Skating on the North Shore

Ice Skating on the North Shore includes ponds, lakes, & indoor and outdoor rinks

What is the winter season without ice skating? Grab your skates and helmets and get ready, the ice skating season in underway. For kids and adults it is an accessible and fun way for everyone to work off some energy and have a great time in the process.

Skating gets the kids out of the house and moving around, just at the time when the playgrounds are too chilly for outdoor adventures. Ice skating is also a great way to explore new places, and experience the natural beauty of Winter on the North Shore of Massachusetts.  When the sky is blue and there is a little nip in the air there is nothing better than twirling your way across a frozen pond, rink or backyard ice skating rink

All of the local skating rinks offer ice skating lessons and ice skating birthday parties and almost all of them offer ice hockey. If you're really into ice skating, consider joining one of the many North Shore Skating Clubs.

Here's a list of places to ice skate, indoors and outdoors, in North Shore towns north of Boston, Massachusetts: Before skating on an outdoor pond in an unfamiliar area, check with the local police department to make sure that you are not trespassing, and that the ice is safe.

Where do you skate? Submit a Place to Skate

Summerquest Camp for kids aed 5-14 at the Crane Estate in Ipswich Massachusetts

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Deck The Halls: Hammond Castle

A holiday themed tour of Hammond Castle Museum in Gloucester Massachusetts
Travel back in time to a castle filled with lush, opulent textures inspired by the great medieval and Renaissance castles of Europe. Wander through rooms adorned with White Birch and Christmas trees, sparkling fairy lights, hydrangea-lace garlands, and elegant bows, each space transformed with its...
10:00 am to 8:00 pm

Sing & Dance with the Music Man

Sing & Dance with the Music Man Brian Doser in Hamilton visit Massachusetts
Come join the fun at Community House Of Hamilton & Wenham Monday, Thursday and Saturday mornings at 10am for 30 - 45 minutes of great music with Brian Doser! Sing and dance with the Music Man during a family concert, featuring familiar and original tunes, performed by local dad and musician,...
10:00 am to 10:45 am

Take a Trolley Ride with Scrooge!

Salem Trolley Christmas Carol, Fun Holiday Events north of Boston, Trolley Ride with Scrooge
Join Scrooge on the Salem Trolley as you ride through Salem Massachusetts in this rolling production performed by the Griffen Theater . Now entering into it's 39th Season, this humorous & whimsical interactive performance reanimates Dickens’ timeless seasonal holiday classic. Experience...
2:00 pm to 9:30 pm

Saturday, December 20

CraneExplorer: Coastal Holiday Crafts

Make holiday gifts with beach treasures from the Crane Wildlife Refuge in Ipswich Massachusetts
This holiday season, give a gift from the sea! Beach treasures make beautiful holiday ornaments, jewelry, and keepsakes. Join this workshop to take a beach walk to collect coastal treasures and then make some coastal crafts with our educators. Bring your own shells and beach treasures and we will...
10:00 am to 3:00 pm

Santa's Workshop

Santa's Workshop in Newburyport, Massachusetts. Visit Newburyport MA during the holidays
Newburyport is a favorite local town to shop - especially during the holidays. Bring the family to Newburyport to visit Santa in his traditional workshop, share your wish list, and snap a photo with Mr. Claus!
11:00 am to 2:00 pm

Take a Trolley Ride with Scrooge!

Salem Trolley Christmas Carol, Fun Holiday Events north of Boston, Trolley Ride with Scrooge
Join Scrooge on the Salem Trolley as you ride through Salem Massachusetts in this rolling production performed by the Griffen Theater . Now entering into it's 39th Season, this humorous & whimsical interactive performance reanimates Dickens’ timeless seasonal holiday classic. Experience...
2:00 pm to 9:30 pm

Low-Sensory Play at North Shore Children's Museum

Low-Sensory Play at NorthShore Children's Museum in Peabody Massachusetts
Join us for a low-sensory play session. For some children, visiting places like NSCM can be over-stimulating. This special play session will have reduced noise, crowds, and stimulation. While medical diagnosis is not required, we encourage that these limited tickets be used for families with a...
2:00 pm to 4:00 pm

The Nutcracker Panto - Matinee

Come enjoy a Nutcracker Panto performed by Theater in the Open at the Firehouse Center for the Arts!
The tree is lit up and the stockings are hung and Clara’s Christmas is perfect…except for her Uncle Drosselmeyer sitting up on that clock and the sudden rat infestation…sounds like panto time!Edward Speck and Joshua Shack return to direct another cracking holiday panto, this time seizing on...
3:00 pm

The Nutcracker Panto

Come enjoy a Nutcracker Panto performed by Theater in the Open at the Firehouse Center for the Arts!
Theater in the Open is happy to be back at the Firehouse for our production of A Nutcracker Panto, written by Edward F. Speck and adapted from the classic holiday ballet. Presented in the traditional British panto style, this holiday send-up is a family friendly romp through Clara’s adventure with...
7:00 pm

Sunday, December 21

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Christmas at Castle Hill | A Nod to Nature

Christmas at Castle Hill | A Nod to Nature is a weekend of festivities hosted by the Trustees of Reservations at Castle Hill in Ipswich Massachusetts
Visiting Castle Hill at Christmas is a time-honored tradition. Don’t miss this year’s event celebrating the beauty of the natural world. You’ll see birds, flowers, snowflakes, and more as you view 18 spaces decorated for the holidays.
10:00 am to 8:00 pm