If you think you’re seeing lots of people skating on the Market Square open-air ice rink this year, you’re right. The City’s Office of Special Events has the numbers to back that up.

Holidays on Ice, presented by Home Federal Bank, has done something twice this year that’s never happened in the nine years that the City has offered the ice skating rink. The milestone? Topping 1,000 skaters in a single day.

First, Holidays on Ice set an opening-day record on Nov. 29, when 1,038 people laced up their skates and hit the ice. That record was broken eight days later, when 1,054 people skated on Saturday, Dec. 7.

As of last week, the number of overall skaters was up by more than 1,200 compared to the same number of days that the rink was open last year.

The robust attendance is partly due to the recent clear and seasonally cool weather, says Elaine Frank with the Office of Special Events. Rain and abnormally warm temperatures can play havoc on the ice.

But there are other factors – all the special promotions being offered by the rink managers and the Ice Bears hockey team, and word-of-mouth referrals by skaters who thoroughly love the experience.

“Families enjoy the whole downtown Christmas in the City experience: Do a little shopping, enjoy the Peppermint Trail food and drink specials, take in all the lights,” Frank says. “But this year, a lot of people are making sure they get their laps in with the Ice Bears and do a few night-time skates under the stars.”

The Market Square rink will be open through Jan. 5, 2020. For more information, visit www.knoxvilletn.gov/icerink. Check the Holidays on Ice Facebook page for updates on closures during inclement weather.

Meanwhile, the rink will offer extended hours beginning Monday, Dec. 16: Mondays through Thursdays, 1-9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m.-10 p.m.; and Sundays, 1-9 p.m.