Escape Adventures at the Texas Renaissance Festival

2023 brings four escape adventures to the Texas Renaissance Festival, in a giant, Air-Conditioned location! Booth 87 at the entrance to the Enchanted Forest.

“Airy Botter & the Sorcery School Headmaster’s Office!”

Your Headmaster ‘Almost Stumbledoor’ needs your help! The school is being attacked by non-copyright-infringing dark forces, and you must get word to the Department of Sorcery! Can you rescue Boarcorn’s Academy in time?!

Returning to TRF, this parody of a fairly well-known book & movie franchise is an exciting, fun introduction to escape rooms, or a quick challenging diversion for seasoned ‘escape artists!’ 20 minutes/$14.99 per person/2 people minimum/8 people maximum, difficulty 3/5. For “Private Sessions” it is a 4-ticket minimum per room.

“Airy Botter & the Alchemist’s Lab”

Professor Plumbum has lost his mind, and is going to set off an “Alchemy Bomb” using the Philosopher’s Kidney Stone to turn the world’s gold into lead! Using magic and technology, can you save the world’s economy (and jewelry)?

This ‘Airy Botter’ adventure takes you to London in 1899 where you and your team of sorcerers must use your wits and magic to find the keys which will defuse Plumbum’s bomb!
30 minutes/$19.99 per person/2 people minimum/8 people maximum, difficulty 4/5. For “Private Sessions” it is a 4-ticket minimum per room.

“The Pirates’ dilemma”

Your plucky band of privateers are enjoying their ill-gotten gains in your hideout when your Captain sends word the King’s Guard are attempting to break in and take you all to the Tower of London! Can you hide all the rum bottles and doubloons in their secret hidey-holes before the soldiers defeat your security and catch you red-handed?

On its own, or as half of the pair of competition escape adventures, this immersive 16th Century London room will challenge you to solve codes, discover hidden compartments, and show the King’s Guard you’re all just friendly folk and completely innocent of wrongdoing!
30 minutes/$19.99 per person/2 people minimum/8 people maximum, difficulty 4/5. Can be played either as a competition with the King’s Guard Adventure, or on its own. For “Private Sessions” it is a 4-ticket minimum per room.

NEW! “The King’s Guard”

As soldiers representing His Majesty the King, you are charged with upholding the law. You have been sent to a dark, foreboding alleyway in London, outside the reinforced door to a hideout of notorious privateers accused of unsanctioned piracy. Your job is to defeat their security and unlock the door, so you all can arrest the criminals, and confiscate their treasures!

On its own, or as half of the pair of competition escape adventures, this immersive 16th Century London alleyway will challenge you to solve codes, defeat security defenses, and show the pirates they can’t get away with stealing (if they’re not going to share with the King)!
30 minutes/$19.99 per person/2 people minimum/8 people maximum, difficulty 4/5. Can be played either as a competition with the Pirates’ Dilemma Adventure, or on its own. For “Private Sessions” it is a 4-ticket minimum per room.

Competition rooms:

“The King’s Guard” & “The Pirates’ Dilemma” rooms can be played by two groups in competition: both groups will start at the same time, with 30 minutes maximum on the timer. If the Guard can get into the Pirate hideout before the pirates finish hiding their booty, the Guards win. If the Pirates can hide everything first, they win.

The ‘losing’ team will still be allowed the rest of the time left on their clock to solve their puzzles… but they’ll not get bragging rights at the end. If you wish to compete with people you know, you’ll need to book both rooms at the same time, 2 people minimum per adventure room, 8 people maximum per room. For “Private Sessions” it is a 4-ticket minimum per room.

Combining different styles of puzzles, ciphers, and clever ‘magical’ devices, we’ve created a great way immerse your family or group, of up to 8 people, in the world of Escape Adventures! It’s something new and different to add into your festival day, outside of great stage shows, delicious food, and of course, the joust!

‘The puzzles are very clever and the theme is done so well!’

—Glam Adelaide Magazine

Ticketing is online for pre-paid reservations, or at the door. We recommend booking in advance, as ‘prime-time’ slots sell out days or weeks ahead of time. Your entire group will need to arrive no later than 15 minutes before your scheduled time, for introductions and rules. IMPORTANT: If you’re late, you will either forfeit your session time, or have your time available on the clock reduced.

Location: We’re now at booth 87, at the entrance to the Enchanted Forest of Sherwood, just past the giant copper-roofed slide.

These escape rooms are for folks 15+ in age. Though the content is not “PG-13,” per se, the difficulty level and nature/theme of the puzzle design is constructed for the non-child crowd. Also, at least one paying adult parent or guardian must be in the room with those 15 – 17.

Also, be as sober as possible—inebriated guests will be asked to leave, with no refunds. Drunk guests who break puzzles/props may incur a $200 charge on their credit cards.

Escape Adventures: Where the elite meet to beat the heat, and compete! Sweet!

For General Admission Group Tickets CLICK HERE!
(You will likely be grouped with other people to do the room session, to fill the maximum of 8 people. Minimum of 2 tickets for your group. Available for prime-time sessions during the day.)

For Private Group Tickets CLICK HERE!
(You will NOT be grouped with other faire guests — it’s just you and your group. Minimum of 4 tickets must be purchased to reserve session. Available for the first sessions of the day and some evening sessions only. There is a $5 surcharge per person for these sessions.

Ticketing is online for pre-paid reservations, or at the door. We recommend booking in advance, as ‘prime-time’ slots sell out days or weeks ahead of time.

Your entire group will need to arrive no later than 15 minutes before your scheduled time, for introductions and rules. IMPORTANT: If you’re late, you will either forfeit your session time, or have your time available on the clock reduced.

These escape rooms are for folks 15+ in age. Though the content is not “PG-13,” per se, the difficulty level and nature/theme of the puzzle design is constructed for the non-child crowd. Also, at least one paying adult parent or guardian must be in the room with those aged 15-17.

Also, be as sober as possible—inebriated guests will be asked to leave, with no refunds. Drunk guests who break puzzles/props may incur a $200 charge on their credit cards.

Base cost for the 20-minute Airy Botter Sorcery School adventure is $14.99 per person, and the 30-minute adventures are $19.99 per person, plus tax and fees, 2-person minimum purchase (8 people max), for the public sessions (where you may be grouped with other guests), and 4-ticket minimum for the “Private Sessions” in the early mornings and early evenings, which also have a $5/per person surcharge.

You can also add people later in-person at the room if space is available (up to the max 8).

HEY! Really important: These tickets are a separate admission from the General Admission Festival tickets. Be SURE you’ve bought your festival tickets first, to be positive you can get in, and then buy your Escape Adventure tickets!

The following reviews are from a 2020 “Airy Botter” limited run at the Adelaide & Perth Australia “Fringe Festivals,” the two largest international arts festivals in the Southern Hemisphere. Note that the presentation at TRF is slightly different than it was at these festivals.

5 Stars! Guaranteed to be a spellbinding experience!

Calling all wizards! Almost Stumbledoor needs your help at Airy Botter & The Sorcery School Headmaster’s Office Escape Room, to save the children. Now whilst this may sound like it resembles the ‘he who shall not be mentioned’ franchise, it is nothing of the sort:  it is much better.

With magic all over the room there is plenty to work on and as always your communication skills will be a valuable asset if you use them correctly.

What is most enjoyable about this experience is the opportunity to work with complete strangers in a pretty intense environment. If working with friends is more your style there is also the opportunity to book out a session with a group of 8 people. Now whilst I know that British wizard has all the young children loving him, Almost Stumbledoor states that rescuing the school is only for mature wizards so please take note that the Escape room is only for Witches and Wizards aged 15+

Whilst I can’t give anything away, I will say that the puzzles are very clever and the theme is done so well. Richard is definitely a very clever man and a very professional and engaging host. Definitely worth experiencing whether it be your first or tenth time participating in an escape room.
Review by Tara Forbes-Godfrey for Glam Adelaide Magazine

4 Stars! A thrilling combination of hi-tech wizardry and magical parody

Richard Maritzer has been appearing at the Adelaide Fringe for more than a decade as a member of the Sound & Fury comedy troupe. For the last few years, he’s also brought a travelling escape room and this year that side gig has become his main show.

But in his role as escape room host, he’s still first and foremost an actor. From the moment he greets us it’s clear that he’s going to bring a sense of theatre to the experience, as well as a healthy dose of humour. He knows that this is entertainment, and he makes sure not to take it too seriously.

While many hosts disappear after explaining the rules and basic theme, Maritzer stays in the room with us for the entire hour, inhabiting his role as ‘Almost Stumbledoor’ in an entertaining fashion without being overbearing. His presence means that he’s able to guide us with a gentle hand as we tackle a series of puzzles that are notable as much for their inventiveness as their variety.

Maritzer’s escape rooms have always used plenty of gadgets, incorporating WiFi connectivity to trigger reactions in seemingly unrelated objects. It’s a perfect fit for the magical theme of this room, which is filled with plenty of humour as we attempt to save a fictional wizardry school from non-copyright-infringing dark forces. And while some of his past creations have been fiendishly difficult and relied on obtuse clues, this is by far the most approachable. As a result it’s tough without being impossible, and one of the most satisfying escape rooms in Adelaide.
Review by Alexis Buxton-Collins for Fest Magazine

Cleverly executed to bring maximum satisfaction!

I’m loving having more shows at the charming Girls School in Perth’s CBD, so I was really looking forward to the sell-out show (and very long titled) Airy Botter & The Sorcery School Headmaster’s Office Escape Room.

If you have never done an escape room, then this is a terrific introduction and it will leave you wanting more of the experience. If you know how escape rooms work, then expect much of the same formula of tricky riddles, hidden clues, and working together as a team to solve impossible puzzles and beat the pesky clock: often not at easy feat.

A totally immersive experience in an atmospheric room decked out in a Harry Potter theme, with cool gadgets that make quirky noises and ‘bing’ open surprisingly to reward your efforts, it’s a fun challenge for sure.

Our group of ten – most of whom were strangers who had just met on the night – worked tirelessly in turns on one of the clues that had us stumped which meant we didn’t beat the clock. So sad. Having said that, other teams have beaten the clock and worked through every riddle to solve the caper.

Most nights are sold out so get in quick to be drawn into this titillating adventure! 
Review by Annette McCubbin for Cream Magazine (Perth, Western Australia)

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The TRF Escape Room