Now you can be the main character in your very own adventurous escape.
Bayside will be getting its very first real-life, themed “escape room” with the arrival of Challenge Escape Rooms on June 19.
New York City schoolteacher Chris Purcell and his wife, Janice Galizia, a psychologist with experience being involved in live theater, decided to open Challenge Escape Rooms on 40-18 Bell Blvd. after experiencing one for the first time only two months ago.
Galizia’s sister, Lauren, is one of the owners of their unique enterprise, and all three design the fantasy challenge themselves. A place in one of the rooms can be booked at www.challengeescaperooms.com or by calling 516-888-0202, and for a limited time customers can use promo code “CHALLENGE” when booking online for 25 percent off the admittance fee.
Escape rooms were popularized in Europe and Asia, with one company from Japan claiming to have been the first to open one in 2007. While the United States has only recently seen escape rooms gain popularity on its shores, they have quickly proliferated to become a trendy weekend activity for couples and groups of friends.
Purcell said that being trapped together in an impossible situation can be a great team-building exercise for different groups of people, even strangers.
“You come out of it bonded by what you went through,” said Purcell. “Whether you win or lose, no matter what the result is, it focuses on collaborating with your friends, family, strangers, to figure out this challenge.”
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