The Corsairs of Bayonne
128 armed ships, smuggled chocolate, and the bayonet
📱 1 to 10 phones · 1 team per phone · Independent codes
Bayonne was France's 3rd corsair port with 128 armed ships. Its Basque smugglers brought chocolate from Spain. And it was here that the bayonet was invented. Between the Gothic cathedral and Vauban's ramparts, not all the secrets of Bayonne's corsairs have been revealed.
Corsairs, chocolatiers, and bayonet inventors — welcome to Bayonne
Bayonne is a double city: Grand Bayonne, around the Gothic cathedral, and Petit Bayonne, between the Nive and the Adour, the former quarter of sailors and corsairs. In the 17th century, 128 corsair ships flew the Bayonne flag and plundered the Atlantic. Meanwhile, Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain settled in the Saint-Esprit quarter and introduced chocolate to France — making Bayonne the country's first chocolate 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.
« "In Bayonne, you don't choose between the sword and the chocolate — you take both." »— — Bayonne saying
Bayonne — corsairs, chocolate, and the birth of the bayonet
Bayonne occupies a strategic position at the confluence of the Nive and the Adour, a few kilometers from the Atlantic Ocean and the Spanish border. From the Middle Ages, its sailors engaged in privateering. In the 17th century, the port of Bayonne armed up to 128 corsair ships — the third-largest corsair port in France after Saint-Malo and Dunkirk.
It was also in Bayonne that the bayonet was born, around 1640. Basque hunters, short of gunpowder, stuck their knives into their musket barrels to charge the enemy. The French army adopted the invention, which transformed infantry warfare across Europe. The Château-Vieux, a medieval fortress converted into a garrison, still bears traces of this innovation.
Finally, Bayonne is France's first chocolate city. When Sephardic Jews were expelled from Spain and Portugal at the end of the 15th century, many settled in Bayonne's Saint-Esprit quarter, bringing the secret of chocolate making. The Petit Bayonne quarter, with its historic chocolatiers, has perpetuated this tradition for over 500 years.
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?
3rd corsair port
128 ships armed for privateering — Bayonne was France's 3rd corsair port.
Basque chocolate
Discover how Sephardic Jews made Bayonne France's first chocolate city.
The bayonet
Learn the history of the weapon named after Bayonne that transformed warfare.
UNESCO Cathedral
Explore the Gothic cathedral and its cloister, listed as World Heritage.
128 ships, smuggled chocolate, and the weapon that changed war.
From the cathedral to the Corsairs' quays — Bayonne has forgotten nothing.
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 the Gothic cathedral to Petit Bayonne — navigate between corsairs, chocolatiers, and inventors in an escape game at the confluence of the Nive and the Adour.
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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