Page 63 - SLO Visitors Guide Fall 2023

Santa Margarita
New escape room opens in Santa Margarita
Theme is 'Indiana Jones meets Close Encounters'
Getting in is easy—but do you have what it takes to escape? Such is the challenge posed
by the Central Coast’s newest and most inventive escape room experi- ence at Margarita Adventures. An escape room is a “locked” space in which guests work together to solve interactive puzzles within a specific time frame in order to “escape.”
Based in Santa Margarita in San Luis Obispo County, Margarita Ad- ventures is renowned for its zipline tours and, more recently, its nature and adventure tours. Now comes another addition to the adventure family.
Margarita Adventures propri- etor Karl Wittstrom credits long- time Santa Margarita Ranch opera- tions employee Frank Rodgers with conceiving, creating and building out the escape! room experience with instrumental help from SLO CAPED—Cal Poly Amusement Park Engineers and Designers.
“Frank is our very own Mr. Gadget,” Wittstrom said. “He and the Cal Poly students have designed one of the most interactive escape rooms in California, leveraging computer science, robotics and analytics to create a one-of-a-kind experience.”
Said Rodgers, “The entire proj- ect was all built in-house, which is exciting for us, and we are develop- ing more. Plans are in the works to have three different escape room experiences for people to choose from during the upcoming year, and they are all quite technologi- cally based.”
Rita’s Relics: the first escape
The inaugural escape room is titled “Rita’s Relics,” and is described by
creator Frank
Rodgers
as “Indi-
ana Jones
meets Close
Encounters.”
The official
description is:
“Rita, our resident librarian, has
gone miss-
ing. As you
step into
her library
in search of
clues, the riddles will only multiply. You have one hour to find her and solve the mystery. From artifacts of antiquity to technologies from the
future, you will use your hands, feet and, most of all, your mind to un- lock the key to Rita’s location and become an escape room hero.”
Rave reviews
So, what makes the Rita Relics
room at Margarita Adventures so unique? It’s a blend of clas-
sic escape room motifs combined with an ar-
ray of interactive special effects and imaginative challenges.
The room is already drawing rave reviews from escape room
veterans. Here’s what they’re saying: “It was incredible. My family of
four has done 50+ escape rooms all over the country and this was definitely in our top five. The prop quality and technology used is top- notch and above all, super fun!” -Rachel N., Google Review
“It was so fun and challenging! We made it, but barely. They were there with clues when we needed a little help, and super friendly at check-in. Looking forward to go- ing again!” – Stefi B., Trip Advisor Review
Ready for the adventure?
The experience takes up to one hour and has two difficulty settings. The cost is $39 per person on week- days and $44 on weekends. The experience is an ideal adventure for groups of two to six people and for ages eight and older.
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