Breakout Manchester - Review for families

Best for:

9 – 12 / 12 +. However, families who have previously visited have said that children as young as 7 have enjoyed the experience.

Cost

£££ - The cost depends on what day and time you play, which room your play and how many people in your party

What’s on offer

Self-described as a mixture of the films and TV Shows “The Crystal Maze, The Cube (TV show ITV), Cube (film series), Saw series, Prison Break, Fort Boyard, The Mole, The Amazing Race, The Great Escape and Nightmare”, Breakout Manchester already sounds like a pretty intense game. Never mind the fact that I has spent some time as Manchester’s #1 attraction on TripAdvisor.

Basically, you and your team will spend 60 minutes locked in a room, with puzzles and clues to solve and put together, keys to find and a clock quickly ticking. The aim of the game is that you must solve the mystery in 60 minutes or less to escape the room!

It’s suitable for friends, colleagues and just about any team of people you can think of, especially families. It’s an ideal attraction for families with teenagers as it’ll get their brains ticking over whilst acting as a bonding exercise.

There are three rooms to choose from, each with a varying degree of difficulty. The easiest room is he quirky John Monroe’s Detective Office, where families have an hour to prove that they didn’t kill the detective and who, how and why someone else did! The second hardest room is the Virus Room, jam-packed with unique and complex puzzles which will no doubt get you scratching your head! You’ve only got one hour to stop a terrible outbreak to take over humanity. So, no pressure…

The hardest challenge is without a doubt the Madchester Room. You don’t need any prior knowledge of Manchester to play, despite the name, but you will need lots of brain power.

Facilities include lockers for storage and a lift, though please bear in mind that the building Breakout Manchester is currently located in does not allow them to be wheelchair accessible.

Highlights

It’s unique, high-adrenaline and a great way to spend an hour doing something different. Breakout Manchester is the perfect way to get everyone in the family’s brains working, encourage everyone to work together as a team and of course, see if you’ve got what it takes to escape. Also, you never know, you may have a mini-MENSA member in the family!

Past visitors have nothing but good things to say about the experience, including that it was ‘tons of fun’ and nearly every TripAdvisor reviewer notes that they’ll be returning. The staff are friendly and helpful, providing sneaky clues if required.

What to watch out for

• This will be the fastest hour of your life! You won’t even notice how long you’ve got left to escape once you’ve been scrambling for clues. Strategise! You may also need to plan an extra activity for the day as the time is so short, perhaps a trip to Heaton Park and IWM North.

• You are permitted to have 2 – 5 people per room per session.

• The only age recommendation is that children under 10 do not play due to the complexity of the puzzles. Under 16’s need to be accompanied by an adult.

• People may leave the room at any time if they feel scared or uncomfortable, though the rooms are a decent sized and no one should feel claustrophobic.

• It's quite hard to find the location, so leave a lot of time to ensure that you're not going to miss your slot.

• The entrance room isn’t very inviting, but don’t let that put you off the exciting activity.

MFM tips:

• Keep your eyes peeled. Things can sometimes be hidden in plain sight….

What the owners say

“Breakout is a live escape room game located in Manchester. You are locked in a room with friends, family or work colleagues for an hour and have to solve a series of puzzles and mysteries to escape. You will have to search high and low for clues and work together if you want to escape.

You have 60 minutes to escape by using only your brain (this may be a problem for a lot of you). There are no physical activities or challenges involved in the game.”

Visit the official Breakout Manchester website

More family days out in North West England...

Manchester Museum
MOSI
Heaton Park
Abbotsfield Park Miniature Railway
Chester Zoo
Salford Museum & Art Gallery