It’s a tricky business, that ice skating lark, but it’s a right laugh for all and there are loads of rinks popping up in Manchester.
Beginners, professionals or clowns – there’s room for all on the city’s festive rinks.
Whether you stack it a billion times or are looking at Olympic gold, we’re just here to point you in the right direction.
Keep reading for our list of ice-rinks to visit with your nearest and dearest this Christmas.
They’re not here all year so catch them while you can!
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Boutique Ice Rink in the sky
Escape to Freight Island
An indoor ice rink has been added at Escape to Freight Island.
You can count on Freight Island to get ‘fun’ just right and this winter season they’ve knocked it out the ice-rink.
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Skate around on a mezzanine floor overlooking the buzzing festivities of Winter Island. Open all day, every day, its endless fun for all the family.
Sessions run every hour from 4pm to 10pm and adult tickets are £13 – upgrade to £15 and enjoy a Bratwurst or Hog Roast after.
Skate Manchester
Cathedral Gardens
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Skate Manchester at Cathedral Gardens. Credit: Georgie Glass.
Cathedral Gardens presents a rink for all weathers – particularly for Manchester’s wonderfully unpredictable skies.
Covered by a clear roof and a net of fairy lights it’s hard not to catch festive feelings here.
Serving an enchanting atmosphere for couples, families and friends the rink is sat in the middle of Manchester’s famous Christmas markets.
Grab your tickets online from £13.00 and have a class day out this winter!
Unreal Xmas
Barton Square
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Unreal Xmas at Barton Square. Credit: Publicity picture
An unmissable skating experience. Barton Square will be lit up on December 3 and host Manchester’s coolest ice rink ever.
Skate through a snow-covered forest and lose your friends and family in the ferns – maybe find them again at the two brand-new custom-built bars.
It’s more than just an ice-rink, it will transport you to the ultimate festive fantasy world and some markets to!
Tickets are £13 for 45 minutes and selling fast.
Tinsel Town
Trafford Centre
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It’s your chance to show the Trafford Centre what you’ve been hiding – your impeccable ice moves.
That’s right, ‘Tinsel Town’ is bringing you 600 square metres of ice covered against the elements – the fun cannot be stopped.
Tickets are only £12 so wrap up warm and whack those skates on.
More excited can be had watching Gandey’s production of ‘SNOWSTORM’ a sensational new ice-skating show.
Prepare to be wowed for 90 minutes by a spectacular production of acrobatics by an international cast of circus artistes.
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WinterFunLand
Trafford Centre
The UK’s largest Christmas funfair will be bringing you a gigantic ice-skating rink on December 19.
The ice-rink is wrapped up in a bundle of activities provided at WinterFunLand. Part and parcel with skating are funfair rides, circus shows, a Santa’s grotto and Christmas treats.
One ticket buys all the fun in this winter wonderland – how could you not?
The Clubhouse
Spinningfields
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Clubhouse will soon have its own curling lane
A month-long Christmas party is happening at The Clubhouse decked out with karaoke huts, a giant Christmas tree and curling.
A 10m long curling lane sits in the middle of the festive fun. It’s £60 and you can have up to six people, with drinks delivered to you all night long.
Curling (for those of you who don’t know) is a sport which players slide stones on a sheet of ice towards a targeted area – we can’t wait.
Featured image: Georgie Glass
What's On
Stretford’s popular festival with dozens of FREE events and activities to return next spring
Emily Sergeant
A popular festival for all the family is set to return and take over a buzzing Greater Manchester town next spring.
After a successful first run last summer, where thousands attended as a diverse array of music, art, dance, and interactive workshops descended on the streets of Stretford, The StretFest is back again for 2025, and will be taking over the whole Trafford neighbourhood with loads of free events and activities to get involved with.
This new spring edition of the neighbourhood festival will spread across Stretford’s favourite venues and public spaces to celebrate ‘new beginnings’.
Organised by Stretford Town Centre Forum – which is a new collaboration of local businesses and community groups, with support from Trafford Council and Bruntwood – the theme of next year’s festival has been chosen as a nod to the development work that’s now well underway across Stretford town centre.
The StretFest returns in 2025 / Credit: Supplied
Free events will be at venues such as Stretford Public Hall, the Mall, Victoria Park, St Matthew’s Church, and Stretford Library, alongside loads of local independent businesses.
The festival also coincides with the 10th anniversary of Stretford Public Hall’s transfer into community ownership, so you can celebrations at the Hall all throughout the day.
One of the main events on the day of the festival will be the popular ‘Stretford Socials’ from midday through to 4pm, where you’ll find an array of stalls featuring talented local makers, bakers, and community groups.
It’s here where you’ll also an also enjoy a variety of free family-friendly activities that organisers say “promises fun for all ages”.
More information is set to be announced in the new year, so keep your eyes peeled.
The StretFest returns on Saturday 1 March 2025, and you can find out more and apply to be a part of it by submitting an application here.
Featured Image – Adrian Michael (via Supplied)
What's On
National Portrait Gallery to debut ground-breaking digital exhibition in Salford
Daisy Jackson
The National Portrait Gallery has announced a ground-breaking new experience that’s set to make its debut at MediaCity in Salford.
Some of the world’s most famous paintings will be brought to life in an immersive digital exhibition, called Stories – Brought to Life, that will tell the stories behind iconic portraits.
FRAMELESS Creative has partnered with the National Portrait Gallery on the project, which will be the first major touring art experience by any UK art institution and makes up a long-term partnership called National Portrait Gallery Unframed.
Those who attended the hugely popular and acclaimed Van Gogh Alive experience will already know a little of what to expect – famous paintings reimagined with digital projections, visual effects, and audio technology.
FRAMELESS has been granted access to the National Portrait Gallery’s collection to create Stories – Brought to Life, which will tell the tales of people who have shaped history, from the Tudors to the present day, in an innovative new way.
While the exhibition will premiere here in Greater Manchester next year, there’s a planned national and international tour to follow.
The National Portrait Gallery will be debuting a ground-breaking digital exhibition in Salford / Credit: MediaCity
Rich Storton, general manager at FRAMELESS Creative said: “We are delighted to announce this new long-term partnership with the National Portrait Gallery. We hope that by unleashing the power of digital storytelling we can help the Gallery to bring art to a whole new audience.
“We’re living in a changing world and there is a real need for new experiences that help open up art and culture to new audiences and crucially help ensure that national institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery and their incredible collections continue to be accessible and have cultural significance for the next generation.
“MediaCity is a vibrant cultural hub attracting a hugely diverse audience. This combined with its proximity to major transport links and focus on technology made it an obvious choice for premiering our first experience.”
Rosie Wilson, Director of Programmes, Partnerships and Collections at the National Portrait Gallery said: “The National Portrait Gallery aims to share our unique collection of portraits with as wide an audience as possible and explore the human stories that shape our history and culture.
“This exciting new partnership with FRAMELESS, inspired by our Collection, will enable us to take these stories outside of the Gallery walls and bring them to life in new, innovative ways.”
Caroline Aikman, Director of Marketing, Brand and Place at MediaCity said: “We are honoured that the National Portrait Gallery and FRAMELESS have chosen MediaCity as the first stop on the tour of this unique immersive experience.
“We’ve hosted many arts and culture events, experiences, festivals and exhibitions over the last few years and we can’t wait to welcome visitors to Salford when the experience opens its doors in May next year.”
Dolly Busby -
19th November 2021 
