What makes Alexandra Palace Ice Rink a magic place
There is something magic about ice skating — maybe the fact that in my childhood, ice skating was always associated with the winter holidays, the snow and the magic of Christmas. Being able to rediscover all that magic in London in a place that is open all year round was indeed a great experience — one worth sharing.
We wrote about our experience of Alexandra Palace Ice Rink with kids on more detail a couple of month ago when we first visited with our two very young gentlemen.
A London landmark destroyed by fire 16 days after first opened in 1873 — Alexandra Palace re-opened again two years later becoming the place from where the BBC had its first broadcast in 1935.
Named after the Princess of Wales, Alexandra of Denmark, who married Prince Edward in 1863, formerly has been known as The Palace of the People and more casually Ally Pally. Historically Alexandra Palace contained an amazing concert hall, art galleries, a museum, lecture hall, library, banqueting room, large theatre, horse races course, one of the the finest concert-organ in Europe and even a swimming pool! The first and second world wars Ally Pally witnessed refugee and internment camps as well as further deterioration. The recent history is mixed as well, with the charitable trust set up in 1900 going through the challenges of much needed renovation — complex and costly for a listed building; fundraising; proposed and blocked commercial developments; public consultation and advice from English Heritage.
We’ve been exploring ice skating London options with kids for the last couple of years and by far Alexandra Palace ice rink was one of the most relaxing experience : the space is large and copes well with the crowds; the sessions are generous at 2 hours; the ice skating for beginners is well facilitated with 3 options depending on size, energy and skating abilities: penguin, seal or snowman; lots of place for the spectators with the 740-seat stadium; there’s a casual cafe perfect for a quick drink and kids lunch next to the ice rink plus Phoenix pub next door.
Our 5 years old picked the usual penguin that he tries to abandon occasionally to venture by himself. Our almost 3 years old tested the penguin but first time with proper ice blades didn’t have much success (in the past he used add ons). So the seal for the toddler was a winner for all of us, leaving us to actually enjoy ice skating.
Not tested with the kids but we understand Saturday night sees Alexandra Palace ice rink turn into a dance floor, with funky lighting and chart hits mixed by Ally Pally’s resident DJ. 8:30 to 11pm plus there’s also a monthly appearance from legendary London DJs Club de Fromage — we should be checking and reporting back soon!
Have you visited recently? What was your experience?
