Denver Airport’s Pop-up Ice Rink Is Perfect for Holiday Layovers

Icy conditions at an airport are generally bad news. However, ice at the Denver airport this holiday season could be a welcome relief for weary holiday travelers.

Denver International Airport is opening a free ice skating rink on Friday morning to kick off the holidays.

The rink will provide free skate rentals, music, and carolers to all who pass through the airport’s open-air plaza. There will also be a winter market alongside the rink.

The rink will be open every day throughout the holiday season, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. through Jan. 1, 2017. There will be a changing area, and cubbies for storing carry-on luggage.

The rink will also host special holiday events, including an ugly sweater party, performances by local school music groups and movie screening of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.

“I think that this is probably a first,” Heath Montgomery, spokesperson for Denver airport, told NBC affiliate 9 News. “I’m not aware of any airports in the world that have an ice rink and we’re really excited to be maybe the first one ever.”

Unfortunately for Montgomery, Seoul Incheon airport has an artificial ice rink made from plastic at one of its terminals. However, unlike Denver’s ice rink, travelers must pay to use it.

United Airlines is sponsoring the Denver rink and a contractor will operate it.

Travelers who are passing through Denver on a layover will have to leave the terminal to skate and pass through security after they are done with their toe loops and triple axels. The rink is located between the main terminal and the on-site Westin Hotel.

Denver airport has been actively working to woo travelers with a variety of events. Earlier this year, the airport hosted a summer pop-up beer garden and free movie screenings.