We checked 8 ice rinks near Islington, from Alexandra Palace to Somerset House, for 2026 dates, prices and age rules. Updated November 2026.

There are 8 ice rinks within easy reach of Islington in winter 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with dates, prices and age rules. Most people land on Alexandra Palace, a bus ride from Finsbury Park, Lee Valley Ice Centre, direct on the 56 from Angel, or Somerset House, direct on the 341. Every entry was checked against the venue’s own site on 5 November 2026.

We have not skated at any of these for this guide, and nothing here is a review. The borough no longer has a rink of its own, so the list starts with the two open all year. Seasonal rinks change their prices by day and time, so what you pay when you book may differ.

Open all year, north and east

1. Alexandra Palace Ice Rink

An indoor rink at Alexandra Palace, run by the charity that looks after the palace and park. The W3 bus from Finsbury Park stops at a stop called Alexandra Palace Ice Rink, and Great Northern trains run from Finsbury Park to Alexandra Palace station.

Term-time weekday sessions last two hours, apart from the last one of the day, and weekend and holiday sessions last 90 minutes. It is closed for public skating from Friday 6 to Monday 9 November for the Fireworks and Drone Festival.

The Festive Skate adds a Christmas tree, lights, festive music and “a sprinkle of falling snow”. Its prices were not on the event page on 5 November, so check at booking.

The minimum age for it is three.

Open all year; Mon 11am to 4.30pm, Tue 1.15pm to 5pm, Wed and Thu 11am to 5pm, Fri 1.15pm to 5pm, Sat and Sun 11am to 4.30pm; closed to the public 6 to 9 November; Festive Skate 9 December 2026 to 4 January 2027
Price off peak / peak: standard £11.75 / £12.75; under 12 and over 65 £10.50 / £11.50; under 5 £7.75 / £8.75; spectator £2.50 / £3; skate aid £7.50
Booking online advised; card only in person
Call 020 8365 4343
Address Alexandra Palace Way, N22 7AY
Website alexandrapalace.com/the-ice-rink/book-a-skate
Good for indoor, all year, Festive Skate, skate aids, W3 bus to the rink

2. Lee Valley Ice Centre

Two Olympic-size rinks under one roof on Lea Bridge Road, run by Better, which calls it “one of the largest ice skating venues in the south”. Public skating runs daily alongside hockey and figure skating.

The 56 bus runs direct from Angel and Essex Road station to a stop named Lee Valley Ice Centre. Skate hire is included in the public session price.

Rink users can claim up to four hours’ free parking.

Open all year; centre Mon to Fri 6am to 11pm, Sat 6am to 10pm, Sun 6am to 8pm; public sessions as timetabled
Price public skate adult £16, junior £13, skate hire included; skate aid £5; spectator £3
Booking online, as timetabled
Address Lea Bridge Road, E10 7QL
Website better.org.uk/leisure-centre/lee-valley/ice-centre
Good for indoor, all year, two rinks, free parking for skaters, 56 bus to the door

3. Queens, Bayswater

An indoor rink on Queensway that says it is “the oldest surviving ice-skating rink in London”, open since 1930, with bowling and darts in the same building. It says you can usually walk in to a public session, but that booking online is always cheaper.

Skates and penguin skate aids are for hire. From Caledonian Road, Holloway Road or Finsbury Park, take the Piccadilly line to Holborn and change to the Central line for Queensway.

Open all year; session times in the timetable on its site; Late Skate every night from 9pm
Price from £8 Monday and Tuesday; Late Skate from £10; off peak from £11.75; peak from £13.75
Booking online, cheaper than on the door
Call 020 7229 0172
Address 17 Queensway, W2 4QP
Website queens.london/skating
Good for indoor, all year, late sessions, lessons, bowling in the same building

Christmas rinks in central London

4. Skate at Somerset House

The rink in Somerset House’s 18th-century courtyard, beneath a 40ft Christmas tree. It runs to 10 January 2027, the latest finish of any seasonal rink here.

The 341 bus runs direct from Essex Road station and Angel to Aldwych, and the 91 runs there from Caledonian Road station. Family tickets save 10%.

Concession tickets save 20% at 11am to 2pm sessions on some November and January weekdays, and at all Relaxed Sessions. They are for people on Universal Credit, Pension Credit or PIP, Blue Light Card holders and full-time students.

Skate Lates music nights start on 12 November. Entry to the courtyard is free if you only want to watch.

Open 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027; 45-minute sessions, usually from 11am to 9.45pm, with 9am, 10am and 10pm sessions on selected dates; 24 December last session 5pm; closed 25 December; 26 December and 1 January from 12pm; 31 December last session 5pm
Price adults £13 to £28.50; children £11 to £15; plus a £1.50 fee a ticket
Booking online or 0343 208 1497
Address Strand, WC2R 1LA
Website somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/skate-somerset-house
Good for Skate Lates, lessons, relaxed sessions, wheelchair users, direct bus from Angel

5. Skate Leicester Square

Underbelly’s circular open-air rink in the middle of Leicester Square, with a seasonal bar and Christmas market stalls beside it. It is open now.

The Piccadilly line runs direct from Finsbury Park, Arsenal, Holloway Road and Caledonian Road, and Northern line trains on the Charing Cross branch run direct from Archway and Tufnell Park. From Angel, change at King’s Cross St Pancras.

Sessions last 45 minutes. Under-12s must be with a responsible adult, and under-3s are not allowed on the ice.

Its booking page adds a £3 transaction fee to the “from” price, while another part of the site says there are no booking fees, so check the total before you pay.

Open 31 October 2026 to 3 January 2027; to 26 November Mon to Fri 12pm to 10pm, Sat and Sun 10am to 10pm; from 27 November daily 10am to 10pm; 24 December to 6pm; closed 25 December; 26 December and 1 January from 12pm
Price from £7.60, plus a £3 transaction fee (booking page, 5 November)
Booking online recommended; tickets also on the day, card only
Address Leicester Square, WC2H 7LU
Website skateleicestersquare.co.uk
Good for open now, direct Piccadilly line, Christmas market, wheelchair users

6. Ice skating at Hyde Park Winter Wonderland

Winter Wonderland calls this “the UK’s largest open-air ice rink”, built around the bandstand in Hyde Park. The Piccadilly line runs direct from Finsbury Park, Arsenal, Holloway Road and Caledonian Road to Hyde Park Corner.

Sessions last 45 minutes and skaters should arrive 20 minutes early. Winter Wonderland does not recommend skating for those aged 3 and under, and ages 3 to 12 must be with an adult.

Bags go in a cloakroom at £2 an item. There are ramps on and off the rink, and electric wheelchairs can go on with the motor off.

Open 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price adult advance £12.65 off peak, £17.05 standard, £19.25 peak (£2 more on the day); child advance £9.35, £11.55, £13.75; family advance £37.40, £46.20, £55
Booking online in advance is cheaper, 45-minute sessions
Address Hyde Park, London
Website hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/attraction/ice-skating
Good for wheelchair users, family tickets, funfair day out

A longer trip, east and south

7. Winter Magic on Ice, Tower Hamlets

A covered seasonal rink on Wennington Green in Old Ford, with a funfair and Santa’s grotto on the same site. It opens later than the others, on 12 December.

Sessions last 45 minutes, start at half past each hour and include skates. Under-3s are not allowed on the ice, and skating aids cost £5 on site, first come, first served.

Site entry is £1 a person, except for under-2s, and comes with a £1 voucher to spend inside. The Hammersmith and City line runs from King’s Cross St Pancras to Mile End, and Wennington Green is north of the station along Grove Road.

Open 12 December 2026 to 3 January 2027; weekdays 4pm to 9pm; weekends 12pm to 9pm; closed 25 December
Price adult (16 and over) £17; child (3 to 15) £13; family of four £55; booking fee 62p to £2.28 a ticket type; prices can vary by date
Booking online
Address Wennington Green, E3 5TD
Website towerhamletswintermagic.co.uk
Good for covered rink, skates included, funfair, Santa's grotto

8. Glide at Battersea Power Station

Three interconnecting rinks and a 200-metre skate trail beside the Thames, which the power station bills as London’s only riverside rink with a skate trail. There are vintage fairground rides and food stalls off the ice.

Battersea Power Station has its own Northern line station. From Angel, take a southbound train to Kennington and change there for Battersea.

Glide prices each session separately and we could not read a flat price list on its site on 5 November, so check the booking page.

Open 6 November 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price varies by session, shown at booking
Booking online
Address Battersea Power Station, SW11 8DD
Website glidebatterseapowerstation.co.uk
Good for skate trail, riverside, fairground rides, penguin skate aids

Not ice, and not coming back

The Sobell Leisure Centre on Hornsey Road is still listed in some older guides as an ice rink, but the rink has gone. It opened in 1973. The council says a burst Thames Water main flooded the whole ground floor in August 2022, and its consultation proposed not reinstating the rink. A soft-play zone opened in its place in 2024, the Camden New Journal reported, after skaters had campaigned to save it. Better’s page for the centre listed no skating on 5 November.

King’s Cross, just over the borough boundary, has wheels rather than ice this Christmas. The Remixed Roller Rink in Lewis Cubitt Square runs from 26 November to 22 December, 11am to 8pm, at £12 on weekdays and £14.95 at weekends. Its own page refused our automated check on 5 November, so those figures are from a reading by our sister title Camden Today on 1 November.

The Natural History Museum rink has closed for good: the museum says the gardens it stood on are now a hub for urban wildlife. We will add any rink in the borough if dates are announced.

How we chose

These are the rinks people around Islington are most likely to reach for, chosen on the public record rather than on taste: real ice, a 2026 season or an all-year timetable, and details published by the operator. Dates, prices and rules come from each rink’s own website or booking page, read on 5 November 2026. Bus routes were checked against Transport for London’s route data. Other travel notes are our own, so check the route before you set off. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@islingtontoday.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@islingtontoday.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.

For more on Christmas locally, see Christmas lights switch-on, Christmas markets, pantomime and Christmas shows, concerts and carols, Christmas dinner in Islington, Christmas travel and what’s on in Islington this month. For the rest of the year, see things to do in Islington and our local directory.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an ice rink in Islington?

No. The borough’s rink at the Sobell Leisure Centre on Hornsey Road was damaged by a flood in August 2022 and was not rebuilt. A soft-play zone opened in its place in 2024. We found no pop-up rink in Islington for winter 2026. The nearest options are Alexandra Palace, on the W3 bus from Finsbury Park, and Lee Valley Ice Centre, on the 56 bus from Angel.

What is the cheapest ice skating near Islington?

Skate Leicester Square’s booking page lists tickets from £7.60 plus a £3 transaction fee, and Queens in Bayswater has Monday and Tuesday sessions from £8. Alexandra Palace’s standard ticket is £11.75 off peak. Lee Valley Ice Centre charges £16 for adults and £13 for juniors, with skate hire included.

How much is ice skating at Somerset House in 2026?

Adults pay £13 to £28.50 and children £11 to £15, plus a £1.50 fee on each ticket. The rink runs from 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027 and is closed on Christmas Day.