Toronto rinks are anything but “one type fits all.” With different sizes, set-ups, vibes and amenities, there’s a rink for every type of skater.
Whether you’re looking for dance-party vibes, an Instagram-perfect backdrop or winter activities for kids, Toronto’s got an ice-skating rink (or two) that fits the bill. Get ready to lace up at these 12 icy hotspots across the city.
For arts lovers: The Bentway
The Bentway is bringing back its popular 220 m (722 ft), figure-eight skate trail underneath the Gardiner Expressway starting December 16, 2023.
This year, in addition to its inflation-busting free skate rental nights, free hot chocolate nights, free beginner lessons and more, the skate trail will be decked out with colourful woven arches inspired by the northern lights.
This aurora borealis installation by Canadian artists Yi Zhou and Carlos Portillo will bring the expressway’s architecture to life with brilliant hues of green, blue, violet and magenta.
For peace seekers: Colonel Samuel Smith Park
In contrast to busy, buzzy downtown rinks, Etobicoke’s Colonel Samuel Smith Park delivers a quiet, country-esque skating experience. Immerse yourself in the serene setting—the figure-eight trail is near Lake Ontario and is dotted with evergreens—and you may think you’ve escaped to cottage country.
For social media savants: Nathan Phillips Square
If you live to snap and share, you can’t beat Nathan Phillips Square for an iconic Toronto skate sesh. You’ve got oodles of sparkling lights above you and backdrop options like the city’s 17 metre (56 ft)-tall official tree (decorated with 500 ornaments and surrounded by 300,000 lights) or the famous, illuminated TORONTO sign.
And when Jack Frost is nipping at your nose, you can slip into the Eaton Centre shopping mall to warm up, window shop and snap pics of its majestic tree.
For urbanists: College Park
The Barbara Ann Scott Ice Trail will delight urbanists (if you live for Jane’s Walks and Doors Open, that’s probably you). The 5 m (16 ft)-wide trail loop winds its way through the revitalized College Park public space and is named after a Canadian figure skater and Olympian.
The trail has eco bragging rights as it was the first exterior skating path in North America to use a refrigeration system that doesn’t produce any net greenhouse gas emissions.
For après-skate treats, hit Hailed Coffee or head south along Yonge Street to Le Génie Bakery & Espresso or one of the strip’s many Asian bubble tea shops.
For architecture hounds: Evergreen Brick Works
Architecture fans will love the industrial chic aesthetic of Evergreen Brick Works. This outdoor rink is set in an old brick factory and open to the sky with exposed roof beams on display above you. As you glide across the ice-skating trail, you’re surrounded by snow-blanketed gardens.
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For hidden-gem seekers: Greenwood Arena
Greenwood Arena boasts Toronto’s first covered outdoor skating rink. East end residents have been enjoying it and the 215 m (705 ft) skating trail that winds out from it for a decade now, but it remains one of the city’s best-kept secrets.
For photographers: Riverdale Park East
The east end’s Riverdale Park East offers exceptionally picturesque ice skating, with a backdrop of joyous tobogganers careening downhill. Fill your feed with epic shots of the downtown Toronto skyline, taken from Broadview Avenue, just before you descend into the ravine to the rink.
For families: Kew Gardens
Further east in The Beaches neighbourhood, you’ll find Kew Gardens Artificial Ice Rink. With its scenic boardwalk location, ice time here comes with Lake Ontario views and plenty of dog-petting opportunities as local residents stroll by with their pups.
Nearby Queen Street East offers plenty of family-friendly cafés and restaurants where you can warm up with hot chocolate or sit down to a hot meal.
For party people: Union Station
Forgot to pack your winter gear? Head indoors and opt for wheels instead of blades at the Union Winter Roller Express Presented by TD. Here, you can roller-skate for free in a festively lit 46 sq m (5,500 sq ft) space inside urban hub (and food hotspot) Union Station.
Tip: the party kicks up a notch or two on Friday and Saturday nights with live DJ performances and alcohol service.
For #squad skaters: Sherbourne Common
Travelling and skating in a pack? Despite being centrally located, the Paul Quarrington skating rink at Sherbourne Common is often quiet, so you may be lucky enough to get much of the 902 sq m (9,709 sq ft) rink to yourselves.
Plus, you’ll have waterfront views and the opportunity to get an epic photo of you and your skate squad on ice, with the downtown skyline in the background.
For shopping hounds: Shops at Don Mills
Whether you’re a shopper who skates or a skater who shops, you’ll find your balance at this open-air shopping mall. The Shops at Don Mills Skating Oval elevates city skating with rink-side fire pits where you can warm up—not to mention a variety of restaurants and cafés where you can refuel.
Best of all, you can squeeze in an errand or several before or after your skate session: pick up gifts at Pandora or treat yourself to a winter sweater at Oak + Fort.
For foodies: Christie Pits
Just offside of Koreatown beckons Christie Pits’ Sid Smith Artificial Ice Rink. Named after the legendary Toronto Maple Leafs team captain and left winger, the rink is a short walk from endless dining opportunities. Warm up with a bowl of jjigae, or treat yo’self to a Koreatown waffle tour in one of the neighbourhood hotspots.
