DIY Escape Room Kid’s Birthday Party (with lots of escape room puzzle ideas)

We always make a big deal out of our kid’s birthday parties, but this year we were challenged to make birthdays just as special without a big party (thanks, ‘Rona). For Grayson’s 11th birthday in December, we decided to set up a fun day of interactive activities with a DIY escape room at home! I am thrilled to say that this escape room birthday party was a huge success! Even without a big party with lots of friends and gifts, Grayson said that it was his best birthday ever! As a lot of plotting and planning went into coming up with escape room games for home and other escape room birthday party ideas, we decided to share all our tips and the entire plan with you to make it a little easier if you’re wanting to plan an escape room kid’s birthday party. I’m sharing a supply list, some pre-planning notes, and several escape room puzzle ideas geared for kids. If you’re looking for escape room birthday party ideas, save and print this post, as it has everything you need for the most memorable birthday, whether it’s an intimate day with immediate family or a bigger spy-themed birthday party.

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links and make a purchase, I may receive a commission. This does not cost you anything additional, and helps me to keep the rest of my content free, so thank you!

Don’t have the time to plan a DIY escape room? Buy a ready-made escape room in a box

While making your own DIY escape room is fun, it does require a lot of setup (as you’ll see in the instructions below). There is a great solution if you’re short on time, materials, or your own inspiration: purchase a ready-made boxed version! One that we love is Blimey Box (geared for kids aged 5-9). Not just for an escape room birthday party, these are educational games for busy-minded children any day of the year. Escape boredom and unlock learning – Blimey Boxes are escape rooms in a box, with different themed bundles that include the tools you need (lock boxes and treasure chests, code and key locks, lockable bags, invisible marker with UV light, etc.) plus 45 printable PDF games each! Super sleuths will enjoy math, reading, and logic puzzles that will keep them entertained for hours. With new activities readily available to print and build-upon completed challenges, the fun never ends. Blimey Box games encourage kids to: problem-solve, unlock learning, build confidence, escape boredom, and have fun learning!

How it works:

• Choose your Game Kit Bundle.
• Parents print a downloadable PDF, then set up the lockbox and game in 5 minutes (with the help of an instructional YouTube video).
• Children solve math and reading puzzles, find secret codes, and unlock a surprise (i.e. watch a favorite TV show, or a little goodie or treat of your choice).
• Each task builds on previous skills so your child’s knowledge grows with each new game.

Learn more and shop Blimey Boxes here.

What you need to set up these escape room games for home

Here is a list of items to gather, borrow, or purchase (including Amazon links for many of them) for a DIY escape room kid’s birthday party. You will see details on how each are used in the Escape Room Puzzle Ideas section later in this post.

• Large envelopes
• Blank paper
• Notecards or scraps of paper
• Sharpies and other colored markers
• Masking tape and scotch tape
• Ziploc baggies
• Parchment paper
• Dice (3)
• Deck of cards
• Scissors
• Paper lunch bag
• Yarn
• “Top Secret” stamp
• 12-piece puzzle
• 3-digit number locks
• Hidden book lock box
• Cash lock box
• Multi-color pack of balloons
• Push pins
• Handbag with zipper closure
• Play-Doh
• CAUTION tape
• Spy decoder
• Invisible ink pens
• Black light flashlight
• Sports jersey (framed, on a hanger, or in a photograph)
• USB flash drive
• Empty plastic bottle
• Strong magnet
• Movie with a famous quote on DVD (Casablanca is used in our example)
• Herb garden or spice cabinet
• Guitar (real or toy)
• Calendar (wall, fridge, or desk)
• Peanut butter, jelly, and bread (or 3 other associated objects)
• Access to a smart speaker or a device with Google search capabilities
• Optional: Spy-themed clothing (black suit, black sunglasses, etc.)

Misc. notes and what to do before you start setting up the escape room birthday party

In each of the missions listed below in the Escape Room Puzzle Ideas section, you’ll find detailed instructions for setting up and executing each of the DIY escape room ideas. Before you jump in, here are some things to plan, think about, or prepare in advance so you can feel as organized as possible for the day of your escape room birthday party.

• Code names. Think of fun code names for the birthday kid/secret agent and the agency that’s assigning missions. You can use this in various ways, but the main way you will use it is on your mission memo letters. For G, we used his gaming handle Redstone Piston. To make the memos even more spy-y, I addressed the letters to “Agent alias Redstone Piston.” For our agency, I decided to use a mysterious and cryptic name of simply “The Agency.”
• Special gift and location of that gift. All of the escape room puzzle ideas lead to one of 12 puzzle pieces that, when assembled, provide a final clue to the location of a special birthday gift (here is the 12-piece puzzle we used). With all the work of an escape room birthday party, the final payoff should be to a gift or something special for the birthday kid. So, before you start planning the individual tasks and divvying up the puzzle pieces, you need to decide where that gift will be hidden.

• Translate the final clue to another language. Here is the 12-piece puzzle we used, with the clue “The gift is in the back of Daddy’s car” written on the back in Latin (thanks, Google Translate!). Why did we write the clue in Latin? 1) It’s fun to add one last task for the kids to solve, and, most importantly 2) you don’t want to make it too easy for the kids to guess the location of the prize early as they start collecting the puzzle pieces. Using a language they are not familiar with keeps things a mystery throughout the entire puzzle piece collecting experience.
• By the numbers. Take stock of places in your home that include numbers, as numbers are involved in many of the clues. For example, address numbers on the front of the house, calendars (including advent calendars if you do this near the holidays), sports jerseys, clocks, etc. As you’ll see in the Escape Room Puzzle Ideas section, numbers are used quite a bit, and you will want creative options.
• Familiarize yourself with how the DIY escape room ideas are organized. In the Escape Room Puzzle Ideas section, the list is organized by 12 Missions (the overall goal of each mission being to find one of the 12 puzzle pieces), but each of these piece-finding missions might include several different Tasks (individual escape room puzzle ideas) to reach that goal. For example, you might need to solve a riddle (Task 1) to find a key with another clue to solve in order to find the locked location (Task 2) of a puzzle piece.
  • This list of Missions and Tasks will act as your organization tool as the escape room party planner, including what you need to set up each mission, details on each task (including riddle ideas, suggested piece locations, etc.).
  • The list of DIY escape room puzzle ideas includes a mix of physical tasks, riddles, number games, and piecing together clues found throughout the day. Some of the clues might not be immediately intuitive to young children (movie quotes, for example), so we allowed the use of Alexa or Google for some of the clues.
• Be prepared to customize these examples. When I planned this escape room birthday party it was geared towards my son (who turned 11 for the party) and his younger brother (age 8) to complete. You can and should feel free to customize riddles (there are ways to make riddles more or less difficult by adding or removing hints), specific locations of clues based on your home’s layout, and tweaking hints so they are meaningful and relevant based on your kids’ ages, your home, and your family’s interests. For example, we incorporated a few Star Wars, TikTok, sports, and travel references that our family would understand. Comment if you catch them!
• Print a task and clue list. I recommend printing this article (or copying/pasting the steps into a Word document to customize for your party, then printing it). It can not only help you check-off your setup tasks, but it is also helpful to have the information with you as the kids complete the tasks so you can guide them as needed.
• Create a Mission letter template. The escape room puzzle ideas below include 4 different letters in large envelopes stamped with a fun “Top Secret” stamp for added effect. Each letter followed a specific template that included clues in both the subject line and message body. I’ve got some examples photographed and listed below, but here is our basic format in case it is helpful to you creating your own letters:

Date: Friday, 12/11/2020

To: Agent alias Redstone Piston

Subject: Your mission, if you choose to accept it

Memorandum: Throughout the day you’ll complete several tasks in order to find a series of puzzle pieces. The tasks may include side missions. You will also come across different tools that may come in handy to you later, so keep a keen eye. When you find all of the puzzle pieces and assemble them, you will receive an important clue regarding the location of a top secret birthday surprise. Someone of your skill should make short work of this. Good luck.

Signed: The Agency

Enclosed: Your first task

DIY escape room puzzle ideas

This list of escape room puzzle ideas is organized by 12 Missions (the overall goal of each Mission being to find one of 12 puzzle pieces), and each of these piece-finding Missions includes one or two Tasks (individual escape room puzzle ideas) to reach that goal. For example, you might need to solve a riddle (Task 1) to find a key with another clue to solve in order to find the locked location (Task 2) of a puzzle piece. Each Mission begins with a summary of the Mission, followed by setup instructions, then the details on how the Tasks will play out.

Mission 1: What’s Poppin?’ Using a prompt of 3 colors, find numbers inside of 3 inflated balloons. The numbers, when arranged correctly, are a code to unlock a locked handbag containing the first puzzle piece and a clue for the next Mission.

What you need:

• Large envelope with the first Task and a key to a hidden book lock box enclosed (see the letter template below). The key will be used for a later mission, but is also a way to throw them off whenever they find a lock.
• Handbag with zipper closure containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission. The zipper on the handbag will be locked with a 3-digit number lock.
• 3 scraps of paper, with one of the three digits for the number lock written on each, hidden inside 3 inflated balloons (different colors) from a multi-color pack of balloons.
• Other colors of balloons inflated around the room.
• Push pins placed somewhere in the room.
• Sharpies and other colored markers in the same colors as the 3 balloons containing the numbers.

Task:

• Start by handing the birthday kid Envelope #1
  • 1^st Envelope Message (feel free to customize to make it more personal):

Subject: Your mission, if you choose to accept it

Memorandum:

Throughout the day you’ll complete several tasks in order to find a series of puzzle pieces. The tasks may include side missions. You will also come across different tools that may come in handy to you later, so keep a keen eye. When you find all of the puzzle pieces and assemble them, you will receive an important clue regarding the location of a top secret birthday surprise. Someone of your skill should make short work of this. Good luck.

Enclosed:

A key

The first task

• Along with the letter, enclose a piece of paper with the simple instructions “START HERE” and three circles, colored to correspond with the three balloons containing the clues.
• The kids might first need to find what these colors represent, as balloons are not mentioned. When they find the room with the balloons, they will need to figure out that there are clues inside those three colors of balloons. Set some pushpins nearby as a hint that the balloons will need to be popped.

• The handbag with the lock should be somewhere in the same room. The kids will need to try different combinations of the number clues they have found to unlock the handbag’s lock.
• Inside the bag they will find Piece 1 along with a clue to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed riddle to get the kids to go to the kitchen for the next Mission:

“I have an island but I’m not an ocean. Find me then look around to assemble your next clue.”

Mission 2: It’s Peanut Butter Jelly Time. Using clues attached to associated objects placed in the kitchen (bread, peanut butter, and jelly), locate the next puzzle piece and a clue for the next Mission.

What you need:

• Peanut butter, jelly, and bread, each with a notecard (or scrap of paper) taped to the back.
  • Each notecard will have one word written on it (with Sharpies or other colored markers) that points to the location of the next piece. For example, we chose to attach the piece to the back of the kitchen trash can, so the three words were “Back,” “of,” and “Trash.”
• Ziploc baggie containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission attached to the back of the kitchen trash can with masking tape.

Task:

• The riddle with the previous piece should lead the kids to the kitchen, where three associated items are placed around the room. These items (a loaf of bread, a jar of peanut butter, and a jar of jam) each have a notecard attached to the back of them with a word that directs them to the location of the next piece (“Back,” “of,” and “Trash”). The kids will have to deduce that the items with the clues are related (things you’d need to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, in this case) in order to find all three clues to the next piece’s location.
• Ziploc baggie taped onto the back of the kitchen trash can. Inside the bag they will find Piece 2 along with a hint to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed hint to get the kids to go to a room with a locked door inside it for the next Mission:

“To find your next piece, proceed with CAUTION.”

Mission 3: Proceed with Caution. There’s caution tape on a locked door in a room. To find the key that unlocks the door, you must find something in the room that doesn’t belong. Behind the locked door is another puzzle piece and the next clue.

What you need:

• Door with a key lock with CAUTION tape across the door (could be a closet door, an attic door, or a bathroom door). Behind the locked door is the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission.
• Notecards or scraps of paper with arrows drawn on with Sharpies or other colored markers. These arrows will point towards a small printed clue.
• A jar of Play-Doh placed somewhere in the room where it doesn’t belong (we had it on top of a printer as this room is an office). Inside the Play-Doh is the key that unlocks the door.

Task:

• Using the clue they received in the last Mission to “proceed with CAUTION,” the kids will need to locate the spot in the house with CAUTION tape. When they find a locked door with the CAUTION tape, they will likely try the key that was enclosed in the earlier envelope first, but that key will not work (it is to use for a later Mission).

• When the kids start looking around the room, they will discover a series of arrows pointing to something.

• Arrows around room point towards a printed note that provides this hint:

“There is something in this room that doesn’t belong.”

• With this clue in mind, the children should look for something out of place in the space, which will lead them to a jar of Play-Doh. The key will be inside the Play-Doh. Bury it deeply inside the Play-Doh if you want to make this Task a little more difficult. To keep it easy, stick it in the dough so the kids can see it easily when they open the jar.
• Behind the unlocked door is Piece 3 along with a hint to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed hint for the next Mission:

“Your next hint is invisible to the naked eye but clear as day when black.”

Mission 4: Invisible Confusion. An invisible ink message must be read with a black light flashlight. The message provides a piece of trivia that corresponds with an athlete of which you have a jersey or photograph. An envelope containing the next piece and riddles for the next Mission will be attached to this jersey.

What you need:

• Blank paper with a piece of sports trivia written using invisible ink pens.
• A black light flashlight sitting nearby the seemingly blank piece of paper.
• A sports jersey (could be framed like in our example, hanging in a closet, or even in a photo somewhere) with a visible number or player name.
• Access to a smart speaker or a device with Google search capabilities.
• Large envelope containing the puzzle piece and a memo with clues for the next Mission.

Task:

• In a room with a sports jersey (either framed, like this example, hanging on a hanger, or in a photograph) is a seemingly blank piece of paper sitting next to a black light flashlight. The kids will need to realize that they need to shine the black light on the paper to see the hidden message. We used a random piece of trivia associated with the jersey we had chosen. For example, ours said: “This jersey was worn by the Texas Longhorns Quarterback that played in the 2006 Rose Bowl.”

• Unless the kids are great at sports trivia, they may need to ask a smart speaker, or search for the answer on a device with Google search capabilities (we told the kids this was OK if they got stuck).
• When the kids identify the correct jersey, they will find an envelope hidden behind it with Piece 4 enclosed and the next memo. The memo provides a series of riddles to move the kids to the location of the next Mission.
  • 2^nd Envelope Message (feel free to customize to make it more personal to your home and clues; we used the words “down” and a rhyme with “stairs” to move the kids downstairs, and hints for the city of London since our hidden book lock box has “London” written on the spine):

Memorandum:

Subject: Down, London bridge is falling 

Answer these riddles three, as there the location of the next piece will be:

Riddle 1: We don’t have an elevator to take you down there, but we do have some ___. Take them down.

Riddle 2: I have lots to say but never speak, I open but you cannot walk through me, I have a spine but no bones.

Riddle 3: To get around this city you might need a Tube map. And as you get on the train be sure to “mind the gap.”

Enclosed: Puzzle piece 4

Mission 5: Things Are Not What They Seem. A set of riddles leads you to a bookshelf and a hidden book lock box. Inside the locked box is a puzzle piece and a multi-media clue saved on a USB drive.

What you need:

• Bookshelf with a hidden book lock box.
• Inside the book lock box is a puzzle piece and a USB flash drive containing a video message for the location of the next piece.

Task:

• By solving the riddles in the memo found in the last Mission (directing them to the room, the bookshelf, and the title of the hidden book lock box), the kids will find what appears to be a book. When they realize the book is actually a lock box, they will finally get to use the key they had enclosed with their first memo envelope.

• Inside the locked box they will find Piece 5 and a USB drive containing a video clue for the next Mission (see the next section for more on the video clue).
  • Optional: Include a small birthday gift or prize inside the book lock box along with the puzzle piece and USB drive.

Mission 6: A Message from the Agency. A USB drive must be plugged into a computer for a video hint from the Agency to help you locate the next puzzle piece.

What you need:

• USB flash drive with a pre-recorded video message file from “the Agency” saying to look for the next piece under the device you’re using to watch this video. Optional: Wear some spy-themed clothing (black suit, black sunglasses, etc.) to record your message. Have fun with the message and playing into the spy and agency theme!
• Computer or laptop with a Ziploc baggie attached underneath or behind it containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission.

Task:

• The kids will have to take the USB drive to a computer where the next clue is hidden. You might need to prompt them towards the correct device if there is more than one computer nearby. They will need to play the video on the USB drive on the computer to hear the hint that the next piece is located under or on the back of the device.
• Ziploc baggie taped onto the bottom or back of the computer. Inside the bag they will find Piece 6 along with a clue to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed clue for the next Mission:

“Here’s looking at you, kid” is my famous quote.

Mission 7: Here’s Looking at You, Kid. Figure out what movie a famous quote is from, then locate the DVD box containing the next puzzle piece and another clue.

What you need:

• Casablanca DVD with a puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission inside the box. If you don’t have this movie in your collection, you can choose another movie with a famous quote. Just make sure to update the clue to the relevant quote.
• Access to a smart speaker or a device with Google search capabilities.

Task:

• Based on the clue “‘Here’s looking at you, kid’ is my famous quote” found at the end of the last Mission, kids will have to determine the movie the quote is from. Unless the kids are great at movie trivia, they may need to ask a smart speaker, or search for the answer on a device with Google search capabilities (we told the kids this was OK if they got stuck).
• Inside the Casablanca DVD box is Piece 7 along with a riddle to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed riddle for the next Mission:

“An herby and spicy song by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkle. Figure it out then have a listen for a hint at the location of the next piece. It’s by one of the ingredients that’s NOT listed.”

Mission 8: Scarborough Fair. Solve a riddle to play the song “Scarborough Fair/Canticle” by Simon & Garfunkle. While listening to the song, notice which “ingredients” are listed, then go to a place where you’d find herbs (could be an herb garden or spice cabinet). The next puzzle piece will be located by one of the herbs not mentioned in the song.

What you need:

• Access to a smart speaker or a device that can play music (specifically one that can play “Scarborough Fair/Canticle” by Simon & Garfunkle).
• An herb garden or spice cabinet containing some of the herbs listed in the song (parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme) plus at least one other.
• Ziploc baggie containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission attached to an herb not listed in the song (I chose oregano).

Task:

• The kids will first need to figure out the song that is referenced in the first part of the riddle (“An herby and spicy song by Paul Simon and Art Garfunkle…”). Unless the kids are great at music trivia, they may need to ask a smart speaker, or search for the answer on a device with Google search capabilities (we told the kids this was OK if they got stuck).
• Once they figure out the name of the song, they will need to listen to the song to complete the riddle. The second part of the riddle (“… have a listen for a hint at the location of the next piece. It’s by one of the ingredients that’s NOT listed.“) references “ingredients,” so the kids will need to pick up on the song lyrics “parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme” to figure out the location of the puzzle piece. This could hint at either an herb garden or a spice cabinet.
• Ziploc baggie taped to the bottom or back of an herb not listed in the song (we chose oregano). Inside the bag they will find Piece 8 along with a hint to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed hint to get the kids to go to the garage for the next Mission:

“Open up my great big door. You might find a car, or maybe more.”

Mission 9: Let Them Eat Cake. This two-task Mission will lead you through an exercise to get a key out of a bottle of water using a magnet (without spilling a drop) to open a lock box with a spy decoder to translate a coded message. The coded message will be a transition to pause for some birthday cake!

What you need:

• A locked cash lock box with a spy decoder and clue inside.
• Notecards or scraps of paper with arrows drawn on with Sharpies or other colored markers. These arrows will point towards a small printed clue and the bottle setup in the next step.
• Empty plastic bottle with the key to the lock box inside. The key should either have a metal ring that responds to magnets, or have a small magnet attached to it (be sure to test that it works with a magnet pulling it from outside the bottle). Fill the bottle with water.
• Strong magnet set nearby the bottle.
• Large envelope containing the puzzle piece and a memo with a coded message. You will have to create the coded message yourself using the spy decoder cipher (see my template below as a starting point).
• Birthday cake (or other preferred birthday dessert).
• Parchment paper with three dice drawn on it and placed hidden under the dessert (so that the drawing is revealed after the dessert is sliced and served).

Task 1:

• Immediately inside the garage is a locked box. Kids must find a key to be able to open it.
• When the kids start looking around the room, they will discover a series of arrows pointing to something. The arrows point towards the bottle filled with water containing a key, and a printed note that provides these instructions:

“This is the key you’re looking for… but you must find a way to get it without spilling a single drop of water.”

• Using the nearby magnet, kids will have to figure out how to move the key to the top of the bottle so they can retrieve it without tipping or pouring the water. Once they have the key, they can unlock the box.

• Inside the locked box they will find a spy decoder and a hint for location of an envelope.
  • We have a drum set in our garage and decided to tape the next envelope under the cymbal. This was our printed hint in the lock box (feel free to customize with a punny hint of your own based on your chosen location for the envelope hidden in the garage; some ideas are under a vehicle, in a toolbox, with sports equipment, etc.): “A drum set is a very deep instrument. It’s full of cymballism.”
• An envelope can be found taped under a drum set cymbal with Piece 9 enclosed and a memo with a coded message to be cracked in the next Task.

Task 2:

• 3rd Envelope Message (feel free to customize to make it more personal to your birthday dessert; Grayson wanted a giant donut instead of a birthday cake, hence our message):

Subject: Mission – King Louis’ wife 

Memorandum:

CODED MESSAGE: XEP PBEW EIP GIYE… UR I FUVOP. (Let them eat cake… or a donut)

Cipher = C|G (this was the cipher we chose when creating the coded message and is an important clue for the kids to be able to crack the code)

Enclosed: Puzzle piece 9

• The kids must use the decoder to crack the coded message. Once they do, they will see that it is time for birthday cake!

• At this point, LET THEM EAT CAKE! Sing happy birthday, blow-out candles, and serve and eat the dessert.
• After the dessert is sliced and served, a drawing of 3 pieces of dice on parchment paper under the dessert will be revealed. This is a cryptic hint for a later Mission.

Mission 10: Bored in the House. In the area where board games are kept is a bag that needs to be cut open and a pair of scissors that is sealed with a number lock. You must find the code to unlock the scissors to open the bag to get the next puzzle piece and clue.

What you need:

• Large envelope containing a memo with a clue for the Mission.
• Paper lunch bag containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission. On the outside of the lunch bag a dotted line is written with Sharpie or other colored markers along with the words “Cut Here.”
• Nearby the bag is a pair of scissors secured with a 3-digit number lock so they can’t be used unless the lock was removed.
• 3 Dice nearby with one of the three digits for the number lock obscured on each (cover with a piece of masking tape or a sticker).

Task:

• Hand the birthday kid Envelope #4
  • 4^th Envelope Message:

Subject: Pardon the typos 

Memorandum:

“I’m board in the house and I’m in the house board.” Did you catch the typo? Look in a place where you’d go to play something if you were bored in the house.

• The typo for the word “bored” in the memo spelled as “board” is a hint to start this Task in a place where you keep your family’s board games.
• In the board game area the kids will find a paper bag with the words “Cut Here” and scissors secured with a 3-digit lock.
• Using the dice hint from an earlier Mission, the kids will find 3 dice in the board game area that each have a number obscured with a sticker or piece of masking tape (I also drew a question mark with a Sharpie over the tape). Using process of elimination, the kids need to determine the three numbers.
• The kids will need to try different combinations of the numbers to unlock the lock on the scissors. After they do, they can cut the paper bag open.
• Inside the bag they will find Piece 10 along with a clue to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed clue for the next Mission:

“You’re not playing with a full deck”

Mission 11: Not Playing with a Full Deck. A few cards are missing from a deck that provide a numerical hint for the location of the next puzzle piece and clue.

What you need:

• Deck of cards with a few cards missing that correspond with a calendar date.
• Calendar with a hint written on one of the dates.
• Ziploc baggie containing the puzzle piece and the clue for the next Mission attached near the calendar.

Task:

• In a room with a calendar, a deck of cards is laid out with some numbers missing in the sequence (we chose 2 and 4). If you want to make this Task more difficult, have the cards out of order so the kids have to sort and order them to see which cards are missing. To keep it easier, have the cards already sorted in order.
• Kids will need to think about what the numbers could represent. When they realize the two digits could represent a date, they will see a clue written on the calendar date 24: “Look under <fill in the blank for an object in the same room>”
• Ziploc baggie taped to the nearby spot hinted on the calendar. Inside the bag they will find Piece 11 along with a riddle to send them onto the next Mission.
  • Printed riddle:

“I can be electric but I’m not a car / I get carried in a case but I’m not a cellphone / I have a neck but I don’t wear a scarf / I have strings but I’m not a tennis racket”

Mission 12: Where Words Fail, Music Speaks. After solving a riddle to locate a guitar, you will see a string coming out of the guitar. The string is attached to the 12th and final puzzle piece, which is hidden inside the guitar.

What you need:

• Guitar (could be a real or toy guitar).
• Yarn attached to the final puzzle piece, which is placed inside the guitar (with just the string hanging out).

Task:

• After solving the riddle in the previous Mission, the kids will need to find a guitar (real or toy). When they do, they will see a piece of yarn hanging out of the guitar.

• The string is attached to Piece 12, the final puzzle piece for the clue to the birthday gift.

Final Clue: That’s Latin, Darlin.’ Assemble the 12 puzzle pieces to reveal a clue to the location of the birthday gift written in Latin.

What you need:

• The completed 12-piece puzzle with the location of the gift written in Latin. We used:
  • “Donum est in tergum car et Daddy scriptor” (translation: “The gift is in the back of Daddy’s car”)
• A computer or other device with the ability to access Google Translate.
• The gift hidden in the secret location.

Task:

• At this point, the kids just need to translate the message and find the gift!

This DIY escape room kids birthday party was one we will never forget! We had so much fun, and despite not getting to have a traditional party with lots of friends this year, Grayson said it was his best birthday ever. It was definitely worth the effort to put together with how much fun we all had working through the escape room puzzle ideas.

I hope this inspires you and makes it easy for you to plan your own escape room birthday party! If you have any more ideas for escape room games for home, share them in the comments!

More kid’s birthday party theme ideas:

• Anime-Themed Birthday Party
• Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania At-Home Watch Party
• Bendy and the Ink Machine-Themed Birthday Party
• Classic Nintendo Birthday Party (Mario Bros., Zelda, Kirby and More)
• Clifford the Big Red Dog Birthday Party
• Construction-Themed Birthday Party
• Despicable Me / Minion Birthday Party
• Dinosaur-Themed Birthday Party
• Disney Cars Birthday Party
• DIY Escape Room Kid’s Birthday Party (with lots of escape room puzzle ideas)
• Dungeons and Dragons Birthday Party
• Emoji-Themed Birthday Party
• Kid’s Ice Cream Social Birthday Party
• Safari Themed 1st Birthday Party
• LEGO Movie-Themed Birthday Party
• Minecraft-Themed Birthday Party
• PAW Patrol Party Ideas
• Pokémon-Themed Birthday Party
• Power Rangers-Themed Birthday Party
• Rock and Roll Birthday Party
• Silent Disco Party (Fun 13th Birthday Party Theme)
• The Legend of Korra and Avatar: The Last Airbender Party
• Thomas the Train Birthday Party (with Free Thomas and Friends Birthday Printables)
• Tiger-Themed Birthday Party Planning Ideas