Updated October 18, 2026
Frankenmuth, MI is a charming little village that stakes its claim to Christmas all year long. But come December the village comes alive with tree lighting ceremonies, traditional German food, sleigh rides, noliday themed historic house tours, and dinner with Santa and Mrs. Claus.
As a solo traveler I loved spending Christmas in Frankenmuth. When Jay was stumped as to what to give Ashley for Christmas, I said "Well, she's really into figure skating and I know a great place to spend Christmas. They have the #4 ranked ice rink in the nation. Take a look at a few videos of Frankenmuth, MI and call me back. I can give you the lowdown on everything in Frankenmuth if you're interested."
The phone rings...
"YOU'RE GOING TO FRANKENMUTH WITH US! You're not doing anything for Christmas anyway. Consider the trip my Christmas gift to you. Oh yeah...and 3 of Ashley's friends from her figure skating class are coming along too..."
AHA! He was afraid of handling 4 pre teen girls alone so bring Pat along. She'll know how to keep them entertained and occupied! He wasn't pulling the wool over my eyes on this one...
So plan a Christmas trip to Frankenmuth for the two of us and the 4 girls.
"Okay but I'm not doing this alone! You're going to help me and do what I need you to do! Agreed?"
"Agreed!"
"You're in charge of accommodations for all of us. Make them at Bavarian Inn Lodge. Let me give you the information off my PERKS card. If they give you any flack just tell them I'm your wife and give them my phone number. And don't forget to check out their Specials page before you book anything!"
"What kind of rooms do you want me to get?"
"Your dime, that's up to you. Just be sure to check out the Specials page first to get yourself the best deal. Then call me back to let me know what you booked."
Jay had booked a Tower King Whirlpool Suite for us and a double queen room for the girls. They were beyond thrilled to have their own room. (So was Jay! LOL)
He'd booked the suite because it was large enough for 6 of us to celebrate Christmas together and the Inn was even kind enough to let us set up our own Christmas tree as long as with was artificial and fire retardent.
If you're traveling with kids, Bavarian Inn is the place to stay. There's so much to keep them and adults entertained.
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Michigan’s Biggest Indoor Waterpark and Family Fun Center, Bavarian Blast Waterpark.
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Three-story European-style courtyard with one indoor pool and whirlpool reserved especially for adults
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The largest Family Fun Center in any Midwest hotel with 180+ video and redemption games, 18 holes of indoor mini golf, mini-bowling, laser tag, a three-story ropes course, and climbing walls.
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Two-story Children’s Village play area
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Two lounges, two restaurants, and two gift shops
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Free live nightly entertainment, including sing-alongs and Karaoke.
Because I'd stayed there before I was a member of the PERKS Club, which helped bring the cost of our accommodations down and gave us special membership benefits. You can earn ten points for every dollar spent.
There is a $15 new member fee required to activate your account. As of May 1, 2026, $10 will be charged for automatic renewal annually. If you have earned 5000 points in your calendar year, your renewal is free for the next year.
With our accommodations package we got a free family chicken dinner at one of the restaurants (more on that later), the girls got arcade game tokens to play with, we got free mini golf, breakfast was included with our stay, and we saved 20% on the cost of the girls room.
TAKE A VIRTUAL TOUR OF THE ROOMS - Click on pic below
The location of the Inn is ideal. It's right off downtown, yet set apart from the busy downtown area by this covered bridge.
It's right across the street from the ice rink so the girls could safely walk there and back.
Bavarian Inn Dining
I'm not sure why the Inn advertises only 2 restaurants on its website because it had more dining facilities than that!
The great thing about one of their restaurants is that they serve dinner on Christmas. They also have take out so if you want to get food to go and eat in your room you can.
Frankenmuth at Christmas
Frankenmuth Historical Association offers an Historic Walking Tour.
This is an interactive walking tour where visitors can scan a QR code when they are at each location, and that code will take them to a video with information on the history of that location!
This tour is completely free!
Can't make it to Frankenmuth but want to view the videos? They are available HERE.
The town also runs a FREE Seasonal Shuttle from July 31st - December 27th. The shuttle makes designated stops throughout town, along with less-congested FREE parking options. Shuttles loop continuously, visiting each conveniently located stop, roughly every 20 minutes.
So getting around town is super easy!
The Frankenmuth ice rink, rated this nation's #4 skating rink glides into the Christmas spirit in Zehnder Park.
The Frankenmuth rink is particularly beautiful at night during Christmas, even sporting a singing Christmas tree.
Prices:
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General Admission Pass: $10.00 (day-long admission)
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Season Pass: $50.00 (season-long admission). Buy 3, Get 1 Free!
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Skate Rental: $3.00 (hockey & figure skates available)
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Skate Rental Pass: $25.00 (punch-card with 10 skate rentals)
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Skate Helper Rental: $5.00 (per skate session)
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Concessions: Prices Vary (water, pop, chips, hot cocoa)
With 4 figure skaters on our hands we found it was less expensive to buy annual passes (The 4th pass was free) than to pay the $10 daily fee for all of the time the girls wanted to spend on the ice.
The Frankenmuth Ice Rink will be open from November 17th, 2026 through February 28th, 2027! Pre-registration is not required.
Located at 784 South Main Street, Frankenmuth, MI 48734
Arrive in Frankenmuth and get settled into your accommodations.
After the 6 hour drive to Frankenmuth the girls were so revved up they were bouncing off the walls and begging to go skating. We made them a deal - they could go skating after they unloaded everything from the RV and brought it up to the rooms.
While they were at the rink Jay and I set up and decorated the Christmas tree in our suite.
If you don't have a tree to decorate, take a walk around the Inn and look at the Christmas decorations. Really nice!
By the time we had everything unpacked and set up it was nearly dinner time.
Free Family Chicken Dinner
Evening: Have dinner at Bavarian Inn Restaurant: 713 S Main Steet, Frankenmuth.
We'd received a free family chicken dinner with our reservation so we headed to Bavarian Inn Restaurant to have our chicken dinner.
Oh dear Lord! All I can say is bring your appetite! The bowls and dishes just kept coming to the table! (Second slide below)
You don't get just a regular 'ol chicken dinner. Your table will be full of dishes of sauerkraut, red cabbage, a multi bean salad, pasta chicken salad, stollen bread, coleslaw, cranberry sauce...and all of it is fantastic tasting, served family style.
They do a brilliant job of bringing the German influence to the atmosphere. There's an accordion player and the waitstaff are all dressed in German attire.
The girls had been begging us to go skating with them after dinner, we said we were too tired, we changed our minds after that dinner and figured tired or not we best get out on that rink with the girls and work off some of the calories we'd just consumed! We were so full even bending down to lace our skates was a somewhat painful process!
After that workout it was "Whirlpool here we come!" for our tired old bones.
Explore Frankenmuth
Morning: Breakfast at the hotel included in our package.
Make your first stop downtown the Frankenmuth Visitor Center: 635 South Main Street, Frankenmuth
At the Visitor's Center pick up a FREE Coupon Book for travel tips, exciting experiences, deals, and more. You might also want to pick up a FREE map of the town.
The coupon book will provide you with discounts all over Frankenmuth. Make sure it includes the Peppermint Perks coupon. (I don't remember if it did or if Peppermint Perks was separate and you had to ask for one.)
You'll also want to see the Visitor Center's stunning musical 44-foot Christmas tree illuminated with 23,000 synchronized lights. This daily light show runs from Thanksgiving through early January.
For the kids, pick up the materials to do the Gnome Hunt!
Your hunt for gnomes begins at the Visitor Center, where you’ll receive your gnome hunt sheet and find your first gnome. You have to find at least 9 more gnomes in the shops; it’s a great way to get know the town on a fun adventure.
Each gnome has a name, and you have to record the names and their locations on the sheet.
Once you have found at least 10 gnomes, return your hunt sheet for prizes; even the adults receive prizes too!
Visitor Tip: The gnomes are not all wooden! Some are ceramic, some are plush (like stuffed animals). You can ask store associates for hints.
This was perfect for the girls in that they love to shop and hit every store along the way, so they could hunt for gnomes while they did that.
Carriage Ride
One of the best ways to see the town is to take a carriage ride!
Frankenmuth offers a delightful winter experience with horse-drawn carriage rides. These rides provide a nostalgic journey through the charming streets of the Bavarian village, highlighting its historic architecture and festive Main Street. The rides are available year-round, with the Fantasy Carriage Company offering tours starting just south of Zehnder's Restaurant parking lot.
The rides are 15-30 minutes long, and reservations are welcome.
For those looking for a more flexible option, H&H Acres and Carriage Services offers walk-up only rides on Thursdays through Sundays, weather permitting. These rides are perfect for couples seeking a romantic getaway or for anyone looking to enjoy the winter charm of Frankenmuth.
The New Frankenmuth Carriage Company is another option.
We didn't think the girls would be as stoked about the carriage ride as they were. Then I tripped to what they were doing. Those little rascals had devised a code. One would say "Oh look! There's such and such a store!" and another would list that store in their cell phone under a list of stores to hit during their shopping trip.
Poor Jay just rolled his eyes and shook his head as if to say "OMG they start with the shopping thing this young?" - right before surrendering one of his credit cards to Ashley for the stores that only took plastic.
Yup, hand it over "Santa"!
By the way, that Peppermint Perks coupon you picked up at the Visitor Center is good on the carriage ride! We paid $130 for a 30 minute ride for all 6 of us, minus the coupon. So the price each was around $21.
River Place
River Place shopping center / Photo credit: BW Photography
There are so many cool, unique shops in Frankenmuth!
Here's a list of them (scroll down the page).
There are over 40 great shops alone in the River Place shopping center.
925 S Main St, Frankenmuth. (And I think the girls found every single one of them!) We made plans on where to meet up to go to dinner and let them have at shopping.
Dinner: The girls wanted pizza (what else?) so dinner at DaVinci's.
524 North Main St Frankenmuth.
Click on photos to enlarge them.
The girls liked their pizza and Jay and I could have something other than pizza. The food was good. Not outstanding but adequate and the prices were reasonable.
Money $aving Tip: Watch DaVnci's social media sites for money saving coupons.
Morning: Have breakfast at La Crepe du Jour: 925 S Main St, Frankenmuth.
You can watch them make your crepes in front of you if you like.
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They make just about any kind of crepe you can think of! And they do it without using sugar for the most part.
I decided to go out on a limb and order an Almond Joy crepe: Chocolate, Marshmallows, Almonds & Coconut.
O...M...G! I'll just pitch a tent here in this little creperie and work my way through the entire menu, thank you.
The crepes are pretty large and most cost around $6.50 each.
The girls wanted to spend the day skating so Jay and I had the day to ourselves.
Hoyt Park
We made a 20 minute drive to Saginaw's Hoyt Park: 1574 S. Washington Avenue, Saginaw MI to do some snowboarding.
Hoyt Park offered only sledding and snowboarding hills during the winter season, however, in 2013 the park opened itself to much more. For the first time in a decade, Hoyt Park is now home to an outdoor winter ice rink for ice skating complete with a warming house, hot chocolate, and skate rentals.
You can also sled there too.
No admission fee but you do need to bring your own snowboard or sled.
This is a family friendly park the kids will like.
After snowboarding most of the morning we were ready to head back to Frankenmuth for some lunch.
Lunch: Since we didn't have the girls along we went to
Prost Wine Bar & Charcuterie: 576 1/2, S Main St, Frankenmuth.
Offering a wide selection of wine and beer from around the globe, along with perfectly crafted cocktails. Their menu encompasses the European culture from imported charcuterie and cheese, shareable plates, salads, paninis and heartier dishes.
We ordered the German charcuterie board which was more than enough for the 2 of us and delicious! $28 current price.
They also serve paninis, shareables, handhelds, soups, salads, sandwiches and entrees.
They do have a limited kids menu.
Monday-Thursday 11-10PM
Friday & Saturday 11-12
Sunday 10-10PM (Brunch served until 3PM. Kitchen reopens at 4PM)
Goof off the rest of the afternoon, do whatever you want. We returned to the Inn and played miniature golf until the girls returned from the ice rink.
Dinner: The girls wanted to eat at the rink so Jay and I had dinner at
The Station 100: 100 S Main Street, Frankenmuth.
Station 100 is top notch all the way and some adult fine dining was a nice break from pre-teen "We want pizza!"
They offered a 5 course meal for $99 that was scrumptious. You could also add a wine pairing for an additional cost.
They offered a 5 course meal for $99 that was scrumptious. You could also add a wine pairing for an additional cost.
Christmas Light Tour
Golden Ticket Trolley offers nighttime tours of the best Christmas decorations in Frankenmuth, in a heated trolley. Includes narration during the tour. This was a really relaxing way to end our evening and even the girls enjoyed it. (Kids get an I-Spy card and can pick a prize at the end of the route!)
For 2026, the Golden Ticket Trolley’s seasonal Christmas light tour is priced at $25 for ages 13+ and $20 for ages 3–12, with free admission for ages 2 and under.
Morning: Have breakfast at N'Orlins Beignets & Coffee: 925 S Main St D9, Frankenmuth.
Enjoy your French donuts with a cup of chicory coffee or a cup of Cafe’ au lait. You’ll think you’re on Decatur Street in New Orleans.
These delectable treats come with an array of dipping sauces for added flavor. Located at River Place Shops, this spot offers a sweet escape into the culture of New Orleans.
Warning: Take it from me...Beignets are addicting!
Bronner's Christmas Wonderland
We gave the girls the choice of what they wanted to do and they chose to explore Bronner's Christmas Wonderland with us: 25 Christmas Lane, Frankenmuth.
This is the largest Christmas store in America. To fully browse the shop will take you hours. Pick up a store map so negotiating Bronner's is easier for you.
Making Christmas memories since 1945, Bronner’s is a shopper's dream - especially for Christmas lovers! Over 50,000 trims and gifts, with 8,000 styles of ornaments (including Bronner’s exclusive designs), personalized stockings and ornaments, lights, Nativities, Advent calendars, and a wide variety of collectibles in a complex the size of 1.5 football fields. Season’s Eatings snack area is available for light refreshments. Silent Night Chapel open daily. Christmas Lane illuminated nightly.
You can find anything Christmas here. Each of the girls bought an ornament as a souvenir of their trip.
Money $aving Tip: RetailMeNot has coupons and promo codes here.
While at Bonner's stop by their Silent Night Chapel. Free to visit and open daily.
From tender Grill Specialties like Grilled New Zealand Lamb Chops and Half Roasted Duck to flavorful seafood specialties like Great Lakes Perch, each dish is expertly prepared to tantalize your taste buds and leave you craving more.
Zehnder's is also Bavarian Inn's main competitor in the fried chicken dinner department, each of them claiming bragging rights to having the best fried chicken.
Afternoon: The girls went skating again which was great for Jay and I.
The girls didn't know it but all of their Christmas gifts had been hidden in the RV and we had to get them up to the suite without the girls seeing them.
We had some last minute gifts to wrap, stockings to stuff, plenty to do while the girls weren't around.
Dinner: Make reservations ahead to have the Christmas buffet at Zehnder's.
Besides the buffet Zehnder's ala carte regular menu items are offered. Everything was delicious but then Zehnder's is one of the favorite restaurants in Frankenmuth.
When we returned to the Inn we used the adult pool while the girls played arcade games.
Jay and I had a long night ahead of us getting everything set out for Christmas morning after the girls were in bed.
Letters To Santa
There are Letters To Santa mail drops all over Frankenmuth, where kids can write a letter to Santa, drop them in the mailbox and the town will send them a post card assuring them their letter was delivered to Santa.
By this time Jay and I were so tired we'd hit the giddy stage and we wrote our own letter to Santa...
This is a free day for you to celebrate Christmas.
The sun wasn't even up yet when I head the girls' key card being inserted in our door and the door handle turning. They were trying to be quiet...at
least until they saw the Christmas tree with their presents piled under it.
"YOU GUYS! LOOK AT ALL THE PRESENTS UNDER THE TREE!"
"HEY OUR STOCKINGS ARE HERE TOO! AND THEY'RE FULL OF STUFF!"
They were loud enough to wake the nearly comatose Jay. Not to mention everyone else staying in all four stories of the Inn.
"Rise and shine, Santa," I sighed. "We have company and it ain't your elves."
I'd made crockpot breakfast casserole and mint hot chocolate for breakfast so we could eat in our suite before opening presents. Have crockpot will travel.
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Santa had left each girl a snowshoeing kit to use on the trip and Jay and I had bought each girl a figure skating necklace we put in their stockings.
We'd also brought along all of the Christmas gifts they would have received had they been at home for Christmas, so opening presents kept them occupied for awhile.
Harger Line Trail
Anxious to try out their new snowshoes the girls blazed their own trail in the vicinity of the Inn.
When Jay and I were a bit more awake and firing on all cylinders, we all piled in the car and drove to Saginaw to the Harger Line Rail Trail to snowshoe it.
For those looking to explore the trail in winter, it is recommended to plan ahead and stay informed about the trail's current condition.
Be Cautious: The trail is closed in sections through the end of November, and there are no amenities available - no water or restrooms. Trail users should exercise caution when crossing uncontrolled intersections and be aware of the lack of snowmobile access.
The early morning and snowshoeing did us in. We all napped the rest of the afternoon.
Dinner: Bavarian Inn Lorelei Lounge Christmas Day Buffet
The Lorelei Lounge
Morning: Breakfast inside the Bavarian Inn at Oma's. 1 Covered Bridge Ln, Frankenmuth
Oma's Restaurant is a quaint Bavarian theme Restaurant serving Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. Oma's (Meaning Grandma's) is located within the Bavarian Inn Lodge and hosts locals
and day trip visitors as well as hotel guests. It is a "best kept" secret for having short or no waits in Frankenmuth when other restaurants are lined out the door.
American and German fare are served and the servers in German garb was a nice touch. The waitstaff is really friendly. The food was good enough but not fantastic. Service was a little slow but we've come to expect that as a result of the Scamdemic so just take it in stride.
After breakfast we returned to Main Street having seen something we wanted to try: the Ultimate Mirror Maze: 925 S Main Street, Frankenmuth.
Here's the scoop on the Mirror Maze: It's overpriced for the time you spend in there initially. It's a small maze. What you do is pay the initial admission fee on your first visit. That entitles you to re-entry to the maze any time at all that same day, as many visits as you wish to make.
They give you plastic gloves to wear so you don't smudge up the mirrors.
What you do is return again later that day. They'll give you some funky disposable glasses that distort what you're seeing so it makes the maze much more difficult to get through. It was on our second trip of the day that we really had fun with the maze and got our money's worth.
Standard admission: $8 per person — valid for all‑day access to the maze. With laser room: $12 per person — includes the mirror maze plus the on‑site laser challenge.
The Mirror Maze is located inside the River Place Shops complex. The maze covers more than 2,000 square feet and uses mirrored corridors, angled glass and illuminated panels to create repeating reflections, dead ends and visual tricks.
Enjoy the Glockenspiel and Figurienspiel
You can't leave Frankenmuth without having seen the Glockenspiel and the Figurienspiel.
The Frankenmuth Glockenspiel is a 35‑bell carillon, illuminated clock, and moving Pied Piper figurine show housed in a 50‑foot Bavarian‑style tower at the Bavarian Inn, 713 S. Main Street, Frankenmuth.
Daily at Noon, 3 p.m., 6 p.m., and 9 p.m.: Several German and American tunes and hymns, followed by the Pied Piper of Hameln show.
The show features the Piper, 14 other characters, and a horde of rats moving along four tracks, emerging through copper doors and disappearing as scenes change.
The Frankenmuth Figurinespiel is a 10‑minute animated “cheese story” performed daily at the Frankenmuth Cheese Haus.
The show features five children and their pets from different countries, each sharing stories and fun facts about their national cheeses. Characters include Sophie from Holland with her duck, Lottie Mario from Italy with his goat, Gina Jacob from Germany, Otto the pig, Peter the rabbit, Anna from Ireland with her lamb and dog, and Finn Michael from Frankenmuth with his cow Betsey .
If you're a cheese lover you definitely want to make the Cheese Haus one of your stops! 545 S Main St Frankenmuth.
Currently they carry 270+ different types of cheeses and make 7 cheese spreads in haus: Garlic, Horseradish, Bacon, Jalapeno, Smokey Jalapeno, Fiery Jalapeño and our Creamy Blue Cheese spread. They also make 5 additional cheeses in Haus: Chocolate, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Chocolate Mint, Blueberry, and Strawberry. Watch the Cheese being made. Kitchen gadgets galore, gift baskets, hard to find cheeses, and more!
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The Figurinespiel is a free show that plays at regular intervals throughout the day. I thought the girls would get bored by it but just the opposite happened, they loved both the Glockenspiel and the Figurinespiel.
Today is your last day in Frankenmuth so wrap up anything you want to do that you haven't done yet.
The great thing about winter skating parties is that most towns and cities have free public ice rinks to bring party guests to.
Since I live on a lake, we make our own skating rink on the lake every year. Even if you don't live on a lake if you have the room, you can make your own ice rink in your backyard.
The great thing about a skating party is that you can adapt it to almost anything - ice skating, hockey, roller skating, skateboarding, even skiing.
Obviously you're going to need to stage a skating rink if you're holding your party indoors. One example...
You could do something this simple. The "ice" is blue paper taped to the floor with a cellophane overlay.
You wouldn't even have to go to that much work. Inexpensive pale blue shower curtain liners from the dollar store would work too. If you want your ice to appear shinier then you could roll cellophane over that.
If it were me personally? I'd reverse the backdrop sheeting and use white sheets with black silhouette skaters affixed to them. Then I'd make some snowflakes to suspend from the ceiling in front of the sheets or hang some icicle light curtains in front of them. The snow is just fiberfill pulled apart to puff it up.
For my staging most of what I used was recycled or repurposed from other parties I'd done like my Winter Wonderland parties - like the wall background below made from corrugated cardboard. I constructed it to fold down flat when not in use.
I didn't like the look of the ice being too blue so used craft metal that comes in rolls or sheets.
The trees came from my collection of Christmas trees, the bench from my yard and those are my skates hanging on it. I made a simple A frame corrugated warming hut and covered the roof in snow blankets.
The 2 girls are cardboard stand up cutouts.
TUTORIAL: DIY Life-Sized Cardboard Cutout
Project Little Smith came up with a brilliant cardboard hut you can use as a skating warming hut - and you can fold it flat and unfold it as many times as you want.
The tab and slot system makes construction easy and accessible.
Here are some Pinterest cardboard huts.
The pieces of your hut can be easily painted, drawn on, or customized to your own unique tastes.
Use a thicker corrugated cardboard for a sturdier hut.
Google "Corrugated Cardboard Huts" or "Corrugated Cardboard Playhouses" and you'll find any number of tutorials for making a cardboard hut, including video tutorials.
More skating party staging:
Another alternative: Use an ice rink photo backdrop and winter colored balloon arches. Construct the rink skating wall out of styrofoam sheets. Use your stand up cardboard cutouts of skaters again.
Other decorative elements you can use:
Frozen window clings are inexpensive and can be used to decorate your windows.
Use glitter glue or craft glue to draw snowflakes and icy swirls on wax paper, then peel them off once dry.
Stick them directly to your windows.
Tablescapes are so easy to do for any winter theme including skating parties.
Use whites, blues, silvers.
Glitter tablecloths add class while making your table look "snowy".
Refurbished skates make great table centerpieces.
A couple of coats of white shoe polish, some faux fur, some silver sparkle bootlaces gives old skates new life. Add sprigs of small faux flowers and/or berries in the skates.
DINNERWARE
You can use plain white plates or even blue plates.
I found some melamine snowflake dinnerware at auction - 8 person place setting for $10!
I found these figure skate printable favor boxes.
You can fill them with silver and blue Hershey Kisses.
I wanted something hot, quick and easy to feed the skaters and there's nothing easier than Walking Tacos. Nothing to clean up, just toss the bag away when finished eating the taco.
Blueberry Yogurt Parfait
Skate Cookies
Frozen Bark
Snow Day Snack Mix
Ice Skate Cupcakes
Hot Chocolate Bar
No skating party would be complete without a hot chocolate bar!
A hot chocolate bar adds something special. It's an easy way to serve hot chocolate for a crowd. When it's chilly outside, serving hot cocoa is always a good idea!
Homemade hot chocolate stirring sticks
Chocolate stirring sticks. Soft peppermint sticks, set in regular-size marshmallows, then dipped in chocolate. The chocolate and marshmallow melted as you stirred the hot liquid, creating a delicious blend of peppermint, deep chocolate and marshmallow. Mmmmmm!
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To keep hot chocolate hot at a party, you can keep it in a crockpot on low heat. You can also keep it in an electric coffee maker or hot chocolate container with a sterno under it.
This contribution from Ashley, her figure skating friends and Ice Skating Guru.
You can download and print out the FREE skating moves charts here.
If it's in your budget consider hiring a skating instructor for an hour or two to teach your party guests some basic skating moves.
Movies & Popcorn
One of the things the girls liked doing on our trip was after a day on the rink, dig into some Frozen popcorn and a mug of my mint hot chocolate while watching skating movies:
Ice Princess
Cutting Edge series
Blades of Glory
Ice Castles
Ice Girls
Have some skating movies on hand for your future Olympians, especially if your party includes a sleepover.
Red Light, Green Light
This simple playground game is perfect for practicing skating stops. Have all the skaters line up and then the coach says “green light,” all of the skaters’ race down the rink.
When they hear ” Red Light” they have to stop as quickly as they can. The first skater to the end of the rink wins!
Freeze Skate
This is the ice skating version of Musical Statues and it is a lot of fun.
Everyone skates around the rink while music plays. Randomly stop the music, and everyone has to freeze. The last player to “freeze” when the music stops is out.
Repeat until only one skater is left standing. They win.
Mini Olympics
Set up a mini obstacle course on the ice. You can tailor this according to your skaters ability.
Some ideas for your obstacle course:
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Mini hockey sticks (you can buy mini hockey sticks and use cones as a goal).
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Mini curling
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Crawling through a tunnel on the ice
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Weaving in and out of cones
Four Corners
Number each corner of the ice skating rink. Write the numbers on pieces of paper and place them inside of a bag or pot.
Play some music and have the kids skate around the rink. When the music stops, everyone must skate to one of the corners. Pull one of the notes out of the ice skate and call out the number or color.
Everyone in that corner is out of the game. Put the paper back into the skate, start the music again and continue playing until only one skater remains. That player is the winner.
Indoor Curling
This is a game you can play anytime, not just at parties and it's great fun!
You can purchase an indoor curling game here.