One of the nation's last drive-ins is just 30 minutes from Richmond
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The Goochland Drive-in, which opened the first weekend in April for the 2025 season. Image: Courtesy of John Heidel
John Heidel didn't set out in life to run a drive-in theater.
Why it matters: Now he owns one of the few hundred still around nationwide, just 30 minutes west of Richmond.
The big picture: The idea for the Goochland Drive-In, which is only weeks into the 2025 season, began 16 years ago — when all Heidel and his wife wanted to do was go to the movies with their two young children, and stay through the full showing.
- That, he tells Axios, was impossible. The family would grab tickets for a show at Regal Short Pump, their go-to theater, and inevitably, one parent would spend most of the film in the parking lot with their youngest.
- So he decided to open a retro, family-friendly movie option: a drive-in, which most banks he talked to did not think was a sound business idea.
- But he persevered, and in 2009, the drive-in opened to a sold-out crowd.
Zoom in: The Goochland Drive-in sits midway between Richmond and Charlottesville and shows movies Friday and Saturday nights when kids are in school (then has expanded hours for when they're not).
- Today, it boasts two screens: the main one, which is a traditional drive-in set up, and a smaller screen on "The Grove," where families or couples can watch on the lawn.
- The flicks are usually first-run, like "Minecraft" and "Snow White" or fun-themed nights, like an all-night Monster Movie Marathon around Halloween.
The drive-in is designed with families in mind, Heidel tells Axios. To him, that means offering extras, like a kids playground and being pet-friendly.
- Affordability is also key, which is why the drive-in is priced by the car-load, or $30 for up to seven people.
- The food menu is known for being budget and family-friendly. Most items are $5 or less, sodas top out at $3 with refills available for $1, and there are vegan and gluten-free options.
- "It's not quite as cheap as a Costco hot dog, but we try to keep things priced low," he tells Axios.
If you go: Both screens are having special double features this weekend, including "Minecraft" and "The King of Kings." That's two movies for the price of one.
- Or check out next weekend's special 20th anniversary screening of "Star Wars Revenge of the Sith."
- Costumes are encouraged and "characters from a galaxy far, far away" will be among the crowd and available for pictures.