The 15 Canada Escape Games Tours That Earn Their Hour

1.Vancouver City Sightseeing Adventure: a murder mystery in Gastown

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 38 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $32Our pick

You’ll meet a detective near Waterfront Station, then walk 2 to 2.5 km through Gastown in a team of two to six. Expect a 90-minute to two-hour English puzzle game with clues, local sights, and a final score. Detective Tanya Bennett and her team run the experience.

“We believe this mystery murder game has the potential to be an excellent activity to acquaint players with the interesting history and sights of the city of Vancouver; however, we found the game clues to be confusing and quite time consuming. We believe the game requires much more than 2 hours to complete for participants to realize the benefit the game seeks to provide for city visitors. It is obvious a lot of time and creative thought were put into developing this game concept; we would encourage the game developers to simplify and refine the game and continue to make it available as a fun, exciting way to explore the…”

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2.Montréal Scavenger Hunt and City Highlights Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 25 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $15

Use the Explorial app to guide your private group through Old Montreal. Solve questions, find landmarks, complete photo tasks, and learn about places such as Notre-Dame Basilica, Place Vauquelin, Bonsecours Market, and La Grande Roue. Plan on roughly two hours, with breaks whenever you like.

“Nice way to discover or rediscover Old Montreal. To do at our own pace with family or friends.Auto-translated”

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3.Street Art Exploration Game and Self-Guided Tour in Ottawa

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 20 reviews · 50 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes (approx.) · from $7Best value

Use the Questo app to follow clues through central Ottawa, from Ottawa Mural and The Living Room to BLM, DaVinci, and KindComments murals. You set the pace, solve story-based challenges, and explore with only your own group. Plan for much longer on foot than the advertised 50 to 80 minutes.

“I'd say this activity is best done by bicycle or scooter, unless you want a very long walk. The estimated time given is definitely for bicycle or scooter, not for walking time. We walked it, and it took about four hours. Lovely way to explore some neighborhoods we would not otherwise have seen as tourists, and the murals are amazing!”

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4.Private Vancouver Sightseeing Adventure: a Gastown murder mystery

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 19 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $31

Join a costumed detective near Waterfront Station for a two-hour, screen-free mystery through Gastown. Your private group gets maps, evidence files, tools, and artifacts, then races in teams along a 2 to 2.5 km route to solve the case.

“My wife and I did the Vancouver Outdoor Murder Mystery in Gastown during a trip from Phoenix, AZ. We absolutely LOVED IT. Such a fun way to see parts of the city, and work together to solve puzzles and challenges as a couple. It felt like we were on the Amazing Race. The program is really well done, and is challenging, but not impossible. It's more than just a scavenger hunt, and requires some thought and deduction to get things right. I would highly recommend this activity for anyone looking to do something fun in Vancouver.”

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5.Victoria Scavenger Hunt and City Highlights Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 17 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $15

Use the Explorial app to explore Victoria from the Steamship Terminal, solving location-based questions and creative photo challenges as you walk to sights such as the Parliament Building, Fairmont Empress, and Fan Tan Alley. The private, self-guided experience takes about two hours, with breaks whenever you like.

“We had lots of fun playing this game! Victoria is a lovely place, and it was cool to play this. Thanks”

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6.Foxtrail Scavenger Hunt – Amphibious Trail Vancouver

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 17 reviews · 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.)

Start in Yaletown and follow a three-and-a-half-hour Foxtrail route using your smartphone, physical clues, mechanical games, and team puzzles. You set the pace, discover familiar and lesser-known Vancouver spots, and return to the starting point. English instructions, groups of up to six.

“This tour is for sale on Tripadvisor but the truth is, it doesn’t exist! We paid to do this tour yesterday, drop over an hour into the city, did the first clue, and then the next clue, which was supposed to be a lock box with a map in it, was empty! The proprietor at the store said that they no longer support the tour! Why is it still up for purchase? The local contact info and email address don’t respond, so I called Tripadvisor/Viator and after nearly 30 min, the only result was that they’d contact the tour provider to confirm if we would qualify for a refund. My…”

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7.Foxtrail Scavenger Hunt – Compass Trail Vancouver

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 14 reviews · 3 hours (approx.)

Foxtrail Compass sends you through Vancouver’s Yaletown area on a self-guided hunt of mechanical puzzles, physical clues, codes, and app-based challenges. You set the pace, work in a group of up to six, and return to the starting point after roughly three hours.

“This is very poorly maintained. We couldn't finish because of missing/unreachable clues. DO NOT RECOMMEND! When we arrived at the first stop, they didn't have lanyards for us. Not a huge deal. We set out to continue our hunt. When we got to the parking lot, we searched & searched for the clue that was supposed to be on the fence. We never found it. We finally checked the hints & compared the picture on the hints to where this box should have been. It's not there, it's been removed. This was a letdown, we had spent a lot of time circling this lot. A few in our bunch were…”

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8.Old Town Quebec Secrets: Private Exploration Game and Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 13 reviews · 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $9

Explore Old Quebec with the Questo app, solving location-based clues at fountains, gates, churches, monuments, and Place Royale. This private, self-guided game takes about 90 minutes, works offline, costs $9.29 per person, and lets you start or pause when convenient.

“This was my favorite thing we did in Quebec City. I love architecture and sight-seeing, my husband loves history, and we both love solving riddles and puzzles. This was the PERFECT was for us to see the city and this game took us to locations we might not have seen otherwise!”

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9.Ottawa Mystery Quest: Self-Guided Detective Adventure

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 11 reviews · 3 hours 20 minutes to 3 hours 50 minutes (approx.) · from $8

Use your phone to play a private detective game through central Ottawa. You will solve 10 clues at City Hall, Parliament Hill, the War Memorial, Rideau Canal, and more, moving at your own pace. The route ends across the river at the Tessouat sculpture in Gatineau.

“we indicate to go to an address on departure for pick-up. No precise time and no one on site when we could just start the puzzle. the address was not easy to find. Why not simplify by saying city hall. The number of kilometres to cover would have been good information to know for someone like me who is mobility impaired. When I saw that the end ended on the side of gatineau. We did the part that was getting closer to the byward market and we finished it there.Auto-translated”

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10.Murder Mystery Detective Experience in Orillia ON

★★★★★★★★★★3.5 · 9 reviews · 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $11

You solve a fictional murder around Orillia using a mobile app, live GPS directions, and audio from 16 professional actors. Choose a downtown walking route or an outskirts driving route, play on Normal or Hard Mode, and pause whenever you need.

“I enjoyed it but when we got to the counting the windows I never counted the options given and I recounted it 4 times”

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11.Rockcliffe Ottawa: Exploration Game and Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 9 reviews · 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes (approx.) · from $7

Use the Questo app to follow a one-hour to 90-minute clue trail through Ottawa’s Rockcliffe Park. You’ll pass ambassadorial residences, Stornoway, Rockeries, and Rockcliffe House. It is self-guided, English-only, and best done in daylight with a charged phone.

“This was a great experience, we loved the walking, the story and the facts. I would even do it again.”

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12.Smugglers Blues – Canmore Outdoor Escape Game

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 5 reviews · 1 hour 45 minutes (approx.)

Follow a phone-based mystery through Canmore on a 3 km route linking signs, plaques, paths, shops, river views, and mountain scenery. Your private group of 2 to 5 solves clues at its own pace, with hints available and no deadline to finish. The game takes about 90 minutes to 2 hours.

“My sister and I did this tour and had a blast. It took us about two hours. We could have gone slower and done more reading of the signs and exploring the shops if we wanted too. It took us down some beautiful walking paths, we saw amazing views of rivers, mountains, and more, and got to know Canmore a lot better. Would recommend.”

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13.Ottawa Scavenger Hunt and Highlights Self Guided Audio Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 5 reviews · 2 hours (approx.) · from $9

Use the World City Trail app to guide yourself through nine Ottawa landmarks, from Parliament Hill to the National Gallery. Solve observation-based riddles, hear short stories, and pause whenever you like. The 2.4-kilometre route takes about 2.5 hours with stops and breaks, and works well for families and teens.

“We did everything on the app but was great.. All my teens downloaded the app and tried to complete the tasks.. We really enjoyed the tour and the attractions..”

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14.Outdoor Escape Room in Downtown Toronto

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 2 hours (approx.)

Start at John Street and King Street West for a self-guided Toronto adventure built around a physical puzzle box, QR codes, real-world clues, and a ghostly love story. Your private group of up to six explores downtown, enters answers in an app, and returns to the starting point.

“My sister recently moved to a new city so I purchased an Escapely kit for her as a Christmas present and to help her explore her new home. She gave me the Toronto kit in exchange.”

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15.After The Gold Rush – Victoria Outdoor Escape Game

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 2 hours (approx.)

Use the free app to solve clues on a self-guided 3-kilometre walk through Victoria. Start at Government Street, reach Fan Tan Alley, and uncover city details at your own pace. The game takes about 90 minutes to two hours, with no deadline to finish.

“A great way to explore Victoria. Bring your powers of observation and be prepared to learn a lot about this very pretty city.”

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