Five Of The Best All-Natural Ice Rinks
Why bother with refrigerated rinks? Once the mercury has dropped, there is plenty of real frozen water to glide about on Dane Ice Most visitors to Copenhagen know the Danish Tivoli pleasure gardens as a summer attraction. Yet the Tivoli’s winter incarnation is just as much fun, with fairground rides, stalls and restaurants. The park’s lake is frozen [...]
Why bother with refrigerated rinks? Once the mercury has dropped, there is plenty of real frozen water to glide about on
Dane Ice
Most visitors to Copenhagen know the Danish Tivoli pleasure gardens as a summer attraction. Yet the Tivoli’s winter
incarnation is just as much fun, with fairground rides, stalls and restaurants. The park’s lake is frozen and provides
great skating opportunity, with 11,000 square feet of rink room. 3 Vesterbrogade, Copenhagen, www.tivoli.dk
Dutch Courage
Winter weather descends on Amsterdam alarmingly swiftly and while a cold snap makes cycling a lot more perilous it can allow skating on the city’s canals. Check with the skating-mad locals before venturing out though, the ice could be very weak, particularly under the bridges.
Swiss Freeze
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The Katzensee lakes, just outside the northern reaches of Zurich, make for a great summer excursion spot. However, winter sports lovers should hold out for a cold snap. Once the lake has thoroughly frozen, locals stake out here and play ice hockey. Just remember to bring your own skates. Katzenseestrasse 8046 Zürich, www.zuerich.com
Perfect Masch
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Hanover’s Maschsee lake was created in the early 1930s, and hosts everything from Dragon Boat races through to its own arts festival during the summer months. However, when the north wind blows, the lake often freezes over, making a haven for skate-loving Hanoverians.Rudolf-von Bennigsen-Ufer, Hanover,
www.hannover.de
Moscow Disco
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Gorky Park’s lake and surrounding paths are frozen in the winter months, turning large swathes of Moscow into an ice rink. Though the rink opens from 10am, for a bona fide New Russia experience, you should attend the evening session, when skating is accompanied by disco lights and thumping dance music.
