Nathan Phillips Square Rink

Public skating at Nathan Phillips Square Rink: the next 7 days

Currently out of season The City of Toronto says: "Outdoor skating rinks and skate trails are closed for the season." Its live rink status list shows Nathan Phillips Square - Outdoor Artificial Ice Rink as closed (posted May 19, 2026) and gives no opening day. The same page says: "Outdoor artificial ice rinks typically open in late November and close for the season in March." Official schedule update

Opened in 1964 as the first working part of Toronto's new City Hall

The rink was finished before any other feature of Nathan Phillips Square, and Mayor Philip Givens officially opened it on November 29, 1964. It was the first working part of the new City Hall, rushed to completion ahead of that December's municipal election, and former mayors Nathan Phillips and Allan Lamport were there that afternoon.

The ice sits on the square's reflecting pool, a decorative cooling pool in summer that is best known as a skating rink in winter. Three concrete arches span it. They began as an architectural feature and a support for the rink lighting, and in 1989 they were dedicated as the Freedom Arches, with a piece of the Berlin Wall placed at the base of the central arch. The arches and the rink are part of the square's heritage designation.

The Cavalcade of Lights, held every year since 1967 to light the City's official Christmas tree, grew in 2002 from a one-night event into a month of Saturday-night skating parties with live music, including a free public skate and figure skating performances.

Before you head out.

Admission, rentals and arrival details, researched from official rink information. Source checks stay current for 30 days.

A source check records what the rink published on that date. Session-specific booking details take precedence.