We checked 8 ice rinks near Market Harborough, from Leicester and Whilton Locks to Warwick Castle, for dates, prices and age rules. Updated November 2026.

Eight ice rinks are within reach of Market Harborough in 2026, and this guide puts them in one place with dates, prices and age rules. Most people will land on Ice Skate Leicester, 12 minutes away by train, Whilton Locks, with parking and hire included, or Planet Ice Coventry for any week of the year. Every entry checked against the rink’s own site or ticket page on 5 November 2026.

We have not skated at any of these for this guide, and nothing here is a review. Distances are approximate and in a straight line from Market Harborough town centre. Prices are per person unless we say otherwise and can change, so confirm them when you book. Where a detail comes from an earlier read rather than today’s, the entry says so.

Is there an ice rink in Market Harborough this year?

We found none announced. The town’s Christmas lights switch-on and Christmas fayre list no skating, and neither do the Visit Harborough events listing or the district council’s news page. Our searches also found no 2026 rink in Lutterworth, Kettering or Corby, or in Peterborough city centre, which has had one in past winters. If one is announced, we will add it here.

From Lutterworth, the nearest are Ice Skate Leicester, Whilton Locks and Planet Ice Coventry, all about 13 to 14 miles away.

The closest rinks: about 14 and 16 miles

1. Ice Skate Leicester, Jubilee Square

About 14 miles away and the only rink here a short direct train ride from town. The operator describes a real-ice rink in the city centre, and its ticket page calls it undercover, with festive food and drink alongside.

It quotes a range of £8 to £46 with skate hire included, without saying what each price buys. Sessions listed last 45 minutes.

Check before you plan around a particular day. On 5 November the only date showing on its ticket page was Thursday 17 December, and all 12 sessions that day were marked cancelled, with no reason given.

The rink’s own websites gave no details: one returned an error and the other said it was under construction. Visit Leicester’s Christmas page says its Christmas guide is coming soon.

Open 4 December 2026 to 3 January 2027, closed Christmas Day; 10am to 10pm daily
Price tickets £8 to £46, skate hire included
Booking online through TicketSource; advance booking recommended
Address Jubilee Square, St Nicolas Place, Leicester, LE1 4LD
Website ticketsource.com/iceskateleicester/ice-skate-leicester/e-djyozq
Good for city centre trip, skate hire included, undercover rink

2. Whilton Locks Winter Wonderland

About 16 miles away, at a garden centre near Daventry, and open three weeks before Leicester. The garden village describes the rink as real ice, open air and fully undercover, so dress for the weather.

Sessions last 45 minutes, and you should arrive 15 minutes early. Socks are essential, and gloves are strongly recommended.

Under-8s must have a paying adult on the ice, up to four children to one adult. Older children need an adult in the spectator area.

The price depends on the date. Adults pay £7.45 and children £6.95 from 16 to 20 November.

The £11.20 and £10.45 rate applies on 14 and 15 November, 21 to 27 November, 30 November to 4 December, 7 to 10 December and 14 to 17 December. Every other date is £14.95 and £13.95.

A Pudsey Party skate costs £7 on Children in Need day and the Saturday, with all proceeds going to the charity.

Wheelchairs and pushchairs are not allowed in normal sessions. The Super SEND sessions (children £13.95, one carer free, proof required) allow both, and the Toddler Skate (adults £14.95, toddlers free) allows pushchairs.

The booking calendar would not load its dates for us on the afternoon of 5 November. When Rugby Town News read it earlier that day, it ran to 3 January and showed nothing bookable on 25 and 26 December, so check your date when you book.

Open from 14 November 2026; to 3 January 2027 on the booking calendar, not bookable on 25 and 26 December; 45-minute sessions
Price adults £7.45 to £14.95; children (14 and under) £6.95 to £13.95; push-along skate aids £5; sit-on banana £10; no booking fee
Booking online
Parking free
Call 01327 843100
Address Whilton Locks, Whilton, Daventry, NN11 2NH
Website whiltonlocksgardenvillage.com/product/ice-skating-at-whilton-locks
Good for skate hire included, free parking, undercover rink, rinkside cafe, SEND sessions, toddler sessions

All-year rinks and the Formula One garages: 26 to 28 miles

3. Planet Ice Coventry, Croft Road

About 26 miles away. This is a permanent rink, and the one to pick for an ordinary skate outside the Christmas rush.

Planet Ice shows times and prices only through its booking calendar, so the sessions below are the dates we looked up. Pick Coventry and a date on its ice skating page for any other day.

Skate hire is not included, which matters when you compare it with the Christmas rinks. Under-8s need an adult on the ice, and under-12s must wear gloves.

A 4% booking fee applies online. Wheelchairs are permitted on the ice, and the operator suggests contacting the rink first.

Open all year; Saturday 14 November 11.30am to 1.30pm and 2pm to 4pm; Wednesday 18 November 1pm to 4pm and 7.45pm to 9.30pm; Christmas Day 10am to 12pm
Price adult or child £15.40 on 14 November, £11.75 on 18 November; families of three to five £14.70 each, £10.70 each on 18 November; under-4s £3.20; Christmas Day £10; Inclusive Skate £10, skate hire free; skate hire otherwise extra
Booking online through the Planet Ice calendar
Address Planet Ice Arena, Croft Road, Coventry, CV1 3AZ
Website planet-ice.co.uk/ice-skating
Good for all year round, Christmas Day skating, inclusive sessions, Skate and Spot Santa sessions

4. Planet Ice Peterborough, Mallard Road

About 28 miles away, with the same operator, booking system and rules as Coventry. Skate hire is again extra.

Boxing Day and New Year’s Eve sessions are also on the calendar at the Saturday price.

Open all year; Saturday 14 November 11.15am to 1pm and 1.15pm to 4pm; Tuesday 17 and Wednesday 18 November 10.45am to 3.30pm; Christmas Day 10am to 12pm
Price adult or child £15.40 on 14 November, £11.75 on 17 and 18 November; families of three to five £14.70 each, £10.70 each on 17 and 18 November; under-4s £3.20; Christmas Day £10; skate hire extra
Booking online through the Planet Ice calendar
Address Planet Ice Arena, 1 Mallard Road, Peterborough, PE3 8YN
Website planet-ice.co.uk/ice-skating
Good for all year round, Christmas Day skating, weekday sessions, Skate and Spot Santa sessions

5. Ice Trak at Silverstone

About 28 miles away. Silverstone describes a rink inside the Formula One garages, turned into a “North Pole training rink”.

You can book it alone, or with Lap of Lights or Santa’s Garage, and a Family Bundle of all three saves 10%. Sessions last 45 minutes, and you should arrive 30 minutes before, because a missed slot cannot be rebooked.

Last session times vary by day. Ages 3 to 12 need an adult on the ice, and ages 13 to 15 need an adult watching.

Under-3s cannot skate. We last read its Christmas Day closure on 28 October.

Open 11 to 31 December 2026, closed Christmas Day; 45-minute sessions
Price from £8.50
Booking online; on-the-day places are limited and not guaranteed
Address Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone, NN12 8TN
Website silverstone.co.uk/events/christmas-at-silverstone
Good for Formula One garages, wheelchairs welcome with advance notice, Lap of Lights trip, skate aids

Funfair, castle and Milton Keynes: 31 to 32 miles

6. Willen On Ice

About 31 miles away, on the lawn opposite the Willen Observation Wheel. Willen Lake calls it a real 800sqm rink, with funfair rides and a bar alongside.

It also runs Ice Beats sessions for teenagers and Wilbur’s Little Skaters for the youngest. Book online for the best price; on the day is card only and subject to space.

Children aged 8 and under need a ticket-holding adult on the ice, under-16s need an adult in the viewing area, and under-3s cannot skate. Today’s page gives the opening date; the closing date is from The Northampton Wire’s read of the lake’s event pages on 5 November.

Open 21 November 2026 to 3 January 2027
Price under-16s from £15.90 off-peak, from £17.90 peak; adults from £18.90 off-peak, from £20.90 peak; skate hire and booking fee included; 10% off three or more tickets with at least one adult and one child
Booking online recommended
Parking Car Park B is the closest
Address Willen Lake, V10 Brickhill Street, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DS
Website willenlake.org.uk/activities/ice-skating
Good for funfair rides, teen sessions, little skaters sessions, skate hire included

7. Planet Ice Milton Keynes, Leisure Plaza

About 32 miles away, with the same operator and rules as Coventry. Skate hire is extra.

Check the calendar before a Saturday trip in early December: it showed no sessions on 5 December when we looked.

Open all year; Saturday 14 November 11am to 1.30pm and 1.45pm to 4pm; Tuesday 17 November 10am to 12pm and 1.15pm to 2.45pm; Christmas Day 10am to 12pm
Price adult or child £15.40 on 14 November, £11.75 on 17 November; families of three to five £14.70 each, £10.70 each on 17 November; under-4s £3.20; Christmas Day £10; skate hire extra
Booking online through the Planet Ice calendar
Address Leisure Plaza, 1 South Row, Milton Keynes, MK9 1DL
Website planet-ice.co.uk/ice-skating
Good for all year round, Christmas Day skating, weekday sessions, Skate and Spot Santa sessions

8. Warwick Castle open-air rink

About 32 miles away. The castle’s East Front becomes an open-air rink, and its page describes skating beneath Guy’s Tower by day or under the evening sky.

A castle entry and skate ticket adds the castle itself. Arrive at least 15 minutes before your slot, and allow up to 20 minutes from the car park to the castle.

Ages 3 to 9 need an adult on the ice with them, ages 10 to 12 need an adult watching, and under-3s cannot skate. Bags are not allowed on the ice.

Open 21 November 2026 to 3 January 2027; 45-minute slots
Price skating only from £8; castle entry and skate from £18; skate aids £5; cloakroom £2, card only; Platinum and Gold Merlin Annual Passholders 20% off
Booking essential, online
Parking charges apply day and evening for skate-only tickets
Address Warwick Castle, Warwick, CV34 6AH
Website warwick-castle.com/explore/events/christmas-at-the-castle/ice-skating
Good for castle setting, skate hire included, handrail around the rink, free spectators with a skater, wheelchair access

Also within reach

Nottingham Winter Wonderland: about 34 miles away in Old Market Square, and on a direct train from Market Harborough. Its rink and Sky Skate ice path opens on 12 November. Its booking page showed adults at £13.60 on Wednesday 18 November, £16 on Saturday 5 December and £18 on Saturday 19 December, with skates included. West Bridgford Live read it as running to 31 December and closed on Christmas Day. It is the furthest we looked at, so we have left it out of our count of eight.

Which one to pick

  • The shortest trip without a car: Ice Skate Leicester, once its sessions are showing.
  • The cheapest skate, with hire and parking included: Whilton Locks from 16 to 20 November.
  • A skate any week of the year: Planet Ice Coventry or Peterborough.
  • Christmas Day on the ice: Planet Ice Coventry, Peterborough or Milton Keynes.
  • A castle behind you: Warwick Castle.
  • Children who want rides as well as skating: Willen On Ice.

Getting there from Market Harborough

Trains to Leicester take 12 or 13 minutes, and an off-peak day return was £13.90 when we checked a Saturday in November. Direct trains to Nottingham take 36 to 47 minutes. There are no East Midlands Railway trains on Christmas Day or Boxing Day; our Christmas trains page has the details. Before you drive, check roadworks and travel for closures.

Staying in town instead? See the Santa’s grottos, Christmas dinner, what’s on this month and things to do in Market Harborough.

How we chose

This page lists the real-ice rinks we could find within about 32 miles of Market Harborough with 2026 dates or bookable prices on the operator’s own site or ticket page. We did not choose by taste. Prices come from each operator’s published pages, and Planet Ice’s come from its booking calendar. Run a place that should be here, or spot something that has changed? Email newsdesk@harboroughnews.co.uk. Taken a good photograph of any of these places? Email it to newsdesk@harboroughnews.co.uk and we will add it with your name as the credit.

Frequently asked questions

Is there an ice rink in Market Harborough this Christmas?

We found none announced in Market Harborough for Christmas 2026. The nearest is Ice Skate Leicester in Jubilee Square, about 14 miles away and listed from 4 December, followed by Whilton Locks Garden Village near Daventry, about 16 miles away, from 14 November.

What is the cheapest ice skating near Market Harborough?

Whilton Locks is cheapest from 16 to 20 November: adults £7.45 and children £6.95, with skate hire and parking included. Warwick Castle’s skate-only tickets start from £8, Ice Skate Leicester’s from £8 and Silverstone’s Ice Trak from £8.50.

Which ice rink near Market Harborough is open on Christmas Day?

Planet Ice Coventry, Peterborough and Milton Keynes each list a £10 Christmas Day skate from 10am to 12pm, with skate hire extra. Ice Skate Leicester and Silverstone are closed that day, Whilton Locks showed no bookings on 25 and 26 December, and no East Midlands Railway trains run on either day.