Montaigne's Tower
The philosopher's secret journal
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
Michel de Montaigne carved 57 Greek and Latin sentences on the beams of his tower. His Essays contain coded messages about death, freedom, and human nature. The Renaissance's most lucid philosopher had a secret.
"What do I know?" Montaigne's question hides more than doubt
Montaigne was mayor of Bordeaux from 1581 to 1585, in the midst of the Wars of Religion. A moderate in a world of fanatics, he navigated between Catholics and Protestants with formidable political skill. But it was in his tower, surrounded by his books, that he wrote the Essays — a text that, behind its apparent wisdom, conceals a radical philosophy of individual freedom, dangerous for its time.
« "What do I know?" »— — Michel de Montaigne, personal motto, c. 1576
Montaigne — the philosopher who hid his thoughts in his books
Michel Eyquem de Montaigne was born in 1533 at the Château de Montaigne, in Périgord. His father, a convinced humanist, had him learn Latin as his mother tongue. At 38, Montaigne retired to his castle tower to write. On the ceiling beams of his "library," he had 57 sentences carved in Greek and Latin — quotations from Sextus Empiricus, Lucretius, and Ecclesiastes forming a secret philosophical program.
The Essays, published between 1580 and 1595, invented a new genre: self-exploration. Montaigne writes about death, friendship, education, cannibals, vanity — with an unprecedented freedom of tone. But behind this apparent nonchalance, scholars have identified hidden structures, internal cross-references, and truncated quotations suggesting a second level of reading.
Mayor of Bordeaux during the plague of 1585, Montaigne crossed the city along precise routes. The Porte Cailhau, the Grosse Cloche, the Basilique Saint-Michel, the Place de la Bourse — each of these places bears the trace of his passage and his philosophy. Montaigne died in 1592, but his Essays continue to yield secrets to those who know how to read between the lines.
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.
The game downloads to your phone on start. Once the "✓ Downloaded" indicator appears, everything works without data — narration, AR, GPS and puzzles. Perfect abroad without a data plan.
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?
Living philosophy
Decipher the hidden messages in Montaigne's Essays while walking through his city.
Historic Bordeaux
From the Porte Cailhau to the Water Mirror, walk the places Montaigne strolled every day.
Renaissance codes
Ancient Greek, Latin, alchemical symbols — the puzzles draw on Renaissance knowledge.
Wine capital
End the route in Bordeaux's historic quarter, between vineyards and philosophy.
What do I know? Perhaps more than Montaigne let on.
Walk Bordeaux in the footsteps of France's greatest philosopher.
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 an app or a paper guide?
Neither. Everything plays in your browser (Safari, Chrome) after you tap your activation link. No PDF to print, no download. The trail lives in your phone, that's it.
Q02Can we split Montaigne's Tower across two days?
Yes — your code stays active and progress is saved. You can start Saturday afternoon, finish Sunday morning. Some players actually prefer this format to make the most of a full weekend on site.
Q03Can we do Montaigne's Tower as a family with kids?
Yes, from age 6 with an adult reading puzzles aloud, and from age 12 on their own. Kids love the "find the camera clue" part — it's very visual, gets them genuinely involved.
Q04What's the best time to start?
Morning between 10 and 11, or early afternoon around 2 PM, is ideal. You still have daylight ahead, Bordeaux · From Porte Cailhau to the Water Mirror is less crowded, and the light is better for camera clues.
Avis des aventuriers
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Your turn to play
From the Porte Cailhau to the Pey-Berland Tower — decipher Montaigne's secret messages in a philosophical escape game in the heart of Bordeaux.
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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