Where to hide things
If you’re creating your own escape room, you’ll probably be hiding clues around the room. The trickier your clues are hidden, the harder the room will be. Here are some DIY escape room ideas to get you thinking about hiding places for your own escape room!
(Want to get a jump start on an escape room? Check out my Science Lab DIY Escape Room here!)
Wadded up in the trash can like trash
Inside a tissue box, or under a tissue box holder
Inside a ballpoint pen (with the writing part of the pen removed)
Taped to the bottom of things, like trash cans or standing lamps, or under the corners of rugs
Taped to the underside of drawers
Inside fake potted plants
In the trash can, hidden underneath the liner
Rolled up inside a box of tic-tacs
Taped to the underside of chairs or tables
Folded up and placed inside an empty stapler
Taped to the inside or outside sides of drawers
Tucked in the pages of a book placed in the room
If you have any sort of safe or locking box, hide something inside and hide the key somewhere else in the room.
Behind a picture frame, or behind the picture, inside a picture frame
Inside the empty battery compartment of something electronic, like a flashlight or clock. The fact that it doesn’t work will be a clue to your guests to look inside.
If you’re using a computer, put one of the clues as a file on a flash drive and hide that in the room.
One fun (or mean) idea: Leave pencils in the room for your guests to solve clues with, but leave them all unsharpened. Hide a pencil sharpener somewhere else in the room.
If you want your guests to have lots of freedom as they search, remove the room’s normal decor and replace with decorations to match your escape room theme. Then they will feel free to search without going through your personal belongings.
Tip: Use masking tape or blue painter’s tape to mark anything in the room you don’t want your guests to touch or search through. You can tape drawers shut, for example (or AC vents, if you think your guests will be that desperate/creative!)
One last tip: Make a list of where EVERYTHING is hidden. You may think you’ll remember, but after hiding so many clues you might be surprised at what you forget! Then there’s nothing more frustrating than a last missing clue that neither you nor your guests can find.
