Island Escape
Just up the road from home in Jacksonville, Florida, we stumbled into a new challenge. It was a challenge we thought we had in the bag. After checking out the solid 4.9 rating for Breakout Games, we rounded up the crew and said, “Let’s do this!”
We invited Hunter. He is our usual ride-or-die escape partner. We also invited my sister. She brought along her high school bestie. Her friend was an escape room newbie. We were feeling confident. Excited. Maybe even a little cocky. 😏
And then… we walked into the room.
One Room. One Closet. Zero Escape.
Picture this: We enter the Island Escape game. We are ready for hidden chambers, surprise clues, and dramatic reveals. Instead, we find ourselves in what looked like a glorified art room.
Seriously. Just one room.
One locked closet.
And some sand-colored props sprinkled with arts and crafts.
Our jaws dropped — not in awe, but in mild disbelief. Even my sister’s friend, who’d never experienced an escape room before, looked around like, “Wait… this is it?”
We had just come off the Legend of Atlantis high in Gatlinburg. It’s the gold standard of escape rooms in our book. So this felt a little like trading a rollercoaster for a tricycle.
But don’t let the simplicity fool you.
Crafty Chaos and a Clock We Couldn’t Beat
What started as a “we got this” vibe turned into “what the heck are we missing?!” pretty quickly.
That little arts-and-crafts room came for us HARD. 😅
We circled. We second-guessed. We laughed (a lot). And in the end?
We ran out of time.
Let me just say: losing to a single-room escape game hurts your pride. It looked like summer camp. 😂
📍 Final Thoughts: Not Quite Paradise, But Still a Good Time
Would we rate it as high as the locals? Probably not.
But if we hadn’t just come from Atlantis-level greatness, maybe we’d feel differently.
It was fun. It was humbling. It was full of good company. This always makes for a memorable night out.
So here’s to more rooms, more laughs, and fewer locked closets.
A Quick Jacksonville History Break
Did you know Jacksonville is home to one of the oldest continuously operating ferry systems in the U.S.? The St. Johns River Ferry has been connecting communities since the 1870s. It serves as a reminder that sometimes, the journey itself is just as important as the destination. And speaking of journeys… we were about to embark on one that definitely didn’t go as planned.
Puzzle Challenge: Can You Solve It?
We thought we had this one in the bag. It seemed simple with just a single room, a locked closet, and some sand-colored props. But appearances can be deceiving. Here’s a riddle inspired by the challenge that almost got the best of us:
Born of fire yet calm in sight,
I rise and fall with molten might.
On an island or on land I stand —
What am I, carved by nature’s hand?
Claim your Island Badge by sharing your answer in the comments or tagging us on Instagram @TheJoyOfEscapeRooms. Collect your badges as you journey with us through more escape room adventures across America!
Keep that adventurous spirit burning bright!
Uniquely Mixed 