It was a matter of life and death. One way out and only one key. Make it or break it. And all we had was 60 minutes…
This weekend we decided to venture 5+ hours northwest of Bucharest to the Romanian city of Cluj-Napoca (CLICK HERE for pronunciation).
I wanted to get out of the city and see more of Romania. So we grabbed another couple and headed out in the morning. Originally I wanted to to fly, but I’m glad we opted to rent a mini SUV instead. The country-side was gorgeous! Didn’t feel like such a long drive with the great views we had.
Cluj-Napoca Journey
Cluj… I LOVE this city! The cool architecture, untouched by communism, stands strong and gives the city a feel like Budapest or Prague. But more on that for another post. Right now I need to put focus on the event that had me so excited that I wrote a mini blog post from my iPhone.
When planning our trip I did some research on Trip Advisor and looked up top things to do in Cluj. Number one…The Dungeon. The Dungeon is a room escape game. With your own group of 2 (min) to 4 (max), you are locked into a room until you can figure out a number of clues that will lead you to a key and your release!
We arrived early and went upstairs to the Q Caffe for a few drinks. The decor in this place helped get us into the mood.
When we reached our scheduled event time we made our way back downstairs to wait outside the door that would take us underneath the Q Caffe and into our mysterious game room.
Entrance to extreme fun.
Once past the door the hostess gave us the rules and a walkie talkie to stay in touch if we needed assistance. Then the game began.
You have 60 minutes to put clues together, crack codes, and locate the key that will release you from the room. We expected that it wouldn’t be too hard. But with price of admission fully refunded if we succeeded we should have known it wouldn’t be a walk in a park.
So, did we escape?
No. Overall it was a great game, but it was also pretty tough. The feeling I had when we successfully answered a question or unlocked a safe was fantastic. But, in the end, when the last second on the timer ran out, we had not retrieved the key. But still, a great time was had by all!
I hope to journey to Cluj again. And if I do I will check out The Dungeon again too. Apparently the design room and the game change every few months. This guarantees repeat visits, at least for sure from this chick.
Here are some shots from the room:
If ever you’re in Cluj-Napoca make sure to check out the Dungeon. It’s an experience you will never forget. I know we won’t!
The Dungeon Team
And if you want to find a “room” near you do a Google search for “room escape”. I found one in the DC area that I’m itching to check out called “Trapped in a Room with a Zombie”. Definitely right up my geek alley.
Next up on the “Black Girl in Bucharest” blog: Sinaia and Peleș Castle. More on Cluj-Napoca in the next few weeks.
Black Girl in Bucharest 
OMG – this sounds like so much FUN! So were you able to get admission refunded? Love the photos – Great post.
It was a lot of fun. We weren’t successful so no go on the refund.
Wow I did not know you had this. I will be a loyal follower!
Now on topic, that is a fun game. We felt the same after each clue we discovered or lock we unlocked our hopes were so high but when that siren went off we stood there mouths wide open as if the place would really explode, But excited the game really test your ability to work together. We would do it again and have even thought about host something similar here at home.
Hi cuz! Ha welcome to my blog 🙂 I’m a bit behind on blogging by trying my best to get back on track with it. The Dungeon was great! I found it by chance but thought of you guys when I looked into it more. I wonder if anyone ever wins these things 😉