Something wicked this way comes!
Stop sipping on your pumpkin spice latte, it's time to get your costume ready: Halloween is coming!
This year again, we had great fun decorating our lounge for our favourite autumn holiday, with scary pumpkins, beautiful witches, and mischievious ghosts.
And speaking of mischievous ghosts... One of them stole all our Halloween goodies!
From October 23 (Mon) till 31 (Tue), all our successful Halloween detectives will be rewarded: find the candy thief, crack the code to open his hidden stash and get your reward!
And in the meantime, you are very welcome to come experience our games in your best Halloween costumes!
VR is the new trend!
These days, a new kind of entertainment has attracted a lot of attention, with many locations popping up around Tokyo: it is none other than the futuristic VR, or Virtual Reality. Here's what you need to know, in three questions.
- What's VR?
Virtual Reality is a technology that, with the use of a special headset, places you in a virtual environment where you can experience creative and exciting adventures. It is sometimes combined with a physical space to enhance the immersive effect: on top of the visual effects, the whole experience can involve sounds and other physical sensations, such as wind blowing or vibrations.
- Where to find it?
There are so many different locations in Tokyo alone that you won't know where to start! Odaiba's Joypolis offers a VR attraction, and you will also find one at the 6th floor of Akihabara's SEGA building. More popular are the VR Park Tokyo located in Shibuya, with one session giving you access to the different games and simulator for a total of 90 minutes, or more recently, the VR Zone Shinjuku, where you can get a pass for 4 games, or pay at the entrance of each game.
- How much is it?
Prices vary according to the locations and of course, the quality of the technology involved, but they generally start at around ¥1,200 for 10 to 15 minutes of play time. Some places also offer a pass for 80 to 90 minutes (but be warned, this includes waiting time in between games), with prices starting at around ¥3,300.
Of course, despite it's creativity and attractiveness, Virtual Reality also has its downsides.
With its popularity, if the weekend is the only free time you have, you might end up in a very long line...sometimes queuing up for two to three times longer than the game time itself! Another downside that is worth mentioning is that VR can be bad for your eyes: the indispensable headseat's main feature is none other than a screen, placed a mere 5 to 10 centimeters from your eyes.
Last but not least, VR is mainly a solitary game and some would even say an isolating one. This could partly explain its popularity in Japan, a country where more and more young people choose to withdraw themselves from society. However, some VR games do offer to play by pair, or with up to four players.
So, here's a fourth question for you: why go VR when you can experience the real deal?
If you are looking for a fun, innovative activity, and the idea of an immersive adventure sounds incredibly exciting to you, come to Escape Hunt Tokyo!
Let you and your team be locked in a room for an adventure that will take you to old Japan: become a Samurai, a ZEN disciple or a detective helping a desperate groom, and complete your mission to escape the room! Our beautiful room decorations and authentic props will guarantee total immersion for 60 minutes of excitement. Come with your other half, your family, your friends or colleagues for a maximum of 5 players per room, and rediscover the people you thought you knew.
When the countdown starts, search the room for hidden objects and clues, use your sense of observation and deduction to solve puzzles, and escape in time to celebrate your victory with a nice photo session and some snacks and tea in our player lounge. Book online through our website, and your game room will be ready at your arrival, with your Game Master waiting for you: no queueing up! Overall, spend 90 minutes of great fun in traditional Asakusa with people you love, starting from only ¥2,970/person.
Don't wait any longer and book now!
Japan celebrates Obon, the lantern festival!
In Japan, August rhymes with waterlon, summer holidays, Fuji climbing, and of course, Obon!
Although not an official holiday, Obon, also called the lantern festival, is one of the rare occasions when Japanese people take a few days off from work. Originating from an ancient buddhist festival, Obon is comparable to the werstern All Saints' Day: it is dedicated to the remembrance and honouring of the dead.
Although the celebrations always take place in mid-August, the exact dates vary by location. In Tokyo, celebrations will last from 13th till 16th, but with the newest Mountain Day falling on the 11th, it is expected that most offices will be closed from August 11th till 16th.
On the first day of Obon, families set out lanterns or small fires at the entrance of their houses, to guide the spirits of their departed loved ones home. During the few days that follow, food offerings are placed on the buddhist altar of the departed at home, and their graves are visited and cleaned by family members. Obon is also the occasion to perform ritual dances: while a group of musicians sing and play music with traditional Japanese instruments, dancers performs different choreographies around the city streets in their traditional costumes. And come the last day of the celebrations, families see the spirits of their loved ones off: where there is water nearby, the lanterns are set alight once again, then sent out to float in a beautiful and final spectacle.
Obon is a great occasion to enjoy Japanese culture and traditions, and to spend quality time with your family and loved ones. And if you lack inspiration as to how to celebrate it this year, why not try one of our escape rooms? Escape Hunt Tokyo has three Japanese-themed game rooms waiting for you, and guarantee you 90 minutes of great fun with the people you love!
Will you try our ZEN, Samurai Espionage, or Runaway Bride room? Book now for a memorable adventure!
Sumida River fireworks!
Every year, on the last Saturday of July, Tokyo's night sky is illuminated for one of the most awaited event of the capital's Summer: the Sumidagawa Hanabi Taikai (Sumida river Fireworks Festival). This year, the festival will take place on Saturday, July 29th!
If you are in Japan this Summer and planning on viewing some fireworks, the Sumidagawa Hanabi Takai is THE festival to attend: it is believed to have started in 1733, and to our greatest delight, pyrotechnic companies often compete to offer viewers the best show.
Just like for any other natsuri matsuri (Summer festival), be ready to find lots of stalls selling delicious Japanese specialties such as Yaki Souba (stir fried noodles), Jagabataa (boiled potatoes with butter, salt and kimchi), or Kakigouri (flavored shaved ice), while others offer games for children, such as Youyou tsuri (yoyo fishing) and Kingyo Sukui (goldfish catching). And with Asakusa being one of Tokyo's most traditional areas, the festival will also be an occasion to admire a myriad of colourful yukata, the lighter version of a kimono, worn by event goers. But of course, you want to know about the fireworks: with two launching points (upwards of Kototoibashi Bridge, and between Komagatabashi Bridge and Umayabashi Bridge), they will start from 7pm, and last for an amazing 90 minutes!!
Naturally, the area will be extremely crowded, with an estimation of 1 million participants. For this reason, we suggest you save a nice viewing spot early in the day (some people save their seats up to one day in advance!), and avoid taking your car, as the circulation will be modified for the occasion.
And while waiting for the real show to start, why not leave the crowd behind and admire another kind of fireworks at Escape Hunt Tokyo? Our game rooms are full of mysteries, and offer the best way to spend 90 minutes with your partner, family, friends or colleagues before getting ready for the evening show. And as we are a mere 10 minutes walk from Sumida river, you are sure to be on time for the first fireworks!
Will you choose to complete your ZEN training, save the Shogun, or solve the mystery of the disappearance of our Bride?
Don't wait any longer: book your game room now and enjoy a very Japanese Summer evening!
Make a wish, it's Tanabata!
Tanabata, or the "Star Festival", is a Japanese festival that finds its roots in the Chinese Qixi Festival.
As the legend goes, the Weaver Princess and Vega star, Orihime, daugther of Tentei, the Sky King, would wove beautiful clothes by the bank of the Heaven River, the Milky Way.
Although her father loved the clothes she wove, she was desperately sad, for the hard work did not leave her any free time to meet anyone and fall in love. Moved by her concern, Tentei arranged for her to meet Hikoboshi, the Altair star, who worked on the other side of the Milky Way. Upon meeting each other, the two immediately fell in love and soon married. However, the married couple would now neglect their work: Orihime stopped weaving cloth for her father, and Hikoboshi let his cows stray all over Heaven.
In anger, Tentei decided to separate the two lovers across the milky way, and prevent them from ever meeting again. But upon seeing his daughter's sorrow at the loss of her husband, and listening to her plea for them to meet again, he allowed them to meet on the 7th day of the 7th month, on the condition that she would finish weaving his cloth on time. It is said that on that day, a flock of magpies make a bridge with their wings to allow the lovers to cross the Milky Way.
In old China, women would make a wish to Orihime: that she would allow them to become as talented as her at weaving cloth. As the tradition evolved, everyone now makes all kinds of wishes on July 7th!
In Japan, people write their wishes down on colourful stripes of paper, before tying them to bamboo shoots.
At Escape Hunt Tokyo, we have decorated our lounge with bamboo sprouts: we will give all our detectives their own colourful wish card so they, too, get to make a special wish and leave it between the bamboo leaves.
Tell us, what will be your wish this year?
EHT receives the TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence 2017!
This morning, a nice surprise was waiting for us, the Escape Hunt Tokyo team, in our mailbox: an e-mail from TripAdvisor, informing us that we have been awarded the 2017 Certificate of Excellence!
What does this mean? Well, simply that we regularly received great reviews from our lovely detectives!
So, from the whole EHT team, we would like to say a big THANK YOU to all the couples, friends, families, school groups and escape games experts who visited us since we opened nearly two years ago, and left nice reviews for our games, facility and staff!
Boosted by this great news, we, the Escape Hunt Tokyo team, will continue to work hard to bring you great customer service, and the best escapes!
Rainy season activities!
You have planned a day out in Asakusa, but the rainy season and its unpredictable weather threaten to ruin your plans? Worry no more: Escape Hunt Tokyo will save the day!
Our escape games are an ideal way to spend 90 minutes during a rain shower, and here's why:
1. With our booking system, you are sure to enjoy our games without waiting in line, or under the rain! Book online for 10% off on all of our games, and have your game room ready at your arrival, with your Game Master waiting for you.
2. We have three different immersive and live inside games: complete your Zen training, become a Samurai and save the Shogun, or investigate the mysterious disappearance of our Bride... Tease your brain and solve mysteries, all the while staying warm and dry!
3. After an exciting game, debrief with your team and relax with delicious Japanese snacks and hot English tea.
4. Enjoy a photo session with our detective costumes and props, and leave with a timeless souvenir of your time with us!
You just spent an amazing 90 minutes at Escape Hunt Tokyo and, oh, a sunny spell! It's now time for you to enjoy the rest of your day in Asakusa :).
