Hijinx Hotel Chermside Review
If you are looking for something fun to do, on a date, with family, or with friends, check out Hijinx Hotel, an interactive game experience with a Brisbane location at Chermside Shopping Centre.
Hijinx Hotel has a few locations, and while I was hoping to go to the Gold Coast location, a smaller version opened up in Chermside, about 20 minutes north of the Brisbane CBD.
I wasn’t quite sure what happens inside Hijinx Hotel, and if you would rather be surprised, close this tab now! There are spoilers ahead.
For those who would rather know what they are getting into, keep reading for a detailed review of Hijinx Hotel.
What is Hijinx Hotel?
Hyjinx Hotel is not an actual hotel, and it is not a pub either. Though there is a bar and restaurant inside Hijinx Hotel, Chermside, it is nothing like a typical hotel pub in Australia.
The rooms at Hijinx Hotel are “challenge rooms,” not escape rooms. Each room has a different theme, and teams will play a game and score points.
Each game lasts 4 minutes, and then the team moves to another room. Teams play in 5 different rooms per session.
Hijinx Hotel Chermside has 2 different sets of rooms that each group can play, though you need to sign up for them separately. There are 30 minutes between game sets, though we learned that you will most likely appreciate the break and want to get a drink.
Visiting Hijinx Hotel Chermside
Book your time slot in advance, especially if you plan to go to Hijinx Hotel on the weekend. They do sell out. That being said, we have just walked in, so don’t be afraid to stop by and see if there are any last-minute openings.
Time slots are available every 30 minutes beginning at 10 am.
Hijinx Hotel Chermside is open from 10 am to 9 pm Monday to Wednesday, until 10 pm on Thursdays, and until 12 am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Kids are allowed to play until 9 pm. Hijinx Hotel is recommended for kids 5+.
Checking into Hijinx Hotel, Chermside
They suggest that you arrive 30 minutes before your booking, though when we did, we were told to come back in 15 minutes.
Late arrivals are not allowed in, so it is best to be there early. There are chairs past the lobby, and guests are welcome to sit in the restaurant before their time slot.
Once you walk into Hijinx Hotel, a check-in desk is to the left. You receive a room key with a team name already on it. You do not get to choose your team name.
Except, sometimes you do. We have been given a name and asked what our team name is.
After you have your key, they tell you where and when to meet. Someone will meet your group and take you to the elevator.
Once inside the elevator, you travel up to the “8th floor.”
Hijinx Hotel Challenge Rooms
When your group arrives on the “8th floor,” you will be brought down a long hallway.
There are challenge rooms in both directions. Your group will be completing challenge rooms on one side at a time. Only those who have signed up for 2 time slots will complete all of the challenge rooms.
As they set you up before the group before you is finished, you can glimpse inside the room. Everyone looked happy upon exiting, and some were a bit out of breath.
While we waited to enter the challenge rooms, we watched the pictures on the walls, which changed.
Entering the Challenge Rooms
Set 1
Each group has a room key that is used to enter each challenge room. A staff member is located on the floor and tells you which room to enter when.
This is where the real spoilers start. If you want to be surprised when you arrive at Hijinx Hotel Chermside, don't read any further! Head to their website to book your trip to Hijinx Hotel.
Once you enter the challenge room and close the door behind you, directions are announced aloud.
Each room has directions on a paper attached to the back of the door.
While your first room will vary, our first room had us throwing small stuffed toys at a target. The lights changed, and we had to hit the red lights to score points.
The second room was the ball pit!
They suggest you don’t bring your belongings into the ball pit, and those who aren’t wearing closed-toed shoes should remove their shoes before entering. There is a place to store your belongings outside the room. We brought our things into each room and put them off to the side.
We had to slide down to the ball pit and throw the balls into the tubes to score points.
There are stairs leading out of the ball pit.
Our 3rd challenge room was Shaping Up, which is kind of like Tetris.
The lights on the board light up, and you need to find a shape to fit just where the lights are. It was a little bit hard for me to see the lights from up close. I had to move away from the board to clearly see which lights were on.
The 4th challenge room is the only one in this group of rooms that is not active.
I saw the large piano on the ground and had hoped we would be jumping on it, but it was a prop. The challenge was music trivia played on a screen.
We struggled a bit with the music trivia, though it was still fun to play.
It was nice to get a break from the active rooms. Though each room only lasted for 4 minutes, we were trying to score as many points as possible and were constantly moving.
The last challenge room was basketball.
There are 6 hoops of different heights. Below them, there are 3 pictures of basketballs. The point value changes based on which lights are lit at the time.
Set 2
My family returned to Hijinx Hotel on another occasion to try out the 2nd set of challenge rooms.
This time, our first challenge room was like a carnival game where you throw balls into different signs. As you can see, it is a good space for 4 people, but it would be kind of crowded with 6, unless they were all kids.
The 2nd challenge room was a trivia game where the answers were on the walls. The more people, the better in this room.
My daughter had played here before, when she went to a party, so she knew what to do. We spread out as best we could, and she read the questions out loud.
Something new at Hijinx Hotel is the water that you can help yourself to between rooms. Cups and jugs of water are located above the bag rack in the hallway.
Our third challenge room was a ball pit. I realized that while the sides aren’t identical, there is a theme as far as what kinds of games are played.
You could slide into the ball pit, or walk into it.
Circles lit up, and we had to put a ball into the hole while it was lit to earn points.
The 4th challenge room was another room of circles. These lit up, and we had to touch them before their light went off. This is another room where it’s helpful to have more people.
The last challenge room for us at Hijinx Hotel was a game of Scrabble.
Once we realized that some of the letters were on more than one die, and others were not, we did better.
Checking Your Score
On the way out, the staff member helps you scan your room card. A printout of your score is then released from the printer.
You can keep your room key as a souvenir, or you can place it in the bucket to return to the hotel.
Each printout of the group score includes the room number, name of the game, team score, and current high score.
Your score can also be seen on a screen in the restaurant.
Once you have finished the 5 challenge rooms and have printed out your score card, you exit through the doors that lead you straight to the restaurant.
That’s right. There is no elevator ride back down to the first floor because you never really went upstairs to begin with.
Bar and Restaurant at Hijinx Hotel, Chermside
Before, after, or in between challenge rooms, you can go to the bar and restaurant at the Hijinx Hotel.
The food menu includes sandwiches, burgers, and pizzas as well as snacks such as wings, corn ribs, onion rings, fries, and sliders. The kids’ menu has sandwiches and chicken tenders.
Drink options at Hijinx Hotel include beer, wine, cocktails, and mocktails.
Besides the mocktail options, there is also a menu of 0% alcohol drinks, including an espresso martini, a mojito, and a margarita.
More Things to Do at Hijinx Hotel, Chermside
Each set of challenge rooms takes approximately 30 minutes. You can sign up for both sets of challenge rooms, but there is a half-hour in between, making the whole experience 1.5 hours long.
In the same building, there is Holey Moley miniature golf and karaoke.
You can sign up for miniature golf and karaoke at the same time that you sign up for the challenge rooms at Hijinx Hotel.
Hijinx Hotel Chermside with Kids Review
Hijinx Hotel is recommended for anyone 5+, and we agree. Kids younger than 5 could have fun, but they won’t be able to do all of the activities.
While the price per person is reasonable, it does add up for a family, and that is why we opted to only participate in one set of challenge rooms. We did go back and complete the other set of challenge rooms on another day.
We didn’t know what to expect when we first arrived at Hijinx Hotel. Our family had fun playing each game. We were all able to participate in every challenge room.
My kids got mad that I was taking pictures instead of helping them win, as they wanted to score the most points. There isn’t much time to take pictures when the game is not in session. You move quickly between challenge rooms.
I only took a few photos so that I could play. It is definitely more fun to participate.
If you are hoping to win a high score, I would suggest a group of 6 adults. If you are just looking to have a good time, groups as small as 2 players are allowed.
Are you ready to book your trip to the Hijinx Hotel?
You May Also Like
- Fun Things to Do in Brisbane with Kids
- Daring Things to Do in Brisbane with Adventurous Kids
- Story Bridge Adventure Climb with Kids
- Kid-Friendly Escape Rooms in Brisbane
- The Best Indoor Fun with Kids in Brisbane
- The Best of Brisbane Up Late After Dark with Kids
- Fun Things to Do When it is Raining in Brisbane
- Date Night Brisbane
- Adventurous Date Nights in Brisbane
- Day Date Ideas in Brisbane
Pin for Later!
