Essaouira — The Navigators' Pact
Uncover the forbidden pact of ancient Phoenician navigators that cursed Essaouira's port. Decode their hidden symbols across the medina's ramparts to break the spell before it claims another ship.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In the 7th century BC, Phoenician navigators founded Mogador—now Essaouira—as a vital Atlantic outpost for purple dye trade and seafaring conquests
Essaouira — The Navigators' Pact
You are Théodore Cornut, French military engineer, arriving in Essaouira in 1760, tasked by the Alaouite sultan to fortify this new port city.
Your secret mission
Follow the footsteps of Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah, the visionary sultan who founded Essaouira in 1760 to create Morocco's first modern Atlantic port.
The story that haunts this land
Essaouira was born from Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah's political will in 1760. The Alaouite sultan chose this sheltered bay to compete with Agadir, then controlled by rebel tribes. Théodore Cornut drew the plans for Skala du Port, an artillery platform equipped with 22 bronze cannons aligned facing the Atlantic. From 1767, up to 50 merchant ships docked daily in this new port, Morocco's first modern Atlantic terminal. You discover the remains of this port revolution that made Essaouira rival Casablanca before its time.
The Skala de la Kasbah, 1.5 km long, embodies Franco-Moroccan military genius. Cornut installed 28 Spanish cannons recovered from captured galleons, dominating both port and ocean. These fortifications built between 1760 and 1767 resisted European pirates terrorizing Morocco's Atlantic coast. In 2005, Ridley Scott filmed Kingdom of Heaven scenes here, recognizing in these ramparts the archetype of Oriental fortress. You walk along these UNESCO-listed walls since 2001, witnesses to Morocco's first commercial globalization.
Essaouira's Mellah illustrates the sultan's openness policy. Over 3 hectares, this city within a city housed from 1760 the Sephardic community installed by royal decree. In 1900, 8,000 Jews lived here, 40% of Essaouira's total population. The Simon Attias synagogue, rebuilt in 1882, and 600 graves in the adjacent cemetery tell this unique Maghreb coexistence story. You cross this quarter where Jewish merchants, Muslim artisans and Christian traders invented the Sherifian kingdom's first Atlantic free trade.
The Clock Tower, 22 meters high, symbolizes Essaouira's European modernization. Built in 1770 at Place de l'Horloge's heart, it received in 1790 a mechanism imported from Liverpool, still functional today. This dial visible from 1 km guided ships to port and rhythmed souk life. In adjacent Souk Jdid, a 2,500 m² covered market specializing in spices and thuya crafts, you measure the European-African trade scope that enriched the city from 1770.
Your engineering mission ends at Bab Sbaa, the Lions' Gate. 6 meters high, adorned with cut stone sculptures, it guards the main entrance from the port. The two sculpted lions that gave it its name disappeared in the 19th century, but this gate restored in 2005 during UNESCO works remains the symbol of original Essaouira. You leave with certainty of having built more than a fortress: a world-city where Africa met Europe, prefiguring today's cosmopolitan Morocco.
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?
Secret Architecture
Decipher the hidden plans within the city's stones and understand the Sultan's vision for his maritime capital.
Atlantic Diplomacy
Delve into the political and commercial stakes that made Mogador a global crossroads and a power struggle.
Forgotten Map
Reconstruct a forgotten maritime map to reveal the secret trade routes and riches of the 18th century.
Unveil the grand design of a Sultan who dreamed of dominating the ocean.
The navigators' pact awaits exhumation.
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
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Your turn to play
Follow the footsteps of Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdallah, the visionary sultan who founded Essaouira in 1760 to create Morocco's first modern Atlantic port.
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
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