Key concepts
The words the dashboard and these docs use, in plain language. One short entry for each.
Last updated
Company#
The business behind your venues. You create it when you register: its name, address and phone number are how MyEscapeRoom reaches you, and players do not see them. A company can run several venues. Your invoicing details belong to the company, so they are shared by all its venues. See Invoicing & VAT profile.
Venue#
The place players come to: its name, description, address, photos and contact details. A venue has its own rooms, its own Stripe account, its own status and its own time zone. Your role is also set per venue, so you can be an owner at one venue and a host at another. See Create your account & venue.
Venue status#
A venue moves through a few statuses. Only a live venue is visible to players, and only a live venue can be booked.
| Status | What it means |
|---|---|
| Draft | Being set up. Players cannot see it. A venue you add later starts here, until you submit it for review. |
| Awaiting verification | You submitted it. MyEscapeRoom checks every new venue by hand before players can see it, and emails you when it is live. You can already use the dashboard. |
| Live | Visible to players on MyEscapeRoom, and its rooms can be booked. Going live needs Stripe to be active, and for Belgian venues Peppol too. |
| Suspended | Taken off the player site by MyEscapeRoom, so it cannot be found or booked. Contact MyEscapeRoom to find out why. |
Room#
One game you run: its story, genre, difficulty, group size, game duration, price and photos. A room belongs to one venue and runs on its own weekly schedule. A room without a schedule has no sessions, so nobody can book it. See Rooms.
Slot#
One session of one room at one start time, taken as a whole. A slot has no seat count: a group of two booking a room that seats six takes the whole room, and the session is then gone. The room's slot length is the game plus the reset before the next group, and it decides how close two start times may be.
Booking#
One group's claim on one slot. A booking starts as a hold (pending) while the player pays, and becomes confirmed only once the payment has really gone through. A booking can then be cancelled. See Managing bookings & the calendar and Cancellations & refunds.
Schedule#
A room's regular weekly template: the start times of each weekday. MyEscapeRoom turns it into slots for the weeks ahead. The template belongs to a room, never to the venue as a whole. Times are always the venue's own local time. See Weekly schedule & slots.
Special schedule#
A different weekly template that replaces a room's regular one between two dates, both included: a holiday week or an event. It lasts at most 100 days. Closed days and one-off sessions still apply on top of it. See Special schedules & closures.
Closure#
A closed day: a day a room, or the whole venue, takes no bookings. A room is closed on its own closed days and on the venue's together. Sessions that are already booked are never removed by a closure. They are shown for you to settle with the guests. See Special schedules & closures.
Booking window#
How many days ahead players can book. It rolls forward every day: if it is 84 days, there are always 84 days of sessions open. The venue sets a default and a room may have its own. It can be 1 to 365 days. See Booking window.
Host availability#
Every member of your team can say which sessions they can work, on the Availability page. Owners and admins then assign a host to a booked session, who is emailed. Optionally the staffing gate shows players only the sessions near today that a host has marked. See Host availability & staffing.
Roles#
Every team member has one of three roles at each venue. Each role can do everything the one below it can.
- Host runs the day: bookings, the calendar and their own availability.
- Admin also manages rooms, schedules, discounts and vouchers, the team and API keys.
- Owner also controls the venue's settings, payments, Stripe and invoicing.
The full list is on Team & roles.
Service fee#
A flat amount the player pays MyEscapeRoom on top of the room price. It is MyEscapeRoom's only income: there is no commission, and you are not charged anything. The venue receives its room price, minus Stripe's card processing fee on its own share. Discounts and gift vouchers never reduce the service fee, and it is paid online even when the room itself is paid at the venue. See Connect Stripe & get paid.
Payment policy#
How players may pay for a room: Online only, Pay at the venue or Both. You set it for the venue and can override it for a single room.
Outcome#
The result of a session: whether the group escaped and how long it took. You log it after the game. Logged outcomes feed the leaderboards and the players' escape rate and best time. It only applies to rooms with Records escape times switched on. See Game outcomes & leaderboards.
Discount code#
A code that takes a percentage or a fixed amount off the room price, with a maximum number of uses, for the whole venue or for one room. See Discounts.
Gift voucher#
A prepaid code with a face value and a balance. The balance is drawn down over one or more bookings: 60 against a 90 booking leaves 30 to pay, and 60 against a 45 booking leaves 15 on the voucher for next time. See Gift vouchers.
Time zone and clock#
A venue's time zone is worked out from its address. You do not choose it. Every session time is read in the venue's local time. An owner can also choose how a clock is printed, 24-hour (19:30) or 12-hour (7:30 PM). That choice is personal and changes only how times are shown. For now only owners can set it, on the Settings page; admins and hosts see the default, 24-hour.