Hidden within the urban heart of Minneapolis, Minnesota, lies a place that challenges the very boundaries of human perception: the world’s quietest room. Inside Orfield Laboratories, this anechoic chamber has been officially recognized by the Guinness World Records for its unmatched silence, measuring an astonishing –24.9 decibels A-weighted (dBA). More than a scientific marvel, it has become a modern myth for the curious traveler — a place where silence becomes a presence, not an absence.
Designed with precision engineering and acoustic mastery, this chamber absorbs 99.99% of all sound. Its walls are lined with 3-foot fiberglass wedges; the ceiling and floor are built with thick layers of steel and concrete, isolating it completely from outside noise. Even the floor is a suspended mesh, ensuring that no footstep reverberates. Once inside, the experience is utterly disorienting. There is no echo, no ambient hum — only the raw, amplified sounds of your own body: your heartbeat, blood flow, the subtle rhythm of your breathing, and sometimes, the faint sound of your own eyelids blinking.
While Microsoft’s similar chamber in Redmond, Washington, remains inaccessible to the public, Orfield Laboratories offers rare and tightly regulated visits for those who wish to step into sensory oblivion. It’s not your average bucket list item, and certainly not a tourist stop you’ll find in glossy brochures. But for seekers of the strange and the profound, this experience borders on the spiritual.
The lab offers various ways to enter this space of profound quietude. For $90 per person, you can join a small group session, available on Mondays and Fridays, where up to five participants share an hour inside the chamber in total silence. More immersive is the 90-minute Standard Tour ($200 per person, minimum two guests), which includes time inside the chamber and a guided tour through the historic Sound 80 Studio — a recording studio known for housing the world’s first digital audio sessions and hosting music legends like Bob Dylan and Prince. For those who wish to go even deeper, private sessions are available at $500 per hour for groups of up to six people, allowing uninterrupted, undisturbed immersion in the silence.
Appointments are required and can be made through their official site at orfieldlabs.com/visit, or by contacting them at [email protected]. Visitors are encouraged to prepare for the unexpected — not everyone is comfortable with complete silence. Some experience vertigo or a distorted sense of space; others find a rare moment of inner stillness.
What makes this space so compelling is not just its technical achievement but the introspective reaction it provokes. It’s not silence as emptiness — it’s silence as revelation. It becomes a mirror, reflecting back the unnoticed symphony of your internal world.
For travelers who seek the unknown and want to encounter the extremes of human experience, the anechoic chamber at Orfield Laboratories is a story to carry forever. It’s not just a room — it’s an invitation to confront silence, to listen within, and to remember that the most profound journeys don’t always require movement.
