Where to Ice Skate and Ski in Missouri

Local Ice Skating Spots in the Ozarks

Ice skating just hits different when you do it outside. There’s just something so festive and comforting and special about bundling up in your favorite scarf and mittens, and feeling the brisk December breeze as it nips at your cheeks. Plus, a hot mug of something warm never tastes better than it does after an activity like that. (There’s a reason why some people enjoy the cozy aprés ski experience even more than skiing, after all.) This season, head to Ozark, Nixa and Branson to take part in this cozy-fun outdoor winter tradition.

In Nixa

Cassidy Station (5176 N. Fremont Rd., Nixa, MO, 417-522-3659) has gone all out this holiday season with loads of fun family events—including Christmas Ice Skating. This outdoor rink is situated on the scenic Estes Farms and is open through December 31. A 30-minute skate session is $12 and includes skates. And when you’re finished skating, you can head over to the Mercantile to do a little bit of holiday shopping, or stick around at the farm for one of their many other holiday season events, like cooking making, wreath making, a live reindeer experience, a Christmas market, a lot filled with Christmas trees and so much more. They’ve gone big for the holidays this year!

In Branson

At Big Cedar Lodge (190 Top of the Rock Rd., Ridgedale, MO, 417-335-2777), an ice rink has been set up for the season in the Swimmin’ Hole Lawn area of the resort. Skating is $15 for overnight resort guests, but non-guests can join the fun too for $20. There’s a twinkling Christmas tree at the center of the rink, and every evening features a music and light show. Big Cedar’s all-weather synthetic ice rink is open through February 8. In December, you can skate from noon–9 p.m. daily, and throughout January and February it’s open 4–9 p.m. daily.

In Ozark

This one is less a big, round rink and more a scenic path. If you attend the Jingle! event (4400 N. 19th St., Ozark, MO) in Ozark this season, you can add an ice skating ticket and spend a little time gliding down a path that winds through loads of twinkling Christmas lights.

Originally published January 2020

Where to Go Ice Skating in Missouri

What do you do when the black diamonds in Colorado aren’t on the agenda this year, but you are still itching to hit the slopes? Well, just three hours northeast of Springfield, Hidden Valley Ski Resort in St. Louis County offers outdoor winter fun without the cost of a plane ticket.

Hit the Slopes

Hidden Valley Ski Resort, 17409 Hidden Valley Drive, Wildwood, 636-938-5373
Hidden Valley Ski Resort, just west of St. Louis, makes a terrific heart-pumping day trip for a sunny winter weekend. With 17 trails and more than 65 skiable acres, you can get your skiing or snowboarding fix without traveling too far. Two on-site terrain parks offer rails, jumps and other daring endeavors to brave snowboarders and skiers. The highest vertical drop at the resort is 320 feet, and you can be carried to the top on one of nine ski lifts, three carpet lifts or a rope tow. It’s okay to visit if you don’t have skiing experience. Just like at a Rocky Mountain Resort, you or your kiddos can spend the day in ski school where you’ll learn the basics of the sport through lessons at Hidden Valley’s Snowsports Academy. Downhill tubing even offers a powdery alternative to anyone not brave enough to tackle the hillside on their feet.

Grab a Bite

The Boathouse at Forest Park, 6101 Government Drive, St. Louis, 314-366-1555
After you’ve worked up an appetite skiing, venture a little farther west into St. Louis’s Forest Park, and stop for dinner at the Boathouse, where you can sip cocktails and munch on treats like sticky Szechuan spare sandwiches like the Sugarfire pulled pork with jalapeño honey slaw. The location is a perfect jumping off point for other Forest Park activities, like paddling around on the park’s waterways or taking a walk under the trees.

Strap on Skates

Steinberg Skating Rink, 400 Jefferson Drive, St. Louis, 314-367-7465
When the sun goes down, your chilly activities don’t have to end. There’s still plenty of winter fun to be had! While you’re at Forest Park, indulge in some outdoor ice skating at Steinberg Skating Rink. It stays open late (until 9 p.m. during the week and 11 p.m. on weekends), and everybody knows ice skating is a little sweeter and a little more sparkly when you do it at night—you can even grab a hot cocoa there afterward to warm your fingers. (Tip: Bring cash; it’s the only kind of money that’s good there.) Speaking of warming up, be sure to dress in layers.