Hampton Court's rink opens 20 November from £14.50 a child; Windsor from 13 Nov at £17. Seven rinks near Richmond with 2026 dates, prices and age rules.

Richmond has had no ice rink of its own since 1992, so the borough’s Christmas skate is at Hampton Court Palace, which opens on 20 November. Further out, Windsor on Ice opens on 13 November, a direct train from Richmond or Twickenham, while Somerset House, Winter Wonderland and Glide at Battersea are the central London choices. Queens in Bayswater is open all year. Every entry checked against the rink’s own site on 3 November 2026.

We have not skated at any of these for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Each entry gives the dates, the prices the rink’s own website or booking page showed on 3 November, and the rules that catch families out: age limits, who must skate with children, and the booking fee. Seasonal rinks price by day and time, so the figure at checkout may differ.

On a match day? Twickenham hosts England on Sunday 8 November and two matches a day on 27, 28 and 29 November. See roads and parking on match days before you drive to Hampton Court or the station.

In the borough

1. Hampton Court Palace Ice Rink

An outdoor rink set up in front of the palace’s west front each winter, run by Icebox Live with Historic Royal Palaces. Historic Royal Palaces gives the season as 20 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, excluding Christmas Day, with the first session at 10am and the last at 8pm.

It is a separate ticket from palace admission. Sessions last up to 45 minutes with skate hire included.

Children under 3 are not allowed on the ice, under-13s must have an adult (18 or over) skating with them, and one adult can supervise up to five children. The rink recommends quieter sessions for wheelchair users.

Its price list does not say which days count as peak; the price shows at checkout. We have a fuller page on the palace at Christmas.

Open 20 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, closed Christmas Day; first session 10am, last 8pm
Price child (3 to 12) £14.50 off peak, £16 peak; adult (13+) £19.50 or £21.50; student £18 or £21.50; family of four £59.50 or £65.50; wheelchair user £15 with one carer free; groups of 10+ from £13.50
Booking online, sessions up to 45 minutes
Address Hampton Court Palace, East Molesey, KT8 9AU
Website hamptoncourtpalaceicerink.co.uk/opening-times-prices
Good for skate hire included, family tickets, Festive Fayre at the palace 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 December

Christmas rinks a train ride away

2. Windsor on Ice

A Christmas rink with a fairground in Alexandra Gardens, beside the Thames in Windsor. Its own site gives the season as Friday 13 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, with opening night 5pm to 9pm, then 12 noon to 9pm on most weekdays and 10am to 9pm at weekends.

It closes to the public from 3pm on Thursday 19 November for a gala night and on Christmas Day, and Santa visits on 12, 13, 19, 20 and 24 December from 12 noon to 5pm. Its booking site says the minimum age on the ice is 4 and children under 12 must be with an adult.

There are Tiny Tuesdays for toddlers and All Access Wednesdays for disabled skaters. Trains from Richmond and Twickenham run direct to Windsor and Eton Riverside.

Open 13 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, closed Christmas Day; usually 12pm to 9pm weekdays, 10am to 9pm weekends
Price adult £17; child (17 and under) £15; family of four £56; four adults £64; plus £1.50 booking fee; groups of 7+ from £16 an adult
Booking online at citiesonice.digitickets.co.uk
Address Alexandra Gardens, Windsor
Website windsoronice.com
Good for fairground, Santa visits, toddler sessions, sessions for disabled skaters

3. Skate at Somerset House

London’s best-known Christmas rink, in the Edmond J. Safra Fountain Court under a 40ft tree. Somerset House lists the season as 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027, a week longer than most rinks here.

It runs Skate Lates music nights from 8pm from Thursday 12 November, 90-minute Extended Skate sessions on 11, 17 and 23 November from 12pm, Relaxed Skate sessions with reduced capacity and lower music, and Skate School lessons from 14 November. Wheelchair users are welcome at any session; Somerset House asks them to book on 0343 208 1497.

Concessions cover full-time students, NHS staff and PIP recipients. Richmond is on the District line to Temple, a short walk away.

Open 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027
Price adults £13 to £28.50; children £11 to £15; plus £1.50 fee a ticket
Booking online; wheelchair bookings on 0343 208 1497
Call 0343 208 1497
Address Somerset House, Strand, London, WC2R 1LA
Website somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/skate-somerset-house
Good for Skate Lates, relaxed sessions, lessons, wheelchair users at all sessions

4. Hyde Park Winter Wonderland ice rink

The ice rink inside Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, which runs from 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027. Its ice skating page gives sessions from 10am to 9pm, each 45 minutes, and asks skaters to arrive 20 minutes early.

Skaters must be 3 or over, and children aged 3 to 12 need an adult with them. It publishes the clearest price grid of any rink here, split into off-peak, standard and peak days, with advance prices up to 23:59 the day before and higher prices on the day.

Open 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; sessions 10am to 9pm
Price advance adult £12.65 off peak, £17.05 standard, £19.25 peak; child £9.35, £11.55, £13.75; family £37.40, £46.20, £55; on the day £1 to £4 more
Booking choose a time slot online; advance prices to 23:59 the day before
Address Hyde Park, London
Website hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/attraction/ice-skating
Good for clear off-peak prices, family tickets, rest of Winter Wonderland on site

5. Glide at Battersea Power Station

Three linked rinks and a 200-metre skate trail along the river in front of Battersea Power Station. The Power Station’s event page gives the dates as Friday 6 November 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027, so it is the first of these to open.

Glide shows its prices only inside its booking calendar once a session is picked, so we cannot print them; the ticket types include adult, child, family, student and wheelchair user. Under Glide’s terms a child ticket covers ages 3 to 12 and under-13s must be with someone aged 16 or over on the ice.

Open 6 November 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price shown only in Glide's booking calendar
Booking online at glidebatterseapowerstation.co.uk
Address Circus Road West, Battersea, SW8 5BN
Website glidebatterseapowerstation.co.uk
Good for skate trail by the river, first to open, accessible sessions

Open all year

6. Queens Ice and Bowl, Bayswater

An indoor rink on Queensway that has been open all year since 1930, with bowling in the same building. Its skating page lists Monday and Tuesday “Madness” sessions from £8, Late Skate sessions every night from 9pm from £10, off-peak skating from £11.75 and peak from £13.75, and says it is always cheaper to book online.

Skates, penguin aids and warm clothing are for hire. Children’s group lessons start at age 5.

Session times are in a timetable PDF on its site rather than on the page.

Open all year; Late Skate every night 9pm to close
Price from £8 Monday and Tuesday; Late Skate from £10; off peak from £11.75; peak from £13.75
Booking online, cheaper than on the door
Address 17 Queensway, London, W2 4QP
Website queens.london/skating
Good for indoor, all year, late sessions, lessons from age 5

7. Slough Ice Arena

A year-round indoor rink on Montem Lane, run by Everyone Active, with public skating every day of the week. Everyone Active’s timetable listed public sessions at £6.50 off peak for adults and juniors, and £13 an adult or £10.85 a junior at peak times, when our sister site Slough Daily last read it on 1 November; on 3 November the centre’s site was not showing the figures outside its booking system.

Under-8s must be on the ice with a full-paying adult over 18. There is a Friday night ice disco, and Beauty and the Beast on Ice runs from 17 to 20 December.

No Christmas holiday timetable has been published yet.

Open all year, public sessions daily
Price £6.50 off peak; peak £13 adult, £10.85 junior (Everyone Active timetable, 1 November 2026)
Booking online through Everyone Active
Call 01753 969 710
Address Montem Lane, Slough, SL1 2QG
Website everyoneactive.com/centre/slough-ice-arena/ice-rink
Good for indoor, all year, cheapest off-peak skate here, ice disco

Not running or not confirmed

  • Richmond Ice Rink, East Twickenham: the old rink on Clevedon Road closed in 1992. There is no rink in the borough apart from Hampton Court.
  • Kew Gardens: Christmas at Kew is a light trail; there is no rink in 2026. See Christmas at Kew.
  • Kingston and Westfield London: neither has announced a rink for 2026, and Westfield’s old rink page no longer loads.
  • Natural History Museum: the museum says its rink “has now closed”; the last season was 2021 to 2022.

How we chose

These are the rinks people in Richmond, Twickenham, Teddington, Kew and Barnes search for when the borough has only one, chosen on the public record rather than on taste: real ice within a train or Tube ride with a 2026 season or year-round sessions published by the operator. Dates, prices and rules come from each rink’s own website or booking system, read on 3 November 2026; Hampton Court’s dates are from Historic Royal Palaces and Glide’s from Battersea Power Station. The Slough prices are from Everyone Active’s timetable as read on 1 November.

Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@richmondonline.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@richmondonline.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.

More for Christmas around Richmond: Hampton Court Palace at Christmas, Christmas at Kew, Ham House at Christmas, the Christmas lights switch-ons, Christmas markets, Christmas dinner and Christmas and New Year travel. For the rest of the year, see things to do in Richmond, what’s on this month, days out, soft play and the local directory.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an ice rink in Richmond?

Not an all-year one. Richmond Ice Rink on Clevedon Road, East Twickenham, closed in 1992. The borough’s Christmas rink is at Hampton Court Palace, open 20 November 2026 to 3 January 2027 except Christmas Day, from £14.50 a child and £19.50 an adult off peak.

What is the cheapest ice skating near Richmond?

Queens in Bayswater, open all year, lists Monday and Tuesday sessions from £8. Among the Christmas rinks, Winter Wonderland’s off-peak advance adult ticket is £12.65 and Somerset House’s children’s tickets start at £11, plus a £1.50 fee.

Which rink can I reach by train from Richmond or Twickenham?

Windsor on Ice is the simplest: trains from Richmond and Twickenham run direct to Windsor and Eton Riverside, and the rink is in Alexandra Gardens by the river. Somerset House is a District line ride from Richmond to Temple.