** spoiler alert **
If you wish to go in to Omega Mart blind, this is very much not the blog post for you.
As you may have guessed, I love me some themed entertainment. If I had my way, I'd be happily making my way around the world checking out every themed offering available. Alas, whilst I'm doing my best to do just this there will always be countless attractions escaping my grasp. Meow Wolf was firmly in that box - or so I thought. With locations in Santa Fe, Denver and Las Vegas, chances of a visit seemed pretty slim. Then when we planned our South West road trip, we decided to make a stop in Las Vegas (predominantly due to it's proximity to the Grand Canyon) and here I am, looking back at the photos of one of the best, albeit strangest, attractions I've ever done.
So, how to describe Meow Wolf? Officially it's an 'immersive art exhibit', in reality it felt part art gallery, part science museum, part... escape room? It's a whole lot of things. But if Las Vegas is 'Disneyland for adults' (don't get me started on that nickname), Omega Mart is it's weird walk-through.
Omega Mart can be explored in two ways, to borrow video game terminology: freeplay or story mode. On entering the 'store', you are offered the opportunity to pick up a free card that will allow you to access the interactive points around the exhibit, completing challenges and learning the story as you go. For me, 'story mode' was sadly the weakest part of the experience. Tasks varied from merely tapping your card on the point, to sitting at a PC to read a novella. If it's a quiet day, and you have time and the will to sit and read very long passages of text, you may be able to engage with the story more successfully than we did. If you're anything like us, you'll scroll through, see how long it is and then surrender the computer to the people inevitably waiting behind you. The card does allow you to download the data from your visit and access it at home. I haven't actually tried that yet, but if you're keen to learn the story surrounding the Mart, this is a great feature!
In my opinion, Omega Mart is best enjoyed by just stumbling around exploring. Each room is an artwork unto itself, and whilst you're enjoying the beautiful, bizarre environments there are just enough reminders of the narrative to give you a sense of place. One moment, you could be in a bleak staff room watching a corporate hell-show of a training video, the next you could be led back on a bed gazing at the shimmering, glittery ceiling above you. There are even slides, although these are more stand-alone than I hoped. In my head when I saw the warning about wearing appropriate shoes for slides when booking, I expected them to be a way to move from one environment to another. But, they are very much a 'see the slide, climb the stairs, ride the slide' situation. Very, very cool to look at though!
Omega Mart really succeeds in allowing you to get lost in the world. Throughout, there are doors and tunnels that lead you somewhere completely unexpected. The absolute best of which IMO was a tunnel that led you to the inside of a tent inside the main shop floor! I loved the way the layout of the attraction worked in tandem with it's content to be both physically and mentally disconcerting, the sign of a successful immersive attraction right? One set in a dystopian supermarket anyway.
In addition to the interactive points tied to the card system, opportunities for interactivity are scattered throughout the place. Our favourite of these was a dark room, containing just a series of red lasers. Each laser beam played a note when interrupted so obviously we spent a solid 10/15 minutes composing laser concertos (okay, they were pretty basic melodies).
Potentially my very favourite thing about the whole experience was that almost everything stocked within the central Omega Mart is available for purchase. In the words of the assistant we asked 'if it's not glued down, you can buy it'.
How about some Simply Does Not Contain Spiders (also known as raisin bran)?
Or perhaps some chip moisturizer (hot sauce) from Becky Glaze, Mango Apathy flavour?
Oh wait, forget that. My favourite thing was undoubtedly this mural (which I completely failed to get a decent photo of).
Anyway, revel in the glory of Hissy.
As well as the goods available from the supermarket area, there is a separate Meow Wolf merchandise shop next door, within the entertainment complex Omega Mart resides in. I was unaware of this until I had paid for my merchandise and was told to present my receipt when going in the gift shop. I thought this was a gift shop! But no, definitely save a bit of cash for the wider Meow Wolf merch. I mean, they sell a literal Meow Wolf!
If you're planning a visit to Omega Mart (and you definitely should if you're heading to Vegas!), I highly recommend doing what we did and booking the first time slot of the day (10:00) and heading straight to the upstairs area. The exhibit is at it's best when you can just wander through alone, soaking up vibes. As the time slots only dictate entry time, crowds naturally accumulate as more visitors arrive. We spent three hours in total here, which felt just about right for completing the missions and enjoying all of the details throughout and by 1pm things were getting pretty busy, even on a January Tuesday.
All in all, Omega Mart was a dizzying, glorious day-dream. Sure, there's room for improvement on the 'missions' but honestly? They aren't really necessary. This visit definitely moved Meow Wolf's other attractions further up my to-do list. Anyone know of any decent theme parks near Denver?
Speak again soon, until then I'll be over here drinking my Vegan Goat Pus (lemonade).
Claire
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