Choosing your teammates is one of the most important decisions you can make before starting an escape room. The people with you in the room are your greatest resource. Their minds, attitude, energy, skill set, and ability to work together will likely determine whether you succeed in escaping.

You don’t want to stack a team with people who think exactly like you. Find a group of friends, family, or coworkers who bring different perspectives to the table. When solving escape rooms, it’s not about having the ‘smartest’ people. Genius comes in many forms, and there is value in common sense and street smarts.

Pro Tip: Don’t worry if you aren’t bringing a full team. An ideal team is diverse in skillset but identical in attitude—excited and ready to escape the room!

Many people feel a mix of anxiety and excitement before entering a new escape room. Arriving early can help reduce this and give you time to get comfortable before the game starts. Arriving late gives you less time to solve the puzzles!

Pro Tip: Another reason to get to Expedition Escape early is to sign your waiver and use the restroom before the game begins. You don’t want to leave the game in the middle since the clock keeps ticking during breaks!

Your Expedition Guide explains the rules before each game. Make sure you listen carefully. They are not trying to trick you. If the guide says not to take anything off the walls, don’t.

Avoid wasting time by doing something that could interrupt the game. Once the guide gives you the rules, ask any lingering questions that the rules haven’t covered.

Pro Tip: Every escape room game is different, and knowing what questions to ask before your timer starts can greatly increase your efficiency in finding and solving puzzles. Create your own list based on past escape room experiences. Here are a few to get you started: Can we take things off the walls? Will we need to take apart any furniture? How do we ask for/receive hints?

Escape rooms have themes and stories that immerse you in the world. They give you a goal to achieve in order to escape. However, it’s tempting to search for clues instead of listening to the room’s introduction. Even experienced players (sometimes especially experienced players) are so eager to start solving clues that they forget that clues to get out of an escape game could be hidden in the intro video.

The video gives you your goal and sets the right mindset for solving the escape room. Whether your goal is to find the hidden moonshine or to prove you are the true heir to the throne, the intro video outlines the major tasks you need to complete to put all the pieces together and escape the room–so pay attention.

Pro Tip: You won’t be doing anything wrong if you start glancing around the room and taking mental notes during the intro video, but it may not save you the time you think it will. Pay attention to the intro video—it can give you vital clues to get out of an escape room.

When the timer starts, begin your search. Split up and open all drawers, boxes, and cabinets. Be sure to check everything. If you can take things off the walls, do so. There’s nothing like the organized chaos of the first few minutes when solving escape rooms.

While we wouldn’t say the first few minutes make or break your ability to succeed, they are very important towards setting the tone of your escape experience. Start strong by spreading your team around the room. Put all the clues you find in a common area, so everyone can access them and begin solving puzzles.

Pro Tip: As a first-time escaper, the first few minutes in a room with experienced players can be intimidating. They already understand the secret to escape rooms, while you may have found a puzzle piece in a drawer, but don’t know what to do with it. Don’t panic. Begin communicating with your team immediately.

No clue helps you escape as much as your ability and willingness to communicate. Talk about what you see and hear. Share your thoughts about what you observe. Just like opening drawers and putting things in a common space, sharing your thoughts helps the team solve puzzles together.

Communicate when clues need more than one person to solve them. For example, a diagram on the wall can help you arrange wires in another room. Sometimes, communication is key because two brains are better than one. But only if the brains talk to each other and build off one another.

Pro Tip: Communication is crucial because it saves time. Make sure that everyone knows which clues have already been found and solved so that no one wastes time on something that has already been done.

Having five people work on the same clues wastes time. Focus on other tasks to avoid confusion. Delegate responsibilities to keep everyone productive.

Pro Tip: Don’t be afraid to switch tasks. If you are stuck on a puzzle, grab a teammate. Explain what you have figured out so far and let them take a stab at solving it. You can save time by moving on and finding a puzzle more suited to your strengths.

Should you ask for a hint or not? If you’re stuck, don’t hesitate to ask for a hint. It could save time and help you escape. You can’t always tell how much of the escape room is left. It’s hard to know how much time you need to complete the rest of your tasks. Can you escape? Do you have five extra minutes to search for clues, or do you need every minute to reach your goal? If your team has been stuck for a while, ask for a hint. Asking for hints shows wisdom and good time management skills.

Pro Tip: Just like you don’t want to waste time being stuck, you also shouldn’t waste time arguing about it. If more than half your team agrees that you should ask for a hint, do it. Don’t let the one stubborn and vocal member slow the team down. Also, don’t be that stubborn and vocal member slowing the team down.