Kallang Ice World

Kallang Ice World is the only permanent full-size ice rink in Singapore, and the only place in the country to skate on real ice in a public session. Sessions run in two-hour blocks of around 150 places, so weekends fill, and arriving fifteen minutes before your slot is the difference between skating and queueing.

Go early in your session. The ice is good when a block starts and deteriorates through it, with water gathering at the edges of the rink while the centre holds up longer — which matters most for a beginner, because the slushy stretch is exactly where someone learning tends to stay. The rental skates are well used and the blades are not always sharp, so bring your own if you have them. Skate hire is charged on top of entry, and gloves and socks are sold if you arrive without.

The rink is tired, and the counter is the weak point rather than the ice. House rules against speed skating, stunts and phones on the ice are posted but not much policed, so a nervous child on a busy session will have faster skaters going round them. There is no music either, so the atmosphere is plainer than at most rinks. It is on level 3 of Leisure Park Kallang, three minutes from Stadium station, with a bowling alley in the same building.