Blog: Fun On Ice - Skating Rinks Near Cascade

While the nights may be longer and the days chillier, there are certainly some treasured cold-weather traditions, like sipping hot chocolate with friends and family around a bright, crackling fire, that make winter the perfect season for creating some of our coziest memories. This year, with the Winter Olympics approaching, the coming months will bring another tradition cherished the world over: that of cheering on, celebrating, and marveling over the extraordinary feats of the world’s elite athletes, as they luge, curl, ski, and ice dance for glory. Even if you’re not ready to land a triple axel in competition yourself, living at the Lakeshore East apartments at Cascade puts you close to two of the city’s most dynamic ice rinks, and less than an hour’s drive from a winter mecca for skiing and snowboarding, where there are ample opportunities to make the most of the season on the ice or on the slopes.

One of the most beloved winter pastimes is ice skating, and the McCormick Tribune Ice Rink in Millennium Park has been helping Chicagoans spin, glide, and jump on the ice for the past two decades. Now in its 20th year, the rink is open daily through March 6 and is free for skaters with online reservations. You can warm up rinkside with hot beverages and snacks from Momentum Coffee, or jump directly into the rink with free skating lessons on weekend mornings — perfect for beginners and those looking to hone their ice skating and hockey skills.

At the Ice Skating Ribbon at Maggie Daley Park, visitors can enjoy a truly one-of-a-kind immersive art and skating experience with “Gogh Skating” — a project that is part of a partnership with Immersive Van Gogh Chicago, which brought 360-degree digital experiences, virtual reality, lights, and sounds to Vincent van Gogh’s paintings. Skaters can take in the swirls and brush strokes of Van Gogh’s “The Starry Night” and “Sunflowers” as they glide across the ice in the crisp Chicago evening air.

Finally, for those whose favorite winter traditions are associated with powdery white slopes (or hanging out fireside in a toasty ski lodge), Bartlett Park’s Villa Olivia features downhill skiing, snowboarding, and snow tubing, all just a short drive from the city. Lessons and equipment rentals make spontaneous visits easy, especially for first-time skiers, snowboarders, or snow tubers, who can enjoy the tubing hill, or one of the seven runs.

So, whether you are making your first foray into winter sports, rekindling a longstanding hobby or lifelong winter sports passion, or simply looking to try a new immersive art and skating experience, you can explore it all — not far from your Downtown Chicago luxury apartment at Cascade.