Best Ice-Skating Rinks Around Seattle, the Eastside and Tacoma

Get gliding! It’s that time of year again, when a batch of seasonal outdoor ice-skating rinks pop up around the Seattle area for local families’ skating fun. While many holiday traditions involve eating treats, this seasonal pursuit gets your fam up and moving! And if you prefer indoor ice-skating, there are plenty of spots to learn and skate year-round. So if you want to get gliding on the ice around Seattle, read on for where to go.

Before you head to the nearest outdoor or indoor ice-skating rink, take a look at our eight pro tips for teaching kids to ice-skate.

Outdoor holiday ice-skating rinks around Seattle and Puget Sound

Bellevue Downtown Ice Rink, Bellevue

Dates: Nov. 15, 2024–Jan. 12, 2025; hours vary. Ice-skating is open on Christmas Day!

Cost: Off-peak admission is $15, peak admission is $25, both include ice skate rental. Book your ice-skating session online.

This is the largest holiday ice-skating rink around, located in Bellevue’s Downtown Park, and it’s back for the winter season. This rink is outdoors, and while it’s enclosed, plan for chilly temps. There is a viewing tent with benches, and a concession area selling hot drinks and snacks on-site. Note the nearest restrooms are at the playground nearby. (If you’ve not been, do not miss the park’s epic Inspiration Playground.)

This outdoor ice-skating rink offers some pretty great special events! Free lessons are offered on select days, for kids and adults. 

Oly on Ice, Olympia

Dates: Open Nov. 22, 2024–Jan. 20, 2025, even open on Christmas Day! Check the schedule for daily hours.

Cost: Admission, including ice skates, ranges from $12–$16 depending on the day; tots ages 3 and younger cost $5, including ice skates. Cheap skate days on select Mondays and Tuesdays cost $10, with ice skates. Booking tickets in advance is recommended, though you can just show up and skate if there’s space.

Thurston County entered the seasonal outdoor ice-skating rink game a few years ago, setting up a rink near Capitol Lake in downtown Olympia. And families really love it! The rink is outdoors, but covered. There are several options here for getting the littles skating, plus cheap skate nights on select Mondays and Tuesdays, and a sensory-friendly skate on Sundays and Mondays. Helpful staff members are on the ice as well.

Lights & Ice, Tulalip

Dates: Open Nov. 23, 2024–Jan. 12, 2025, including Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Check the website for daily hours.

Cost: General admission is $15, including ice skates; kids’ admission is $12 and also includes ice skates. Birthday party packages and private rink rental for events are also available. Book tickets online.

Quil Ceda Village hosts a seasonal outdoor ice-skating rink, part of the Tulalip Lights & Ice holiday festivities. Find the skating rink at the Tulalip Amphitheatre, between the resort and the outlet mall. The ice-skating rink will be surrounded by more than a million lights, and close to 5 million more will make the entire village sparkle. On select dates you can also meet Mr. and Mrs. Claus, Buddy the Elf, and the Grinch. Tip: The Clauses will visit generally Friday–Sunday, the Grinch on Saturdays and Buddy the Elf on Sundays, through Christmas. (Be sure to check the website to confirm dates and hours of character visits.)

Snohomish Valley Ice Rink, Snohomish

Dates: The rink opens for public ice-skating sessions from Friday, Nov. 29, 2024–Feb. 15, 2025 (closed Christmas day). Check the website for daily hours, more info is coming soon!  

Cost: $5–$10; $2 ice skate rental

Snohomish Valley Golf Center will once again open its covered outdoor ice-skating rink this season. This rink features synthetic ice. All ages can enjoy trying out their skating skills, and warm up around the heaters and fire tables to enjoy a snack or drink from the restaurant.

Pop-Up Ice-Skating Rink at Occidental Square, Downtown Seattle

Dates: Dec. 13–15, 2024, noon–6 p.m.

Cost: Free. Ice skates are available to borrow.

Mark your calendars! The second week in December you’ll find this free outdoor ice-skating rink in the heart of Pioneer Square at Occidental Square Park. It’s open for three days only so plan your trip to take a break from shopping, strap on some ice skates and go for a twirl on the ice. 

Ice Lights at Sprinker Recreation Center Ice Arena, Tacoma

Dates: Nov. 29, 2024–Jan. 4, 2025

Cost: $5.50–$8.50; ice skate rental for $3.50

During the holidays you can catch Ice Lights at this Tacoma ice-skating rink. A 20-foot Christmas tree stands in the center of the ice rink, and 350,000 lights will delight you as you spin and twirl. You’ll find numerous holiday photo ops and a Santa mail station. Best of all, you can experience a snowfall inside the rink, no need to make the drive to the mountains.  

Sprinker Recreation Center Ice Arena is open year-round and boasts an NHL-regulation ice surface and offers all kinds of programs, including public ice-skate sessions, hockey, figure skating, broomball and lots more. This rink also has something no other rink offers: ice bumper cars!

Pavilion Glice Skating Rink, Suncadia

Dates: Nov. 11, 2024–Jan. 3, 2025

Cost: $10 for ages 10 and younger; $15 for skaters 13 and older 

Think you need ice for ice-skating? Think again! The Glice skating rink at Suncadia uses a synthetic ice-like material that allows you to skate in any weather and does not melt. Cost includes ice skates, skate assists, helmets and pads. Make reservations online, which are available on Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. 

Year-round ice-skating rinks around Seattle and Puget Sound

The holiday ice-skating rinks don’t stay around forever, and we can hardly ever hope for pond skating during our relatively mild Pacific Northwest winters. But families can still try out their ice-skating skills at these indoor ice rinks, open in any weather and every season! 

Kraken Community Iceplex, Seattle

This is a newer upscale ice-skating rink at Northgate Station. It’s where the Kraken practice! Rental skates are hockey skates so you can catch Kraken fever. There’s also youth hockey, skating lessons, tot play hour and family skate sessions.

Lynnwood Ice Center, Lynnwood

An active ice-skating rink north of Seattle, Lynnwood Ice Center is an excellent rink that feels a cut above some of the more worn rinks around. There’s a warm lobby and viewing area, snack shop, pro shop, and birthday party rooms. It offers a good Basic Skills program, as well as walkers for toddlers. There is also a hockey program. Ice skate rental stock spans toddler sizes up to men’s size 14.

Sno-King Ice Arena, multiple locations 

Formerly the Kingsgate Ice Arena, Sno-King Kirkland offers public ice-skate sessions, hockey, learn-to-skate programs, and fun-sounding broomball where participants do not need to know how to skate. Walkers can be rented; look for group discounts.

The Sno-King Ice Arena in Renton Highlands is open year-round and offers two separate ice surfaces. In addition to public ice-skating hours, this rink hosts broomball, figure skating, hockey, lessons series and summer camps. There is a café and game room for family members who don’t want to skate. There is also a skate shop on-site. Walkers are available for rent at this location as well.

The outpost of Sno-King in Snoqualmie offers the same wide range of ice sports as the rinks in Kirkland and Renton. In addition to public ice-skating, there are learn-to-skate programs focused on both figure skating and hockey skating, youth hockey lessons, leagues and camps, and adult hockey, too.

Kent Valley Ice Centre, Kent

This ice-skating rink offers all kinds of fun on the ice, including public ice-skating, learn-to-skate programs, youth hockey, stick-and-puck sessions and more. This spot also offers other sports programs, with rentable batting cages, and hosts birthday parties.

Everett Community Ice Rink at Angel of the Winds, Everett

Centrally located in downtown Everett, the community ice-skating rink is just one of the facilities at Angel of the Winds. This spot hosts Silvertips hockey games, concerts and more. Street parking can be tricky, but there are plenty of garages. In addition to frequent public ice-skating sessions, junior hockey and learn-to-skate programs are available.

Tacoma Twin Rinks, Tacoma

Home to PS Ice Sports, this indoor ice-skating rink offers a wide variety of classes, from hockey to figure skating and more. There is also open ice-skating time once a week for about an hour. This is a great option for older kids and night owls; the open skate times are either from 4:15–5:30 p.m., or 10–11:15 p.m. See the website for the complete schedule and more details.  

Editor’s note: Writers Gemma Alexander, Tiffany Doerr Guerzon and Nikki McCoy, along with ParentMap staff, all contributed to this article, which was originally published many years ago. It was most recently updated in November 2024 by associate editor Kari Hanson with current information for the season.