During Christmas and especially around the winter season, one dreams contentedly of a white Christmas, filled with gentle snow falls, country sides covered in white snow, making of snow men and snow angels and enjoying a hot cup of cocoa by a warm and blazing fire. For others, ice skating in a nearby frozen pond or lake brings a different kind of joy as the icy wind gently touches one’s cheeks as they glide around gracefully on the ice.
Making this seasonal dream an all year around reality are ice rinks found across the world where people can enjoy some recreational skating or competitive skating which includes figure skating as well as sports such as ice hockey, rink bandy, ringette, aikido and speed skating. Some of these sports are also included in the list of Olympic Games and are thus, taken very seriously by most enthusiasts.
In terms of sports rinks, the Zayed Sports City Ice Rink located in Abu Dhabi, one of the emirates of the United Arab Emirates, deserves special mention. This rink boasts of being the city’s only skating surface which which has hosted a number of high level skating and ice hockey tournaments in the United Arab Emirates. It is also where the Abu Dhabi Figure Skating Team practices. The rink also offers amateurs with the option of coaching and includes a number of activities and services as well. Zayed Sports City Ice Rink is open from 9.00am to 10.00pm daily and is open only to ladies on Thursdays.
For those who are visiting the rink while staying at a hotel Abu Dhabi UAE, the rink is also home to a number of restaurants including Figaro’s Pizza. Therefore when one visits this eatery, one is in for quite a good time as the quality of meals provided will easily rival that of any Abu Dhabi hotel. The rink would also make for an ideal distraction if shopping is the purpose of your visit. Abu Dhabi being the shopping central of the Middle East, staying in the Grand Millennium Al Wahda will offer you with a multitude of malls, shops and more located within close proximity.
Pushpitha Wijesinghe is an experienced independent freelance writer. He specializes in providing a wide variety of content and articles related to the travel hospitality industry.