We checked 8 ice rinks near Crouch End, from Ally Pally at £11.75 to Somerset House, for 2026 dates, prices and rules. Updated November 2026.
There are 8 ice rinks within reach of Crouch End in winter 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with dates, prices and rules. Alexandra Palace is closest and open all year, Lee Valley Ice Centre has two Olympic-size rinks, and Skate Leicester Square starts lowest.
Seasonal rinks change their prices by day and time, so what you pay when you book may differ.
On the doorstep
1. Alexandra Palace Ice Rink
An indoor rink at Alexandra Palace, run by the charity that looks after the palace and park, which says it was “voted the UK’s number 1 ice rink in 2023” and has regular skaters “aged 3 to 90”. The W3 bus from Finsbury Park stops at Alexandra Palace Ice Rink, and the W7 links Crouch End with Finsbury Park and Muswell Hill Broadway.
Term-time weekday sessions last two hours (the last one an hour and a half), and weekend and holiday sessions an hour and a half; the Monday 3.30pm session runs for one hour until the Festive Skate. Anyone going in with skaters but not skating needs a spectator ticket, and in-person sales are card only.
Skate aids can no longer be booked online and go first come, first served at the rink. The Festive Skate, from 9 December 2026 to 4 January 2027, adds a Christmas tree, lights, festive music and “a sprinkle of falling snow”; its prices show only at booking.
Our Christmas at Ally Pally page covers Cinderella On Ice and the grotto.
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 in advance 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, W3 bus to the rink, essential companion tickets, Festive Skate
A short trip from Crouch End
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, and there are disco sessions, a Coffee Club on the ice and Learn to Skate courses.
Skate hire is included in the public session price. Rink users get up to four hours’ free parking by entering their registration at reception.
Lea Bridge station is on the line from Tottenham Hale, which the Victoria line reaches from Finsbury Park and Seven Sisters.
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; holiday skate family (two adults and two children, or one and three) £52.50; disco adult £17, child £14; 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, lessons
3. Brent Cross On Ice
A seasonal rink at Brent Cross Shopping Centre, run by On Ice, with free parking at the centre. Sessions are 45 minutes, start on the hour and are followed by 15 minutes of resurfacing, and On Ice asks skaters to arrive 20 minutes early.
The minimum age is three and helmets can be rented. Penguin skate aids are for under-10s shorter than 110cm and numbers are limited.
Brent Cross station is on the Northern line’s Edgware branch, so from Highgate you change at Camden Town. It is open now.
Open to 3 January 2027; Mon to Fri 3pm to 9pm, Sat and Sun 10am to 9pm; school holidays 10am to 9pm; Christmas Eve 10am to 6pm; closed Christmas Day; Boxing Day and New Year's Day 12pm to 7pm; New Year's Eve 10am to 7pm
Price adult £15; child (12 and under) £13; family of four £50; student £13 at the box office; season pass £250; skate aid £5
Booking online, 45-minute sessions
Call 020 8163 9097
Address Prince Charles Drive, Hendon, NW4 3FP
Website onice.co.uk/locations/brent-cross
Good for open now, free parking, penguin skate aids
Central London, by Tube
4. 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. Leicester Square station is on the Piccadilly line from Finsbury Park, Turnpike Lane and Wood Green, and on the Northern line from Highgate.
The booking page listed tickets “from £7.60”, plus a £3 transaction fee, on 4 November, the lowest start price of any rink here; prices change between sessions.
Open 31 October 2026 to 3 January 2027; standard hours 10am to 10pm, first session 10.15am, last session 9.15pm
Price from £7.60, plus a £3 transaction fee (booking page, 4 November)
Booking online
Address Leicester Square, WC2H
Website skateleicestersquare.co.uk
Good for lowest start price, open now, Christmas market, direct Tube
5. Skate at Somerset House
The rink in Somerset House’s 18th-century Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court, under a 40ft Christmas tree.
It runs to 10 January 2027, the latest finish of any seasonal rink in this guide. Skate Lates music nights run from Thursday 12 November with sessions from 8pm, there is a K-pop Party on 23 November, and 90-minute Extended Skate Sessions run on 11, 17 and 23 November.
Skate School, a Kids Skate Club and Relaxed Skate sessions are also listed, and Somerset House says wheelchair users are welcome at any time. Concessions cover full-time students, NHS staff and PIP recipients.
Covent Garden, on the Piccadilly line, is the walk down to the Strand.
Open 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027
Price adults £13 to £28.50; children £11 to £15; plus £1.50 fee a ticket
Booking online
Address Strand, WC2R 1LA
Website somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/skate-somerset-house
Good for Skate Lates, lessons, concessions, wheelchair users, open to 10 January
6. Ice skating at Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
Winter Wonderland calls its rink around the Victorian bandstand “the UK’s largest open-air ice rink”. Winter Wonderland says every £25 spent online on activities in one transaction unlocks a free entry ticket to the event.
Advance tickets are cheaper than on the day. Bags go in a cloakroom at £2 an item, and phones and cameras are not allowed on the ice.
There are ramps on and off the rink, and electric wheelchairs can go on with the motor off. Hyde Park Corner and Knightsbridge are on the Piccadilly line.
Open 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; sessions 10am to 9pm
Price adult advance £12.65 off peak, £17.05 standard, £19.25 peak (£2 more on the day); child (3 to 12) advance £9.35, £11.55, £13.75; family advance £37.40, £46.20, £55
Booking online in advance, 45-minute sessions, skates included
Address Hyde Park, London
Website hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/attraction/ice-skating
Good for wheelchair users, family tickets, funfair day out
7. 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 it is always cheaper to book online than to walk in.
Skates and penguin skate aids are for hire, and session times are in a timetable on its site. From Finsbury Park, take the Victoria line to Oxford Circus and the Central line to Queensway.
Open all year; session times in the timetable on its site
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
8. Glide at Battersea Power Station
Three interconnecting rinks beside the power station, plus a 200-metre riverside skate trail that the operator bills as London’s only one. There are vintage fairground rides and food stalls off the ice.
Battersea Power Station has its own Northern line station; from Highgate, change at Kennington. Glide prices each session separately, so check the booking page for what a slot costs.
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 running this winter
The Natural History Museum rink has closed for good: the museum says the gardens it stood on have been turned into a hub for urban wildlife. We found no rink in Wood Green, Tottenham, Finsbury Park or anywhere else in Haringey apart from Alexandra Palace. We will add one if dates are announced.
How we chose
These are the rinks people around Crouch End are most likely to reach for: real ice, a 2026 season or an all-year timetable, and dates and prices from each rink’s own website or booking page, read on 4 November 2026. We left out Harlow On Ice, which opens on 21 November and is a train ride out from Tottenham Hale, and the Queen’s House in Greenwich as a long cross-London trip.
Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@crouchendnews.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@crouchendnews.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For more on Christmas locally, see Christmas at Ally Pally, the Crouch End Christmas lights switch-on, Christmas markets, Christmas shows and pantomime, Christmas dinner in Crouch End, Christmas trains and travel and what’s on in Crouch End this month. For the rest of the year, see things to do in Crouch End and our local directory.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an ice rink near Crouch End?
Yes. Alexandra Palace Ice Rink, an indoor rink open all year, is the closest. Public sessions are £11.75 for adults off peak and £12.75 at peak, and it is closed for public skating from 6 to 9 November 2026 for the fireworks festival. We found no other rink in Haringey for winter 2026.
What is the cheapest ice skating near Crouch End?
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. At Alexandra Palace, the under-5 ticket is £7.75 off peak and the under-12 ticket is £10.50 off peak.
Is Alexandra Palace ice rink open at Christmas?
Yes. Its Festive Skate, with a Christmas tree, lights, festive music and falling snow, runs from 9 December 2026 to 4 January 2027. The minimum age is three, and non-skating adults supervising under-16s need a spectator ticket.
Have your say