Winter In Venice

I missed out on the chance to check this out last year. So when I saw the signs and billboards start popping up around town this year, I vowed not to miss it again. I struggled between 3 or 4 stars on this one, so I will just stick with 3.5!It was very cool to get to walk around and take in the whole Christmas-y atmosphere they have created in the middle of the strip. They have a huge light "tree" that towers just off the strip and changes colors constantly. They have the dinky little skating rink there as well. I'm not a skater myself, but the people on there at the time seemed to be enjoying themselves.They had all the "tree people" and other costumed characters out there taking pics with everybody which was very cool as well. They actually wouldn't accept tips, which made it fun to just bop around and snap pics with all the odd, mytical-looking oddities there.They also had some kind of little show there at the top of the hour but I just happenned to walk in right at the end. Bummer!All in all, for the price (free! ), what do you want? After grabbing a bite to eat and walking around some, this was just a cool way to kill a bit of time. It's nothing to run way out of your way for, but if you happen to catch it...take it all in and enjoy! I know we did!3.5 stars.

A fun little winter wonderland to have fun in the middle of strip (well towards the end but still). They have nice decorations and the ice skating rink is pretty cool. Obviously it isn't like an ice rink, which is year round, but a built together one. But for its purposes and for fun it works. -Bottom Line: You never ice skated before and want to have some non drinking fun while in Vegas for the winter? Check Winter in Venice out!

Uhmmm...........it's def a great idea so I don't wanna hate on it too much. But, it just didn't do it (Christmas) for me =(Don't get me wrong...I love that the Venetian did this. Seeing a rink on the Strip is just cray and exciting. But, it wasn't even an ICE skating rink. It was a PLASTIC RINK. It took getting used to skating on it. Not like ice skating, at all.Rink, itself, was pretty small. No wonder they don't allow too many ppl in there at a time.Guess I was expecting something like the Union Square (SF) rink. *wishful thinking*It was my friend's idea to come here and he was suuuuper excited because he had never skated on ice before. So, when he got here, he was disappointed. He made the most out of it but, I could tell that he was bummed out.Whoever was in charge of the music should be shot.Tis the season to listen to HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY Christmas music 24/7. NOT depressing (altho I love her) Adele, or Ludacris (I dig him, too). It was difficult to make the best outta the situation with Adele's "slit my wrist" kinda music.....FEEL ME?!!??!

I think the Winter in Venice event at the Venetian was a nice idea and the execution was pretty good. The biggest fail was the ice rink, which seemed to be getting some use, but still... fake ice is just weird. C'mon, the Cosmopolitan managed the real thing, guys. And the price is a little high.Other than the ice rink, though, I thought that it was really nice that they did a little show every couple of hours after dark with music and lights and I loved how they had the Venetian Characters walking around in costume and interacting with guests. It just made the whole night time atmosphere feel really festive. The giant Clear Plastic Ball Christmas tree was a little odd looking in the day time and up close, but at night the lights were gorgey.Overall, it was definitely worth the visit and I was also glad we parked at the Palazzo to walk over there, because they were passing out cups of hot cider and it just made everything even more festive! I just wished I had made it there for the food festival that was the day before! Darn it!But, I would come back to enjoy the experience again!

Since I am from Hawaii this is the "closest" I could get to that "winter" feel.Toney and I were on vacay and decided to check out Winter in Venice. It was pretty interesting. There was a skating rink right in front of the hotel. I observed it for a while because I noticed that the ice wasn't shaving below the skates of the skaters. I never really figured out what it was. I knew for sure that it was NOT ice. The thought it cool though. The rink was pretty small and we looked at it and surpassed it to ride the outdoor gondola. In general, it was Christmas and a nice feel to be at.

Tourist trap, for the really really dumb tourists. My friend works here and offered us free tickets to go ice skating. We excitedly go down there with my 3.5 year old ice skating prodigy of a daughter and 7 year old son. We redeem our tickets and are told we can't go in until the next session... And that they won't allow under 7 on the ice... We get out there half an hour later, for our half hour skating session, and realize they can't allow anyone under 7 because they will die. This isn't ice. It's plastic. It's slippery it's absolutely no traction. You can barely move without slipping. The skates are terrible fits with them being so big and bulky at the top. Half an hour later, they kick you out after the tourist schmucks paid $15/person. Here's my tip. Somewhere else very nearby on the strip, is a big casino also with outdoor ice skating. Except, it has real ice, no time limits, and you can even go up there to watch without paying!! Take that 30 minute walk and get your money's worth and don't bother with the plexiglass.

As many things in Vegas are fakes and replicates (such as stripers boobs, The Eiffel Tower, New York Skyline, add this "Winter In Venice" festival to the list.They can't even install a real ice rink outside, as it's a plastic rink. And they are charging almost $20 for 30 minutes to be on the ice?Whoever thought of this idea at the annual department meeting should be FIRED. You want a real ice rink? Go to Cosmopolitian starting in Jan 2013, go take your loved ones there and sip on some hot coco.

I really wanted to enjoy the *ice* skating rink, but it fell far short of being acceptable. My daughter is an intermediate skater, as am I, so it wasn't a question of skill. The plastic of the rink doesn't allow for any sort of gliding, and the dimensions are really claustrophobic. Buying the tickets also turned out to be slow and agonizing...I'm not sure if it was the computer process or user error, but this made me want to put an ice-pick through my eye.Walk around and enjoy the decor, listen to the music (hopefully, they'll play some Christmas music), but skip the ice skating. If your child has never been skating or isn't used to skating, then this could teach them some very bad habits.There is a real rink opening up at The Cosmopolitan on 12/30...go there if you're in town.PS - Want to add cost: Non-locals pay $14.95 for a 30 minute session, so not cheap if you compare to normal ice skating sessions.

Had a great time, I enjoyed the whoke thing, specially the performers. Props to the break dancer.

Fake ice and horrible customer service. They treat you as if they are doing a free favor by letting you in for ice skating. The only give wristband to let one of the parents inside to watch. If you have 2 or more kids, pay for them separately so that you get separate passes to the viewing area.