We checked 9 ice rinks near Maidstone, from Planet Ice Gillingham to Bluewater, for dates, prices, skate hire and age rules. Updated November 2026.
Maidstone has no ice rink in 2026, so this guide puts the 9 nearest in one place with dates, prices and age rules. Planet Ice Gillingham is closest and skates all year, Icescape Tunbridge Wells opens on 26 November, and Bluewater is open now.
Seasonal rinks price by day and time, so check the figure when you book. Distances are straight lines from Maidstone town centre, so the drive will be longer.
In Kent and just over the border, nearest first
1. Planet Ice Gillingham
A permanent indoor rink on Gillingham Business Park, about 7 miles from Maidstone, and the only one here open all year. Session times vary a lot by day.
The booking system showed 11am to 1pm and 1.30pm to 4.30pm on Saturday 14 November, but no public session on Wednesday 18 November, so look before you set off. Prices vary too: an adult ticket was £15.40 on a Saturday and £11.75 on Tuesday 10 November.
Skate hire is not included, and the booking system gives no hire price for Gillingham. Planet Ice’s FAQ says there is no minimum age and recommends gloves.
Ask the rink what supervision it wants for young children, because older versions of its rules were stricter.
Open all year; session times vary by day; Christmas Day 10am to 12pm
Price Saturday adult or child £15.40, Tuesday 10 November £11.75; student £10; under 4s £3.20; families of three to five £14.70 each on Saturday, £10.70 on that Tuesday; Christmas Day £10; 4% online booking fee (booking system)
Booking online at planet-ice.co.uk, choosing Gillingham
Address Ambley Road, Gillingham Business Park, Gillingham, ME8 0PU
Website planet-ice.co.uk/ice-skating
Good for all year, longer sessions, student price, Christmas Day skate
2. Icescape Tunbridge Wells
The Christmas rink in Calverley Grounds, about 15 miles from Maidstone, returns under a new name. The operator’s page says sessions last 45 minutes and that entry to the grounds to watch is free.
Online Saver tickets, booked at least a day ahead, cost less than the box office. The booking system also lists parent and toddler, quiet, disco night and 2-for-1 sessions.
Its FAQ says children aged 8 and under must have an adult ticket holder skating with them. Children aged 9 to 12 need a responsible adult watching from the spectating area.
By train, go from Maidstone West towards Tonbridge, then take a Hastings line train to Tunbridge Wells.
Open 26 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; no sessions listed on Christmas Day
Price online adult (13 and over) £15 to £19, child (12 and under) £10 to £14, family of four £45 to £59.50; box office adult £17 to £21, child £12 to £16, family £52 to £66.50; 2-for-1 sessions £17 for two online (booking system, sampled dates)
Booking online at least a day ahead for the lower price
Address Calverley Grounds, Tunbridge Wells, TN1 1QY
Website icescapetunbridgewells.com/whats-on
Good for parent and toddler sessions, quiet sessions, disco nights, free to watch
3. The Ice Rink at Bluewater
Bluewater, about 16 miles from Maidstone, builds its rink outside The Village. The centre’s page calls it undercover and gives pre-bookable 45-minute sessions with skate hire included. It says the rink is open on Christmas Eve, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
The booking system lists no sessions on Christmas Day.
Besides standard sessions there are parent and toddler, quiet and disco night sessions. New this year, Skate and Sing runs on Wednesdays from 18 November for five weeks, with Kids Pop and 80s and 90s themes.
The FAQ sets no minimum age, but small children must be able to walk unaided. Children aged 8 and under need an adult ticket holder skating with them.
Open 5 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; no sessions listed on Christmas Day
Price off peak adult £15, child (12 and under) £13, family of four £46; peak £17, £15 and £56; £1.50 more per ticket on the day, £6 more for a family; parent and toddler sessions list a parent at £15, with toddler tickets at free and £5 (booking system)
Booking online, cheapest a day or more ahead
Address Bluewater, Greenhithe, DA9 9ST
Website bluewater.co.uk/en/the-ice-rink-at-bluewater
Good for covered rink, skate hire included, parent and toddler sessions, open now
4. The Ice Rink at Ruxley Manor, Sidcup
A real-ice rink at Ruxley Manor Garden Centre, about 19 miles from Maidstone, on a road that is also called Maidstone Road. The centre’s page describes it as all-weather and fully covered, with skate hire in the ticket price. Sessions last 45 minutes and start on the hour, and it asks you to arrive at least 20 minutes early.
There are three kinds of session. Standard sessions take up to 175 skaters.
Little Penguins takes up to 80, with music and lighting for young children. SEN sessions also take up to 80, with reduced music and lighting.
Skaters must be at least 3. Children aged 8 or under need a paying adult with them on the ice.
Open 13 November 2026 to 4 January 2027
Price from £6 a ticket; skate aids £5 a session (centre's page)
Booking online
Address Maidstone Road, North Cray, Sidcup, DA14 5BQ
Website ruxley-manor.co.uk/pages/events/ice-rink
Good for covered rink, skate hire included, first-time skaters, SEN sessions
5. Ice Skating at Quex, Birchington
Quex Adventure Farm Park, about 35 miles from Maidstone, builds a real ice rink each Christmas beside its Santa show, The Elf Express. This year it sits in a new Christmas village with a hot chocolate bar.
The farm’s page says the rink is covered and sessions last 45 minutes, and the booking page includes skate hire. It suggests arriving about 20 minutes early.
It gives no refunds unless it is forced to close, but will move your booking to another date. The minimum age is 3, and children aged 3 to 7 must have a skater aged 16 or over with them.
Skate aids are £5 a session, first come, first served at check-in. They can be booked up to an hour before your session.
Open 30 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, dates from See Kent; 45-minute sessions
Price adult (16 and over) £7.95 to £14.95; child (3 to 15) £6.95 to £13.95; group of four £28.95 to £50.95; plus a 50p booking fee per ticket, £1 per group ticket (booking page)
Booking online; no refunds, date changes allowed
Address Quex Park, Park Lane, Birchington, CT7 0BH
Website theelfexpress.com/ice
Good for covered rink, skate hire included, student tickets, farm park day out
By train to London
Maidstone East has direct trains to Victoria in about 1 hour 7 minutes, to London Bridge in about 53 minutes and to Charing Cross in about 1 hour 4 minutes. These four rinks are a walk, a Tube ride or a short train ride from those stations.
6. Skate Leicester Square
Underbelly’s open-air rink in the middle of Leicester Square, with a Christmas market around it, and the first of the London rinks to open. The booking page lists tickets from £7.60, plus a £3 transaction fee.
Prices change between quieter and busier days, so the from price will not apply to every session. The square is a short walk from Charing Cross.
Open 31 October 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price from £7.60, plus a £3 transaction fee (booking page)
Booking online
Address Leicester Square, London, WC2H
Website skateleicestersquare.co.uk
Good for central London, Christmas market, open now
7. Skate at Somerset House
The rink in Somerset House’s 18th-century courtyard, and the last of the nine to close. Somerset House gives adult prices from £13 to £28.50 and child prices from £11 to £15. It also runs Skate Lates and lessons.
Walk along the Strand from Charing Cross.
Open 11 November 2026 to 10 January 2027
Price adult £13 to £28.50; child £11 to £15; plus a £1.50 fee per ticket (Somerset House)
Booking online
Address Strand, London, WC2R 1LA
Website somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/skate-somerset-house
Good for Skate Lates, lessons, historic courtyard, open to 10 January
8. The Queen’s House Ice Rink, Greenwich
An open-air rink in front of the Queen’s House, run for Royal Museums Greenwich. The museum’s page gives the season as 18 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, 10am to 9pm.
The booking page says sessions last 45 minutes and lists SEND sessions. Change at London Bridge for a train to Greenwich, about a 10-minute walk from the rink.
Open 18 November 2026 to 3 January 2027, 10am to 9pm
Price adult £16.80 standard, £24.64 peak, £26.88 super peak; child £11.20, £19.60 and £22.40 (booking page)
Booking online, 45-minute sessions
Address Romney Road, Greenwich, SE10 9NF
Website rmg.co.uk/queens-house/attractions/queens-house-ice-rink
Good for SEND sessions, historic setting, open-air skating
9. Ice skating at Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
Winter Wonderland’s rink opens on 19 November. Its ticket table gives advance and on-the-day prices at three tiers.
Sessions last 45 minutes, and it asks you to arrive 20 minutes before yours. Skaters must be 3 or over, and anyone aged 3 to 12 needs a responsible adult aged 18 or over.
Every £25 spent on activities unlocks a free entry ticket to the site. From Victoria, take the Victoria line to Green Park and change to the Piccadilly line for Hyde Park Corner.
Open 19 November 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price advance adult £12.65 off peak, £17.05 standard, £19.25 peak; child (3 to 12) £9.35, £11.55 and £13.75; family from £37.40; on the day £1 to £2 more each (Winter Wonderland)
Booking online in advance is cheapest
Address Hyde Park, London
Website hydeparkwinterwonderland.com/attraction/ice-skating
Good for funfair day out, three price tiers, free entry with £25 of activities
Christmas trains from Maidstone
National Rail’s Southeastern page, read on 5 November, says no trains run on Christmas Day. Its plans for 24 and 26 December were still to be published. Here is what it says for the rest of the skating season:
- 27 December: no trains at Charing Cross or Cannon Street. Maidstone East’s Charing Cross trains run from Victoria instead.
- 28 December, 2 and 3 January: no trains at Charing Cross or Cannon Street, and no Charing Cross trains to Maidstone East.
- 1 January: no trains at Charing Cross or Cannon Street, and buses replace trains between Sevenoaks and Ashford via Maidstone East.
Check your journey before you travel. Our Maidstone Christmas trains page has last year’s Christmas Eve times.
How we chose
These are the real-ice rinks within reach of Maidstone that have a 2026 season and published prices. Dates, prices and rules are from each rink’s own website or booking system on 5 November 2026, with Quex’s season dates from the See Kent round-up.
No rink has been announced for Maidstone or its villages this winter. KentOnline reported a Mote Park rink plan in June 2019, but nothing has followed for 2026. The Lakeside rink and London rinks further from Maidstone’s trains are not included.
Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@maidstonelive.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@maidstonelive.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.
For more on Christmas locally, see the Maidstone Christmas lights switch-on, the Maidstone Christmas market, Santa’s grottos around Maidstone, Leeds Castle at Christmas, the Maidstone pantomime, Christmas dinner in Maidstone and what’s on in Maidstone this month. For the rest of the year, see things to do in Maidstone and our local business directory.
Frequently asked questions
Is there an ice rink in Maidstone?
No. We found no rink in Maidstone or its villages for winter 2026. See Kent’s county round-up, last updated on 1 November 2026, lists none, and neither do One Maidstone’s events or Leeds Castle’s Christmas page. The closest is Planet Ice in Gillingham, about 7 miles away, which is open all year.
Which ice rink near Maidstone is open on Christmas Day?
Planet Ice Gillingham’s booking system lists a Christmas Day skate from 10am to 12pm at £10 a skater, with under 4s at £3.20. The booking systems for Bluewater and Icescape Tunbridge Wells list no sessions that day, and no trains run on Christmas Day.
Can I get to a London ice rink from Maidstone by train?
Yes. Maidstone East has trains to Victoria in about 1 hour 7 minutes and to Charing Cross in about 1 hour 4 minutes. Skate Leicester Square and Somerset House are near Charing Cross, but National Rail shows no trains at Charing Cross on 27 and 28 December or 1 to 3 January.
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