If you could skate anywhere in the world...

[skatetotravel]

Hi everyone, I'm new here! I've caught the ice skating bug after the winter Olympics and visiting my local rink. I was SO delighted to Google and find that adult skating is, indeed, a real thing! I look up to all of you

My question is about location. I currently work remotely, from my laptop, and I have been globe-trotting and living abroad for a while. For my next destination, I'd love to go somewhere where I could really dive in to a local adult learn-to-skate program.

Are there any cities where this would be better than others? Cost is definitely a factor. Super expensive places like NYC or London would be out of the question. But I'm open to Asia, Eastern Europe, South America (??), the U.S., really anywhere. I also don't have a car, though, which might make rural/suburban destinations more difficult.

Do you have any recommendations of where I might find a great adult beginners program? Thank you

[Clarice]

I know you said not New York, but Jojo Starbuck's classes were the first thing that popped into my head.

http://jojostarbuck.com/classes/

I've never taken them, so I can't give a first person review. I've read articles and seen video, and she seems super enthusiastic!

[skatetotravel]

Thanks for the input, Clarice! I figured if anyone knew some great programs/coaches it would be this group. Looking forward to seeing if there are any more recommendations.

[FigureSpins]

Chicago has a big adult following and a vast mass-transit system.  I would suggest Denver, but without a car, you're SOL.  LA and San Francisco are pricey.

What about Obertsdorf, Germany?  They host an international adult skating competition and there are adult clinics/workshops as well.

[skatetotravel]

Thank you for the suggestions, FigureSpins. I will actually be home in Chicago for a few months this summer and am blown away by how many rinks and programs there are available for adult beginners.

I will look into Obertsdorf, thank you for the idea.

[RoaringSkates]

You stumped me. It's the combo of "not expensive" with "don't have a car" that's messing me up. There's a really good adult program at Floyd Hall (on the campus of Montclair State U in NJ) that might work. It's less expensive in NJ than in NYC, and if you can live on NJ Transit, you can get off at the MSU stop and walk over to the rink. But NJ is by no means inexpensive.

[skatetotravel]

Floyd Hall looks great! Especially this: " All Learn to Skate classes include unlimited public skating during the semester of your lessons."

Home rentals near the university don't look too outrageous in terms of price. This is a great tip! Thanks

Do you have recs off the top of your head that would be in the category of expensive or car required? Just curious, as maybe there is a way to make it work down the line.

[skategeek]

Floyd is a good place!  There are daytime public sessions that are (usually) very lightly attended.  And there are several other rinks in the area, potentially giving you more flexibility.  JoJo's classes are at Codey Arena, which is about a 25-30 min drive from MSU.  Not sure about public transit to get to the other rinks, but if not Uber or something could be a possibility.

[RoaringSkates]

I know you can get from NYC to Codey Arena, as the bus stops directly outside the arena. I'm not sure if you can take public transit from MSU to Codey. However, I wonder - if you end up really being interested in this, you can email Jo Jo herself, and ask her if any of her students for the class are coming from the Montclair area and you might carpool. The other option is to take her class at Rockefeller Center in the city - you'd take the train from MSU to NYC.

The adult program at Floyd Hall is a good one. They offer adult Learn to Skate classes which go beyond the beginner level, and Igor Lukanin and Kristen Fraser both take adult students at all levels for private lessons, and they're great teachers. There are also off ice classes there on Saturdays for stretching and the like, which the adult students do.

I've heard that the adult skating camps up at Lake Placid are really awesome, although I haven't attended those myself. If you want something short term, that might be fun.

In terms of expensive places, I've heard that the adult programs at the Queen's Ice Bowl in London, UK, are good. https://www.queens.london/dancingandice/ They also have a daily "coffee hour" which is adult only, which is apparently (people tell me) some sort of social ice skating. I walked past this place when I was in London, but I didn't skate yet back then, so I didn't try it out. It's walking distance of several tube stations.

In terms of places where you'd need a car, the Philadelphia Skating Club has quite a lot going on for adults: http://pschs.org/index.php/adult-skating/

If you had a car, you could really do it up in the New Jersey area. You could do the adult LTS and off ice stuff at Floyd on Saturdays. Go to Floyd and Codey for lessons and to practice on weekdays. Do Jo Jo's class on Thursdays at Codey. On Sundays, there are adult ice dance classes and a majority adult ice dance session at Katonah (Hickory Hill Figure Skating Club.)

[skatetotravel]

If you had a car, you could really do it up in the New Jersey area. You could do the adult LTS and off ice stuff at Floyd on Saturdays. Go to Floyd and Codey for lessons and to practice on weekdays. Do Jo Jo's class on Thursdays at Codey. On Sundays, there are adult ice dance classes and a majority adult ice dance session at Katonah (Hickory Hill Figure Skating Club.)

Wow! That could really be an awesome way to do an immersion experience for 4-6 weeks. I'll have to look into the numbers to see if it could work.

I'll keep this thread updated with what I find!

Results so far (all prices in USD):

City: Bangkok, Thailand
Rink: Sub-Zero Ice Skate Club, Sukhumvit
Cost: $38/hr for private lesson with fluent English-speaking coach (plus unlimited practice time) or $9 for 1.5 hours of ice time
Upsides: Low cost, basically empty rink all day (except Sat & Sun)
Downsides: Low-quality ice (a bit bumpy, a bit melty)

City: Gold Coast, Australia
Rink: Iceland Bundall Ice Skating
Cost: $19 for 30-min group lesson and 2 hours ice time
Upsides: Pretty good cost, nice ice
Downsides: Quite crowded, the group lesson is mostly kids & teens. Huge difference b/t beginner and intermediate lesson as well.

City: Melbourne, Australia
Rink: Olympic Ice Skating Centre
Cost: $19 for 15-min beginner lesson + 30-min intermediate and four hours ice time
Upsides: Adult-focused group lesson, good social scene, huge rink, really nice ice, easy to join in intermediate lesson even if beginner
Downsides: Coming from Bangkok, I was FREEZING in this rink lol. Coldest I've been to. Other than that, no downsides!

[skategeek]

Be aware that rink schedules may change for the summer because of summer skating camps.  For example, in July and August Floyd still has daytime public sessions, but not the adult-only sessions, and the regular public sessions can be crowded.  There's still freestyle sessions (but those aren't included with the LTS classes).  You'd probably have similar issues anywhere, but it's something to be aware of when you think about the timing of your visit.  Might not be immediately obvious if you just look at a current rink schedule.

[skatetotravel]

Be aware that rink schedules may change for the summer because of summer skating camps.  For example, in July and August Floyd still has daytime public sessions, but not the adult-only sessions, and the regular public sessions can be crowded.  There's still freestyle sessions (but those aren't included with the LTS classes).  You'd probably have similar issues anywhere, but it's something to be aware of when you think about the timing of your visit.  Might not be immediately obvious if you just look at a current rink schedule.

Wow very good to know! Thank you