Ice skating at Cardiff’s Winter Wonderland – plus WIN a family ticket!

*thanks to Admiral Ice Rink for inviting us along to skate

A visit to Winter Wonderland in Cardiff’s civic centre is one of our annual family Christmas traditions. We love visiting in the early evening when it’s dark enough so that you can see all the beautiful lights but before it gets too busy with grown ups and teenagers.

Last year I took my two eldest children ice skating for the first time on the Admiral Ice Rink – they absolutely loved it and ever since they saw the site being constructed a few weeks ago they have been asking when they can go along again. So when the invite landed in my inbox to review the under-cover rink  once more we were so excited to go along.

We booked online for a 6.30pm session one night after school. The hour-long sessions cost £10 per adult and £8 for children aged 3-16 for peak times and £8.50/£7 off peak when booked online in advance. A family ticket (2+2) is £30 peak and £27 off peak. Prices are slightly more expensive for ‘walk up’ tickets.

Penguins – which can be hired for £5 per session – are great to help younger children (under 4ft/120cm) to balance on their skates. However my children are too tall now – and also they wanted to do it independently so I took the two of them on the ice on my own.

They absolutely loved it – even though they spent the entire time skating around the edge of the rink and barely letting go of the wall. They managed the full hour; I wasn’t sure if they would get tired before the end but they were so disappointed when they had to come off the rink!

I won’t lie; it was slightly stressful for me keeping two beginner skaters upright on the ice but the ice staff were great. At one point Little Man O, my six-year-old middle child, fell over and within seconds one of the attendants was helping me to help him up. And just seeing how much they enjoyed it made it all worth while.

The rink is undercover with the clear perspex roof introduced for the first time last year. It looks so pretty with all the lights twinkling away – not to mention keeping the rain and wind out, which is essential in the Welsh winter.

Skate hire is included in the charge with sizes junior 8 to adult 15 available. We found the shoe and skate exchange area really efficient and quick moving.

After the skating we treated the children to a few rides (we paid for this ourselves). No cash is taken on the rides; you need to buy tokens at a cost of £1 each with rides varying from one to five tokens so the prices can add up. We set a limit beforehand so the children knew how many rides they could go on.

The rides have been the same the past few years so my three knew instantly that they wanted to go on the Fun House as they have loved it so much in the past. The eldest two went on Santa’s Sleigh Ride and then I managed to persuade them to go on Santa’s Train Ride to look after their little brother too. I think they’re probably a bit too old for the train ride now but I have photos of them on this ride every year and I wasn’t quite ready to let go of that tradition yet!

Littlest had an extra go on Santa’s Train Ride and the Fun House while we were on the ice. He is officially old enough to go skating – but as Cardiff Daddy has too many existing sporting injuries and didn’t wan to risk it I didn’t fancy my chances of taking all three on by myself. I was thinking I might take him on his own while the other two are at school one day.

As our evening came to an end, Cardiff Daddy greeted us with a bag of doughnuts, bought from one of the many food and drink stalls on site. Hot and sugary, they were the perfect end to a perfect night.

Visit Cardiff’s Winter Wonderland website for more information on opening hours and prices or to book tickets. It’s open until Sunday 7th January 2018. 

WIN A FAMILY SKATING TICKET

Fancy taking your own family skating? There’s a family ticket up for grabs, allowing up to two adults and two children to skate at the Admiral Ice Rink.

For a chance to win just leave the answer to this question on the Winter Wonderland/Admiral Ice Rink post on the Cardiff Mummy Says Facebook page. Closing date for entries is Wednesday 22nd November 2017, 11.59pm.

Q. What can younger children use to help them
balance on the ice at the Admiral Ice Rink?

Terms and conditions:

1. There is one prize, consisting of a family ticket (2 adults plus 2 children, or 1 adult plus 3 children) for a family skating session at the Admiral Ice Rink at Cardiff’s Winter Wonderland.
2. There is no alternative prize.
3. Tickets can be booked subject to availability and excludes Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.
4. Closing date for entries is Wednesday 22nd November 2017, 11.59pm.
5. Entrants must be 18 years or over.
6. To enter, leave your answer to the above question in the comments section of the Admiral Ice Rink ticket giveaway post on the Cardiff Mummy Says Facebook page.
7. The winner will be chosen at random from all correct entries submitted before the closing date. The winner will be informed with a reply to their Facebook comment and a direct Facebook message letting them know they have won. All reasonable attempts will be made to contact the winner. If the winner cannot be contacted by 11.59pm on Sunday 26^th November the prize will be forfeited and offered to another eligible entrant.
8. Please see Cardiff’s Winter Wonderland website for skating terms and conditions.
9. Cardiff Mummy Says reserves the right to amend these terms and conditions at any time. Any new terms and conditions will be published here.
10. Cardiff Mummy Says reserves the right to end this promotion at any time and without notice.
11. Cardiff Mummy Says cannot be held responsible for the failure of third party organisations to provide the prize, or for loss, damage or non-arrival of the prizes.
12. Relatives of Cathryn Scott, author of Cardiff Mummy Says, may not enter the giveaway.
13. Employees or relatives off those employed by the organisers of the event may not enter this giveaway.
14. This promotion is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Facebook.