Guard Up Family Swordsmanship & NERF

Had no idea what to expect as my wife came across this but my 8yo special needs son had a TOTAL blast here. We did a Ninja birthday party and for a whole hour Dan played the part of the «bad guy» against 9 kid ninjas. It was a lot of fun. Dedicated party room too. Shout out to Dan who was a great sport with all the kids. My son said it was his best birthday party EVER.

I can not speak to the class instruction but we had a birthday party here for my 8 year old and could not have been happier. We had a kid or two with sensory or spectrum issues and I was worried, but they were able to come and go from the play venue if they were overwhelmed which was awesome. Our leader guy was safety aware and VERY entertaining. The costumes and imagery provided a splendid atmosphere and the kids ate it up.
I would highly recommend this as a fun, active, special occasion event for a smallish group of kiddos. We will be back.

I am not sure how to rate this place because there is nothing like it. It’s like King Richard’s Faire had an outlet store, but with every other sort of outside the normal football/​lacrosse/​hockey/​baseball thrown in. It’s for kids that don’t mind being outside the box. It embraces unconventional programming and from what I saw the kids were having lots of fun.
Staff was friendly and super helpful. General space and bathrooms clean.
This place made me a little sad. Sad that a place didn’t exist for me when I was younger. Somewhere I could hang out with kids that liked science fiction and fantasy role playing.

I am also surprised by the reviews here for guard-​up.
I can only assume that it’s because they are old reviews and things have gotten better.
Also kids birthday parties in general are a scam everywhere. Buy a cake, let them throw waterballoons in your backyard. The kids don’t care either way. The sooner we all get on-​board with this, the better.
But my review is about the classes. I have had a great experience so far. I’ve been looking for activities that suit my 9 year old son’s temperament and engage his imagination.
I found them through a promotion on Boston Central. I got a call from Elise shortly after. She asked me detailed questions about what my son was into, what video games he played and what my goals were for him, in order to find the right class for him. Because of my schedule I took her second choice for him points and power.
When I walked in a genuinely friendly guy named Chris introduced himself and showed us around. During class Brad, one of the Directors, also very open and friendly, asked about my son and made sure to engage with him after class. He also followed up with me later to find a better class for him. While I realise they just want us to join, I have never had this level of personalization at the various martial arts and dance schools my kids have tried.
We tried the Nerf class a couple of days later. This was much better. The teacher Chris is calm funny intelligent and speaks respectfully to the kids, a seemingly out of style technique these days.
Definitely check this place out if you have an active and imaginative kid.

Can’t say enough positive things about the camps Guard Up run. They are compassionate, innovative, engaging, and creative people who create a space for kids to grow and shine. My son waits the whole year for his time at camp. He has made friends with many other campers and that is very different from his school life where his unique sense of humor and individualism is not celebrated the way the counselors and directors do. At the same time he is having a blast, he is surrounded by people emphasizing collaboration, honesty, good sportsmanship, and integrity. He comes home feeling like he is appreciated by the adults and valued among his peers.

I’m not impressed. We had a birthday party for our 5 yr old today. The pictures show castles, costumes, props, sets. In fact, there are 2 young people leading the kids in turns ‘fighting’ them with nerf swords on a gym mat. There wasn’t a castle/​dragon, set or anything– even the walls were blank white– not like in the pictures that show stonewalls, etc. They seem efficient with online forms, etc, but it’s just a warehouse– it was definitely overpriced for a 90 minute party. They seemed to rush us through it. Overall, I was disappointed and wouldn’t have a party here again.

Wow! I’m shocked on the low ratings for Guard Up! We went here last night with a huge group of about 20 adults all over the age of 30 and we had the time of our life!
I actually met the woman who works there Lisa Wagner at Boston Medical Center’s Halloweenfest when I was volunteering at a Booth that «Guard Up» had. They were promoting a Halloween special event for a «Zombie Invasion».
This would be right up my alley. I run a horror group with over 175 people and I thought it would be a wonderful idea. Lisa told me they were only going to do it for the month of October. That was a bummer to me considering my group was booked up for the entire month being this is the best month for a horror group to get their «spook on».
So we exchanged emails/​phone numbers and she told me she’d see what she can do. I never thought I’d hear from her again. Well, to my surprise, I got an email in January asking if I’d like to have a Zombie Invasion for my group in March!
She worked with me for the next few months to get it all together and she was absolutely fantastic from beginning to end!!!
The zombie invasion was more than my group ever expected. They all had the time of their lives! We hope it comes back in October so we can definitely do it again. It was scary, fun and a total workout.
Everyone at Guard Up! went above and beyond to keep my entire group happy. They were so professional and kind. They really were into the zombie game. WE LOVED IT! They did a fantastic job. I cannot say enough nice things about this place.
I’m definitely going back not just for the zombie invasion, but for some fencing or something else!!! They deserve 100’s of stars. not just 5!

Guard Up calls themselves a «family swordsmanship» school. It’s a small building with a small parking lot down the Middlesex Turnpike from Burlington Mall. They offer youth, teen and adult classes in Japanese Kendo and fencing. They also host youth birthday parties, which is how I was introduced to this place. I can’t speak for the sword demonstrations and classes, not having experienced them myself, but my kid attended a 7-​year old’s party here so I can talk about the kids birthday package.
About this, I’m a bit torn. On one hand Guard Up is a unique and interesting birthday party experience. Up to 12 kids are handed various Nerf-​style swords, and they play with an instructor who devises 5 – 10 minute games, like «I’m a monster and you guys have to slay me». When they get tired of that one, he switches to «I’m a lion and you guys have to slay me, but only 6 at a time». Those not participating can watch the carnage through a plexiglass window in the hall wall. They get 45 minutes in the padded play area, then you go to the party room (which is permanently decorated for birthdays). You have to provide your own food and everything else, because you won’t get much attention from the staff here. The birthdays are just sort of an add-​on to the school, I’m afraid.
When I think about it, $ 250+ is pricey for rent-​a-​fun-​uncle and some Nerf swords and a room. The staff was not especially helpful, and pretty much disappeared after the swordplay time (though I think it was closing time). But the kids had a blast, so it’s hard to argue with what they provide. If your son (or daughter) just has to slash something for his birthday, this is not a bad choice.

MY son went here for a year. He had fun in the class but mostly they spent the time running around making noise– and hitting each other. I didnt see him ‘grow and learn’ like the salesperson said he would– they had mutliple teachers (almost like they couldnt fill the slot with a permanent teacher). IT wasnt cheap– but they offer that kids can go to more then one class a week under the same rate.
I recenlty called them to ask a question– their receptionist didnt put me on hold-​I heard her entire conversation., along with the owners voice (that I recognized) saying’just make something up– its a parent– yu never want to get in coversations with them;.Then got ‘Lisa’ on the phone so sounded so sicky sweet and condescending I wanted to whack her through the phone. NO need to fake the niceness– I heard it all before you came on the line.
Tacky. Send your kid to theatre classes instaed of this King Richards wanna be.