Letchworth Lido's covered real-ice rink opens Saturday 28 November: adults £16, under 16s £12. Stevenage Winter Wonderland has no 2026 dates yet.

Stevenage has no confirmed Christmas ice rink for 2026 yet, but the nearest one has a date: Letchworth Lido’s covered real-ice rink opens on Saturday 28 November, about six miles north of the town centre. Public skating costs £16 for adults and £12 for under 16s. Stevenage Winter Wonderland, the rink and funfair at the Leisure Park, has not announced 2026 dates.

Both checked on 20 October 2026 on the operators’ own pages. We will update this page as soon as Winter Wonderland publishes a season.

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!” (Everyone Active, Letchworth Lido)

  • Where: Letchworth Lido, Norton Common, Icknield Way, Letchworth SG6 4UF. Telephone 01462 684673
  • What: real ice, under cover on the Lido terrace, for up to 100 skaters at a time, with a heated viewing area for spectators and a café
  • Closing date: not published for 2026. In 2024 the rink ran from 23 November to 12 January, through the school holidays (North Herts Council, 8 November 2024)
  • Session times: these sit in the booking calendar, and the centre page names only the opening date. Check the calendar before you set off

Prices

From the rink’s booking portal on 20 October 2026:

Session Adult (16+) Under 16s Senior (66+) Carer
Public skating £16 £12 £12 Free
Ice Disco, with a live DJ £16 £12 £12
Skate with Santa £16 £12 £12 Free
Inclusive skating £16 £12 £12 Free
Adult and child (under 5s) £16 £7 £12
Home Ed skating £16 £12

Carers must bring proof on arrival, such as a PIP letter, Blue Badge or DWP award letter. An ice skating party is £240 for 12 children, 45 minutes on the ice then an hour in a reserved area with food, and exclusive hire of the whole rink is £700. (Letchworth Lido booking portal)

The inclusive sessions run with no music or disco lights, an ice steward on the rink and skating aids, for people with a disability, SEND or a long-term health condition. The adult and child sessions are a gentle introduction for under 5s with on-ice games.

Rules worth knowing before you book

  • There is no minimum age, but skaters must be able to walk unaided. The smallest skate is a toddler size 7 (EU 24) and the largest a size 14 (EU 46)
  • Under 8s must be on the ice with a ticket-holding adult aged 18 or over
  • Skating aids are available for children
  • No refunds. The rink says it will try to move you to another session instead
  • No photography or filming on the ice

(Letchworth Lido booking FAQs)

The centre lists accessible parking bays at the Lido. Last season’s rink drew 13,504 visitors, according to the council, so weekend and school holiday sessions are worth booking early (North Herts Council, 17 January 2025).

Stevenage Winter Wonderland: no 2026 dates yet

The ice rink, funfair and Christmas market at Stevenage Leisure Park, 12 Kings Way, SG1 2UA is run by Mannings Fairview Company Ltd of Cheshunt, not by the council. On 20 October 2026:

  • Its website, stevenagewinterwonderland.co.uk, still shows a Squarespace “website expired” page
  • Its ticket portal is live and lists ice skating at £15 adults, £11 children aged 4 to 16, £49 for a family of two adults and two children, and £13 a head for adult groups of four or more (£9.50 for children’s groups), each plus a 60p booking fee and a £2 entrance fee per person paid on site. Carers go free with a Carers Card UK or National Carers Card and cannot book ahead, but the operator says their space is guaranteed on the day. No under 4s on the ice (Stevenage Winter Wonderland ticket portal)
  • No dates are listed anywhere we can find

Last year it ran from 21 November 2025 to 4 January 2026, closed on Christmas Day. Until 18 December it was shut Monday to Wednesday and opened 4pm to 9pm on Thursdays, 4pm to 10pm on Fridays and noon to 10pm at weekends; from 18 December it opened daily, noon to 10pm. Skating sessions lasted 45 minutes, and under 8s had to skate with an adult. The site is next to Stevenage station, with steps and a ramp from the station to the entrance. (Stevenage Winter Wonderland website, December 2025, via the Internet Archive)

An expired website does not mean the event is cancelled, and the live ticket portal suggests the operator is still trading. But last year’s opening came in late November, so if no dates appear by early November, treat a 2026 rink as uncertain. Do not book a party around it yet.

Is there an ice rink on Event Island?

Not that anyone has announced for 2026. A Visit Herts blog still describes a “Skate Stevenage” rink on Event Island, but it carries no date, and Stevenage Borough Council has published no rink for this winter. Its events listing on 20 October covered museum sessions, walks and the youth show only (Stevenage Borough Council, events). The council’s confirmed winter dates, including the town centre lights switch-on on Saturday 21 November, are on our Christmas lights page.

Getting there and parking

For Winter Wonderland at the Leisure Park, the town centre car parks are pay-by-plate now; rates and locations are on our parking in Stevenage page. Anything shut on the roads, including the A1(M) works, is on our Stevenage roadworks and travel page.

More for the season: the Christmas market and Knebworth fair, Snow White at the Gordon Craig and where to meet Father Christmas.

What we will update, and when

Rink What is missing Expected
Stevenage Winter Wonderland 2026 dates, hours, whether it returns Early November, if it returns
Letchworth Lido Closing date and Christmas hours When the season opens on 28 November

Sources