UTC Ice

I was very disappointed in the experience my family and I had during the MLK holiday weekend at UTC Ice.
We were in town visiting family and were looking forward to a nice time on the ice as we celebrated my wife’s childhood friend’s birthday.
Upon arrival we see signs posted: Zamboni Out of Order. As a former hockey player, I thought it odd that the rink was open; I mean, how are they clearing the ice!!!
When your Zamboni broke down, seems like an easy call for management to either close the rink, discount admission (50%?) — offer SOME consideration to guests other than «sorry for the inconvenience.» Lame-​O!
You guys know full well that not clearing the ice [at ALL!] so significantly alters the skating experience it’s kinda not worth skating at all. Read: Choppy ‘n Sloppy!
When I suggested to that assembly line of a staff that admission should discounted, the girl stated — with major ‘tude — that I could get a full refund if after 10 minutes of skating I was displeased. But if we were out there skating for, say, 30 minutes then I could not be refunded.
Hardly good customer service. And it’s just bad business. For full price you’re selling rough, untreated ice for an entire day, and that’s AFTER hockey activities?! Wrong on so many levels. Just felt… Greedy.
Finally, I was most disappointed seeing my 4yr-​old son struggling to balance on that jaggedy a## ice more than he would have on a smooth, clean ice surface.
I can’t say I’d return to UTC when I’m back in the San Diego area. Pretty sure general admission is gravy for this place anyway. Hockey leagues and private lessons are what butters their bread.
Tisk tisk tisk.

It was fun and they a rental training thing that you can use for the hour. I think its a bit expensive but I get it, with a lot of ppl wanting to use it. I was a bit skeptical about leaving all the shoes next to the wall where all the shoes go, but I guess its fine. Was fun with the kids!

Worst experience ever they were very rude and had no supervisor to speak with so the girl kept calling the manager and owner walking away for long periods of time I explained it was my birthday and I grew up in that community of university city and was only treated with common decency by one of the young ladies working on the ice as far as the rest of the staff I’m very disappointed and if you have young children who cannot skate they only have a couple kid seal rentals and rent them to all the teenagers who just mess around and don’t need them or adults who just can’t skate I even offered to buy the one on display they hassled me about my refund tried to offer me store credit at which time I explained I would never return

This place is great. The ice rink is big. We came during the week and not many people. We had a food time. And plenty of places upstairs to eat.

UTC Ice is an awesome spot for some ice skating whatever the occasion may be. It wasn’t that busy while I was there and everything seemed clean/​orderly. One gripe is that the ice was not smooth at all – I think they need to have a zamboni roll through more frequently because rough ice can be a safety issue especially for beginners.
I think it’s awesome how they have those plastic blue seal-​shaped things kids can sit on, and parents can push around to help them navigate the ice.
At any rate, be sure to check out the Unilocal app before buying admission just in case there is any deal like buy-​one-​get-​one.

Show up early if you plan on going to drop in

I used to skate here when I was a kid. Today I brought my son to the public skate session. I was very glad we arrived early to reserve a complimentary ice skating lesson as those fill up quickly!
Since I am now OLD, and am afraid of falling on the ice (I don’t bounce back like I used to), I rented a glider for 1 hour, $ 10.00. The glider is in the shape of a seal. It’s really a perfect height for children to push, but I didn’t mind stooping a little bit. My son liked riding on the front of the glider as I pushed him around the rink. Later, he pushed the glider himself & gained enough confidence to skate on his own, without holding on to the wall of the rink. I thought it was money well spent.
The rental skates weren’t terribly uncomfortable as I remembered. I saw a lot of people of the ice with their rental skates laced way too loose! How they kept from falling I will never know! Tighten those laces tight & support your ankles.
The complimentary lesson was terrific! Before we stepped out on to the ice, the coaches checked our skates to make sure they were laced properly. Then they taught us how to fall safely & get back up. I thought it was smart of them to teach this off the ice first! Once on the ice, we proceeded to the top portion of the rink. This area was coned off for just for the skaters having the lesson. Three coaches were on the ice with us. They split us up into groups by age. I was very impressed with the coach, and the quality and length of this lesson (about a half hour). I learned a lot! The lesson taught me how to fall properly on the ice & get back up, how to stop, glide on two skates, glide on one skate, skate backwards on two skates & several other things important for beginners to know. I was pooped afterwards. My son really enjoyed the lesson too. My confidence soared after the lesson. I feel I can now skate much better with the simple things I learned. The coach was great! She watched everyone in her group skate & gave individual pointers.
In all, we had a fun time & can’t wait to go back! Highly recommend!

BROOMBALL! That’s all you need to know. They rent out the entire rink after hours for private parties. Unfortunately they have a pretty busy calendar between public skate, private lessons, hockey games, etc. that they’re generally only available for private parties after midnight! When I tried to book, there was only one night that had an available 10:10pm slot and that’s what we did!
They have all the equipment needed — a couple balls and blue/​red «broom“sticks to separate the teams. You can bring your own music to hook up, some food, and you have yourself a broomball party!

I’m shoe size 9.5. Wear size 10 figure skates here. Remember to check in. Bring spare socks

The ice skating here isn’t bad, but it isn’t the best. The ice is super choppy and there are little kids zooming all over the place.
There’s no regulation on ice, so some kids were skating the opposite direction of skating flow. Also the guy handing out the skates was super unfriendly and gave my friend 2 right skates… he’s clearly unenthusiastic about his job (well that’s the vibe I got).

This place is awesome! It’s really spacious. Probably the biggest ice rink I’ve ever skated in. I’ve had so much fun here. Def coming back in the winter!

Family friendly, newbies welcomed. With a shopping mall and food court right next door this place hits all the needs for a fun couple of hours on a hot day.

Fun place to skate. It’s nice because it’s in the mall. Very crowded with lots of kids. Free lessons too. Not very bright behind the skate counter but everything else is a 5 star.

Fun place, but can get really crowded. Really upscale facility compared to a lot of less fancy skatings rinks I’ve been too. Seemed a bit small compared to some other places, but that might have just been because there were so many people. They don’t really have anyone actively monitoring you (or paying attention) so a lot of people were messing around and I almost got hurt. Aside from that no bad things to say about this place.

UTC ICE ROCKS!!!
I honestly questioned how I could top my daughter’s birthday party held LAST YEAR at UTC ICE. She had told me it was her «best party, ever». (No pressure… ha!)
Having recently begun skating lessons here, my girls saw the amazing disco lights and heard the awesome Bluetooth system that had been added to the party room. I knew I had my answer! I reserved my date and time, immediately!
On the big day, the party room was spotless, I was given time to decorate prior to the guests arrival, and the staff was SOOO helpful! On-​line waiver access made guest check-​in seamless, and skating coach Shelby made sure our smiling guests had a ton of fun with skating lessons and on-​ice games.
When all was «said and done», I heard the words every parent hopes to hear from their child…“Best party, ever!“
Thank you, UTC ICE, for making me feel like a hero.

Great place for beginners or advance skaters. I have been bringing my daughter here for lessons and she loves it! The staff are super friendly and helpful. The coaches are really attentive and patient with the kids.
The location is great, sits inside the UTC mall, within the food court with top window view from the food court.
It’s a fun and lively place to enjoy for all ages!

Overcrowded. Busy collecting fee. Have little time to pay attention to enrolled kids needs and meaningfully teaching them to skate.
They also have furtive «policy», much like infamous gym memberships, that stick and suck on your credit card and are not easily shaken off if you try to cancel membership

Fun but kinda expensive. $ 15 for adults and $ 4 for a locker rental. They do let you ice skate until you are ready to leave or until 5pm (when they have sessions/​classes) I would definitely be willing to do this again. It’s fun to do when you don’t want to be broiling in the hot weather. While I was in SD for a visit it was over 90 degrees so we gave ice skating a whirl.

My daughter started taking lessons here every week. They currently have a deal where the sessions are free, but you just pay for the skates. Not sure of the exact total, but I have a feeling they off set each other. Then the monthlies kick in after the initial set of lessons. $ 15 per person for anyone else who isn’t involved in skate lessons.
Lots of fun, but beware of the guys who zip around the rink.
They also offer hockey programs for various age groups. Not overly crowded on Friday nights for their free skate.

So fun! What a ball!
Gorgeous facility for public open skate ;)
A little small of a rink, but a great time for any age!