Shake off the winter blues and keep that post-Christmas spirit alive at the same time by visiting one of these outdoor ice rinks. Don’t worry about making a fool out of yourself – most rinks welcome everyone from beginners to experts.

Somerset House

Photo: daveograve@

Skate in the heart of London in this prestigious skating venue. This 18th century home turned music/art venue offers an impressive backdrop and is illuminated at night by a 40ft Tiffany Christmas tree.

• Adults from £10.50
• Children from £7.50
• Open until 24th January
• More information about Somerset House Ice Skating

New York

Photo: Bob Jagendorf

The Rockefeller Centre is a world-famous and iconic skating venue. Skate underneath towering skyscrapers and a huge Christmas tree.

• Open until January 9th
• Adults from $15.50
• Children from $9.50
• More information about skating at Rockefeller Ice Rink

Hampton Court

Photo: Purplekitten

Hampton Court Palace (near London) is a beautiful, historical and romantic outdoor ice rink. Skate right outside Henry VIII’s favourite royal hangout and get drunk on lots of spiced mulled wine.

• Open until end of January.
• Adult prices from £10.00
• Children from £7.50
• More information about skating at Hampton Court Ice Rink

Yosemite

Photo: satosphere

Skate in the shadows of the mighty Half Dome and El Capitan in one of the most beautiful national parks in the world – a winter tradition since the 1930s.

• Open until early March
• Adults $8
• Kids $6
• More information about skating at Yosemite Ice Rink

Berlin

Photo: ljcybergal

Potsdamer Platz in Berlin is turned into a winter wonderland this time of year. As well as a 40m long ice rink this huge snowy playground also has an Alpine ski hut, tonnes of competitions to enter and a 70m ski slope-which many choose to bomb down on rubber tubes..

• Open until 6th January
• More information about skating at Berlin’s Ice Rink

Eiffel Tower, Paris

Photo: Kristin & Adam

Enjoy views of Paris while skating on the small but perfectly formed ice rink located on the first floor observation deck of this famous landmark. The rink is lodged between two of the tower’s massive steel legs and can handle 80 skaters at a time. Vertigo sufferers might want to give this one a miss.

• Visitors paying the tower’s admission fee can skate for free.
• Open until February
• More information about skating at the Eiffel Tower Ice Rink

Vienna, Austria

Photo: Olivier Bruchez

Skate underneath the beautiful illuminated Rathaus (town hall) and warm up at nearby stalls selling hot drinks and snacks, a good choice if you like your skating venue to be picturesque and atmospheric.

• Open until 9th March
• More information about skating at Vienna’s Ice Rink

Helsinki

Photo: Andy Crowe

Come here for proper snow and very cold temperatures. Ice skating is taken pretty seriously in Finland and although the city’s main rink in Railway Square isn’t particularly scenic it’s large and has a lively atmosphere.

• Adults from 2 euros
• Children from 1 euro
• Open until Mid-March
• More information about skating at Helsinki’s Ice Rink

Toronto

Photo: wvs

Skate in Nathan Phillips Square, a lively public gathering place located in front of Toronto City Hall. As well as being able to skate in a super-sized rink there is a pretty light display the evening.

• Admission is Free skate hire from $6.50
• Open until end March
• More information about skating at Toronto’s Ice Rink

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If you want to join some of the hottest New Year’s Eve parties from around the world we have picked out ten of the best destinations. Head out to these parties and we promise you’ll have a new year you’ll never forget.

1. Rio de Janeiro

Photo: Luiz Filipe

It’s estimated that around 2 million party-goers will head to “Reveillon” on Copacabana beach this new year’s eve to eat, drink, watch fireworks and dance into the early hours of the morning. Rio is a great place to party-the atmosphere is lively, the scenery is incredible, the weather is hot and the people are beautiful. For many of the locals the occasion has a religious meaning and offerings of flowers, rice and perfume are made to the Goddess of the Sea. Live music is played throughout the day but the party really kicks off around 7pm when the entertainment starts on the official main stages. Be sure to wear white and you’ll blend in perfectly.

2. Edinburgh

Photo: Hettie McFarlane

The annual Hogmanay in Edinburgh is legendary and often cited as the world’s best NYE party. Hang out with some very drunk Scots and 100,000 other revellers and expect to be entertained for four days of fun and free events. There is something for everyone from the traditional torchlit procession to street performers, concerts, ceilidh and the massive Hogmanay Street party. The beautiful city is also illuminated by a firework display at midnight – bring your warmest clothes.

3. Times Square

Photo: UB1

If you like crowds, join an estimated one million people in Times Square on NYE to see the legendary crystal and electric light ball drop from the top of One Times Square (a tradition since 1906). The event is free and apparently the atmosphere is definitely worth standing around in the cold for. If you are thinking of going, arrive early and be prepared to be barricaded into areas where you’ll have to stay for the duration of the evening.

4. London

Photo: Tom Bennett

London is another extremely popular place to party on NYE and has a wide range of clubs, bars and restaurants to choose from. Most venues are ticketed but many stay open to early the next morning and some feature live music and special guests to welcome in the new year. In the past most people gathered in Trafalgar Square for NYE (even though nothing at all was happening there!). Now the main focus is the London Eye on the South Bank where thousands watch a spectacular firework display. The best spots to watch the fireworks are from Westminster Bridge and the north embankment of the River Thames.

5. Reykjavik

Photo: Arnar

Pretty much everyone I know wants to go to Reykjavik, and joining the party here on New Year’s Eve would be a great time to experience this unique and happening city. Iceland now has a reputation for having hot night life -  must be something to do with those long dark nights. The celebrations on NYE start with a gathering round a large bonfire in each quarter of the city, at midnight everyone watches beautiful displays of fireworks and heads down town to party until the morning. Most bars and clubs in Reykjavik offer live music until at least 5am on New Year’s Eve.

6. Tokyo

Photo: SBSZine

Japan’s capital is an incredibly cool and exciting city and “Omisoka” or New Year’s Eve in Tokyo should be experienced at least once in your lifetime. Celebrations start early on 29 December and the fireworks, dancing and singing continues until 4 January.  The hip and young go to the trendy clubs to see their favourite DJ but if you want to celebrate in a more traditional way head for the Zojoji Temple where locals drink sake, build bonfires and bring loved ones to be blessed.

7. Seattle

Photo: Heather Joy

Seattle – a laid back cosmopolitan city home to grunge, great rock bands and ooh.. Starbucks. Seattle transforms itself into party town on New Year’s Eve and would be a great place to welcome in the new year. If you want free entertainment watch the large firework display in the city centre and then choose from the 35 bars to grab a drink from. If you like to party on a larger scale join 3,000 other revellers as they rock out at the Experience Music Project Museum (EMP) “Indulgence Party“. Buying a ticket will gain you entry to the pre-party singles cocktail hour, a museum tour and a chance to dance the night away right underneath the iconic Space Needle.

8. Goa

Photo: AleReportage

Goa is still a great place to party and New Year’s Eve is no exception. If you like to party really hard try Anjuna beach resort where rave/beach parties last for 3-4 days! At New Years Eve the parties get even bigger and all the resorts join together for one massive celebration. Dance like a madman amongst palm trees, sacred cows and locals selling space cakes, then chill out at one of the many beachside cafes and watch the new year sunrise.

9. Niagara Falls

Photo: FocusedOnLight

Be the envy of all your friends and party at Niagara Falls. “Party in Niagara” is a huge organised free event that attracts 30,000 people each year. As well as the amazingly beautiful scenery the organisers provide party-goers with an outdoor alcohol-licensed area, food and drink stalls and an incredible firework display over the waterfalls. Live music performed by local and international musicians can be found in nearby Clifton Hills.

10. Melbourne

Photo: Mugley

Melbourne is a beautiful and friendly city and Australians really know how to throw a party. Book a trip to Melbourne and greet the new year with a series of celebrations at six city venues stretching along the Yarra River. Watch a massive firework display from Victoria Harbour Promenade, keep the kids amused with a family-friendly movie showing on a giant screen in Alexandra gardens and then head down to Birrarung Marr Parklands to heckle comedians and dance the night away to live bands.

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Christmas always seems to be a big problem when you have a partner. Normally two months before Christmas the inevitable question is asked, “Where are we going for Christmas, yours or mine?” It’s always a hard call, my now wife and I often find ourselves in a tricky situation as I’m English and she’s Irish so we can’t please everyone. We have now decided to spend one year in Ireland, then England and for the third year we please ourselves. On this occasion we booked a trip to Paris…

Arrival a few days before Christmas

We chose a hotel located in Rue Mouffetard – a lively area with a wide range of bars, restaurants and my partner’s favourite, shops! On our first day we had a good walk around, we didn’t have any set plan we just pleased ourselves. We visited a mix of churches, museums, parks and more shops. As we’d both been to Paris before we didn’t feel the need to visit the main tourist sights although we did decide to spend half a day in the Louvre. This was a good choice, especially because my wife studied the history of art and is now an expert.

Christmas experience at the Mosque?

Photo credit

We went exploring the local area and stumbled across the Paris Mosque. The Mosque was beautiful and very welcoming, we both sat in the peaceful courtyard for an hour and enjoyed Arabian teas, sweets and a hookah. Lots of visiting pretty yellow and green finches befriended us and it wasn’t long before my animal loving wife was off buying food with the sole purpose of feeding the birds. It was an unusual but enjoyable experience to find ourselves sitting in the courtyard of a mosque at Christmas.

Food & evening entertainment

In the evenings we would head to Rue Mouffetard for dinner before going to one of the North African bars for tea and to smoke Hookahs (by now I was getting a real taste for them). The bars were very different to what I was used to, they are dark and the air filled with fruit flavoured smoke. The customer base was mostly made up of Moroccans, Tunisians, a few French people and us. Looking in through the window we were a little apprehensive, we weren’t sure if we would be welcome but once inside everyone was very friendly and chatty, so much so that we returned most evenings.

Christmas Eve

Photo credit

We spent the day walking around Paris, thankfully most restaurants were open and we chose to eat in the Restaurant Le Jardin D’Ivy an excellent restaurant where I enjoyed 12 snails bathed in garlic and a perfect ‘blue’ peppered steak. On our way back to the hotel at midnight the local church’s bells started ringing and we made a decision to join the congregation at midnight mass. We glad we did we did, it was very atmospheric and there was a real mixture of people.

Sushi on Christmas Day..?

On Christmas Day as we feared there wasn’t much open, although we did eventually manage to find a bakery open where we bought croissants for breakfast. The rest of the day was spent walking around parks, stopping off at cafes and doing a bit of window shopping.

Photo credit

It was easy enough to get lunch but as the day went on, more and more restaurants closed. We had popped to supermarket the previous day for supplies just in case we had to have a picnic in our hotel room! Just as we were thinking about cracking open the emergency supplies we spotted a Japanese restaurant called Edogawa. It had already been a very different Christmas so why not have Japanese as our Christmas dinner? We filled up on miso soup and huge amounts of sushi – it was Christmas so we ordered everything! The meal was perfect and only cost €24 for the two of us.

Spending our Christmas in Paris was an unique and pretty random experience but also very enjoyable!

Paris: the lowdown and visitor tips

Paris is a beautiful and romantic city and definitely worth visiting. Tourists flock here to see the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame cathedral, the Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre among many other sites. To help you once there I would recommend a fantastic guide book – Cartoville, the one issue is that it isn’t published in English as it really does take you off the main tourist track.

Paris has an excellent metro system which makes everything very accessible and I recommend going without an itinerary and just enjoy discovering the city for yourself. Food and drink is fairly reasonably priced in Paris, as long as you avoid eating anywhere near the Champs-Élysées.

Getting there

We booked our outgoing flight from Dublin to Paris with Aer Lingus. We landed in Charles de Gaulle and jumped straight on a bus into the centre of Paris. Another good airline to try is Easyjet.

Where to stay

We nearly always stay near the Champs-Élysées, but this this time we booked into Les Grand Hotel Des Gobelins which was a small and friendly hotel in the Latin Quarter. The Latin Quarter is a very authentic Parisian area with a mix of families and students and not many tourists.

Other popular and good value hotels in Paris:

• Grand Hotel Francais Paris
• Hotel Gramont Opera Paris
• Lenox Montparnasse Hotel
• Or search all hotels in Paris…

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