Charleston — Blockade Spy's Secret
Uncover the Confederate spy's hidden cache in White Point Garden. Decode wartime clues from Image 2 and Verse 6 to unearth the blockade-breaking treasure before it's lost forever.
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
In 1861, as Union ships tightened the blockade around Charleston Harbor, Confederate spy Elias Thorne slipped through enemy lines with vital intelligence on breaking the stranglehold
Charleston — Blockade Spy's Secret
You are a Confederate intelligence operative in Charleston, April 1861, tasked with penetrating Union defenses before the attack on Fort Sumter.
Your mission leads you through 1.5 km of Charleston
Uncover the secrets of the Confederate blockade that transformed Charleston into a maritime fortress between 1861 and 1865, following the spies and smugglers who defied the Union.
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 story that haunts this land
Charleston becomes the theater of the Civil War's first battle on April 12, 1861, when Confederate batteries at Battery Park open fire on Fort Sumter. This waterfront promenade, built in 1934, now offers a striking view of the fortified islet where 34 hours of bombardment mark the definitive break between North and South. The 10 Civil War cannons displayed in White Point Garden, including an 8-inch cannon dating from 1861, testify to the artillery power deployed to defend this strategic port, fortified since 1704 against naval attacks.
The Edmonston-Alston House, built in 1825 by Charles Edmonston then purchased in 1838 by Gideon Alston, becomes General P.G.T. Beauregard's headquarters during the Fort Sumter bombardment. Its 30-foot-high Ionic columns provide an ideal observation post over Charleston Harbor, allowing the Confederate strategist to coordinate the attack that triggers the war. This neoclassical mansion embodies the Southern elite that precipitates secession, transforming Charleston into the capital of Confederate resistance.
The United States Custom House, erected between 1853 and 1879 by architect John Norris, symbolizes the federal presence that Charleston rejects in 1860. Its 150-foot-high dome dominates the port where cotton and rice exports that enrich South Carolina transit. During the Civil War, this Greek Revival building serves as a prison for Union sailors captured during the Charleston Harbor blockade, embodying the transformation of a federal symbol into a Confederate bastion.
Rainbow Row reveals Charleston's other face: these 13 Georgian houses built between 1730 and 1753 as port warehouses shelter the maritime trade that finances the war. Restored in 1931 by Dorothy Porcher Legge and painted in pastels, they concealed smuggler networks that broke the Union blockade. Their colorful facades mask fortunes built on rice exports to Europe during the colonial period, wealth that enables Charleston to finance four years of resistance.
Your journey through Charleston reveals how a port city of 40,000 inhabitants defies the Union during 1,347 days of siege. From Battery Park's cannons to Edmonston-Alston House's salons, from Custom House's cells to Rainbow Row's warehouses, you discover the mechanisms of a war economy based on slavery and smuggling. This dive into Confederate Charleston helps you understand the stakes that transform a local incident into a four-year national war.
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?
Naval Strategy
Dive into the naval tactics of the Civil War and the blockade of Charleston.
Military Secrets
Reconstruct a coded map, a crucial instrument for the Confederacy's survival.
Espionage Plot
Follow in the footsteps of a spy and thwart Union plans to save the city.
Charleston's fate rests in your hands.
Will you be clever enough to break the blockade?
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
Uncover the secrets of the Confederate blockade that transformed Charleston into a maritime fortress between 1861 and 1865, following the spies and smugglers who defied the Union.
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 Historic Center of Charleston, South Carolina
See all games in Historic Center of Charleston, South Carolina→More ideas for self-guided walking tours, scavenger hunts & city quests in the same city
Gadsden's Wharf — Uncover the Slave Trade Ledger
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The Greenhow Cipher — Uncover the Confederate Spy Ring
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Charleston — The First Cannon's Secret
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Charleston — The Chains Conspiracy
Uncover the hidden conspiracy behind Charleston's slave trade empire. Decode clues from forgotten wharves and auction houses to expose the elite network that chained 200,000 lives.
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