I really love a good escape room. From solving puzzles as a team to taking in the elaborate theming, visiting an Orlando escape room on a date night always feels like the perfect way to spend time with my husband. But escape rooms also make me more than a little anxious. The solution? Universal Orlando escape room – but with a twist!
What if we don't solve the puzzles on time? What if we start to bicker over the best solution? As two very competitive people, the evening can go from a perfect bonding experience to something to argue about on the drive home pretty fast if we're not careful. That's why the first time I visited Universal's Great Movie Escape at Universal CityWalk with a group of girlfriends, I immediately knew I had to go back again with my husband for a date night.
At Universal's Great Movie Escape, an escape room themed around either the Back to the Future or Jurassic World movie franchises, the high-tech puzzles, and theming take all of the stress out of the escape room experience and leave nothing but fun behind. The rooms are challenging, exciting, and well-organized, making it easy to get in and out of the experience with your loving relationship still intact.
Plus, there are two bars with craft cocktails and mocktails that anyone can visit. These themed bars make our list of the Most Unique Bars in Orlando.
Keep reading to find out why Universal's Great Movie Escape is one of the best escape rooms in Orlando.
What is Universal's Great Movie Escape?
Universal's Great Movie Escape opened in late 2022 at Universal CityWalk near Antojitos Authentic Mexican Food and the Hot Dog Hall of Fame. At first look, it's similar to any other escape room experience: Guests can choose between a Jurassic Park-themed adventure, where they solve puzzles inside a research facility on Isla Nublar and avoid some escaped dinosaurs in the process, or experience Back to the Future: OUTATIME, where it's all about stopping Biff Tannen from sabotaging the timeline.
Each room is themed and the game rolls out much like other escape rooms, with guests working together to solve puzzles and move from room-to-room in an attempt to escape.
But Universal Orlando steps up the escape room game with its Great Movie Escape. The theming is expert-level, with props from both movies throughout and storylines that immerse guests in the films in a brand new way. And, through special technology, the rooms know to move guests along if they're not getting a puzzle, meaning you do not feel like a failure or find yourself frustrated with your partner during gameplay.
Like all things at Universal Orlando, Great Movie Escape is all about the films. Choose one (or both) of the adventures and as soon as you enter the themed rooms, you truly feel like you're jumping through the timeline with Doc Brown or learning how to clone dinosaur DNA at Jurassic Park.
And it's not just themed to the max inside the escape rooms. Inside the lobby of Great Movie Escape, you'll find memorabilia from both films, unique merchandise, a stunning lobby seating area, and a bar that serves up themed cocktails like the Raptor Bite and the Hill Valley Gin and Tonic.
How to visit the bar inside Universal's Great Movie Escape
Even if escape rooms aren't your thing, it's still fun to visit Great Movie Escape to check out the theming of the lobby and bar area. At the downstairs bar, bartenders serve up craft cocktails, wine, and beers in a setting themed around elaborate movie theaters of yesteryear. You don't need an escape room ticket to sit at the bar and order drinks, so it's a true gem at Universal CityWalk if you're looking for a less crowded spot to have a pre-dinner cocktail or a nightcap.
DISCOVER: The Best Restaurants at Universal Orlando for Date Night
On my recent date night with my husband, we had pre-escape room cocktails while chatting with the friendly bartenders about their tips for venturing into our chosen escape room, Jurassic World: Escape.
There's also a bar upstairs at Great Movie Escape, but it's only open when escape room bookings are high and management predicts the need for two bars at the venue.
How to turn Universal's Great Movie Escape into a perfect Universal CityWalk date night
Tickets for both escape rooms can be purchased in advance online and start at around $40 for adults. There's a chance you'll be placed into a group with other guests with a standard ticket, so if privacy is important, Great Movie Escape has private escape room packages starting at $240.
At the time of booking, it's easy to choose what time you'd like to enter the escape room and plan the rest of your CityWalk date night around it.
Arrive at CityWalk about an hour before your scheduled escape room time if you'd like to grab a drink at the Great Movie Escape bar beforehand. Once you're parked, simply head over to the escape room venue and grab a seat at the bar. If you're in need of a boost of energy, I recommend the Wake Up Juice cocktail, an espresso martini that definitely gave us some pep in our steps once we were in the escape room.
When it's your reserved time to enter the escape room, head to the check-in desk, where you'll be directed to watch a safety video before being escorted to the escape room doors.
The escape rooms are made up of about eight separate puzzle rooms and should take about an hour to get through. To give yourself plenty of time, grab a dining reservation elsewhere at CityWalk for about 90 minutes (or even two hours) after your reserved time. Many of the restaurants at Universal Orlando are great for date night!
If you finish with time to spare, grab another drink at the lobby bar or pick another CityWalk bar for a pre-dinner beverage. When it's time for your dining reservation, head to the restaurant and enjoy — just try not to argue over who performed better in the escape room.
This escape room-style experience is a great idea for celebrating a birthday in Orlando. Whatever the occasion, it'll be a picture-perfect night out!
