Ice skating has changed a bit over the years. It used to be a simple affair where the actual skating was the main attraction. Now, there’s shiny new features to meet the ever-changing desires and trends of the modern consumer. Atlanta’s offerings definitely reflect the more luxurious, enhanced holiday ice skating experience with bonuses like holiday cocktails, private room rentals, steampunk skate parties, and more. 

Every holiday season, ice skating rinks pop up around Atlanta, bringing outdoor winter fun to the South. Here’s where to go ice skating in Atlanta, as well as just outside the perimeter.  

Old Fourth Ward

Old Fourth Ward is a historic Atlanta neighborhood, home of Martin Luther King, Jr., and a place that expresses the vibrant culture of Atlanta. While it maintains its historic charm and is still the home of longtime residents, it has changed and developed over the years.

This is especially true with the opening of Ponce City Market—the giant mixed-use retail, dining, office and residential converted warehouse and the tallest brick building in the South—and the Atlanta BeltLine. O4W is a convergence of the old and new Atlanta.

Skate the Sky at Ponce City Market, open through early January, offers posh amenities to level up your ice skating experience. This 3,500-square-foot rink is located on the roof of Ponce City Market, where visitors will find an urban winter wonderland complete with elaborate decorations, seasonal beverages, and, of course, ice skating.

One feature of Skate the Sky that pushes it over the top are the lavish, private igloos that feel like VIP perks at a hip music festival. The igloos, which are available to rent, come outfitted with cozy couches, Champagne, and fried chicken and caviar service. The other year-round attractions on The Roof of Ponce City Market include the Skyline Park rooftop amusement park that’s fun for all ages, Nine Mile Station beer garden, and RFD Social, a vintage-inspired cocktail lounge.

Midtown 

Midtown is the heart of Atlanta. It’s centrally located and is the center of Atlanta business and entertainment with many residential areas as well. If you live and work in Midtown, you would rarely need to leave. Midtown has everything you could think of within walking distance, from shopping to dining and plenty of attractions. It has a great balance of big city life and a strong community where locals can feel at home.

The Rink at Park Tavern benefits from another of Atlanta’s best settings, Piedmont Park. Their Fire & Ice Rink also offers an elevated Atlanta ice skating option with plenty of bells and whistles.

In addition to the ice skating rink with ample room for up to 200 skaters at a time, The Rink at Park Tavern has a large, heated garden tent with festive music playing, plenty of flat-screen TVs for watching sports, and a restaurant with a menu of delicious seasonal items. Taking a cue from Ponce City Market, there are private cabanas for rent. 

It’s plenty of fun for not only kids but adults, with a great local craft beer selection, wine, signature cocktails, and weekly skate parties where skaters dressed in steampunk attire get in for free after 8 p.m. The Rink at Park Tavern is open through Jan. 20, 2020.

There’s also ice skating at Atlantic Station, the Atlanta headquarters for festive holiday cheer. Atlantic Station is like its own little village of shopping, dining, and entertainment. There’s retail stores, restaurants, pubs, an AMC movie theater, and more. You can even live or work there in the on-site apartments and offices.

Each holiday season, Atlantic Station pulls out all the stops. In addition to ice skating, the entire complex is elaborately decorated; there’s Santa’s cottage for a photo-op with Santa, Christmas cookie pop-ups, and more throughout the season. However, the main event is Skate the Station.

The 10,000-square-foot ice rink at Skate the Station is the largest in the Southeast so there is plenty of room for everyone, whether you’re a figure skater or it’s your first time. Another advantage of Skate the Station is there is no time limit, while the other ice skating rinks charge by the hour. Plus, there’s boozy hot chocolate—everybody wins. Skate the Station is open through January 20, 2020, including Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years Day. 

Alpharetta

Located 25 miles north of Atlanta, Alpharetta is our “outside-the-perimeter” pick for Atlanta-area ice skating. The suburb offers both small-town charm and amenities that suit larger cities, a vibrant downtown area, and excellent public schools.  

Avalon on Ice is a Rockefeller Center-inspired ice skating rink in Alpharetta, open through January 26, 2020. Like Atlantic Station, Avalon is like a subdivision meets outdoor mall. In addition to just-for-fun public skating, for the more serious skater, there are private lessons available and even a skate school every Sunday morning that includes an additional 90 minutes of skating following the lesson.