Aim Escape: Escape Room London Review

Reviewed by Louise Watts

As a mum of teenagers and younger children, I find myself constantly telling my kids to get off their tablet or phone. The world of technology has changed so much since we were young and if I am honest I am struggling to keep up with my children now in the techno stakes!

What can also be a struggle is trying to find a family day out that interests them and engages them enough to want to spend the day with mum!!

When I was offered the opportunity to try out the latest craze of escape rooms, I thought this could be it – it combines the modern world of technology with the fun of working with your kids as a team. If you do not work together, then you will not solve the problems.

On an inset day at school, myself, my friend and my 2 teenage girls headed up to London to try out a room at Aim Escape – having never tried anything like this before, we were all very excited but slightly nervous at the same time. We were given the opportunity to choose which room we wanted to have a go at and we chose “Spy Heroes”. This game is marketed at age 6 years plus so we thought we would have a good chance of escaping!!

When we arrived at the Aim entrance, we were met with a very nice young lady who explained how the game worked and that there were no traditional padlocks and combination locks but this was all down to high tech equipment and technology. We couldn’t wait to get started.

The lady explained that she will be watching us at all times and will assist if she thinks it is required by providing hints through the technology available. We were taken to our first room and the scenario was given to us before the door was opened and we entered. The door then closed behind us – we had an hour to solve the problem and escape!

We wandered around the room, trying to work out exactly what we were supposed to do. We quickly found some clues and worked hard at trying to find out what our next move should be. It was amazing to see my daughters thinking out loud, sharing their thoughts and ideas on what they thought the answers were. The team working and interacting had commenced.

Throughout our experience, we worked through several rooms, some problems requiring logic and some requiring agility. We had the most amazing fun time and thankfully managed to solve the problems and escape!! (I think it took us slightly longer than an hour but we managed!!).

The whole experience was thoroughly enjoyable, I loved working as a team with my children and watching their independence and confidence rise as they took a step towards solving a problem. We laughed so much at times at ourselves and each other and were a little sad when the game ended.

We left the game after a debrief with the lady and we were all positively buzzing about our experience. We took ourselves off for a drink and a snack and both my children were asking when they can come back and do another room. It was lovely to see them so excited about something we had done together.

The room as I said is marketed for age 6 plus. Please do not be under any illusion that this means it is easy! It means that the content is appropriate for that age. A child of 6 would struggle to solve the problems but would still enjoy the experience. It would be up to the parents to engage the child and give them other roles or jobs within the room to keep them occupied.

Aim has only been open since June this year and prides itself on its use of state of the art technology and believes it is taking the escape room craze to the next level. Situated a short walk from Aldgate East tube station, it is easily accessible and has many cafes and bars in the surrounding area if you wish to eat before or after your escape. The entrance is minimalist and clean. You would never be able to imagine what is in that building from the outside.

AIM offer the chance of 4 different escape experiences:

Room 1 – Psychopath’s Den (aged 18+)

Room 2 – Patient Zero 2150 (aged 12+)

Room 3 – Hangover Deja Brew (aged 18+)

Room 4 – Spy Heroes (aged 6+)

Each room has a maximum capacity of 5 people per game and the prices range from £30 to £40 per player depending on the day and time that you choose to go.

As well as normal bookings, they offer special rates for birthday parties, stag / hen do’s and corporate and team building events. I asked the lady in reception whether there was a possibility of a special offer if more than one room was booked – she said this may be an option depending on timing and availability.

I would thoroughly recommend this experience to anyone with teenage children who want to spend some quality time with them doing something the children will enjoy. I am thinking of booking another room for a family Christmas present so we can spend some time together again. It would be the perfect Christmas present for kids who have everything or kids that you have no idea what to buy for.

I am sure the other slightly older rooms are just as much fun as the room we tried and therefore, it would be perfect for any groups of adults who wished to have a day out. I would think very hard about who you go with though, particularly if it is a team building experience as the thought of being stuck in a room with people who are not team players fills me with dread!!

I would be more than happy to come and review any of the other rooms if the opportunity arose.

Rating: 5/5

Prices start from £30pp

For more information or to make a booking visit aimescape.com.

Aim Escape, Goodman’s Fields, 8 Canter Way, London, E1 8PS | 020 3808 9225