Holiday attractions

All the cool new ice rinks skating into Dallas for 2024 holiday fun

The Omni Dallas Hotel is channeling Rockefeller Center with its ice rink this season.

Photo courtesy of Omni Dallas Hotel

The coolest new holiday attractions of 2024 will have Dallas-Fort Worth jumping, spinning, and gliding through the season: Ice skating rinks are being installed as part of winter festivities all over North Texas. From a downtown Dallas ice rink channeling Rockefeller Center to community rinks that look like Hallmark movie settings, here are the best new places to skate through the holidays, along with some favorites making their limited returns for the season.

Omni Dallas Hotel, downtown Dallas, November 22-January 5
The downtown Dallas hotel known for its trademark sculpture of giant-sized Christmas-tree red ball ornaments is upping the ante this year. As part of its seasonal celebration called "Ice, Lights & City Nights," the hotel is introducing downtown's only outdoor ice skating rink on Pegasus Lawn. Visitors of all ages can twirl and spin beneath the glow of holiday lights, then warm up with at a hot chocolate bar, kids can ride the Elf Express train, and adults can make spirits bright at Blitzen's Bar. Every night at 7:30 pm, Omni Dallas will host holiday light shows with 4.1 miles of LED lights wrapped around the building’s exterior.

Details: The rink is open to the public and hotel guests alike, 10 am-10 pm daily. Tickets (starting at $18) can be purchased online or at the ice rink, for 60-minute sessions; skate rental included. A helpful FAQ about the ice rink can be found here.

Coca-Cola’s Classic Christmas, Choctaw Stadium in Arlington, November 22-December 29
A new immersive holiday event from the creators of the popular "Enchant" light maze turns Choctaw Stadium into a winter wonderland, and it includes an ice skating rink. Adults and kids will glide on real ice underneath dazzling lights. The event illuminates 55,000 square feet of holiday light sculptures featuring larger-than-life, interactive Coca-Cola-inspired vignettes to walk through and explore; plus a snow slide, falling snow, visits with Santa, caroling, seasonal treats, special themed nights, and more.

Details: Open select nights, as early as 4:30 pm and as late as 11:30 pm; check the calendar for specific dates and times. Ice skating tickets (including skate rental) are $9 for juniors and $13 for adults, in addition to event admission, $14-$35; free for kids up to 3. Skating session times are unlimited. Note: If bringing your own skates, make sure they have blade guards on at all times; skate bags must meet a Clear Bag Policy; more info here.

Skate under the twinkling lights at Coca-Cola's Classic Christmas in Arlington.Photo courtesy of Coca-Cola's Classic Christmas

Home for the Holidays: Christmastime in Southlake, November 27-January 1
The 25th-anniversary Southlake holiday celebration will include an outdoor ice rink for the first time. Although the city's Christmas tree will be lit at the big Home for the Holidays event on November 23, the ice rink will not open until November 27. The rink is in the heart of Southlake Town Square, and includes a spot for gourmet hot cocoa, a nearby Santa's Village, carriage rides, and more.

Details: Open 3-10 pm Sunday-Thursday and 12-10 pm Saturday-Sunday outside City Hall, 1400 E. Southlake Blvd. Tickets, timed every 15 minutes, are $15 for one-hour sessions and include skate rentals; walkups will be welcome, but reservations are recommended through the Geoji app.

Christmas Tyme in Aledo on Ice, December 6-January 5
The city of Aledo is debuting its first-ever outdoor ice rink, open for 30 days as part of the holiday festivities. Located in the city's downtown, the Aledo Ice Rink will be adorned with twinkling lights and festive decorations, with music piped in under winter skies and seasonal refreshments to refuel. The annual Christmas Tyme in Aledo event on December 7 will feature the city's tree lighting ceremony, vendors, visits with Santa, live music, food trucks, and more.

Details: The ice rink is at Aledo City Hall, 104 Maverick St. Open 4-9 pm Monday-Thursday, 4-10 pm Friday, and 12-10 pm Sunday. Tickets for one-hour sessions are $15 (plus service fee), and include skate rental.

Skate the Square, Frisco, November 22-January 6
Now 14 years strong, Frisco's Christmas in the Square event boasts the city's only real ice outdoor ice rink. "Skate the Square" is but one of the highlights of the holiday extravaganza, which includes one of the largest free choreographed lights and music displays in North Texas: nightly shows of over 180,000 lights, 200 dancing snowflakes, and festive music. There's also a Christmas tree lot, carriage rides, visits with Santa, and more.

Details: The Skate the Square rink is located along Main and Coleman. Open daily, but times vary (as early as 12:15 pm and as late as 10 pm); check the calendar for specific dates and times. Ice skating tickets are $20, with or without skate rentals. Private group bookings are available. Christmas in the Square runs nightly, 6-10 pm; the light show is free to attend.

Stockyards Rodeo Rink, Fort Worth Stockyards, November 21-January 5
For the third year, visitors to the historic Fort Worth district can "giddy up and glide" as part of the Stockyards' holiday festivities. The 4,000-square-foot professional ice skating rink has taken over the lawn of the Livestock Exchange Building (131 E. Exchange Ave.) and includes a snack and beverage bar, fire pits, music, picnic seating, and more. The Stockyards will also host visits with Cowboy Santa, a tree lighting at Hotel Drover, rides on the North Pole Express train, a "Christmas in the Stockyards" event, and more throughout the season.

Details: Open at 11 am most days through the season. Five 90-minute skating sessions are offered Monday-Thursday, with an extra 9 pm session Friday-Sunday. Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for kids ages 3-12, and include skate rental. A family four-pack is available for $80.

Fort Worth Stockyards Rodeo Rink, ice skating, ice rink The Stockyards Rodeo Rink returns to Fort Worth for the holiday season.Photo courtesy of Fort Worth Stockyards

Peace Plaza Ice Rink, Grapevine, November 28-January 27
The 4,500-square-foot outdoor ice skating rink on Historic Main Street has become a favorite tradition in the "Christmas Capital of Texas." Skaters can jump and spin in the festive surroundings, including the 60-foot live Christmas tree, and the entire street decked out with Christmas lights. The ice rink's grand opening on November 30 (rescheduled from November 23 due to inclement weather) will feature a performance by Olympic figure skater Ashley Cain, Team USA pair team Nick Traxler and Kristen Nardozzi, and more, beginning at 6:15 pm.

Details: Open daily, times vary (opening as early as 11 am with last entry as late as 9 pm); check the calendar for exact dates and times. Closed Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. Location is Grapevine Main Peace Plaza, 815 S. Main St., at the train station outside Hotel Vin. Tickets are $20 for a one-hour session at 15-minute timed intervals; skate rentals included. Group ice rentals are available by the hour. (UPDATE 11-22-2024: "Unfortunately, Peace Plaza Ice Rink will not be open this weekend due to the warm temperatures," a spokeswoman says. New opening date TBA.)

Gaylord Texan, Grapevine, through January 5
As part of the massive "Christmas at the Gaylord" event, the Grapevine resort rolls out a 6,000 square-foot ice skating rink made with real ice. That's not the only way to get up close with ice, though. At ICE!, guests can experience their favorite scenes from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer brought to life in the walk-through winter wonderland. ICE!, kept at a chilly 9°F, features two million pounds of ice sculptures hand-carved by 35 artisans from Harbin, China; six ice slides; colorful ice sculptures depicting the story of Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer; and an ice sculpture scene of the Nativity.

Details: The ice rink is open daily in the Christmas Village; times vary. Tickets are $23. Admission to ICE! runs $19.99-$41.99.

Of course, no Dallas ice-skating list would be complete without the most famous rink of all ....

Galleria Dallas, November 22-January 5
The nation's tallest indoor Christmas tree (at 95 feet) will sparkle in the middle of the ice rink throughout the season. Public skating is available every day, but as usual, holiday festivities will really rev up on at 12 pm Black Friday (November 29) with the Grand Tree Lighting Celebration on the ice rink, featuring Olympic figure skaters and a fireworks finale starring Missile Toes, the famed ice-skating Santa. (The celebration will repeat at 12 pm November 30.) A Grand Holiday Ice Show, starring some of the best figure skaters and ice dancers in the world (Ashley Cain, Mariah Bell, Keegan Messing, Kaitlin Hawayek and Jean-Luc Baker, Ryan Bradley, and Kim Navarro and Brent Bommentre) will take place at 9 am December 8 and benefit Broadway Dallas; tickets are $150.

Details: Public skating hours are 10 am-9:30 pm Monday, Wednesday-Thursday; 10 am-9 pm Tuesday & Friday; 12-9 pm Saturday; 12-6 pm Sunday. Admission is $13, plus $5 for skate rental. Public skating is first-come, first serve; no reservations permitted. A full list of holiday events at the ice rink is here.

Mariah Bell, figure skating, Olympian Olympic figure skater Mariah Bell will be one of the featured performers at Galleria Dallas' Grand Holiday Ice Show. Getty Images

christmas capital of texas downtown dallas families family friendly galleria dallas holiday attractions ice skating rinks omni dallas hotel stockyards rodeo rink winter festivities holidays sponsored section2268697353

Awards Season

CultureMap critic's guide to the 2026 Oscar Best Picture nominees

Michael B. Jordan and Miles Caton in Sinners

Photo courtesy of Warner Bros.

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The nominations for the 2026 Academy Awards have been announced, with 10 films vying for Best Picture. Leading the way is Sinners with an astonishing 16 nominations, the most in Oscars history.

The other top films include One Battle After Another, which earned 13 nominations, and Frankenstein and Sentimental Value, which each got 9 nominations.

As a refresher, below are links to the full reviews for each of the nominees covered by CultureMap in the past year, as well as brief thoughts on the films and their various nominations.

Movie fans will have plenty of time to catch up with each of the nominees, as this year's Oscars ceremony will not take place until Sunday, March 15.

Here's the list of Best Picture nominees, in alphabetical order:

Bugonia
Yet another off-the-wall film from director Yorgos Lanthimos features two great performances by Emma Stone (nominated for Best Actress) and Jesse Plemons at its center. Written by Will Tracy (nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay), the conspiracy theory film is alternately brutal and funny as the characters played by Stone and Plemons use their form of power to try to manipulate the other. With a fair amount of intrigue and two great actors going head-to-head for much of its running time, it gives even more Oscar pedigree to its filmmakers and stars.

F1
The biggest surprise among the Best Picture nominees has to be the racing movie F1. It was a technical marvel, to be sure, as its nominations in Film Editing, Sound, and Visual Affects attest. But the fact that it has no other nominations in any of the above the fold categories indicates that its other qualities are lacking. As a showcase (aka advertisement) for the sport it depicts, the film works relatively well. As a complete movie, though, there’s not much to recommend, to the point that it almost negates any of the positives that come from the racing scenes.

Frankenstein (not reviewed)
Writer/director Guillermo del Toro (nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay) loves himself a monster movie, and he takes on one of the classics with his new version of Frankenstein (now streaming on Netflix). Oscar Isaac plays Victor Frankenstein, who brings to life The Creature, played by Jacob Elordi (nominated for Best Supporting Actor). With a slew of nominations in technical categories, there's a chance this film goes home with a lot of awards at this year's ceremony.

Hamnet (not reviewed)
Writer/director Chloé Zhao (nominated for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay alongside co-writer Maggie O'Farrell) gets back to her Oscar-worthy skills for the first time since 2020's Nomadland (after the unfortunate detour into the MCU with Eternals). A story about love, loss, and grief involving William Shakespeare and his wife, Agnes, the film is most notable for the performances of its two leads, Jessie Buckley (nominated for Best Actress) and Paul Mescal.

Marty Supreme
There was no other movie this year, or maybe even this century, like Marty Supreme. Directed and co-written by Josh Safdie (nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay alongside co-writer Ronald Bronstein), the film is an almost continuous blast of pure energy for 2 ½ hours. So many different things happen over the course of the film that the story defies conventional narratives. At its center is the fast-talking, powerhouse performance by star Timothée Chalamet (nominated for Best Actor), who cements his status as his generation’s movie star one year after playing the polar opposite role of Bob Dylan in A Complete Unknown. Look for the film to be a strong contender in the inaugural Best Casting category, as Safdie fills the film with non-actors who are crucial to the film's success.

One Battle After Another
Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson (nominated for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay) has an acclaimed career going back 30 years, but has yet to actually win an Oscar. That will change this year, as One Battle After Another is one of the favorites to win Best Picture thanks to Anderson's stellar filmmaking, as well as multiple great performances that earned the film four acting nominations (Leonardo DiCaprio for Best Actor, Teyana Taylor for Best Supporting Actress, and Benicio Del Toro and Sean Penn for Best Supporting Actor). Add in a story with a very timely political critique (that's getting more relevant by the day) and you have the recipe for a big winner on Oscar night.

The Secret Agent (not reviewed)
No foreign country has quite the influence on the Oscars as Brazil, which for the second straight year has gotten one of its films nominated for both Best International Feature Film and Best Picture. Written and directed by Kleber Mendonça Filho, the film is anchored by the performance of Wagner Moura (nominated for Best Actor) as a technology expert in the late 1970s who flees from a mysterious past to try to find peace in his hometown.

Sentimental Value (not reviewed)
For the third year in a row, two international films made the cut in the Best Picture race (but whither It Was Just an Accident?). Directed and co-written by Joachim Trier (nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay alongside co-writer Eskil Vogt), the film is tied for the most acting nominations this year, earning nods for Renate Reinsve for Best Actress, Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas for Best Supporting Actress, and Stellan Skarsgård for Best Supporting Actor.

Sinners
It takes a special kind of filmmaker to make movies that are both popular and Oscar-worthy, and writer/director Ryan Coogler (nominated for Best Director and Best Original Screenplay) has done it again, seven years after helming the Oscar-winning Black Panther. Both a tribute to Black music history and a gnarly vampire movie, the film is led by Michael B. Jordan (nominated for Best Actor) in dual roles as twins Smoke and Stack. With a story infused with all manner of subtext and a bunch of great supporting performances, including Best Supporting Actress nominee Wunmi Mosaku, the film demonstrates Coogler's great filmmaking abilities that should keep him in demand for years to come. Amazingly, there was only one category for which it was eligible in which it did not receive a nomination.

Train Dreams (not reviewed)
The second Netflix movie this year to be nominated, Train Dreams is a contemplative film about a logger (played by Joel Edgerton) in early 20th century America who tries to adapt to a rapidly-changing world. Nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay for the script by director Clint Bentley and co-writer Greg Kwedar, the film is most notable for the work done by Adolpho Veloso (nominated for Best Cinematography), who showcases the Pacific Northwest in all its glory.

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Holiday attractions

All the cool new ice rinks skating into Dallas for 2024 holiday fun

Awards Season

CultureMap critic's guide to the 2026 Oscar Best Picture nominees

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