photography: Oli Lyons

Get your skates on Brighton!

Brighton embraces the temporary outdoor ice rink situated at the pavilion gardens running until 16^th January. Which includes a pop-up rinkside restaurant, bar and pre-school crèche.

The Royal Pavilion Christmas Ice rink is a respectable size fiting up to 200 people per session, with a smaller beginner section for the little ones. Open 10am - 10:15pm it’s a great chance for everyone to have a go, with the option to book in advance through Ticketmaster. Adult tickets priced at £9.50 - £11 or children under 12  £6.50 - £7.50

If all the Ice skating has made you hungry or you're hankering for a pint then settle down to a nice meal at Due South’s rink-side restaurant, serving warm winter dishes or seasonal pies and crumbles. Warm your selves with a pleasant mulled wine or cider or sip a freshly poured pint as you point and grimace as you watch fellow foe’s producing some tumbling bum slides. Usual rules apply for alcohol consumption, over 18’s only, must not bring alcohol onto premises and drinks must be kept in the restaurant area.

So what better way than to spend your winter cutting through the ice, spending time with friends and loved ones with a beautifully illuminated Royal Pavilion as the backdrop. I recommend wearing thick gloves as it will feel like -80 degrees and don’t half hurt when you go skidding on your hands! For the kids or the very nervy adult with wobbly legs there are penguin support frames (a bit like a zimmer frame for the ice) available.

It’s a 10 minute stroll from the train station or the Churchill Square (centre of town) car park, or plenty of buses stopping right outside!