Buda Castle — Lost Corvina Library
Uncover the hidden trail of King Matthias Corvinus's legendary Bibliotheca Corviniana, looted during the Ottoman siege. Decipher clues across Buda Castle to expose the secret chamber concealing the final priceless manuscripts.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In the opulent halls of Buda Castle, Renaissance King Matthias Corvinus forged the Bibliotheca Corviniana, the world's greatest library of illuminated manuscripts
Buda Castle — Lost Corvina Library
You are Theodoric d'Engelbrechts, King Matthias Corvin's loyal librarian in Buda Castle, 1490.
Your urgent mission: recover the lost parchments
Dive into 15th-century Budapest and uncover the secret of the legendary Corvina Library, King Matthias Corvin's intellectual jewel.
The story that haunts this land
Your journey in Budapest begins in Szentháromság Square, named after the Holy Trinity. Here, the Holy Trinity Column, erected in 1713 to commemorate the end of the plague of 1709-1711, stands 14 meters high. Consecrated by the Archbishop of Kalocsa in the presence of Charles VI, it is surrounded by 18th-century Baroque buildings, rebuilt after the recapture of Buda in 1686 by the Habsburgs. It is in this setting that you must find the first clue leading to the fragments of the Corvina Library, dispersed after 1526.
The next stop takes you to Matthias Church, consecrated in 1255 as St. Mary's Church, then renamed Matthias in 1541. This site, 57 m long with vaults 26 m high, was the scene of Matthias Corvin's coronation as King of Hungary in 1458, and later, of Franz Joseph I in 1867. Part of the Corvina Library was stored here before its dispersion. Your mission is to decipher the architectural symbols to locate the hidden manuscripts, using the history of the coronations to guide your search in the 1985 European Capital of Culture.
The Fisherman's Bastion, built between 1895 and 1902 by Frigyes Schulek, stands on the site of the old 14th-century walls. Its 7 turrets, symbolizing the 7 founding Hungarian tribes, stretch for 140 m, offering views of the Danube, Parliament, and Pest, inaugurated on October 9, 1902. This Neo-Romanesque and Neo-Gothic site, a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987 along with the Buda Castle district, is a key stop on your thematic tour of Budapest. The ancient walls contain carved messages, witnesses to an era when John Hunyadi, Matthias's father, reconquered Buda from the Turks in 1441.
Your route then leads you to Buda Castle (Budavári Palota), first mentioned in 1247. Rebuilt after the Ottoman destruction between 1541 and 1686, it was transformed in Baroque and then Neo-Baroque style between 1749 and 1760. Matthias Corvin, who installed his Corvina Library here around 1466, lived here and abolished serfdom in Hungary in 1490. This 4-hectare Hungarian royal castle, with 200 rooms and 10 inner courtyards, holds crucial clues. It was here that Vlad III the Impaler was imprisoned by Matthias from 1462 to 1474, a detail of Budapest's history not to be ignored.
Finally, your quest leads you to the National Széchényi Library (Országos Széchényi Könyvtár), founded in 1802 by Ferenc Széchényi. It has been located in Buda Castle since 1847 and contains 3 million printed volumes and 30,000 manuscripts, including salvaged fragments of the Corvina Library. This library, which boasted 2000 illuminated manuscripts around 1480 before their dispersion, is the culmination of your exploration of Budapest's heritage. Here you confront the last mysteries, revealing the secrets of the Corvina Library, recognized by UNESCO Memory of the World, and completing your interactive tour of the city.
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.
Want to go deeper?
Places tied to your adventure — optional entries, totally up to you · per person
The Route
8 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?
Renaissance Codes
Decipher the cryptographic systems of 15th-century humanists
Royal Palace
Explore the remains of the largest Renaissance castle in Europe
Celestial Maps
Use medieval astronomy to solve navigation puzzles
In the royal palace ruins, manuscripts still whisper
Rediscover the lost library of the Hungarian Renaissance
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, 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.
Avis des aventuriers
Soyez le premier à partager votre expérience.
Did you play la bibliotheque perdue de matthias? Check the email you received after your game to leave a verified review.
Your turn to play
Dive into 15th-century Budapest and uncover the secret of the legendary Corvina Library, King Matthias Corvin's intellectual jewel.
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
🪙+24 TripCoins granted with your booking
Other escape games in Buda Castle and Castle Hill
See all games in Buda Castle and Castle Hill→More ideas for self-guided walking tours, scavenger hunts & city quests in the same city
Budapest — The Forbidden Notes
Uncover the hidden score that defied Stalin’s censors and exposed a secret network of dissident musicians in 1950s Budapest.
Budapest Castle Hill — Operation Panzerfaust
Uncover the secret codes and hidden clues of Operation Panzerfaust. Track Otto Skorzeny's audacious 1944 coup to kidnap Regent Horthy and seize Budapest's Castle Hill from key landmarks.
Other escape games in Hongrie
View Hongrie→More destinations, tours & urban treasure hunts across the country
