The Battle of Poitiers
Charles Martel, Eleanor, and the court of love
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In 732, Charles Martel stopped the Arab advance at the gates of Poitiers. Four centuries later, Eleanor of Aquitaine held her court of love here. Two destinies, one palace — and a secret linking war to poetry.
In 732, a hammer stopped an army. In 1170, a queen invented courtly love.
Poitiers is one of France's oldest cities. Its palace, built by the Counts of Poitou, saw Charles Martel pass through after his victory over the Umayyads, then Eleanor of Aquitaine who established Europe's most brilliant court there. Between the Baptistery of Saint-Jean — France's oldest Christian building — and the Hypogeum of the Dunes, a Merovingian funerary chapel, the city is a palimpsest of fifteen centuries of history.
A game, a guided tour and a heritage guide — all in one
You're not just buying an escape game. You're carrying a living guide — historical anecdotes, forgotten legends, key monuments, hidden architecture — unfolding as you go.
At each stop, places ordinary guides miss — secret façades, sculpted crests, alleys steeped in history.
Every riddle is rooted in a real historical fact or local legend. You leave with dozens of stories to tell.
Learn to read buildings — flamboyant Gothic, Baroque, Art Deco — like a real art historian, while having fun.
Walk through the city like a novel's character — every alley becomes a stage, every square a theatre.
A voice walks with you at every step, tells the story of each place, reads clues, adds a cinematic feel.
Keep access to the guide & game for 1 year. Come back any time, share it with friends.
« You will not leave this city the way you entered it. »
How does it work?
Explore the city on foot solving puzzles based on real historical facts. No locked room — the city is your playground.
No app to download. Play directly from your browser. Guided step by step, at your own pace.
One purchase per phone is enough. Play with family, friends or as a couple — everyone participates.
Point your phone at the façade: a historical character appears and speaks to you in your language. Golden letters magically write themselves on the wall to reveal the puzzle answer.
Stuck? Progressive personalised hints. The character repeats the puzzle on demand — at your own pace.
French, English, German, Spanish, Italian + 27 other languages auto-translated by AI.
« "Charles's hammer didn't just break an army — it forged Europe." »— — Edward Gibbon, The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, 1776
Poitiers — from the battlefield to the court of love
In October 732, somewhere between Tours and Poitiers, Charles Martel — "the Hammer" — faced the Umayyad army of Abd al-Rahman al-Ghafiqi. The Arab cavalry, invincible since Damascus, shattered against the Frankish lines. Abd al-Rahman was killed. The Muslim advance into Western Europe halted. Historians still debate the battle's true importance, but its symbolism is immense.
Four centuries later, Eleanor of Aquitaine — successively Queen of France then Queen of England, mother of Richard the Lionheart and John Lackland — established her court in the Palace of the Counts of Poitou. The palace's great hall, 50 meters long, hosted troubadours, poets, and knights. Eleanor invented the "court of love" where ladies judged matters of the heart according to a refined code.
Between the Baptistery of Saint-Jean, built in the 4th century over Roman baths — the oldest standing Christian building in France — and the Hypogeum of the Dunes, a Merovingian funerary chapel adorned with mysterious sculptures, Poitiers holds fifteen centuries of layered secrets. Notre-Dame-la-Grande, with its entirely sculpted Romanesque facade, is one of the jewels of Romanesque art in France.
The Route
5 stages through the city
The gameplay: AR, camera, hidden clues
At each stop, open your phone camera: an augmented reality character appears on the façade and speaks your language. Hunt the clue — it materializes as golden letters on the real wall or floats in front of you. When you find it, the phone vibrates, an AR chest opens and reveals your answer fragment. 8 stops, 8 clues to find with the camera, 1 final code.
The stops on your route are a surprise. You'll discover them one by one, guided by your phone, starting from the meeting point.
How does it work with a group?
One phone = one team. Pick the number at checkout (1 to 10).
Solo, or a group sharing the screen. One team, one code.
Family, couple, or 2-3 teams competing. Each phone has its own code and its own score.
Friends, bachelor/bachelorette, small office outing — each their own code, each plays at their own pace. Tiered pricing then €6 flat per phone from the 6th.
- ✓All codes are independent — play at the same time OR separately, each team advances at its own pace.
- ✓Leaderboard between your teams + global game leaderboard — each score appears in the public ranking.
- ✓More than 10 phones or need a personalized quest? Discover custom tours.
Ready to live this adventure?
Get my code · 12€No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒 Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
Practical info
Why this route?
Battle of 732
Relive one of the most decisive battles in European history, on the very site of the combat.
Eleanor of Aquitaine
Walk in the footsteps of the Middle Ages' most powerful queen, from her palace to her court of love.
Oldest baptistery
Explore the Baptistery of Saint-Jean, France's oldest Christian building (4th century).
Romanesque art
Admire the sculpted facade of Notre-Dame-la-Grande, a Romanesque art masterpiece.
From Charles's hammer to Eleanor's court — 15 centuries of secrets.
Walk through fifteen centuries of history in the streets of Poitiers.
9 features nobody else has
OddballTrip combines gamified play, augmented reality and AI. All our competitors deliver 1 or 2 of these angles. We deliver all 5.
AR treasure chest
A golden chest floats in front of the monument. Tap → opening animation → reveals a secret message.
AR narrator character
Point your phone at the façade: a knight, witch, monk, sailor, detective or ghost appears full-screen and speaks to you in your language with their dedicated ElevenLabs voice (each character has their own unique voice) — your living guide.
Magic golden letters
At the puzzle climax, golden letters magically write themselves on the real wall — that's the puzzle answer. An unforgettable visual effect.
Written + audio narration
Every puzzle available as text AND voice-over: read at your own pace or listen eyes-free while walking. Great in groups and for accessibility.
360° radar + vibration
A mini-radar shows the target even behind you, and the phone vibrates when you aim in the right direction.
Heritage storytelling
Every puzzle weaves in real historical facts (architecture, era, anecdotes). You learn by playing — like a gamified audioguide.
Progressive AI hints
3 levels of AI-generated help: vibe → where to look → answer format. You're never stuck.
AR selfie memento
At the end of the game, capture a selfie with OddballTrip banner + mascot, shareable on Instagram, WhatsApp, TikTok.
Zero app to install
PWA technology: open the link, it plays in your browser. Same quality as an app, no App Store hassle.
Frequently asked questions
Q01Do I need to download an app?
No, never. You get a link, you click, it plays in your browser. That's the point of a PWA: same as an app, without the hassle.
Q02Does it work offline?
GPS yes (handled by your phone). Maps yes (tiles cached). AI and hints need an intermittent 4G connection.
Q03How long does a game take?
1 h 30 to 2 h 30 depending on your pace. The timer runs but only for the leaderboard — you play at your own tempo.
Q04What happens if I'm stuck?
You get 3 levels of hints per puzzle (increasing penalty). If truly stuck, you can skip the step (45-min penalty but you keep going).
Q05What's the age range?
From 12 without an adult, from 6 with an adult reading puzzles. Works for families, couples, friend groups, companies.
Q06What if my city isn't in the catalogue?
Pre-register or contact us — we'll email you as soon as your city is live.
Q07What is augmented reality exactly?
Point your phone at the façade: a historical character appears full-screen and speaks to you in your language. At the puzzle climax, golden letters magically write themselves on the real wall — that's your answer. After each puzzle solved, a treasure chest floats in front of you. Seeing is believing.
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Your turn to play
From Eleanor's palace to the Baptistery of Saint-Jean — walk through fifteen centuries of history in an escape game between war and poetry in the heart of Poitiers.
1 purchase = 1 phone. Play several on the same device.
No calendar booking. Code sent immediately by email.
🔒Secure payment · Code in 5 min · Free cancellation
🪙+15 TripCoins granted with your booking
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