The Escape Game DC (Georgetown) — Attraction in Washington

Me and my best friend wanted to do an escape room for her birthday. We went to a different escape room chain in DC on Saturday and were so disappointed that we had to try again on Sunday. Escape Game DC in Georgetown turned the weekend around! The staff were very friendly at check-in and got us going quickly. The gamemaster (I wish I remembered her name so she could get credit: for 0830, 25 May 2025, Titanic) was very cheerful and happy to answer our questions when it was over about pieces we didn't understand. After we told her in the beginning that we would need hints, she sent us a couple without our prompting when she saw us going off track, and when we asked for help the hint came very fast. It was clear she was actually listening to us too, because at one point we were stuck and asked a specific question about the puzzle mechanics which she was able to answer. We had such a good time, we came back later that day after checking out of our hotel to do another one of their rooms. We again had a great gamemaster (1230, Dr. Wack's Elixir) who gave us plenty of hints and seemed happy for us when we won. We do a lot of escape rooms and the only negative about this place is the same for almost all escape rooms; if you have a small group (for us it's always 2) then you have to gamble when to book the room because other people can join your group but if you wait too long the good ones get taken. We usually wait till the last minute to book/walk-in or try to book times we don't think will be popular (like 0830 in the morning). The rooms themselves were some of the better ones we've done. All the tech worked (doors opening, lights flashing, etc) and there were multiple rooms to explore and press your time. There were a variety of hands on puzzles, number locks, letter locks, and random items to have plenty to do. None of the puzzles seemed impossible or such a stretch to be frustrating. Though we've done a lot of escape rooms, the first key in the Titanic was really novel! Even with hints you feel accomplished when you do each puzzle. The rooms were clean and didn't have too much wear and tear. Both rooms had background noise playing the whole time which was a little distracting, but you get used to it. The hint system was great; you weren't in doubt if your call for help was heard and the tv made a specific sound when the hint came up so you didn't miss it. They gave us a free t-shirt after our second game for my friend's birthday which was such an unexpected nice thing to do. We will definitely go back when we are in the area and will go to the other locations...

This was my first time doing an escape room experience & it was fun. We picked The Escape Game DC since it was close to our hotel and the time for the Dr. Whack’s Elixir of Life escape game worked out for our group of 9. The Escape Game has several different themed escape games available.

We were able to book the reservations online and also check-in & sign the waiver online, so our check-in process once we arrived took seconds.

The Escape Game DC staff were friendly and welcoming. There is a bar where you can order various wine and beer selections at a reasonable price.

There are some games to play while you wait to be escorted to the escape room. We waited a few mins until our escort led us downstairs.

There are small lockers for your coats and other things, which you can use while you’re in the escape room.

The attendant took us to the Dr. Whack’s Elixir of Life escape game room.

Once locked in the room, our folks were off and running and finding some great clues. I felt like a few people, who were familiar with the escape room experience were immediately assessing the room and clues and calling things out. You can hit a button to request a clue if you need/want one, but only when you all agree that’s what you’re doing to do. The screen will then show a clue.

The room was set-up like an apothecary, so lots of random, quirky items. The goals is to find the magic potion, which we did with 20 mins to spare.

There were two rooms to explore with lots of close everywhere. You really have be observant and be able to make connections in unusual ways to solve the clues.

I will say that the production quality was just okay. Several of my colleagues, who are escape room aficionados, weren’t impressed with the production quality relative to other escape rooms they have been to in other cities like New Orleans and San Francisco and didn’t feel like it was worth the $40.

A few of the lockers to store your things were broken, which was a little frustrating.

Overall, the silver lining is that it was a fun experience for an impromptu group outing on a Saturday night. We had some good laughs, got some fun pics; bonded and got to see a bit of Georgetown after a long work day/week. There were a few of us who hadn’t been to an escape room before, so it was cool to experience.

Would I go again, sure to a different theme and maybe with a...

Avoid Curse of the Mummy at ALL costs! Literally any other room from this brand is lightyears better than this room for reasons I will expound upon in this review. Giving 4 stars is solely because I love The Escape Game brand and would not want to penalize the entire brand based on this single game, but alas, you should know what this room is like… We have done nearly ALL of the Escape Game rooms in 4 different cities (some more than once because we LOVE their games & this brand so much!), but we made the unfortunate mistake of doing the Curse of the Mummy in June 2024 while in D.C.. We thought this room would be fun since it’s a bit of a “one-off” from the brand’s other games. Boy, were we wrong. This room needs to be retired and completely re-done. Worst escape room experience we’ve ever had in our lives - to the point where we have constantly held this room as the “lowest bar” escape room experience that no other room has yet to match (thankfully). It is so far from the amazing other rooms and experiences that the The Escape Game brand has to offer that it was that much more unpleasant to endure. Literally the biggest reason why this room was so terrible is because nearly everything was broken or on the fritz causing us to waste precious time doing and re-doing (and re-doing) patterns that should have worked the first time but didn’t because the pieces of the game were so worn out & the sensors so old (I think we spent 20+ minutes re-doing a broken puzzle!). Add to that the batteries for the UV flashlight 🔦 were dead and the GM (Abi) didn’t care to come replace them. 🙄 Overall, unfortunately a memorably awful experience. We wish we could get back that hour...