The Palisades Interstate Park Commission (PIPC) has announced the opening of the Bear Mountain Ice Rink for the 2026-27 season. Voted Best of the Hudson Valley from 2020 to 2024, the rink draws thousands of families each weekend.
Outdoor ice skating has been a tradition at Bear Mountain State Park since 1922, when the first facility was built at the edge of Hessian Lake near the Bear Mountain Inn. The first rink at Bear Mountain hosted an estimated 500,000 people in 1928-29 and served as home ice for West Point’s hockey team. The current rink was built in 1955, close to the original location.
Skaters can take in views of the Hudson River and the Bear Mountain Bridge. The rink, 45 miles north of Manhattan, is also used by local schools and serves as a Learn to Play location for the New York Rangers. “Nothing beats skating outdoors,” said PIPC Executive Director Joshua Laird. He added that visitors can pair a day on the ice with rides on the Bear Mountain Carousel, hiking, and a stop at the Hikers Café or 1915 Bar & Restaurant at the Bear Mountain Inn.
The season runs into March, with six public skating sessions on Fridays and Saturdays, five on Sundays, and additional sessions on holidays. Sessions run from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m., 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m., 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. On Fridays and Saturdays, a final session runs from 8 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. The rink is available for rent by area hockey teams and for private events at other times.
Admission is $5 per person, and children age 4 and under skate for free. Skate rentals are $10 per pair, and skate sharpening is $10. The Bear Mountain Inn’s Food Truck will offer food and beverages at the rink on holidays and weekends.
All sessions are weather permitting, and visitors are advised to check the Bear Mountain Ice Rink website for current conditions before arriving. The park’s $10 per vehicle use fee is waived from Thanksgiving Day through April 1, 2027.
The rink remains open during construction of park improvements in the Hessian Lake area, where the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation is building new picnic areas, public restrooms and a multi-level destination playground as part of a $25 million rehabilitation project. Parking at Lot #2, nearest to the rink, will be limited, and visitors are advised to use Lot #1 or follow a parking attendant’s directions.
Bear Mountain State Park is one of 21 parks and nine historic sites in New York and New Jersey operated by the PIPC. Established in 1908, Bear Mountain is one of the oldest state parks in New York and receives some two million visitors each year.
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