Welwyn Hatfield has no ice rink this winter. Letchworth Lido's covered rink opens 28 Nov from £12; Planet Ice Hemel skates Christmas Day for £10.
There is no ice rink in Welwyn Garden City or Hatfield this winter. The borough council’s events calendar, which runs to March 2027, lists roller skating at Campus West but no ice, and nothing in the Christmas programmes for either town or at Hatfield Park includes a rink. We checked on 20 October 2026 and will update this page if one is announced.
The nearest rink with a 2026 date is Letchworth Lido’s covered real-ice rink, which opens on Saturday 28 November. Planet Ice in Hemel Hempstead skates all year and opens on Christmas Day. Stevenage Winter Wonderland, the closest of the three, has not published 2026 dates.
The quick answer
- In Welwyn Hatfield: no ice rink. Roller City at Campus West runs roller skate sessions, including Christmas discos.
- Letchworth Lido: opens Saturday 28 November. Public skating £16 adults, £12 under 16s and over 66s, carers free. Closing date not published.
- Planet Ice Hemel: open through the holidays. Christmas Day 10am to 12pm, £10; other holiday sessions £14.10 adult or child.
- Stevenage Winter Wonderland: no 2026 dates yet. Last year it ran 21 November to 4 January.
Letchworth Lido: opens Saturday 28 November
Everyone Active, which runs the Lido for North Herts Council, says on its centre page: “Our seasonal ice rink will open on Saturday 28th November!” The rink is real ice, under cover on the Lido terrace, and holds up to 100 skaters at a time (Everyone Active, Letchworth Lido). It is at Norton Common, Icknield Way, Letchworth SG6 4UF, telephone 01462 684673.
Prices from the rink’s booking portal on 20 October 2026:
| Session | Adult (16+) | Under 16s | Senior (66+) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Public skating | £16 | £12 | £12 |
| Ice Disco, with a live DJ | £16 | £12 | £12 |
Carers go free on public skating. The portal also sells Skate with Santa, inclusive sessions for people with a disability or SEND, adult-and-child sessions for under 5s, Home Ed skating, parties and exclusive hire. Children under eight must be on the ice with a ticket-holding adult aged 18 or over. The portal says sessions “often fill up quickly”, so book rather than turning up.
The closing date and Christmas opening hours are not published yet. Session times are in the booking calendar.
Planet Ice, Hemel Hempstead
Planet Ice is a permanent rink at Jarman Park. We read these sessions from the Planet Ice booking calendar for the Hemel rink on 20 October 2026:
| Date | Public sessions | Billed as |
|---|---|---|
| Sat 28 Nov | 11.45am to 1.45pm, 2.15pm to 4.30pm, 5pm to 7.15pm | Public skate |
| Sat 19 Dec | 11.45am to 1.45pm, 2.15pm to 4.30pm, 5pm to 7.15pm | Skate and Spot Santa |
| Thu 24 Dec | 10.30am to 1pm, 1.30pm to 3.30pm, 4pm to 6pm | Skate and Spot Santa |
| Fri 25 Dec | 10am to 12pm | Christmas Day skate, £10 |
| Sat 26 Dec | 10.30am to 1.45pm, 2.15pm to 6pm | Public skate |
| Thu 31 Dec | 10.30am to 1pm, 1.30pm to 3.30pm, 4pm to 6pm | New Year’s Eve skate |
| Fri 1 Jan | 10.30am to 1pm, 1.30pm to 3.30pm, 4pm to 6pm | New Year’s Day skate |
The Christmas Day session is £10 a skater and £3.20 for under 4s, with no family or student tickets. The other sessions in the table cost £14.10 for an adult or a child aged 4 to 15, £13.10 each on a family ticket for 3, 4 or 5 people, £10 for students and £3.20 for under 4s. Carers go free with an Access Card. Under 8s must have an adult on the ice with them. There is no late New Year’s Eve skate: the last session ends at 6pm.
“Skate and Spot Santa” is the name on the calendar for those sessions, at the normal price. The booking system does not say when Father Christmas appears, so do not book one as a grotto visit.
Stevenage Winter Wonderland: no 2026 dates yet
The rink, funfair and Christmas market at Stevenage Leisure Park, next to the station, is run by a private operator, not the council. On 20 October 2026 its website, stevenagewinterwonderland.co.uk, showed only a “Website Expired” page, but its ticket portal was live and listed ice skating at £15 adults (16+), £11 children aged 4 to 16 and £49 for a family of two adults and two children, each plus a 60p booking fee and a £2 entrance fee per person paid on site. Under 4s are not allowed on the ice. No dates are listed.
Last year it ran from 21 November 2025 to 4 January 2026, closed on Christmas Day, opening Thursdays and Fridays from 4pm and weekends from noon until 18 December, then every day from noon to 10pm (Stevenage Winter Wonderland, December 2025, via the Internet Archive). An expired website does not mean the event is cancelled. But if no dates appear by early November, do not plan a day around it.
Getting there
Letchworth and Stevenage are both up the A1(M); Hemel Hempstead is west along the A414 past Hatfield and St Albans. Before you set off, check our Welwyn Garden City roadworks and travel page for closures on those roads. If you are staying in town instead, our parking in Welwyn Garden City page has the car parks and their prices.
What we will update, and when
| Rink | What is missing | Expected |
|---|---|---|
| Stevenage Winter Wonderland | 2026 dates and whether it returns | Early November, if it returns |
| Letchworth Lido | Closing date and Christmas hours | When the season opens on 28 November |
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