Skip to main content

Rockefeller Center

The Rink

New York City's Most Iconic Ice Skating Tradition

The Rink has closed for the 2025-2026 season. We look forward to welcoming you back this coming Fall. Become part of one of New York City’s most cherished ice skating traditions. From first-time visitors to lifelong New Yorkers, The Rink remains the city’s most enchanting winter experience.

Hours

The Rink is currently closed for the season. Check back for dates and times.

Directions

Entrance Located on 49th Street lower Rink Level between 5th and 6th Avenues

212.771.7200info@rockefellercenter.com
Our History

The First Tree

In December 1931, construction workers raised a modest 20-foot tree on the site of Rockefeller Center. Decorated with strings of cranberries and paper garlands on Christmas Eve, it marked the beginning of a tradition that continues today.
Black-and-white photo of construction workers gathered around the first Rockefeller Center Christmas tree in 1931, decorated with simple garlands.
Vintage poster for “Icetime of 1948” featuring a figure skater, representing performances at Center Theatre in Rockefeller Center.
Black-and-white photo of Rockefeller Center’s sunken plaza in 1934 before the skating rink was built, showing stairs and open space between buildings.
Black-and-white photo of skaters on the Rockefeller Center rink in 1936, with two Christmas trees and falling snow in the background.
Black-and-white photo of figure skater Sonja Henie performing on the ice at Rockefeller Center in the 1930s.
Black-and-white photo of a trained seal performing beside roller-skating performers at Rockefeller Center in 1940, with a fountain in the background.
Overhead black-and-white photo of a crowded Rockefeller Center skating rink on New Year’s Day 1956, surrounded by spectators.
Black-and-white photo of Robert F. Kennedy skating with a group of children at Rockefeller Center during a holiday skating party in the 1960s.
Color photo of skaters at Rockefeller Center rink in 1988, with flags and surrounding buildings visible above the plaza.
Color photo of a large group of tuba players performing in front of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in 1997.
Nighttime photo of the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree towering above the rink in 1999, illuminated with lights and surrounded by crowds.
Color photo of a group of young skaters posing with Olympic ice dancers Meryl Davis and Charlie White on the Rockefeller Center rink.

FAQs

Loading FAQs...