Bee Cave's Holiday Season Happens On One Plaza. Here's When It's Yours.
October 29, 2026
October 29, 2026
Bee Cave on Ice opens its fifth season on Friday, November 13. The rink sits behind City Hall at 4000 Galleria Parkway and stays open through January 18, 2027. From there, the city's whole holiday calendar fits on one patch of ground between City Hall and Hill Country Galleria's Central Plaza: a tree lighting, three weekends of a makers market, a 5K, and winter art camps. The rink was paid for with hotel-tax money and pitched as a way to bring visitors to Bee Cave. The parts of the season that fit people who live ten minutes away are the stretched weeknight hours and the discounted Tuesdays the city now calls Community Nights.
In July 2022, Bee Cave City Council approved up to $300,000 in hotel occupancy tax funds to deliver and set up a rink at the Galleria. The Galleria put in $100,000 of its own money, and the city could set up a separate agreement to pay it back. Community Impact's report on that vote quoted Mayor Kara King on what the rink was for:
"People are going to come from all over to shop here, dine here and skate here, so it will be really exciting."
That's what happened. The first plan called for a 40-by-84-foot rink holding 120 people at a time. According to a March 28, 2023 council agenda item, that first season drew more than 25,000 skaters from more than 100 ZIP codes, some of them 80 years old, and grossed $392,748.32 in the two months it ran. The same document put first-season expenses at $400,000. Nearly $100,000 of that was one-time electrical work and the platform the rink sits on, and the city planned to reuse both. After the city paid back the Galleria's $100,000, about $240,000 was left as net. Staff then asked for up to $250,000 in hotel-tax funds for a second season under a contract with Crown Rinks, and noted they had already lined up sponsors to bring the city's cost down.
Later budget numbers show the gap closing. The city's FY2025 budget narrative, dated September 24, 2024, lists FY2023 rink revenue of $340,920 against $424,317 in expenses. For FY2024 it projects $314,040 in revenue against $309,808 in expenses. The two documents count expenses in different ways, and the FY2024 figure is a projection. Read side by side, though, they describe a rink that went from costing more than it took in to roughly paying for itself in its second year.
The rink has run every winter since. The season length has moved around from year to year, and the price structure has tightened.
| Season | Dates | Admission as published |
|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | Nov. 5 – Jan. 2 | Skate rental planned at $10–$15 an hour |
| 2023–24 | Nov. 10 – Jan. 15 | $15 for a 75-minute session, rental included |
| 2024–25 | Nov. 15 – Jan. 5 | $15 plus tax for 50 minutes, Wednesday–Monday |
| 2025–26 | Nov. 14 – Jan. 19 | $16 for 50 minutes; $11 on set Tuesdays |
| 2026–27 | Nov. 13 – Jan. 18 | $16 plus tax for 50 minutes; $11 on Community Night Tuesdays |
The first season ran about eight and a half weeks. This one runs closer to nine and a half and goes well past New Year's. A skate session has dropped from 75 minutes to 50, and the price rose by a dollar. KXAN's December 2024 coverage mentioned a discounted Tuesday community night but didn't give a price. The $11 Tuesday rate has been published since last season, and the city now lists those nights by date.
The bigger change is in the weekday hours. The 2023–24 service agreement had the rink open Monday through Thursday from 3 to 7 p.m. and Friday from 3 to 9 p.m. This season the rink stays open until 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, with the last session at 8 p.m. Friday runs from noon to 10 p.m. That adds two weeknight hours, after dinner and after practice, which are the hours someone driving over from Falconhead or Spanish Oaks can actually use on a Tuesday.
The City of Bee Cave lists five Community Nights this season, each at $11 plus tax for 50 minutes with skate rental included:
None of the five falls inside the Lake Travis ISD holiday breaks the city lists, November 23–27 and December 18 through January 5. The city runs separate hours during those breaks. The city page and the Galleria's listing don't agree on what those hours are, so check the city's Bee Cave on Ice page before planning a break-week skate. The same goes for Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. The city lists 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. for those days, but the holiday dates printed beside them look carried over from an earlier year.
December 15 is the last discounted night before school lets out on the 18th. After that, the next one is January 12, a week after classes resume.
The rink anchors the plaza, but the Galleria and its partners stack the rest of the season on Saturdays.
Light up the Plaza, Saturday, November 28, 5–8 p.m. Hill Country Galleria's tree lighting brings live music, skating, giveaways, face painting and refreshments, with free admission and parking. The schedule hasn't been posted yet, and the Galleria says it will post any weather cancellations on the event page.
Bee Cave Holiday Market, three weekends in December. Penny V Productions and Hill Country Galleria host a rotating group of local Austin makers selling handmade goods in the Central Plaza. Hours are 4–9 p.m. on Fridays, December 4, 11 and 18, and 11 a.m.–7 p.m. on Saturdays, December 5, 12 and 19. The Galleria says there will also be pictures with Santa and face painting.
Jingle Bell 5K, Saturday, December 5. The Bee Cave Chamber of Commerce lists festivities starting at 7 a.m. and races at 8 a.m.
Put those listings together and December 5 is the most crowded day on the calendar. The 5K starts the morning, the rink opens at 10 a.m., the market runs from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., and skating continues until 10 p.m. If you plan to run the race, you're already there. Anyone who mainly wants ice time will find the same rink and a much emptier calendar on Tuesday, December 8.
Winter Art Camps, December 21–23 and 28–30. Bee Cave Arts Foundation runs morning camps from 9 a.m. to noon at the Galleria, Suite F160, plus a New Year's camp on January 4–5, 2027. These are the only events on the plaza calendar built around the break weeks rather than the weekends.
The city's rink FAQ answers most of the questions people ask before a first visit:
The 2022 plan put the rink between the Bee Cave Public Library and the Central Plaza Lawn, where the splash pad stood at the time. The rink is now listed behind City Hall, overlooking the lawn. Hill Country Galleria currently lists the splash pad as temporarily closed and hasn't given a reason.
The Central Plaza won't be this full again until next November, but the Galleria area keeps changing. Community Impact reported on October 9 that CAVA and Chipotle are planned for 13714 East Ladera Blvd., with construction expected to start in October and openings projected for May or June 2027. Tickets for this season are on the city's booking page, and the first $11 night is Tuesday, November 17.
A rink that drew more than 25,000 skaters to City Hall in its first season is part of what the Galleria side of Bee Cave offers in winter. If you're thinking about a spring sale, Tangela Bailey can show you what that means for your home's value. Request a Personalized Home Valuation, and get your number before the rink comes down on January 18.
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