Brahenkenttä is open for public skating every day of the week, both in the morning and in the afternoon or evening.Like before, public hours at all of Helsinki’s artificial ice fields and rinks are free of charge this winter season.
The freezing of Brahenkenttä began in early November, but there were several challenges in the process. The transformer next to the freezing machinery overheated, due to which only the other unit of the field could be kept running during the freezing process. Furthermore, the so-called flex layer under the artificial turf reacted to the freezing by making the turf surface wavy and uneven. Because of this, the uneven surface had to be frozen repeatedly in specific spots to make the ice even. The warm temperatures of November did not help with the freezing of Brahenkenttä, either.
Freezing processes have begun at other artificial ice fields and rinks in Helsinki as well. The rest will be opened gradually at the turn of November and December. The artificial ice fields and rinks of Helsinki have freezing equipment of different types and ages, which affects their opening times. Furthermore, the freezing conditions of the artificial ice fields and rinks are affected by their geographical locations. For example, the freezing of the Jätkäsaari artificial ice field is made challenging by its proximity to the sea, due to which Jätkäsaari often has warmer and more humid freezing conditions than other parts of the city.
The freezing schedules of the artificial ice fields and rinks are also subject to weather conditions. If the outdoor temperature is several degrees above zero, it is not ecologically viable or sustainable to begin freezing large field areas.
“Unfortunately, winter weather in Helsinki tends to fluctuate nowadays, and keeping natural ice fields open is challenging, although we are doing everything we can. To ensure that Helsinki residents have skating opportunities in winter, we have a rather comprehensive network of free-of-charge artificial ice rinks. We will also continue to increase the number of artificial ice rinks, with Vuosaari being the next location,” comments Deputy Mayor Paavo Arhinmäki from the City of Helsinki Culture and Leisure Division.
At the Brahenkenttä artificial ice field, the skating season will continue until mid-March 2025, weather permitting. For the rest of Helsinki's artificial ice fields and rinks, the season is expected to end by the end of February 2025.
The artificial ice fields and rinks of Helsinki, links to their public skating times and any exceptional schedules are listed on the artificial ice field website at https://liikunta.hel.fi/en/pages/sports-locations/artificial-ice-fields(Link leads to external service)
More information about the state of Helsinki’s artificial ice fields and rinks and so-called natural ice skating fields will be provided later via channels such as this liikunta.hel.fi website, the ulkoliikunta.hel.fi service and the City of Helsinki Sports Services’ Helsinki liikkuu social media channels.
