Family-friendly ways to spend Boxing Day 2024 in Regina
Sledding, skating or taking a stroll through Regina's floral conservatory — there few options on Dec. 26 in Regina.
Published Dec 25, 2024 • Last updated 6 hours ago • 4 minute read
The cookies have been eaten, the stockings have been emptied and the gifts have been opened.
Article content
Article content
Now what?
For families looking for ways to fill the day after the holiday that don’t involve shopping for deals, here are some other options for Boxing Day 2024.
Regina is a winter city, so there’s plenty of outdoor fun to be had.
We’ve built a map of all the city-maintained rinks, fire pits and sledding hills open to the public this year:
THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account.Get exclusive access to the Regina Leader-Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on.Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists.Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists.Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword.SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Access articles from across Canada with one account.Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments.Enjoy additional articles per month.Get email updates from your favourite authors.THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Access articles from across Canada with one accountShare your thoughts and join the conversation in the commentsEnjoy additional articles per monthGet email updates from your favourite authorsor
Article content
The City of Regina maintains 50 outdoor skating rinks for free use as long as the weather permits. Most are already open, although a handful are still in the process of being flooded. Free public skating indoors is also available on Dec. 26 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Clarence Mahon Arena
For those more interested in a pick-up game of hockey than a leisurely skate, there are six shinny rinks available to use. All outdoor ice surfaces are first-come, first-served, unless booked in advance through the city.
While the City Square rink and warm-up shelter in Victoria Park aren’t scheduled to open until Dec. 27, the skating loop at Echo Valley Provincial Park, about an hour-long drive from Regina, opens on Boxing Day.
Skate the Park is a 900-metre frozen loop around the Aspen Campground. It’s strung with lights, making it a perfect evening activity. If you’re out in Echo Valley, the park also has a crokicurl rink, snowshoeing trails, cross-country skiing and a wooden barrel sauna. A Sask Parks pass is required to enter and can be purchased for $11 for a day or $45 for an entire year.
By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
Article content
Article content
There is also a designated cross-country skiing trail inside city limits at Tor Hill Golf Course open daily. The Regina Ski Club also keeps an up-to-date list of other local trails and when they were last groomed on its website.
Though Regina is pretty flat, there are 19 city-designated toboggan hills worth checking out. With the snow we’ve had this winter, these spots are sure to be busy with families making sledding memories.
If any of these outdoor plans sound chilly, the City of Regina has a number of community fire pits sprinkled throughout its parks available for residents to use to warm up.
Four new pits have been added this year at Fairchild Park, Horizon Station Park, Rochdale Park and temporarily next to the Neil Balkwill Civic Arts Centre. You’ll have to light your own flame and the city reminds anyone using the pits to be extra careful — and to put out the embers when you leave.
Recommended from Editorial
Stay off the ice as it freezes, warns City of Regina
Frost Regina returning as smaller four-day festival in 2025
Maybe spending the day outside in the cold isn’t enticing — that’s fine, because there are indoor options, too.
Article content
The Saskatchewan Science Centre is open from noon until 6 p.m. on Boxing Day. Admission is $17 per adult, $12 to $14 per child depending on age. Toddlers 2 years and younger are free.
The Regina Floral Conservatory is open for special hours Dec. 26 , offering a tropical escape from the chilly weather outside from noon until 8 p.m. Admission is by donation.
Inside the Regina Floral Conservatory on Jan. 20, 2023. Photo by TROY FLEECE /Regina Leader-PostThe George Bothwell Library is the only branch that will be open Boxing Day, with operating hours from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. In addition to the usual library offerings, a social mahjongg event is planned for 1 p.m.
There’s also the option to catch a show at one of Regina’s movie theatres. If you’re looking to keep with the holiday spirit, Moonlight Movies in the Golden Mile has matinee and evening showings of a few Christmas classics: Home Alone, The Santa Clause and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.
While the Royal Saskatchewan Museum is closed Boxing Day, it will offer drop-in holiday activities from Dec. 27 until Jan. 3, including a gallery hunt in the Life Science Library.
From right, Brett Quiring, Ingrid Alesich and Mary Field try to spot a chickadee in a tree in Wascana Park near the Saskatchewan Legislative building during the 2018 annual Christmas Bird Count. Photo by BRANDON HARDER /Regina Leader-PostNature Regina’s annual Christmas Bird Count is set for Dec. 28 at 8 a.m. Birding experience isn’t a requirement and the club welcomes all to join in tallying the many different species that spend their winters here.
Article content
Anyone interested in taking part is asked to RSVP to the count co-ordinator in advance. Contact details are available on Nature Regina’s website.
The Regina Leader-Post has created an Afternoon Headlines newsletter that can be delivered daily to your inbox so you are up to date with the most vital news of the day. Click here to subscribe.
With some online platforms blocking access to the journalism upon which you depend, our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark leaderpost.com and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed. Click here to subscribe.
Article content
