Summer in Korea can be devastating because of high temperature that accompanies with high humidity level. I personally think summer’s getting hotter and hotter every year. Anyway, with summer coming up in just a few weeks, we need to think of ways to get away from the sun and chill. So in this article, I decided to introduce three ice rinks in Seoul where you can go ice-skating and even watch cool hockey games. There’s no better way to escape from the sizzling summer days than to hang out in ice!
- Mokdong (목동) Ice Rink
Mokdong Ice Rink is located at Mokdong Stadium (목동경기장) near Omokkyo Station of Line 5 (5호선 오목교역). Mokdong Stadium consists of an ice rink and three arenas including a baseball stadium, which used to be the home grounds for Korean professional baseball team, Nexen Heroes (넥센 히어로즈). Since 1989, Mokdong Ice Rink has been open to both athletes and non-athletes, and has held many international winter sports events like figure skating and ice hockey championships. It is probably the top 2 ice rinks in Seoul that non athletes visit for non training purposes(the other one is to be introduced later).
I visited Mokdong Ice Rink a few weeks ago and had so much fun there! I would like to briefly share my impressions on Mokdong Ice Rink before we get to further details.
Since it was built more than 20 years ago, the facilities are quite old. You can feel it from the skates and helmets they lend to visitors; they’re in usable conditions, but you can definitely see the long history behind them.
Mokdong Ice Rink has two rinks where visitors can ice skate. One on the ground floor and another on the first basement. When one is open to non athletes, the other is restricted to athletes or official trainees. It can get a bit inconvenient if you visit during switching hour which is what my friend and I did. After skating for only about 30 minutes, we had to move(switch) to the basement floor because it was time for a high school ice hockey game. It’s not easy to walk in skates(the elevator was unavailable for some reason)! Time for switching rinks varies from time to time, so if you ever visit 목동 ice rink beware of the switching time. You might have to walk in skates to move to another rink!
We skated for another half an hour and decided to watch the hockey game(ice skating was harder than it looks). To our surprise, the ice hockey game was really fun. It was my first time to ever watch an ice hockey game. Ice skating does require much energy anyway, so I think it would be a good idea to visit this the ice rink when there’s a game going on. This way, you can take a break while watching a fun hockey game!
Details on price, operating hours, and so on are as follows:
Address: 939, Anyangcheon-ro, Yangcheon-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 양천구 안양천로 939)
Open to non-athletes from 14:00~18:00 on weekdays / from 12:00~18:00 on weekends and holidays
ticket price: 4,000 Won on weekdays and 5,200 Won on weekends
price for renting skates: 4,000 Won for 2 hours and 1,000 Won for every additional hour
*Note that you MUST wear gloves in order to get on ice. Entrance is prohibited if you don’t have any gloves on. You can buy one there too, but I recommend you bring your own because it’s 2,000 won for a pair(and they’re really ugly gloves).
- Jamsil Lotte World (잠실 롯데월드)
Lotte World is the biggest theme park in Seoul (regarding Korea, there’s a bigger one named Everland (에버랜드) in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do (경기도 용인)), and it has an ice rink in it. It’s a bit pricey compared to Mokdong Ice Rink because it is run by Lotte Group (롯데그룹) while 목동 ice rink is run by Seoul Metropolitan City (서울특별시). However, because it’s run by a private enterprise, the maintenance level is much higher here. If you’re thinking of going on a date for instance, Lotte World Ice Rink would be a better choice for you. Also, unlike Mokdong Ice Rink, Lotte World Ice Rink provides special promotions and events from time to time. In May, there was an ‘early bird promotion’ that gives discounts to those who visit the ice rink early in the morning(this promotion is valid until May 31).
If it’s your first time ice skating in Korea, I’d say Lotte World Ice Rink is much better than Mokdong Ice Rink too. While Mokdong Ice Rink has no places to hang out nearby, Lotte World Ice Rink is right in the theme park. Also, there’s Lotte World Tower (롯데월드타워), the tallest building and one of the largest shopping malls in Korea. Lotte World Ice Rink is a place where you hang out with friends and family all day long, not to mention that it’s easier to go via public transportation from Hanyang University (한양대학교).
Details on price, operating hours, and so on are as follows:
Address: 240, Olympic-ro, Songpa-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 송파구 올림픽로 240)
- Peak season (July to August, December to February): Open from 11:00~22:30 on weekdays / from 10:00~22:30 on weekends
- Non-peak season (March to July, September to December): Open from 10:00~21:30 on weekdays / from 10:00~22:30 on weekends
Ticket price: 11,000 Won
Price for renting skates: 5,000 Won
Combined ticket: 16,000 Won
*Gloves on sale for 1,000 Won to 1,500 Won. It’s better to bring your own!
- Taereung International Skating Rink (태릉국제스케이트장)
Taereung International Skating Rink is the one and only 400 meters indoor skating rink in Korea (8th in the whole world). Taereung skating rink is special because it is located at Taereung National Training Center (태릉선수촌), the official training center for athletes of all kinds in national teams.
It’s not easy to get to Taereung International Skating Rink because you need to take a subway and then transfer to a bus. once more. But as troublesome it is to get to this rink, the facilities are much better than the ones introduced earlier. Take a look at the photo below. It’s a lot bigger than those two, isn’t it? Since it opened in 2013, it’s much newer too. I had much fun at 목동 ice rink, but I have to admit that everything in that rink is old and worn out except the ice.
Plus, if you’re lucky, there’s a chance that you might run into Korean national athletes! Though it takes some effort to get there, it would be a good opportunity for you to experience the vibe of national sports training center in Korea. Watch where all the Olympic golds come from!
Details on price, operating hours, and so on are as follows:
Address: 681, Hwarang-ro, Nowon-gu, Seoul (서울특별시 노원구 화랑로 681)
Open to non-athletes from 10:00 to 18:00 all week
Ticket price: 4,000 Won
Price for renting skates: 3,000 Won
Price for renting helmets: 600 Won
*You need gloves to get in the rink!
Article by Jieun from Korea, a Senior in Business Administration
myHUBS 
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