Holiday Ice Rink At Embarcadero Center

We initially tried to buy tickets for the rink at Union Square, but they were sold out for the rest of the night! We took a 7ish minute Lyft to the rink at Embarcadero (who said that they "never sell out" - woo!) and it was such a great choice. They start new sessions every 2 hours; 1.5 hours for folks to skate, and then 30 minutes to re-glaze the ice before a new session. You can join a session at any time - we got on the ice halfway through a session, which was just fine for us (our 6yo and 4yo were with us). They also have lockers that you can use to store your stuff (shoes, purses) - one locker is .75 cents (the ticket sellers have change for bills if needed), and was big enough to store my boots and kind of large purse. It wasn't nearly as crowded as I thought it would be - we went on a Friday night during an 8pm session, and there was plenty of space. We plan on making this a regular tradition!

Outdoor Holiday Ice Skating Rinks are always festive!!No, I didn't ice skate, I was just people watching. There were a lot of people here, and the Ice really made it very cold around the rink.Christmas music blared through the speakers around the rink.Located in Justin Hermann Plaza at the Embarcadero Center, not far from BART, maybe, one day, I'll give it a go again!!

Every year, I host an annual ice skating outing with my friends to kick off the season.So while you're still munching on leftover discount Halloween candy, I've already made plans to go ice skating once the rinks open the first week of November.The Holiday Ice Rink at Embarcadero is located in the Justin Herman Plaza right in front of the Ferry Building. It is much much bigger than the dinky little one at Union Square. Plus, it's also a dollar cheaper!And if you initially wanted to the go to the Union Square rink because of the Holiday lights and decor, the Embarcadero Rink is just as fabulous with the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge lighting up your photos in the background!A few other pluses: The Union Square Rink constantly sells out of tickets, and it is so crowded that you're not really skating. The Embarcadero Rink does not run the risk of selling out, and there is so much space to really zip around the rink and go as fast as you'd like!The skates at the Embarcadero are a little bit more uncomfortable. Instead of lacing them up, they have two buckles. I recommend thick socks or double layering socks. The skates go up to a Men's size 13 and hockey style skates are also available.Lockers are available on site for 75 cents, quarters only, and for single use. It is small but can fit multiple pairs of shoes, or a few jackets or small purses.They also have portable restrooms on site, which were clean when I went. Can't say if that will be the case in a couple weeks when the kids really start taking over.Skate admission is good for a 90 minute period, which starts on every even hour. It seems like a long time but went by so fast for me! I think it's best to arrive 15 minutes early to get your ticket and try on skates so you don't cut into your skate time.Overall, my group had a blast and it is truly the best way to start the holiday season. Happy Holidays!

My friends and I have been ice skating during the holidays for many years now, but this year we decided to go to this location instead of Union Square. SO MUCH REGRET.These were literally the worst skates I have ever worn in my life. I used to own leather skates, and while I don't expect rental skates to be that high quality, I do expect some level of comfort. There is absolutely no cushion in these stiff plastic skates, and the plastic strap is not easy to tighten/loosen. I now have a blister the size of a quarter on the arch of my foot that is filled with blood and ready to burst at any moment. Graphic? Sorry (not sorry), but y'all deserve to know the gravity of this situation.The lockers were also pretty faulty. Not only could we not pull the key out when locking it, we also couldn't unlock it at the end of our session. Both times we had to ask the staff for help, and it wasn't just us struggling - many other people had issues as well. Another thing is that the lockers were on the other side from all the benches, so it was a lot of walking back and forth in those terrible skates. I feel like the rink is slightly smaller than the Union Square one, so even though there were less people, it was also harder to avoid all the crazy skaters and people falling (and taking down others with them). And I know a smaller rink means you really only need one Ice Patrol, but PLEASE enforce the rule about not skating against the flow of traffic. This one girl skated wildly and in the opposite direction of everyone else, causing even more near death experiences than were already happening. Basically if you want the outdoor ice skating experience, stick to Union Square. Dealing with the crowd is a small price to pay in exchange for comfortable skates and a well organized event. Plus you can take pictures on ice with the Christmas tree in the back :)

Ice skating at the Embarcadero Center with my family has always been a yearly tradition. We always go to this location. We did, however, attempt to ice skate at Union Square this year, but they had a two hour wait since the current time slot was full already. We went to the Embarcadero one instead.We came for the 2:00pm-3:30pm session thirty minutes late and they still took us in, woo! I guess you can come in at any time as long as the rink isn't too full! We didn't really wanna skate for an hour and half anyways. That's a little too long.. The price includes skate rentals, unless you bring your own, then you don't have to pay the rental fee. You pick them up in the window next door to where you purchase your tickets. They have lockers available if you don't feel comfortable leaving your shoes out in the open. Something that was different from when I last went ice skating (many years ago) was the skates. The skates didn't have laces anymore, they had some sort of plastic straps that you could adjust to make your skates extra snug. I didn't have to worry about my laces untying at all, yay! I did, however, have a problem with the first pair of skates I got because the sides kept cutting my foot when I tried to put in. But I asked for a different pair and they were fine. Also, a heads up, they don't have any half sizes, so hopefully you can make something fit if you're in between sizes!There were a lot of people, but this was expected since it was Christmas Day. We started thirty minutes late and the ice was already losing its smoothness. It didn't bother us that much though. We made multiple laps around the rink for about an hour while they played modern songs and Christmas songs. Everyone skates in the same direction to avoid crashing into one another!! If you're still new at ice skating, you can always grab onto the rails on the sides! Remember to bend your knees and lean a little forward so you avoid falling on your butt!I missed doing this yearly with my family :') I recommend everyone to stop by before they close it up after the holidays! I think it's better than the one at Union Square because it is less crowded, heh.

We had so much fun! And, okay, we are horrible skaters! But the staff at the Embarcadero Rink could not have been more fun, accommodating, and inviting! And they were helping us... on New Years Eve! Honestly my husband, and Sister and I could not believe how warm they were! Smiles Galore! It absolutely started with the Manager! Engaging, vivacious, and holding the front window fort down, (To her - Go Bears and West Point!) I have a list to thank. Yes that is how great the staff is.. a list! On New Years! I really did take a list, because they were so kind, and fun, and helpful! Kelly Ye! Tyler Drake! LeJeanne Shelton! Kathi Singleton! Amy Piscini! Linda NGO! Ryan McClanahan! Jose Alvarez! Dusan Britian! Thank you for a wonderful New Years Eve! Have a great 2020 guys!

A cute and romantic post-dinner date activity! It was my idea to go ice skating, and my date, who never ice skated before, was down for it. I was worried about it being super-crowded, but maybe because it wasn't December yet, it wasn't too crowded. Yes, there are plenty of people there. Screaming children, adults clinging onto the walls, and radio pop hits swirling from the speakers. At least the music wasn't too loud.Because it had been raining earlier that morning, I called ahead of time to see if the rink would be open in the evening. The person who picked up the phone did so very promptly, and I was happy to hear the rink would be open. It was around 11AM when I called, and she told me that there were already people skating in the rink!Admission is $11 per person, and $5 for skate rentals (*whistles here* I'm reading past reviews, and apparently the prices I paid for in 2015 are way higher than a few years ago! Inflation, anyone?). It's not as big as what I'm used to at the Oakland Ice Center, and the ice was very rough. It made me wonder how often an ice resurfacer was used, since by the time my date and I were ready to leave, the ice had become rougher with lots of cracks, and a little girl tripped and (I think) sprained a limb, because she was screaming and crying really loudly when her relatives rushed to her aid and carried her off the ice.I'm giving this rink 4 stars instead of 3 because all the lights and the view of the clock tower gives a nice holiday cheer to San Francisco. The rink also stays open until 10PM. The staff was very polite and efficient, and my date and I had a lot of fun.

Triple axle, here I come. We came here last night after watching the San Francisco 49ers beat the New York Jets so our mood was great. It was a Sunday so parking was free downtown. This is a perfect location for an Ice Rink. It's very spacious with a great background of the Bay Bridge and the Ferry Building. And yes, we took plenty of pictures. The price is $8.50 for adults and $4.50 for kids for 1 1/2 hour of ice skating. To some, it can be a workout. The shoes were only $3.50. It sure beats the other Ice Rink in Union Square, and it's triple the size. Plenty of room to roam around and it's in Embarcadero, where there's plenty of option to grab a bite before and after. It's also a good place to people watch, enjoying a holiday night. The weather was perfect as it was chilly. I'm crazy like that as I don't mind the cold. Heck, I was wearing shorts and sportin my big, orange Giants sweater. The staff were super friendly, especially the guy at the shoe booth. He was cracking jokes (although they were bad Oakland A's joke) and was very engaging. I haven't skated in ages, so I was shocked when I started getting cramps. I guess I didn't do my stretching or I'm getting old. (must be the latter) My shin muscles and hamstrings were getting quite a workout, and my kids were running circles all around me. But it was enjoyable and gave me quite the appetite afterwards. Oh yes, we'll be back.

Public service announcement, just so people know, there was no holiday rink this past year at Embarcadero and there was no info about it online. The Embarcadero Center website had a number to call, and I did, but there was no answer. I don't know if they'll have it this coming winter. Fortunately, Union Square still has a holiday rink, but you need to buy tickets online, and they're sometimes sold out. But if so, Yerba Buena is a few blocks away, and I've never known them to sell out.

The ice rink is small, but I still felt like there was plenty of space to skate. The lockers were a plus and affordable! The only downside is if you don't get a locker because you'd have to leave your belongings on/under the benches and it can get crowded there. Will come again tho, the music was fun to skate to and the workers on the rink were very attentive. I also highly suggest buying your tickets a week in advance. If I didn't do that when I went, I wouldn't have been able to skate. It was sold out!