The ice rink has long been a destination for a host of winter activities, whether you’re playing a game of hockey, practicing a triple axel, or just trying to stay standing as you glide along the perimeter. While these cold-weather spots have plenty for sports fans to enjoy, many of them include designs or views that are sure to please architecture fans. From locations designed by big-name architects such as Tod Williams Billie Tsien and Eero Saarinen to temporary rinks in historic structures, these skating venues are proof that the sport has come a long way from frozen ponds.
LeFrak Center at Lakeside, Prospect Park, Brooklyn
AD100 firm Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects developed the modern LeFrak Center at Lakeside, which debuted in late 2013, replacing the decrepit Kate Wollman rink that had served Prospect Park since the 1960s. Two granite-clad buildings form an L at the site, bordering a pair of open-air rinks. A midnight-blue canopy covers the hockey rink and is carved with silver swirls recalling figure-skating footwork. In the summer the structure converts to provide roller skating and a water feature.
Rosa Parks Circle, Grand Rapids, Michigan
Artist, architect, and Vietnam Veterans Memorial creator Maya Lin designed the Rosa Parks Circle in downtown Grand Rapids to feature water in its three forms: solid (the ice rink), liquid (a water fountain), and vapor (a mist fountain). The simple yet affecting structure, called Ecliptic, contains an amphitheater, which is transformed into a rink in the winter. Lin worked with Tillett Lighting to embed fiber-optic lights in the concrete floor depicting the locations of the stars on January 1, 2000.
David S. Ingalls Skating Rink, New Haven, Connecticut
Home of the Bulldogs hockey teams, Yale’s David S. Ingalls Skating Rink was built in 1958 by architecture graduate Eero Saarinen. The structure, which seats 3,500, is nicknamed the Whale for its humpbacked roof. A sensitive renovation by Pritzker Prize winner Kevin Roche, Saarinen’s former deputy, was completed in 2010, and added an underground extension and climate-control systems to allow year-round use.
Eiffel Tower, Paris
Each winter, from early December to mid-February, the first level of Paris’s most famous landmark is transformed into an ice-skating rink with beautiful views of the surrounding city. Visitors can enjoy other parts of the newly renovated first level, which boasts a glass floor and high-tech installations.
Ice Rink of Liège, Liège, Belgium
Designed by L’Escaut Architectures and BE Weinand, Liège’s indoor ice rink, which was completed in 2012, has been compared to a sea monster, based on the building’s rounded shape and inventive façade featuring 200,000 aluminum scales. The Olympic-size facility, seating 1,200, was actually inspired in part by 1970s automobiles and retro New York City diners.
Maggie Daley Park Skating Ribbon, Chicago
The newest addition to Chicago’s lakefront recreation area is the skating ribbon in Maggie Daley Park, which opened in late 2014. Landscape architecture firm Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates designed the undulating ice track within a grove of evergreen trees. It is the largest of the three ice ribbons in the U.S., and during the summer months it will be transformed into a path, providing access to different sections of the park.
Somerset House, London
Skating at London’s Somerset House, overlooking the River Thames, has become a magical tradition during the holiday season for residents and tourists alike. The outdoor rink is set up in the courtyard of the magnificent neoclassical structure, which was built by the architect Sir William Chambers in the late 18th century.
Flaine Resort, Flaine, France
Skate amid modernist masterpieces in the French Alps. In 1960 architect Marcel Breuer was commissioned to design the Flaine Resort, in France’s Haute-Savoie region, and he worked on the project until 1976. The skating rink is located in the resort’s lower section, known as Flaine Forum, and offers views of Breuer’s stunning buildings, including the timber-and-slate ecumenical chapel.
GUM Skating Rink, Moscow
Each winter since 2005, the GUM department store has erected a large skating rink in Moscow’s Red Square. Skaters can enjoy the city’s famous landmarks—including the Kremlin and St. Basil’s Cathedral—while they take a spin on the ice.
The Depot, Minneapolis
The truss-roofed train shed of an 1899 railway station designed by Charles Sumner Frost now houses an indoor ice rink. Floor-to-ceiling window walls fill the space with light and allow skaters to admire the Minneapolis skyline. The historic Milwaukee Road Depot complex, now known simply as the Depot, also includes hotels, a restaurant, a bar, and an indoor water park.
ICE*Amsterdam, Amsterdam
Amsterdam’s Museum Square is home to the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, the Stedelijk Museum, and, once the weather gets cold, ICE*Amsterdam, a skating complex complete with a winter market and brasserie. Visitors can enjoy a variety of activities, including curling and ice sculpting, while taking in views of the Rijksmuseum’s 19th-century architecture.
The Rink at Rockefeller Center, New York
Rockefeller Center is always a hive of activity, but it becomes even more bustling in the winter, when visitors come to see the towering Christmas tree and take a spin on the ice at the Rink. The latter attraction was added in 1936, just three years after the Plaza opened, and has remained a beloved Manhattan tradition ever since.
Grand Palais, Paris
For part of December, Paris’s Grand Palais is transformed into a spectacular skating rink—the largest ever created in France. Light shows create a magical atmosphere inside the historic building, which was constructed for the 1900 exhibition.
BMW Ice Rink 354, Moscow
Located on top of the OKO Tower in downtown Moscow, the BMW Ice Rink 354 is billed as the highest rink in Europe. Skaters can look out onto the city from 1,161 feet in the air or take a break at the bars and restaurants on the same level.
