Stained Hourglass Escapes

Stained Hourglass Escapes is an escape room business in downtown Salem built around fantasy adventures in which players find clues, solve puzzles and uncover secret passages. Each booking is a private one-hour game for a group of two to seven, so players are never paired with strangers. The rooms are designed to be family friendly, and the company pitches them for friends, families, bachelorette parties, field trips and corporate events.

One of its games, The Boring Office, starts in a completely normal office with completely normal work and no fantastical creatures, and players have to clock in to find out what happens next. Seasonal editions change the mood: a Halloween office party version runs through October with a slightly creepy but not horror-themed atmosphere, and a Christmas party version runs over the winter holidays. Another adventure is themed around rock, water, flora and light.

What to Know

• One adult (18+) is required for every three children, and players ages 10 to 14 count as children.
• Families with children under 10 are asked to call before booking; toddlers should stay home, though babies in carriers may join.
• Review quotes shared by the company call the games “wildly imaginative” and “beautifully crafted.”
• Destination Salem’s listing describes the escape rooms as award-winning.