The popular and festive Windsor On Ice returns this year on 20th November 2023 and open through to 9th Jan January 2024.

Windsor On Ice Review

Windsor on Ice has expanded for 2023 and we spent they day down there to discover everything that is on offer this year.

Windsor on Ice is located in Alexandra Gardens in Windsor with a pretty and easily accessible riverside location. The event is open from mid November to early January and we visited on a Saturday in early December. Daily opening times vary, so check the website to be sure, but on our visit it was open from 11am until 10pm.

Windsor on Ice is conveniently located next to the Windsor and Eton Central Train Station and Riverside Car Park, as well as being easy walking distance into Windsor Town Centre.

The event is made up of a large undercover ice rink, festooned with fairy lights, and a good sized fun fair. It’s free to enter and you pay as you go for the activities you would like to take part in.

Ice Skating

There was plenty at Windsor on Ice to keep us busy for many hours and we begun our time with a whirl around the Ice Rink.

I haven’t skated in about twenty years so spent most of my time clinging to the side but my son quickly got into the swing of things with the help of his penguin skate aid. There were also sit on skate aids available for younger children available at an extra charge.

The rink was a good size and felt very festive. We would definitely recommend signing up for an early slot like we did if possible. We noticed the rink getting busier as the day went on, but our 11am slot was very clear giving us lots of space to skate (and fall over!)

There are slots available for skating throughout the day and each slot is 45 minutes long. There are also midweek Tiny Tuesday sessions for toddlers and All Access Sessions where the rink is available solely to skaters with disabilities.

Find all the best places to go Christmas ice skating.

Windsor On Ice Fun Fair

After our skating session, we headed into the fun fair and tried out the wide range of rides on offer there.

There’s something for everyone here, with small ride-on style attractions for the little ones (my toddler tried out the Mickey Mouse train) and bigger thrill rides for older kids and adults. Most of the rides were suitable for everyone with a couple having a 1.2 metre height restriction and one with a 1.4 metre restriction.

The kids managed to cajole me into a ride on Aviator which started off with a gentle spin and ended up with our flight pod swinging sideways through the air! I rode with two seven years olds and they both absolutely loved it. It was a pretty incredible offering for a funfair ride! We also tried the mini coaster and the dodgems, both of which were brilliant fun. In total there were 12 rides available so plenty to keep everyone entertained for a few hours.

When it comes to rides you have the option of choosing an unlimited ride wristband or to buy tokens and pay for each ride as you go. Many of the rides are suitable for kids to go on alone so it could work out as a cost effective option to buy the kids a wristband (between £20 and £25 as of December 2023) and pay for individual bigger rides that you need (or want!) to ride with them (at £5 per ride as of December 2023).

Food and Drink

 After all this high adrenaline adventure we stopped off at the Winter Bavarian Lodge for a hot chocolate. The lodge is beautifully decorated with lights and Christmas garlands and also has heaters which kept us nice and cosy after a chilly morning outdoors.

As well as hot drinks and a full bar, you can also buy bratwurst sausages and marshmallows which you can toast around the fire pit. Drinks averaged around £4, marshmallows to toast were £5 and a sausage in a bun around £8 (as of December 2023).

Windsor on Ice is also easy walking distance into Windsor itself where there are many food options available for all budgets, so this is well worth considering. You could also make a day of it and check out the beautiful royal themed Christmas lights in Windsor Town Centre. The suspended crowns are a stunning sight to see!

We would definitely recommend a visit down to Windsor on Ice. The choice is yours as to how much you do while at the event and having Windsor Town Centre so close by is a huge benefit.

There is something here for all the family and it certainly put us all in the festive mood!