Christmas markets, festive movies, mulled wine and too much chocolate to mention, let alone the mountain of present wrapping still on the to-do list…we are loving the opportunity to do something a little different this year thanks to Freight Island’s ‘Boutique Ice Rink’ in the sky.

The indoor ice skating rink, located on the newly-constructed concretene mezzanine floor inside Escape to Freight Island’s Winter Island, continues to be this year’s one-stop shop for those looking to get into the Christmas spirit. When you’re all skated out, Winter Island’s festive themed village also offers a wide range of food and drink choices, breakfasts with Santa, comedy nights, and an orchestra dedicated to playing only Christmas classics. Two years in the making, Winter Island is now officially the UK’s largest outdoor heated market.

The purpose-built indoor ice rink (Elsa from Frozen herself was there earlier in December teaching the little ones how to skate), is set on a mezzanine overlooking the entirety of Winter Island. As the team behind the engineering design of the 2,480 sq ft mezzanine floor, we have loved playing our part in bringing Manchester’s very own ‘ice rink in the sky’ to Escape to Freight Island visitors. The space itself, part of Mayfield Depot, has become the first development to commercially use Concretene, a blend of concrete and graphene and a greener and cheaper alternative to concrete.

The ice rink is open until December the 31st and tickets can be booked here.