We checked 8 ice rinks near Bishop's Stortford, from Harlow On Ice to Alexandra Palace, for 2026 dates, prices and age rules. Updated November 2026.
We found no ice rink in Bishop’s Stortford itself for 2026, so this guide lists 8 ice rinks within about 33 miles, with dates, prices and age rules. Most people here will land on Harlow On Ice, about 9 miles away from 21 November; The Ice Rink at Braintree Village, along the A120 from 12 November; or Lee Valley Ice Centre, open all year and a direct train from Stortford to Lea Bridge. Dates and prices were last checked on 5 November 2026.
Distances are road miles from the town centre. If you are coming from elsewhere in our patch, Harlow On Ice is about 5 miles from Sawbridgeworth, 8 from Ware and 10 from Hertford. From Cheshunt, Alexandra Palace (10 miles) and Lee Valley (12) are closer than Harlow (13), and Transport for London’s planner showed 16 minutes by train from Waltham Cross to Lea Bridge.
Christmas rinks
1. Harlow On Ice
Real ice inside a decorated marquee on West Gate, next to The Harvey Centre, run by Ice Leisure Group. Because it is covered, the operator says “sessions go ahead in the rain”.
Prices include skate hire and most sessions last 45 minutes. Children under 3 cannot skate, those aged 8 and under need a ticket-holding adult on the ice, and those aged 12 and under need an adult watching from the viewing area.
By public transport it is 11 minutes by train to Harlow Town, then the 10A bus.
Open 21 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; first sessions from 10am; no sessions on Monday 23 November
Price with skate hire: saver adult £13.90, child £11.90; standard adult £18.90, child £15.90, student £16.95; peak adult £19.90, child £16.90; essential companion free; skating aids from £4.90
Booking online; 15% off three or more tickets with at least one adult and one child
Address West Gate, Harlow, CM20 1JN
Website harlowonice.co.uk
Parking Harvey Centre Car Park
Good for real ice, covered, family discount, quiet and SEND sessions, Little Skaters
2. The Ice Rink at Braintree Village
An undercover real-ice rink beside the shopping village, and the first of these Christmas rinks to open. Sessions last 45 minutes and skate hire is included, with sizes from baby 4 to adult 15.
There is no minimum age, though the operator says small children must walk confidently unaided. Children of 8 and under need an adult ticket holder on the ice, and those aged 9 to 12 need a responsible adult watching.
The calendar marks a quiet session on the weekend dates we read, and Skate & Sing sessions on Wednesday 18 November.
Open 12 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, closed Christmas Day; times vary
Price booked ahead: off-peak adult £14, child £12, family £44; peak adult £16, child £14, family £52. On the day: off-peak £15.50, £13.50, £50; peak £17.50, £15.50, £58; skating aid £5
Booking online or at the box office by the rink
Call 01376 348168
Address Braintree Village, Chapel Hill, Braintree, CM77 8YH
Website braintree-village.com/en/the-ice-rink-at-braintree-village
Parking North Car Park, which the operator says can get busy at peak times
Good for undercover, real ice, quiet sessions, Skate & Sing, viewing platform
3. Letchworth Lido
A seasonal rink that Everyone Active runs at the Lido on Norton Common for North Herts Council, about 23 miles away, and the Christmas rink nearest Buntingford. The ticket portal lists public skating and says spaces are limited and sessions often fill up.
Skates come in a wide range of sizes, under-8s need a full-paying adult over 18 on the ice, and the ice may be shared with other users during a session. No closing date had been published when we checked.
Open from Saturday 28 November 2026; closing date not yet published
Price adult (16+) £16; junior (under 16) £12; senior (66+) £12; carer free with proof of eligibility
Booking online, advance booking highly recommended
Call 01462 684673
Address Norton Common, Icknield Way, Letchworth, SG6 4UF
Website everyoneactive-letchworthlido.digitickets.co.uk/category/60536
Good for seasonal rink, public skating, carers free
4. Christmas in Cambridge, Parker’s Piece
The organiser calls this “Cambridge’s largest outdoor ice rink” and describes it as “real, genuine” ice, about 27 miles away and on the same railway line as Stortford. Sessions last an hour, and the booking page lists no separate charge for skates.
Socks are £1 and gloves £3 at the rink. On 16, 24 and 30 November, one ticket lets you skate from 6pm until closing.
It is open air, so dress for it.
Open 13 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; on Saturday 14 November nine sessions run from 10.30am, the last at 8.30pm
Price adult £16.50; child 12 and under £14; concession, 13 to 17, student or OAP £15.50; family of four £53.50; £2 booking fee per order
Booking online; a sled skate aid can be added to child and family tickets
Address Parker's Piece, Cambridge, CB1 1NA
Website christmasincambridge.co.uk/ice-skating-cambridge
Good for open air, real ice, Christmas market, unlimited skating nights, children's parties
Open all year
5. Lee Valley Ice Centre
Better, which runs it with the Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, describes “two Olympic size ice rinks under one roof”. It is the easiest all-year rink to reach from Stortford without a car: Transport for London’s planner showed 48 minutes by Greater Anglia to Lea Bridge on a December Saturday, then a 7-minute walk.
The booking system listed Saturday public skating from 10am to 7pm on the dates we tried, and more morning sessions on 24 and 28 December. It showed no public sessions on 25 and 26 December or 1 January.
Open all year; public sessions as timetabled; on Saturdays we read, 10am, 12pm, 1pm, 2.30pm, 3.30pm, 5pm and 6pm
Price adult £16; junior £13; holiday family of four £52.50; disco adult £17, child £14; skate hire included; skate aid £5; spectator £3
Booking online
Address Lea Bridge Road, London, E10 7QL
Website better.org.uk/leisure-centre/lee-valley/ice-centre
Parking up to 4 hours free for skaters who enter their registration at reception
Good for all year, disco sessions, under-5s coffee skate, lessons, direct train
6. Alexandra Palace Ice Rink
An indoor rink run by the Alexandra Park and Palace charity, which says it was “voted the UK’s number 1 ice rink in 2023”. The Festive Skate, with a Christmas tree, lights and falling snow, runs from 9 December.
Weekend and holiday sessions last an hour and a half, and the minimum age for Festive Skate is 3. Any non-skating adult supervising under-16s needs a spectator ticket.
It is 33 miles by road and about 86 minutes by train, Tube and the W3 bus. The rink is closed to the public from 6 to 9 November for the fireworks.
Open Mon, Sat, Sun 11am to 4.30pm; Tue and Fri 1.15pm to 5pm; Wed and Thu 11am to 5pm; Festive Skate 9 December 2026 to 4 January 2027
Price standard £11.75 off peak, £12.75 peak; under 12 £10.50, £11.50; under 5 £7.75, £8.75; over 65 £10.50, £11.50; spectator £2.50, £3; skate aid £7.50; Festive Skate prices shown at booking
Booking online recommended; card only in person
Call 020 8365 4343
Address Alexandra Palace Way, London, N22 7AY
Website alexandrapalace.com/the-ice-rink/book-a-skate
Good for indoor, all year, Festive Skate, lessons
7. Cambridge Ice Arena
An indoor rink run by Better on Newmarket Road, about 29 miles away, with skate hire included in the ticket. On Saturday 14 November the booking system showed public sessions at 1.30pm and 3pm, each an hour.
Its Saturday in December showed only a members’ session when we read it, because Better says its festive timetable is still going up, so check before you plan a Christmas trip. Under-12s must come with an adult, and the minimum age is 3.
Open all year; public sessions as timetabled; festive timetable not yet complete on 5 November
Price adult £16.50; child 3 to 15 £13.50; student or CamCard £13.50; polar bear skate aid £7; locker 50p token
Booking online
Address Newmarket Road, Cambridge, CB5 8AA
Website better.org.uk/leisure-centre/cambridge/cambridge-ice-arena
Parking free on site
Good for indoor, all year, skate hire included, skate aids
8. Riverside Ice Rink, Chelmsford
Chelmsford City Council’s rink at Riverside Leisure Centre, about 22 miles away, and the cheapest public skate here. The prices are for ourChelmsford Lite card holders, and the council sets up a free Lite account when you first book.
Christmas at Riverside adds a live DJ, snow machines and disco lighting, with sessions on December weekends from 10am to 12pm and 2.30pm to 4.30pm, and on Sunday 27 December. Friday’s Ice Disco is not for young families, the council says.
Open all year, public sessions as timetabled; Christmas at Riverside 5 to 31 December 2026; closed 25 and 26 December 2026 and 1 January 2027
Price Lite card, skate hire included: term-time weekdays and Monday and Wednesday evenings £8.80; Friday evening, weekends and Holiday Skate £10.80; spectator £3.70
Booking online, in the Chelmsford City Sports app or by phone; cashless
Call 01245 615050
Address Victoria Road, Chelmsford, CM1 1FG
Website chelmsford.gov.uk/leisure-centres/what/ice-skating/christmas-at-riverside
Good for lowest price, all year, Christmas sessions, Ice Disco, skating aids
Further into London
Liverpool Street stays open for Stortford trains this Christmas (our Christmas trains page has the plan), which puts the London rinks in reach. The closest we checked is Tower Hamlets Winter Magic on Wennington Green, E3 5TD, about 81 minutes by public transport via Liverpool Street and Mile End. It is a covered real-ice rink, open 12 December to 3 January except Christmas Day, weekdays 4pm to 9pm and weekends noon to 9pm. Its booking page lists adults at £17 and children aged 3 to 15 at £13, skates included, plus a booking fee and a £1 site entry charge.
Rinks we looked for and did not find
Bishop’s Stortford. East Herts Council, the town council and the BID ran a free “eco-friendly” skating rink at the old Charringtons car park on 28 to 30 December 2023. We found no later edition. On 5 November the BID’s events list and the town council’s showed no rink, and the Festive Fun Day on 15 November does not list one.
Van Hage, Great Amwell. The garden centre’s Christmas rink was in its tenth year in 2017. Blue Diamond’s site now lists a Santa’s Grotto at Great Amwell, and we found no 2026 rink there. Ring the garden centre before you set out.
Hertford, Ware, Cheshunt and Waltham Cross. We found no 2026 rink, and Hertford Town Council’s events list showed none on 5 November. We will add any that are announced.
How we chose
These are the rinks within about 33 miles of Bishop’s Stortford with a 2026 season or an all-year timetable, and prices from each rink’s own website or booking system on 5 November 2026. Prices can change with the date you pick, so check at booking. Road distances are from OpenStreetMap routing and public transport times are from Transport for London’s planner for a Saturday in December. We left out Planet Ice at Peterborough and Hemel Hempstead as further than these for the same kind of session.
Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@bishopsstortfordnews.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@bishopsstortfordnews.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For more on Christmas locally, see the Bishop’s Stortford Christmas markets, the Christmas Fayre and lights switch-on, the panto at South Mill Arts, Santa’s grottos, Christmas dinner in Bishop’s Stortford, carol concerts and what’s on in Bishop’s Stortford this month. For the rest of the year, see our guide to things to do in Bishop’s Stortford.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an ice rink in Bishop’s Stortford?
Not that we can find for 2026. The town had a free three-day rink at the Charringtons car park in December 2023, but neither the BID’s nor the town council’s events list showed one on 5 November. The nearest is Harlow On Ice, about 9 miles away, from 21 November.
What is the cheapest ice skating near Bishop’s Stortford?
Riverside in Chelmsford is £8.80 at term-time weekday sessions with a free Lite account, skate hire included. Alexandra Palace is £11.75 for adults and £10.50 for under-12s off peak. Harlow On Ice’s saver sessions are £13.90 and £11.90 with hire.
Which rinks near Bishop’s Stortford are open all year?
Lee Valley Ice Centre, Alexandra Palace, Cambridge Ice Arena and Riverside in Chelmsford. Harlow On Ice, Braintree Village, Letchworth Lido and Christmas in Cambridge are seasonal.
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