Josh Czarda (ZAR’-dah) launched Escape Room RVA as a spinoff of his Ravenchase Adventures, another live puzzle venture. Photos by Michael Thompson.
Having unlocked the Richmond market, one local live-action puzzle venture hopes to put Northern Virginia under its spell, while another has expanded to a new location near Willow Lawn.
Ravenchase Adventures, which operates Escape Room RVA in the Village Shopping Center, has plans to open Escape Room Herndon in May. Owner Josh Czarda said he has leased a 4,500-square-foot space in a shopping center in Herndon, which is west of Washington, D.C., near Dulles International Airport.
Escape Room Herndon will be similar to Escape Room RVA, which Czarda opened in 2015. For $25 a person, groups enter a themed room filled with clues and puzzles they navigate to “escape.” Popular with young people and for company outings, escape rooms have caught on across the country, and Richmond has embraced the model, Czarda said.
“We have 3,000 to 4,000 players a month,” Czarda said of his four-room operation in Richmond. “Every month is busier than the month before.”
Czarda, a George Mason University alum, said there is little to no competition in Northern Virginia. He said unlike his 3,500-square-foot Richmond shop underneath a Martin’s grocery store, Escape Room Herndon is in a traditional retail space and will have five rooms.
He said Herndon was attractive because, as a community, it is highly educated with high incomes to match. Based on the success he has had in Richmond, Czarda doesn’t plan to change his business model, though he does plan to build sturdier props.
“It’s amazing how excited players can break things,” he said.
Czarda said it is expected to cost about $130,000 to open Escape Room Herndon. The company is financing the expansion itself and likely won’t stop with two locations.
“We’re looking at North Carolina sites right now,” Czarda said.
Larry Volz, whose escape rooms scenarios include defusing a bomb.
As Czarda casts his eyes on potential new locations, another Richmond escape room owner is expanding locally and bringing the ideas of other puzzle masters to the area.
Real Escape Room Richmond moved this month from Midlothian Turnpike to 4118 Fitzhugh Ave., just off Broad Street between Scott’s Addition and Willow Lawn.
Owner Larry Volz, a trained hypnotist and magician, said the new 2,500-square-foot space will help him keep up with demand.
“The space wasn’t enough for us,” he said. “We’ve got more people doing it than we had room for.”
Volz’s new West End location has five rooms – two more than Real Escape Room Richmond’s former space. Some of those rooms will be used to host games designed by other puzzle-makers. In April, Volz will open The Hangover room, which is loosely based on the 2009 comedy film of the same name and was designed by Escape Room Tucson.
Josh Czarda (ZAR’-dah) launched Escape Room RVA as a spinoff of his Ravenchase Adventures, another live puzzle venture. Photos by Michael Thompson.
Having unlocked the Richmond market, one local live-action puzzle venture hopes to put Northern Virginia under its spell, while another has expanded to a new location near Willow Lawn.
Ravenchase Adventures, which operates Escape Room RVA in the Village Shopping Center, has plans to open Escape Room Herndon in May. Owner Josh Czarda said he has leased a 4,500-square-foot space in a shopping center in Herndon, which is west of Washington, D.C., near Dulles International Airport.
Escape Room Herndon will be similar to Escape Room RVA, which Czarda opened in 2015. For $25 a person, groups enter a themed room filled with clues and puzzles they navigate to “escape.” Popular with young people and for company outings, escape rooms have caught on across the country, and Richmond has embraced the model, Czarda said.
“We have 3,000 to 4,000 players a month,” Czarda said of his four-room operation in Richmond. “Every month is busier than the month before.”
Czarda, a George Mason University alum, said there is little to no competition in Northern Virginia. He said unlike his 3,500-square-foot Richmond shop underneath a Martin’s grocery store, Escape Room Herndon is in a traditional retail space and will have five rooms.
He said Herndon was attractive because, as a community, it is highly educated with high incomes to match. Based on the success he has had in Richmond, Czarda doesn’t plan to change his business model, though he does plan to build sturdier props.
“It’s amazing how excited players can break things,” he said.
Czarda said it is expected to cost about $130,000 to open Escape Room Herndon. The company is financing the expansion itself and likely won’t stop with two locations.
“We’re looking at North Carolina sites right now,” Czarda said.
Larry Volz, whose escape rooms scenarios include defusing a bomb.
As Czarda casts his eyes on potential new locations, another Richmond escape room owner is expanding locally and bringing the ideas of other puzzle masters to the area.
Real Escape Room Richmond moved this month from Midlothian Turnpike to 4118 Fitzhugh Ave., just off Broad Street between Scott’s Addition and Willow Lawn.
Owner Larry Volz, a trained hypnotist and magician, said the new 2,500-square-foot space will help him keep up with demand.
“The space wasn’t enough for us,” he said. “We’ve got more people doing it than we had room for.”
Volz’s new West End location has five rooms – two more than Real Escape Room Richmond’s former space. Some of those rooms will be used to host games designed by other puzzle-makers. In April, Volz will open The Hangover room, which is loosely based on the 2009 comedy film of the same name and was designed by Escape Room Tucson.