Winter wonderland comes to Onkaparinga

Published on 06 July 2020

Winter wonderland

Get your skates on – an ice skating rink is headed to the southern suburbs for the first time in four years from Saturday 11 July!

It’s just one of a range of fun winter school holiday activities on offer in the city, with options to suit every age and price range – see the full list below.

The pop-up rink is the brainchild of Winter Magic Ice Skating and Tobogganing and it’ll open from 10am to 4pm daily (11-20 July) in the old Masters building at Colonnades’ eastern end (bordered by Goldsmith Drive and Jackson Place).

It’ll be the first time an ice skating rink has opened in the south since the closure of the Noarlunga Ice Skating Rink on David Witton Drive in 2016.

Winter Magic co-owners Michael Lalic and Lorraine Malone say they’re excited to bring ice skating back to southern kids, who have been forced to travel to Thebarton for their fix since Noarlunga’s closure.

“We just want to put a smile on their faces and encourage people to get out, have fun and keep fit,” says Michael, who designed and constructed the former Noarlunga rink, the south’s original rink in Lonsdale in the late 1980s, and rinks around Australia and overseas.

Bookings for an hour-long session (ages 3+) can be made via Eventbrite, with prices starting at $11. Two “Ice Patrols” will be on the ice to help beginners and skaters are encouraged to wear warm clothes and gloves. Half-hour lessons can also be booked by calling 0413 111 501.

The ice skating rink is just one of a range of fun winter school holiday activities on offer in the city. Peruse the list below and start filling up your calendar!

1. Join an Onkaparinga Youth session

City of Onkaparinga’s three youth centres, Studio 20 (Aldinga), Wardli (Christie Downs) and Base 10 (Reynella) are open again for face-to-face fun and they have a packed program.

There are sessions on making digital artplaying basketballvideo and board gamesmovies with the girlshangs with the boysmarketing your music, and more, with activities on offer for people aged 8-25.

Most activities are free, but spaces are limited so sign up fast. Check individual events for dates and entry requirements.

2. Head to an Onkaparinga Library

Onkaparinga’s Libraries have reopened with some restrictions (a maximum of 75 customers, except for Willunga which is restricted to 20), so you can stock up on winter reading and DVDs for those rainy afternoons.

The libraries are hosting two free online Wilbur’s Wildlife sessions (Tuesday 7 July and Thursday 16 July) where kids will be introduced to a range of frogs, sugar gliders, snakes, lizards, turtles and insects. Register online to receive the Zoom link.

Themed take-home packs are available to pick up from all libraries too (on Wonderful Wildlife this week, and Incredible Invertebrates next week), containing activities requiring materials found around most homes and gardens to complete them.

3. Get your skate on

Calling all skateboarders! Hone your tricks and capture them on video for your chance to win cool prizes and progress to a national competition, thanks to Australian Skateboarding Community Initiative and Onkaparinga Youth.

The Onkaparinga Skateboarding Web Championships encourages skateboarders to film their five best flatground tricks (Onkaparinga residents only) or five best tricks at an Onkaparinga skatepark (anyone can enter) and upload the video to be judged by a team of professional skateboarders.

There are three divisions (Under 12s, Under 16s and Opens), with $100 on offer for the Opens winner and vouchers for the junior winners. The winners also go into a national pool. Entries close 18 July.

4. Explore a new playground

The long-awaited $2.2 million regional playspace at Morphett Vale’s Wilfred Taylor Reserve – featuring Kaurna, nature and farm-based themes – opened late last month, but it’s not the only new playground in the south.

At Moana, Hickinbotham Group has installed a great new playground at the neighbourhood family park at Seaside Boulevard (part of its Seaside Estate), featuring a pirate ship, sand and water play, slides and much more.

Council have also recently upgraded four playgrounds at local family parks across the city, with shiny new equipment at Aldinga Beach’s Myerhoff Park, Happy Valley’s Pamela Park and Christies Beach’s Ron Gill Reserve all now open for business, and Flagstaff Hill’s Birman Crescent opening imminently.

But if you’re a creature of habit, council’s other 240+ playgrounds will be hives of fun too!

5. Be a tourist in your own town

If you’re still completely stuck for ideas, the McLaren Vale & Fleurieu Coast website has a ton of suggestions for top beaches, adventure activities, day trips, kid-friendly dining, kid-friendly cellar doors and wildlife experiences.

Explore what our city has to offer with the help of these pages on travelling with kids and family-friendly destinations, and even turn it into a staycation with beachside digs such as Christies Beach or Moana Beach Tourist Parks.