Icetown Carlsbad

I’ve taken my kids here since last summer and my daughter has been taking lessons for 6 months. They have repeatedly slapped on «late fees» because I didn’t sign up for auto-​debit. I wasn’t sure how long my daughter would take lessons first of all, and second, I am going through a divorce and my accounts are changing. I chose to pay by the month and they charge $ 10 extra if you don’t go in there and pay by the 5^th. This last week they canceled class for Memorial Day (never mind the class was the Tuesday after) and the first class for June was the 7^th. My daughter was sick so I called to give my new card info and guess what? LATE FEE. You have to be kidding me. They cancel the class and yet I should run in there over the weekend to give my card? Ridiculous. Not the way to treat families.
The classes are jam packed and its $ 75 a month for a 30 minute class with a dozen kids. They are raking in the dough just fine but they insist on raking single mothers over the coals by slapping bogus charges on whenever they can? Whenever I call with an inquiry the front desk girls are rude and brusque, interrupting my sentences. I can’t recommend this place from a customer service point of view whatsoever. I took me several requests to even get a manager voice mailbox today, and I was repeated told that the manager was «busy». Just absurd– the clear message to customers here is We Don’t Care.
I had my daughters birthday party there as well and they did an ok job but mixed up the drinks (despite many reminders beforehand). No one really checked on us to see if we needed anything either. My overall impression is they are happy to take your money but are totally unconcerned with the product they provide. They will most likely stay in business because of the lack of nearby rinks, but that doesn’t mean customers have to be treated so poorly. I think If you have other options, then use them.
I will post an update if my issue with this last bogus late fee is addressed.

This is probably the nicest ice arena I’ve seen.
It’s clean, it’s organized, and the ice quality is great.
Came for the 3:20 — 5:00pm free skate and expected it to be crowded but was pleased to see how empty it was.
No review on rentals since I own my skates.
Could use better music, if at all. It was turned off halfway through. (I swear every song was a breakup/​slow love song!)
You could spot the cement around the blue lines, but it wasn’t too bad and it didn’t affect skating too much.
Ben Wyatt would be proud.

I have some mixed feelings about this place. Let’s start with the positive.
The skates are very new and modern – buckles instead of laces. And nice, sharp blades. The ice is in good shape, too. And they have more public skate times than other rinks which is really nice.
Parking is free although the lot fills up quickly. There’s street parking and I’m guessing the neighboring tenants don’t mind if you use their lots on weekends (but don’t come looking at me when your car gets towed).
But it’s strictly no-​frills. The music was intermittent and I even heard commercials which they either piped in on purpose or else we were listening to some satellite or net-​based music service with commercials. Come on, guys. And there was one stretch of about 10 minutes when there was no music playing at all. Again, this is a small, easy thing but it requires attention to detail.
And there is no fun stuff for the kids like at San Diego Ice Arena where they do dances and have a DJ and turn out the lights and display colored lights and such. In fact, at SD Ice Arena, they even blast music and have the kids do the YMCA dance during the downtime when the Zamboni is on the ice. There’s none of that here.
Oh, and fair warning: it is VERY cold inside. That’s fine with me – it is an ice rink, after all – but I would definitely recommend gloves, at the very least. Not all rinks are this cold.
This is a fine place to ice skate but it could definitely do more, at probably minimal cost and effort, to make it a little more fun, especially for the kids (and there were a ton of kids around). At the very least, keep the music going during the entire public skate session, including the Zamboni downtime.

This is a review for their «Try Hockey for Free» program.
I was devastated when my son told me he wanted to play ice hockey. In this town, we surf, skate, play soccer, etc. Was very happy to have an ice arena open in North County. Was even more happy to discover they have a free hockey program for kids. It’s an amazing way for your child to try hockey without the commitment of buying all of the expensive gear. My son just had his first session and I was so impressed with the organization, friendliness of the coaches and the quality of the provided gear.

I am so happy that we finally have a Ice Rink in Carlsbad. ICETOWN Carlsbad. It is a very friendly place. More often you go more Fun it is and you get to know the people and coaches.
Look at their website, they are offering lots of fun classes, camps and much much more. Try it!
HAVE FUN‼

I love this place. First off, it’s super close to me compared to Iceplex in Escondido. The prices are better, the people are friendlier and the pick-​up/​puck play times for hockey are more convenient. I’m very excited to start a hockey season here as well. I’d give it 5 stars if they upgraded some of the facilities but still a great place to come.

Love that it’s so close, of course it was crowded over Christmas break, but man o man they gotta fire up that zamboni,…the ice here is rather rough and heavily grooved.

I can’t give this company a greater review! I dealt with them in helping set up my sister’s proposal with her boyfriend.
They bent over backwards and made everything so incredibly special. The fact that they handle their customer service this well is SO refreshing. They made everything perfect– had a specific song playing over the speakers, ensured nothing was spoiled, and that it was all done flawlessly.
I have to add to the reviewers saying the skates hurt: I’m sorry, but they are ice skates, they can’t mold to fit everyone’s foot. This isn’t their fault and more a personal issue, not theirs. It’s not very fair to hold them accountable for that.
In terms of the facility, it’s SO clean, tons of parking (kind of in the middle of a business park, and off the beaten track), but the employees are super friendly. They have open skating certain hours, so make sure you check ahead of time instead of showing up– they have hockey practice and other events, etc.
Overall, they are awesome. Can’t wait to come back and skate :)

You can’t beat the atmosphere anywhere in the country fans are the absolute best everybody friendly can you get only have a good time

I went here with my kids over thanksgiving break and couldn’t be happier with this place. The staff is all friendly and helpful, the facility is newer and well maintained, the skates are new and have buckle closures (not tattered laces like some of the other places we’ve been), and they have easy skaters! (walkers for new skaters) available in two different heights. There is a closed if area for the new skaters, which is wonderful for the little kids. We skated for the full 3 hours that the venue was open for free skating. Free meaning open to individual skaters. We will definitely be going back to this place.

I would give more stars just because I’m excited to have found a new ice skating rink close to home, but the skate rentals are terrible!
Despite the reviews saying to get there early for open skate rental, 6 of us didn’t have any trouble with the line or renting skates.
The skates hurt! All of my friends complained about them and how uncomfortable they are. Around my calf hurt so bad, I tried to loosen them, tighten them, anything, but could not get them to not hurt. Other girls said their skates were poking them in the boot part.
The ice could’ve been more kept up. There were some big chunks taken out by ice hockey game prior?
Also, I’m not sure what’s up with the music? A girl was trying to play some songs, but would stop them in the middle of the song. Then it was just dead silence for the next ten minutes.
I noticed it was all very young people working there. Not a problem for me, but maybe higher management/​owners should come check out what’s going on more often.
If I buy my own skates, I might come back. But I won’t be back until then.

Had a great Saturday night at the ice ring and everyone seem really friendly

I met up with a group of friends on Friday night to check out the ice rink in Carlsbad and was left feeling a bit underwhelmed. Perhaps I’m just spoiled after visiting the beautiful Coronado outdoor rink last winter but there was nothing special about this rink. Although it’s $ 10 less than Coronado ($ 15 v. $ 25), I think I’d rather pay the extra money to enjoy the beautiful scenery too.
The location seemed odd and I questioned where my GPS was taking me too as I wound through the side streets surrounded by warehouses and industrial buildings. I was happy to see the ice rink emerge from the darkness.
It was very cold inside and I definitely didn’t dress warmly enough. I usually find that I’m dressed too warm for ice skating rinks and end up shedding layers but that was not the case here. It was so cold that my ears actually started to ache.
The ice was choppy and definitely could have been smoothed out. We were amazed that we didn’t fall on the bumpy ice.
The ice skates were uncomfortable and something in my right boot kept poking at the side of my foot. I probably skated around about 10 or so times before I decided to take a break. Shortly after, all the other girls had enough as well and we ended up leaving about 45 minutes before the open skate time ended.

I visited Icetown on a Saturday night to get some skating in. There was a hockey game going on before the public skate session. The public session started immediately after the game ended. They did not bother to bring out the zamboni out which was disappointing. The ice was very rough and not enjoyable to skate on.
Prices are more expensive compared to IcePlex in Escondido.
IceTown: $ 12 for adults, $ 8.00 for children under 5, $ 3 for skate rental
IcePlex: $ 8 for adults, $ 6.50 for children under 12, $ 2/​$ 2.50 for skate rental
I brought my own skates but the Ice Town’s rentals looked more comfortable than standard ice skate rentals. They also have an air hockey table which is always fun when you have someone that is as competitive as you are. Men’s restroom is on the small side with one urinal and one stall.
IceTown is convenient if you live nearby in Carlsbad and want to take your kids skating but it is not somewhere I care to go back to.

Great little venue. Make sure you arrive 20 minutes early to check in and try on skates. Two of the vending machines take cell phone app pay range which is really convenient. My kids always find other kids to skate with, they get a ton of exercise, we escape the California heat for a bit, and the staff are helpful and kind. The best deal for the kids is 70 per month which includes a class each week and free skate any day.

I was so excited when I found out they built an ice rink in Carlsbad! I used to ice skate on a synchronized team, and had to drive to either Mira Mesa, Escondido, or La Jolla to practice.
This location is difficult to find the first time because it is tucked way back in a business park, but with a GPS you can find your way. There are usually great Groupon deals too, so that’s usually how my dad & I go. You can get tickets & skate rentals for 2 or 4 people usually for half the price you pay at the rink.
The first time I came it was incredibly crowded, and the ice was so beat up it was difficult to skate. However, it was a weekend afternoon so that wasn’t too surprising. The next time I went it was also a Sunday afternoon but a lot less crowded, so it was easier to move around on the ice without feeling like I was going to run over small children.
They could use a few more open skate options, but hopefully that will come in time as the rink becomes more popular. The ice could also be a little better maintained, but I am only judging based on the condition during public skate, not private skate… so perhaps it’s different… I will have to check it out sometime.

I don’t have much to compare to. Although I went to UTC to watch my nieces recital and when she had one here I happily showed. Darn, these places are cold. It is a huge place, the parking lot was a bit crazy. They only had one snack vending machine. I don’t recall any place to sit which was a bummer. It would be nice to have a comfortable place to bundle up to watch these types of things. Generally when kids go to skate, it is for awhile and standing in the cold sucks.

We were visiting family in Oceanside and someone recommended we check out the new rink that just opened. Awesome place to skate, the ice was nice and smooth. The staff was friendly and very helpful, as it was my daughters first time on skates.
I spoke to the manager because I noticed the rink wasn’t totally done, but he said the demand to open was so high that he had to open the doors. I’m sure they will get it finished soon and it will be a great addition to the community.
Thanks icetown for a great afternoon

I have had nothing but great experiences at Ice Town in Carlsbad.
The staff is very courteous and friendly, they have great coaches and the facility feels open and fresh. The ice is fantastic! (this is coming from a figure skater).
I saw some reviewers here that were not happy with their first visit, I highly recommend you give it another chance. Be patient, it is a new business, I am sure they are ironing out some of the initial kinks.
Sure the glass is used, and it has a few marks, but even if it was brand new it would not stay that way after a few hockey games.
One thing that I truly appreciate is that their online schedule and schedule changes are up to date. I am grateful for this, especially when it comes to the 5:45am freestyle. It’s nice being able to check the schedule BEFORE leaving the house.
They have a very accommodating schedule for all skating disciplines.
I love this place!
I was informed that soon they will add bleachers and heaters.
Hope to see you on the ice.

We went to IceTown on a Tuesday afternoon for the open skate from 2:40−5pm. There was a line of about 20 people with only ONE person at the desk checking people in, at the busiest time of the afternoon!
It was taking about 3mins per person for the desk employee to leisurely check people in, one at a time. After about 20 mins, we decided to leave as we figured it would be at least 30more mins til we got checked in and got our skates, which would leave us with only about an hour and a half to skate for the $ 15 fee. Just not worth it.