
It’s like an escape room, but on steroids. Whether you are figuring out the twist on how to progress to the next room or physically overcoming an obstacle, Boda Borg is immersive and exhilarating. You’ll fail; you’ll succeed, but most importantly, you’ll do it together as a team.
Right now, there is only one location in the USA, and it is located in Boston, MA. There is also one in Ireland, located in Lough Key. The single one in Switzerland is in Zurich, and the remaining 7 locations are all in Sweden.
6. Immersive Theatrical Experiences
As we know, escape rooms are an immersive experience, meaning we are set in a different environment than our typical day-to-day life. During an escape room, we experience a thrilling adventure created for us; it feels real because the experience is real, just without true consequences.
Immersive theatres provide a very similar experience in the sense that we are surrounded by this new environment that is unnatural to us. The difference between immersive theatres and standard theatres is that the audience and the actors interact with one another.
The goal of immersive theater is to give the audience a more active and engaged role, making them feel like a part of the narrative rather than just a passive spectator.
One of the most famous immersive theater experiences is “Sleep No More” by Punchdrunk, located in New York City. In this experience, audience members will wander through multiple floors of a re-purposed building, you follow actors, and discover scenes from a story that’s an inspired version of “Macbeth” by Shakespeare, combined with the dark and moody atmosphere.
Some popular Immersive Theatrical Experiences:
- Mad Hatter’s (Gin &) Tea Party
- Army of the Dead: Viva Las Vengeance
- Klimt: The Immersive Experience
- Money Heist: The Experience
7. Virtual Reality Game Facilities
Many cities now offer what you call a virtual reality gaming experience. You head to a facility where you throw on all the VR gear and experience gaming like you have never experienced before.
Virtual Reality Gaming is when virtual reality technology is used to create an immersive gaming experience. Players will wear a headset that visually immerses them in a 3D environment; it is a weird experience to get used to in my opinion. However, the gaming experience itself is very entertaining.
The best thing about VR Gaming advancements is that there are facilities making games multiplayer where you can go and experience these thrills with your friends. Some popular locations are:
- Sandbox VR
- Dreamscape Immersive
- Omega Mart
- Zero Latency VR
8. Laser Tag
The strategy and required team coordination in laser tag will make it feel similar to an escape room experience. To win, you must work with your teammates to take down the other team members. Teamwork becomes more important when you decide to play different games, like capture the flag.
A night out playing offers a more thrilling and physical experience than going to an escape room, but still, it is a great alternative option for a group!
I used to play a lot of laser tag; it is tons of fun! In terms of similar activities, it definitely makes sense to add it to the list. You can call up a laser tag business and book a session for your friend group just as you would book an escape room. Some locations will also offer food and drinks and some arcade games to keep you entertained for hours.
Read our related post “16 Activities like Laser Tag to Do with Your Friends” here.
9. Mini Golf, Pitch & Putt , or TopGolf
I love playing golf with my friends and family, but it is hard to play well. I will lose balls off the tee, and it can be frustrating. But that’s where these three golf activities come into play! You won’t lose your golf balls, and they are even better for larger groups of friends. Golf and escape rooms have similarities as they are both extremely mental games.
Mini golf is played on a super mini-course where all you use is a putter. You have to putt through and around obstacles, and many courses today have become completely immersive environments. There are glow-in-the-dark facilities that will blow your mind! Playing a friendly competitive mini putt game is a good laugh with your pals.
Pitch & putt is the closest thing to real golf listed here. You can go out and play on a smaller-sized golf course where you only use a pitching wedge and your putter. Your goal is to try and pitch it on the green first shot and then putt it in as little shots as possible. I live in Vancouver, BC, and this is a super popular activity for group outings; there are many pitch & putt courses around us.
TopGolf is a unique golfing experience where you can take even larger groups to the range. You get to smash balls like a driving range, but there are targets, mini-games, and you can see your swing stats on screen. The plus here is the food and drink options you have for your friend group.
If you like golf games then read some of our related posts:
- 19 Activities Like Mini Golf to Do With Your Friends
- 12 Activities like TopGolf to Do with Your Friends
10. Disc Golf
Another similar activity to the golf activities mentioned above is disc golf. Instead of swinging a club and hitting a ball, you are tossing a disc toward a basket. Grouping up with your friends and trying this sport is a blast!
You can choose to play in teams, like a best ball game, or challenge each other all at once. Either way, this game is just as mentally difficult as real golf as you are the one making all of your moves. You need to stay focused and positive throughout each shot.
11. Meow Wolf (Immersive Art Experience)
If you are looking for a similar experience as an immersive theatrical experience, Meow Wolf is just that. Much more than just an art exhibit, Meow Wolf is a fusion of art, mystery, and interactive storytelling. It all started with artists piecing together trash and whatever they could find to make unique art pieces. Eventually, the art became some of the most amazing work ever made, investors helped the creators, and Meow Wolf evolved.
Groups of friends can explore, touch, and interact with almost everything, and can share moments of wonder. Meow Wolf is like stepping into another world with your friends, where the lines between reality and fantasy start to fade.
There are now a few locations you can check out:
- House of Eternal Return (1352 Rufina Circle Santa Fe, NM 87507)
- Convergence Station (1338 1st Street Denver, CO 80204)
- Omega Mart (3215 S. Rancho Drive, #100 Las Vegas, NV 89102)
- The Real Unreal (3000 Grapevine Mills Pkwy Suite 253, Grapevine, TX 76051)
12. Trivia
Who doesn’t love a good trivia night out battling with friends and strangers? This activity is perfect if you enjoy the teamwork escape rooms bring. You can team up with your friends to battle other groups to become the trivia champions! Many pubs and cafes host trivia nights, making it a fun and relaxed outing where you can eat and drink all night long.
It’s intellectual, it’s competitive, and it’s social! You can tease your friends too, when they get a question completely wrong. Overall, trivia is all about putting your friends’ knowledge to the test, celebrating correct answers, and enjoying being together.
13. Trampoline Parks
If you want to get some exercise and hop around with your energetic friend group, trampoline parks are a lot of fun. You may not have imagined, but the full time at a trampoline park is filled with laughter and smiles, finishing with a “i need some water” face.
With little mental activity required, you can decide to play games like parkour tricks, or even dodgeball at some locations. Trampoline parks are more about being free and letting your brain relax while your muscles do all the work.
You can always work together to teach one another tricks like flips, trampoline jumps, and other exciting challenges. Get your exercise shorts on and try a trampoline park!
14. Pickleball
Pickleball is a great sport in that you and your friends can pair up and compete against each other. It has gained so much popularity over the last couple of years that most cities today have built or converted tennis courts into pickleball courts.
It’s a paddle sport that combines sports like tennis, badminton, and ping-pong. You get to use a pickleball paddle which is larger and has a harder surface than a ping-pong paddle. The ball is a hollow plastic ball with holes in it, very similar to a wiffle ball.
The best part about pickleball is that it requires less physical exertion than tennis. The court is smaller, making moving distance limited. However, skilled pickleball players still manage to make it a very physical activity. The plus is you and your friends can play simple and keep a rally going at a chill pace. No matter your age group, pickleball is a sport for everyone.
15. Arcades/Retro Arcade Bars
Arcades may seem old school for some of us, but they are a great day or night activity for a group of friends. You can choose to play a handful of entertaining games, like pinball, claw games, racing games, and more. You get the option to work together with friends, or you can compete against each other.
Lately, retro arcade bars have become a popular thing! These bars sell beer, liquor, and wine for you to enjoy a few drinks as you stay busy playing games. Plus, you can get pub food at many as well, so after you beat your friends in a game of pool, you can chow down on some chicken wings. The nostalgia of playing some games you played as a kid is worth the experience.
16. Roller Skating or Ice Skating
If you want to enjoy some music and disco lights, roller skating at a proper facility is an activity you need to try. Dressing up in bright colors and really getting into the disco theme is a night out you won’t forget. No matter your skating skill levels, roller skating accepts all levels of skill.
Many roller skating facilities will offer food and drink, which makes it an easy choice for an evening out together with your good friends. If you want you can always throw on rollerblades and cruise around town instead of in a facility, but this is a bit more adventurous than roller skating.
Ice skating is a bit different; you need ice skates and of course ice. General skates are the best options for you and your friends. You can often find these at your local hockey rink, but if you live in a larger city, many northern cities offer outdoor skating rinks in the winter. Tossing on some skates with your friends is a fun activity anyone can do, just make sure to wear a helmet if it is your first time.
Read our related post “10 Activities Like Roller Skating to Do With Your Friends” here.
17. Ziplining
I love adding ziplining to these lists, mainly because I was a zipline guide for 5 years. However, ziplining and escape rooms have one thing special in common, once you finish, you and your group are very satisfied with the experience. Ziplining is more of an adventure compared to an escape room.
During a zipline tour, you gear up and prepare for an exciting adventure. You will be clipped onto cables using trolleys, ropes, and special harnesses to keep you up. This gear is designed to hold thousands of pounds, so there’s no need to worry.
Ziplines allow you to book large and small groups, perfect for friends looking for a thrilling adventure. Although ziplining seems scary, it is very mild compared to other extreme sports like bungee jumping and skydiving; that’s why I highly recommend it for people looking for that extra thrill compared to an escape room.
Love a bit more thrill? Read our related post “19 Activities Like Ziplining to Do With Your Friends” here.
18. Tabletop Games
Although you may find these at an arcade bar, tabletop games are the best games to play with a group during a get-together. If you can set these up inside your home or your garage, you can stay busy for hours. My friends and I could easily have a few beers and compete for hours playing games like ping-pong, foosball, air hockey, pool, and anything related.
My friends like to turn tabletop games into tournaments and challenges, which makes for a long and busy evening. If you have any competitive edge, this is perfect; it will keep your mind busy as you do your best to win! You can even put $5 each in the pot for the winner at the end of the night; this really stirs up the competition.
You can even turn these into drinking games if you and your friends like to drink together!
19. Darts
Similar to axe throwing is darts. If you like games that require focus, darts is a classic game that doesn’t go out of style. Play a standard game of darts or mix it up; try different games like 301, Killer, or Cricket; you can keep it really simple and aim for the bullseye. With new electronic dartboards offering automatic scoring, it’s never been easier to head to a local darts location and compete.
You have a few options on where to play darts too; you can choose to play at a darts facility, pubs with dart boards, or just set it up at home. All you need for darts is the board and a couple of sets of darts themselves.
You and your friends can relax and focus on hitting the bullseye; playing darts makes for an entertaining and social evening out!
20. Murder Mystery Games
Become a detective (or murderer) for the night! Murder mystery games turn an evening into a thrilling mystery night as you try to figure out which one of your friends is the murderer. You each play a role, piecing together clues, interrogating each other, and trying to uncover the culprit before your time runs out.
To play a murder mystery game with your friends, you can purchase them at local brick-and-mortar stores, order them online, or purchase online digital games. Choosing digital games makes it easy to play right away if you are currently hanging out, but if you have time before the get-together, you can always see what the local stores have for you.
Many online businesses sell amazing murder mysteries right to your door, such as the Mysterious Package Company I mentioned above, Dinner and Murder, Masters of Mystery, and many more. Murder mystery games are similar to escape rooms; the experience becomes immersive as you and your friends turn the game into a reality.
21. Indoor Rock Climbing
Escape rooms are a challenge that you and your friends complete together, you need to help one another with clues, and tasks, as you explore all options to get out. Indoor rock climbing is similar, but you work together to climb up as you do your best to motivate and help your partner choose the best route to take up to the top. Getting out of an escape room provides the same accomplishment as reaching the top during a climb.
However, with some similarities, the differences are vast. Escape rooms require much less physical activity than indoor rock climbing. You need to be quite fit to successfully indoor rock climb, to lift your weight from rock to rock is a challenge. You will push your physical limits during this activity, and that’s where your brain gets involved and your friends to help push you one step further.
There is a lot of mental preparation as there is physical during indoor rock climbing; if you and your friends like a physical challenge, then choosing this activity is a smart choice.
22. Haunted House Tours
Haunted houses are a scary experience that is not only for Halloween anymore. You will find them across the world; at abandoned houses, old asylums, and scary historic sites will offer guided tours for you and your friends.
A haunted house tour can be a thrilling alternative to escape rooms because, much like them, you are immersed in a narrative, trying to piece together the story as you walk through.
As you convince yourself prior to entering that ghosts, goblins, and killer clowns are not real, you still manage to get the you know what scared out of you. The histories at these locations are erie; they are truly scary and make the total experience one-of-a-kind.
23. Rage Rooms/Smash Rooms
Sometimes, the best way to de-stress is to break something. Rage rooms or smash rooms, provide a chance for you to let out all of your emotions. Maybe you had a bad week at work, or there’s something on your mind; letting it out this way is recommended!
You will all gear up to protect yourself, then one at a time you can enter the rage room and watch your friends smash old TVs, printers, glassware, and anything you can imagine. The thrill of smashing stuff is exhilarating, and watching your friends do it is hilarious too.
Similar to escape rooms, it’s about the experience. This experience is almost the opposite when it comes to using your brainpower, which is why I think it is the perfect addition to this list of activities. So, grab a baseball bat, sledgehammer, shovel, or mallet, throw on your eye and ear protection, and let the smashing begin!
24. Indoor Skydiving
You may be thinking skydiving is a bit too extreme for you and your friends, that’s why I am listing indoor skydiving. You do not need to jump out of a plane and hope a parachute successfully catches you. All you need to do is enter a wind tunnel that lifts you in the air!
Indoor skydiving has grown in popularity as iFly facilities have been popping up in all the larger cities across the US. You can book group sessions with your friends and learn the art of indoor skydiving. It is an intense activity; however, you are in a controlled environment and it is super safe compared to any other extreme sport.
Suit up, listen to the safety brief, and get inside the world’s most exciting wind tunnels at your next indoor skydiving experience. Learn how to fly! You and your friends will be able to brag that you have experienced human flying!
25. LARP Events (Live Action Role Play)
LARPing is a combination of drama, strategy, and light physical activity. LARP stands for Live Action Role Playing, so participants will create a role-playing game where they become the characters and immerse in the fictional environment they create.
There is a similarity between LARPing and escape rooms. The commitment of each character to fully become immersive in their environment creates a successful LARP experience, which is required for an escape room to be a better experience too.
Strategizing with your team, overcoming challenges, and pushing the story forward is what makes LARPing so much fun. Along with the locations chosen, you usually get to experience LARPing in a nice natural location or a historic site that takes the story to the next level.
It doesn’t matter if you have any experience whatsoever, you can choose to attend a LARP event with your friends, and you will enjoy the immersive experience like no other.
Final Thoughts
Looking back at the best and most similar activities like escape rooms, there are a bunch of immersive options on this list. I wanted to add some options that did not require much physical activity since escape rooms are pretty easygoing physically. However, there are many exciting things like an escape room that do require a bit more movement, so I added them in.
This list was focused on providing you and your friends with activity ideas you can do together. I really hope I helped you find something you may not have thought of. If there are any activities like escape rooms that you think could be on this list, make sure to mention them in the comments below.
Jamie is the founder of Action Sporter. He is the chief zipline writer and the lead editor. He has 5 years of zipline experience being a tour guide in Newfoundland. Most of the time you can find Jamie adventure traveling, hiking, skiing, skateboarding, or anything action related!
