Lock 3 Park Ice Skating Rink is Akron’s home for winter fun. Lock 3, located next to the Akron Civic Theatre on Main Street, is known for being Ohio’s largest seasonal outdoor ice skating rink and sledding hill. The area also includes holiday shopping, a winter farmers market, Archie the Snowman and more. Every year, Lock 3 kicks off with the Downtown Holiday Lighting Ceremony exploding the night sky with fireworks.

Admission into Lock 3 is free. Anyone can bring their own skates or rent skates for $3. Show a receipt from a downtown restaurant and receive $1 off skate rentals.

“This is when we officially light the holiday lights and the city of Akron’s Tree. We have singing and ice skating performances and end the ceremony with fireworks. It’s a half hour program sponsored by Downtown Akron Partnership and officially opens Lock 3 for the winter. After the ceremony, most people stay and ice skate and participate in the other attractions at Lock 3. It’s become a tradition for many families,” Nagel said.

The Lock 3 ice rink is perfect for students and is less than a 10 minute walk from central campus. This winter will be the 11th season since Lock 3 opened.

According to Nagel, the biggest night for Lock 3 is usually the night of the Holiday Lighting Ceremony, which is on Friday, Nov. 28.

For Nagel, working at Lock 3 is fun with all of the events held every year. “Everyone who visits is there to have a good time, whether it’s ice skating, a concert, playing putt-putt or holiday shopping. So most guests are in a good mood, which makes it easy to be in a good mood at work,” Nagel said.

Check out www.lock3live.com for updated events, attractions and a full calendar.