Officially called “Lidl on Ice”, in reference to its sponsor, the discount supermarket chain, Winter Wonderland Ice Rink is the UK’s biggest outdoor rink. It is located in London’s magnificent Hyde Park and forms part of the Winter Wonderland fun fair.
REINDEER ROAST AND PIGS IN BLANKETS AT WINTER WONDERLAND ICE RINK
It is the second time Ellie & I enjoyed some winter fun with Lidl. In 2014 Lidl had run a X-mas themed pop-up ‘fine dining’ budget restaurant in Shoreditch serving a remarkable reindeer roast. At Winter Wonderland you can get Lidl’s award-winning pigs in blankets with festive sauce for £3.
LOCATION
The venue is at the southeast corner of the fun fair. This means that the closest entrance is Blue Gate (what3words address: ///open.limit.gold). The closest tube station by far is Hyde Park Corner. Green Park and Knightsbridge are each around 15 minutes’ walk. Victoria is slightly further away.
SESSION TIMES AND DURATION AT WINTER WONDERLAND ICE RINK
Sessions last 50 minutes and start on the hour every hour from 10am to 9pm, closing at 10pm.
TICKET PRICES
Adult tickets range from £10.50 (off-peak) to £15.50 (peak), kids from £7.50 to £10.50, families from £30 to £42.
Those prices might look somewhat reasonable to many Londoners. However, do not forget that you’ll need to purchase tickets for the Winter Wonderland itself (online and well ahead of time), too. This will add £8 to £10 for adults, £6 to £8 for children, and £24 to £32 for families.
ALLOW PLENTY OF TIME FOR QUEUING / ARRIVE EARLY
As a consequence of this arrangement, you’ll also need to allow a generous amount of time for queuing at the amusement fair’s gate, walking the short distance to the ice rink, and then queuing again, there.
WEEKDAY MORNINGS ARE A GOOD OPTION
Because we arrived on a weekday morning, we only had to queue for under five minutes to get into the changing room tent. There we picked up our skates from the counter and sat down on one of the many wooden benches to put them on.
THE STAFF AT WINTER WONDERLAND ICE RINK
Not sure if we were just unlucky or picked the wrong day, but the staff all seemed to be grumpy or a bit rude or grumpy and a bit rude. We queued for another three or four minutes to get onto the ice rink.
STRICTLY NO PHOTOGRAPHY
I managed to shoot two dozen photos within the first two minutes, before one of the staff spotted me. He made it clear in no uncertain terms that I had committed a serious violation of the rules. I didn’t bother to ask why they had such a silly rule. At most other ice rinks you can even ask the smiley, friendly staff to take pictures of you, and they are happy to oblige.
THE HIRE ICE SKATES
The hire ice skates at this rink are not very comfortable, so best to wear two pairs of thick hiking socks.
SPACIOUS RINK
Apart from the price, the need to usually arrive way ahead of time, the unfriendly staff and the uncomfortable skates, the gigantic ice rink is a fabulous experience. It almost never seemed to get crowded anywhere on the ice, while we were there. Always plenty of space to move around. Such a relief not to have to worry about some maniac crashing into you. The fast skaters find sufficient space to do their lines away from the regular crowd. Speed skates are banned by the venue.
ROLLER COASTERS AND FERRIS WHEELS ARE A COOL BACKGROUND
The Victorian band stand in the centre of the rink is a lovely touch. In terms of atmosphere, it is hard to compete with the rinks at Hampton Court, Somerset House, or Battersea Power Station. That said, we did love the fact that this rink is right inside Winter Wonderland. The roller coasters and Ferris wheels are a pretty cool background. Moreover, it’s hard to imagine a more convenient location in terms of combining your ice skating with a fun winter experience.
MULLED WINE, SAUSAGES, RACLETTE
A myriad of stalls selling mulled wine, hot chocolate, cheese sausages, raclette, or whatever you desire, are a stone’s throw away. From late afternoon, a canopy of twinkly lights illuminates the ice rink.
We will probably be back again next year. 3.5 out of 5 in our book.
Looking for more London ice rinks? Check out our posts about the ones in Greenwich, Battersea, Hampton Court, Shadwell, and Somerset House. Perhaps you have a taste for other fun winter activities? Feel welcome to have a look at the articles about skiing in Mayrhofen, Bad Hofgastein, and Dubai, as well as my attempt at indoor ice-climbing.
