Guptill's Roller Skating Arena

Epic old school roller rink with a few updates. Has been in operation since 1951, all from the same family. Was there for a family skate, and it was quite busy. Hope to see this rink in operation for many years to come. And if your in the area, check it out. You will not be disappointed.

GORGEOUSLY preserved vintage roller rink and the staff makes you feel like family. This place is AMAZING.

Great PTA fundraiser. $20 entrance fee + $5 skate rental fee. They had a mini restaurant.

I called to make sure there was no age limit to skate, the women mocked me for asking about price for a one year old claiming a one year old can’t walk, she’s been walking since she was 7 months After paying full price for my one year old I was yelled at by the referee multiple times we were going to slow and her skate fell off and I had to pick her up to get her off the rink. Supposed to be skate at your own risk so If I wanted to pick her up that’s my own risk and definitely shouldn’t have. Even yelled at for any of that. So I call to explain my bad experience asked for a manager didn’t get one the women said that she should have been in the practice rink or toddler rink I said where was that she said if h actually came you would have seen them on the sides, I asked oh the areas filled with people and kids crashing into the walls really fast banging into anyone and everyone she said I have a call and hung up. I am outraged at this customer service… Side note no high chairs in the eating area and super expensive food

I just want to give a HUGE shoutout to the young man working The concession area on Friday July 5th 2024. He kept that place spotless! I’m a supervisor for a fast food chain and would love to have him on my team! Keep up the good work! We had a blast! We kept coming back for the ice cream as well delicious!

Great place, friendly staff and great atmosphere.

Great rink. I came up from Central PA, and it was well worth the trip. I purchased a pair of skates for my daughter from their shop, and we skated a Saturday day session. Staff is helpful, and the rink is huge. I would definitely return.

We enjoy roller skating here but tonight my son slipped on spilled water and ended up with a broken leg. He was screaming in pain, a worker came over and asked if I needed help I said yes I think it’s broken and he left and never returned. No one offered to help or check on my screaming 7 year old. I carried a 90lb kid out of there and not one employee asked if he was ok or showed any concern. Really disappointed in service.

We had are sons 14th birthday party...Have to say it was a great time..The party rooms were already decorated we didn't have to do anything...Our server John was really helpful...He took care of everything we needed..After the party he took care of the cleaning and offered us a table in the dinner to put our drinks so the kids could have drinks for the afternoon...the rink was huge...my son had a great...if you are planning a birthday party I would recommend Guptills

Be handicap accessible per NYS law for one. They could at least try to be friendly, they are not nice at all. This place is old and disgusting. Go to rollerama it's much better in every way possible. I didn't realize I had to give a star but this is a 0 star review

This rink was so nostalgic! The staff was nice, the floor was clean. The floor was huge and the atmosphere was awesome. Can't wait to travel back there one day!

I went to guptills rink for a birthday party where there was not enough food or drink. They also expected me to pay an additional 25$ to rent skates because "I had to pay admission" to the rink I was already inside instead of just skate rental. Terrible service from the front, Terrible "looking" food as they didn't provide enough so I couldn't tell you how it tasted. They old guy serving the party also was eyeballing the teen girls and making comments to the younger staff there about them which I overheard. Terrible place, wont ever go here again.

Brought my kids here today for the first time (we're pretty new to the capital region) and had a blast! The skating rink itself is awesome quality and very easy to skate on. We came on a Sunday and the place was packed, but because the rink is so big, there was plenty of room to skate. There are two small sectioned-off areas on both sides of the rink where littles can learn to skate without disrupting or possibly getting hurt on the main rink. The arcade is dated but with some newer video games and a few new table hockey games. The snack bar had more options than I'm used to seeing at a skating rink, which was nice, even if some of the prices were less than stellar. Overall, this is a really awesome skating rink for the kids and I. We'll definitely be coming back.

Went for a school event for my children. I've never quite experienced a staff that was wholesale so rude. I understand that things get stressful when it's busy, but as someone who's worked retail for multiple Black Fridays and food service in downtown Saratoga during track season, there's just no excuse for that sort of behavior. Barking at people, slamming shoes down on the counter, giving dirty looks and annoyed hand expressions. You have to actively try to be that unpleasant. From entrance to exit, the staff made it so unpleasant that we'll be going to Amsterdam for High Rollers from now on.

They don't have wi fi , which is a deal breaker for me. I bring my granddaughter to skate and it's extremely boring to be there for 3 hours w no wi fi. They also do not have air conditioning, too damn hot in the summer. The price of getting is also double that of their main competitor- rollerama.

best place I know, there is no reason for negitave reviews. The service is great with very nice staff, a nice community of skaters, and just an overall great experience.

HOLY COW. I used to skate here regularly as a kid, and legit everything is exactly how I remembered it. Super clean, super fun. Core memories recovered and revisited, French fries eaten, and new memories with the next gen created. Can't wait to come back. I'm so glad this place still exists and is T-H-R-I-V-I-N-G. We will back over the years with my niece and her friends. Just want to also add that I am so appreciative of the people who so obviously care for this place. Thank you providing this space!!!!

We met a group of friends here last Saturday (about 8 of us )the rink is nice and much bigger than the others around. But it also cost twice as much to get in and eat before you go...the food and drinks are Ridiculously priced and not that good at all .we went to Rollerama in Schenectady it was half the price to get in and the food was much more reasonable in price.it's a nice place to skate but kinda pricing themself out especially if you go there with a family.

Well it's just ok. I've been skating since the 80's and this place could be good. We went on Friday night 6:30 to 9:30 No DJ ???? song list off someones i pod i guess. But any ways had to suffer through 2 hours of non dance able music before we got to skate to something good. They could of mixed it up a bit more.

Always fun to be had skating at Guptills. It is not a regular place you want to go to however. Quite an expensive night out for 5 people to go it cost $120 admission + rentals. I think of my kids trying to save their allowance to go and it would take them a little bit to save. This cost does not include the cost of food. 2 Slushies and an order of Fries was $12.00. I wish this was cheaper, we would go more, but love supporting local after the pandemic. This is a fun place though

Love the nostalgic, family-friendly vibe of this roller skating rink. Skate rentals available, as are quarter-rental lockers for coats and personal items. A fun indoor activity, especially with kids. The only criticism is the steep ticket price - but I get it, and I'm glad they managed to stay open through the pandemic.

We took a field trip to Guptill's with our seventh graders to coordinate with the book Rebound by Kwame Alexander. It was excellent. The staff was friendly and helpful and our kids had a wonderful time. They closed the arena for our school, and 150 seventh graders had the whole arena to themselves. Most skated, others spent time in the snack bar, while others played games in the arcade. I highly recommend this for a field trip.

great place for parties and groups of all ages. friendly staff and plenty of room to practice. the rink is huge, there are 2 smaller practice rinks.

Great place to skate but don't you dare ask for a cup of tap water because the old gremlin in the kitchen is gonna look at you like you have 12 heads and rudely respond "no." Also did I forget to mention to never ask for a cup to combine slushies in because she will also look at you like you now have 12 eyeballs and assume your a water theft and say no. Next time I will most definitely be turning tf up on her and getting my own damn tap water.

Back in the day, I used to come here a lot to do some roller skating and rollerblading for recreational exercise outside of playing hockey. It was a lot of fun going round and round to some 80s and retro music. The very large arena floor is spread out, so there's plenty of room to skate around in a general counter clockwise direction. The place is very dark with moving lights, so keep an eye out for objects and other skaters. Skate rentals are available at the skate shop. Today, Guptill's Arena is still a good place for roller skating, for the exercise, good times, and dates too. To the right of the roller skating arena floor, is the snack bar area and beyond that Secrets Night Club, a predominantly 18 and under dance club. Secrets is a popular weekend hangout for area high school and middle school kids. A lot of parents drop the kids off and "boogie" out of there and come back around 11:00 PM to pick up their kids. Gosh, I spent much of my "rebel years" at Secrets clubbing with my friends in unison to the loud Top 40 club music on the dance floor with the lights, action, and water cannons. It was definitely the place to be and it's "jammed to capacity." The bar here served non-alcoholic beverages. When there's a Beach Party or Spring Break Party here, there's no-no-no-no-no dress code!!!! (as heard from the local radio ads on FLY 92.3). On the outside of Guptill's Arena in the same building is Guptill's Coney Express, which serves great ice cream treats during the warmer months. Classic car shows are held out in the large Guptill's Arena parking lot by the Capital District Cruisers June through September (usually on the 2nd Monday of each month). LOCATION: 2.5 miles north of the Latham Circle on US Route 9

I have been a patron of Guptils since I myself was a kid. I had many parties there in the early/mid 90's. Now we bring our kids. I will start by saying that I love how nostalgic it is in there-right back to childhood. Everything minus a few new arcade games is exactly the same. (Secrets is even still there, although not sure it still operates..) One thing that I wish I couldn't say that about is the snack counter and party food. I am grossed out thinking how old and built up it must be back there due to the taste of all the food. We had pizza at the party we attended and as I went to remove the cheese for one of my children, I noticed the dough was gray/brown. Some of the slices were all or partially that color. I wouldn't let my kids eat it-it looked horrible and almost rotten. I went instead to get some fries for them, but they were stale and tasted off. Another person in the party went to get nachos for their child, as they wouldnt eat the pizza either. The chips themselves tasted very off and the cheese was disgusting. I saw two other people not in our party leave their almost full tray of nachos, too. Prices are a little ridiculous as well-$4 for a handful of stale fries? That being said, we will definitely still frequent the rink, but we will surely be eating before we go and not ever having a party there. 1-I can't serve that food to kids at a party and 2-I was told the cost for the party and I was shocked how expensive it was. If they could focus a little on the counter/food, I wouldn't have much bad to say at all! All in all fun for a day skate and definitely for ice cream in season, but I would suggest

I've skated Guptills roller skating rink since I was a young child and I know times have changed and things have gotten more expensive but I think $20 to skate for three hours is absolutely ridiculous. Especially in a time of Covid when people don't have a lot of money but they want to have a good clean fun but can't afford it. It seems like the owners are greedy and that is very sad because I knew the mom and dad who started Guptill's and they were about children and adults have old fashion fun. They used to have a DJ in the booth, they would have Organ song playing night and they would have a couple skating and various kind of skating. Now they just play music, overcharge customers and there Floors used to be immaculately waxed but not anymore.

We travel over 3 hours to skate here. It's so historic - and the smell of old wood and time transport me back to my childhood as I've been skating for 40+ years. The world's largest roller skating rink is a legacy to this amazing sport! We love you, Guptill's!

Very large floor! The snack counter staff were super friendly! Unfortunately that's about all the "good" I can say about it. The sound system was terrible. Couldn't hear the music very well. They dont take requests or at least when we asked that's what we were told. The music being played was really slow and very hard to dance/skate too. The prices of everything were pretty high. While we were getting drinks, a manager or maybe an owner was yelling, loudly at the pizza chef and using profanity In Front of my children. It was very unprofessional! Not sure about a return trip any time soon.

I guess these people have no problem ripping teens off. My son paid to skate, went around 3 times and was told he had to leave and not come back because he was wearing a hat. He wasn't offered a refund or the option to come back without the hat. Ridiculous! I'll never bring any of my kids here again.

This was simply the place where, detached from any sort of reality, I thought I could make a pass on whoever I had a crush on in elementary school on frickin' skates at an indoor rink. It's worse than lame. It's lame FAIL. Oh, and Secrets is the club that is actually for teenagers where you can buy a girl a soda. Even more lame fail. The food is actually ok for the kids, they'll eat it up right quick. There's also an ice cream stand that serves up nice cones (that was a good line in 5th grade) and when you just felt like you weren't cool enough to skate, you go and play the arcade or skip over to get some ice cream and hang out with the real cool kids. The rink itself is huge and polished so that yes it's harder to get any traction but in the end that is safer due to probably easier falls and smoother skating. They have special programs, lights, and songs that amp up the fun to even more embarrassing heights once you're aware that the whole thing is pretty schlocky (oh ABBA). It's a more novel way to waste a couple hours and good exercise certainly. Ian is correct, they hold other events as a supplement, so be sure to check out their schedule if you are an adult and do not have kids. Because if you're just there and meet that description, that's another lame fail.

Guptils holds the Guiness record for the biggest indoor skating rink in the world and its right here in sweet ass Latham. Things kids are good at scare me because they never get hurt when they fall. When I found our that my friend Friday was having a birthday party at Guptils and there was going to be roller skating involved I was pretty sure I'd break my wrist because I'm not a kid and didn't learn then. I strapped on my rental skates and after a scary 20 minute learning curve I was totally rocking out. Once you find your balance rollerskating is graceful, even beautiful and really fun to do. You can talk with your friends or slow dance or even groove out as there is inherent rhythm in the movement. The scene is wholesome fun. No swearing, or drinking..... And that's where I take a star. I totally understand why drinking and rollerskating is dangerous, but a worked up a thirst and a beer on skates would have been great. It was $10 on a Saturday night for skates and entrance. That seemed perfectly reasonable to me. $3 for a soda was a little steep but locker rentals are just a quarter. Overall we had a great time and it was fun to do something different for the night.

Billed as the world's largest indoor roller skating rink Guptil's should be thought of as the Capital Regions only operational time machine. Guptil's is a relic of a bygone America. It is a place of family friendly nostalgia and wheeled fun. My whole family loves this place and we visit quite often. Whenever we need something to do that everyone can enjoy, Guptil's is the answer. If you need to rent skates you will drop $10 (7 to get in, 3 for the rental) but you will not regret it. That is a fair price for a lot of smiles. Soda is wildly overpriced, but that is the sole complaint I have. Guptils tries to keep the music up-to-date, which is fine - I suppose - since kids are their target demographic, but I would really enjoy some songs that matched the decor, or an occasional tune to remind me of skating in the 80's.

I went to teach my young daughter how to skate, we were following the edge rails so she could hold on while she struggled her first time. The rink attendant approached us and tried to kick us off the floor because it was trios only or something stupid like that. After that we found out they didn't have drinking fountains and also didn't provide complimentary water at all, which is a code violation and has been reported to the state. Disappointed with their business practices and poor treatment to guests, will never go their again and will actively spread the word or how terrible it is til they shut that dump down

Lived in NY my whole life until I moved due to military service. Six years later and it's incredible to come back to my childhood hangout to see that it is exactly the same. It was even better seeing the same two guys who worked the front door during the Secrets days to still be the same ones to greet you in adulthood. Nostalgic and homey to say the least

When I was in sixth grade this was totally the place to go. If you had your birthday party here, you were pretty cool. I don't think I have gone skating since then - until yesterday, that is. I wanted something fun to do with my 13-year-old sister and was looking for something I hadn't done in a long time. Guptills fit the bill. We had a blast skating and somehow I managed to stay off my ass, which was pretty damned amazing. Open skating is from 12 to 4 p.m. on Saturdays, and admission is $6. Skate rentals are $2.50. It's not dirt cheap, but it's pretty affordable. I'm looking forward to going again. Oh and there's also a small arcade, a snack shop selling nachos, pizza and soda, and a pre-teen dance "club" called Secrets. Back when I was 11, Secrets was pretty cool - I mean, where else could a 6th grader scope out the "hot" 7th graders?

We had a decent birthday party here in the past, but this time I guess they didn't have a party room available for us. I even booked the party about 2 months early for 13 children. We had a great time skating but when it came time for pizza and cake an employee led us to the back of the game room to our "party room" that looked like an old utility closet! I couldn't believe they were trying to pass this off as a party room! The table took up the entire room with barely enough space to put chairs on either side. The kids ate their pizza and most of them, including the birthday boy, did not want to stay in this room for cake. It was so cramped and hot in this storage "party room" that some even started to cry. On top of that, all the moms, dads, and the rest of the birthday boy's family had to wait outside in the ice machine room. Never again.

I have bad blood with the Saturday night DJ because I asked her to play "Pour Some Sugar on Me" and she said she would but never did. I also don't understand the purpose of having someone monitor the rink if they aren't actually going to enforce any rules... when I went as a kid, the staff used to skate around with whistles and yell at people breaking rules but now it seems to be a free for all which makes it difficult to skate.

Went to Guptils today with my daughter for the first time...we will NEVER go back! First, their prices are ridiculous! $35 for two people to skate. I paid them, put my skates on, then decided not to skate as I'm 45 and realized I was too unsteady on skates. About 90 seconds transpired between me paying and then asking fir a refund. The owner only offered to refund the $5 for the skate rental. He would not refund the $15 I just paid to skate. I made the decision to try and skate. Then, after the second time around the arena, the same owner was standing there checking my daughter's skates. Even though they approved them at the booth, he said they were not acceptable and we would need to get off the floor. Rather than spend another $5 to rent skates, we decided to leave! Basically, we paid $35 for 2 laps and about 10 minutes skating! All the owner cares about is money! STAY AWAY from this place!!! Go to Rollerrama in Rotterdam! They are super friendly and half the price of Guptils!

Fry's where stale, bad costumer service, very rude! Food was over priced, and apparently a cup of ice cost $4.00. But the place had a nice light show for a Warehouse.

Roller skating was a favorite pastime of mine. I've never been to guptills (didn't grow up here) but I've been waiting to take my daughter since she was born. Today was the day.. First off their hours are crap. The place is filthy and the skate rentals were disgusting. I almost certain there is no air conditioning in the place. I felt some air vents but they served no purpose unless you stand right in front of them. Last but no least the staff is painfully unfriendly.

A dis-organized mess of a place that charges a pre- teenager twice to get in. An invalid ticket, that's what they said he had after first paid admission they sent him to the back of the line and charged him again. Cohoes CCS Harmony Hill night got taken advantage of. Bummed but won't happen again because they won't see our family as patrons.

Usually have a great experience here and then follow it up with ice cream next door afterward. Was surprised to discover my son's request for a free drink of water was rudely refused by a lady in the cafe (son claims man served water just prior). It was politely explained by man at entrance I could bring my own water next time. Thinking I'll go elsewhere next time.

Haven't gone roller skating in over 20 years and had a great time!!! Got home and bought Reidell skates!!! Can't wait to go again! Ultra fun place!

Why NOT to have a Kids Birthday Party at Guptill's I have never in my entire life been to a more unorganized facility EVER. After paying $15 a kid you get the crappiest service on earth. * You only get the Birthday Room for 1 hour then you have to take all the kids coats, gifts, goodie bags and either check them into lockers or sit there and watch them your self * The staff has attitude and not very helpful * They are supposed to stamp your hand when you walk in and half the kids didn't get a stamp so when it was time to skate we had to go thru a song and dance about getting stamped (where is your tix, i gave you a tix, well you need a tix to get a stamp, i gave you the tix but didn't get the stamp) OMFG give these kids a stamp so they can go skate * And of course the lovely Secrets Night Club...oh what to say about that mess. First off when a customer calls and says I would like to book a party you really should ask "How old the child is" They really should NOT allow kids under 14 or 13 into that mess of a "Kids Club" * And if the "security or bouncers" did their job then I wouldn't have to almost get into a fight with a 14 year old for "play hitting" someone from my daughters party. * They have an arcade and for $15 a pop they don't even include arcade tokens, which ALL places do when you have birthday parties. * You can't bring water from the party room into the club, so you are FORCED to spend more money because the kids are dancing and they get thirsty. The being said if you want to go and skate for fun its great but don't have a party there.

Great place to go roller skating with the family. They also play great music there, have good food and the ice cream is the best. Sometimes they have car shows there. And I've been there when they had one. It was really fun. Many people showed up and there were a ton of really awesome cars to look at!

I am incredibly dissatisfied with the costumer service at this establishment. I was told I couldn't skate alone during couples skating, the guard told me I had to get off the floor. I'll be damned if I pay 17 dollars for disgusting skates, shitty music and rude workers, I'm going to get my money's worth and skate when I want to without holding hands with someone. The second you walk in it's a horrible environment everyone there has no interest in customer satisfaction they want you in and out. But worst of all when I went to the snack bar, I was in line waiting for my food the lady working told me I had to move, I didn't realized was holding on to the powdered sugar shaker as I was sliding down to line (3 ft away) in the rudest way this lady yells at me as if I'm 5 (mind you I'm 25) she yells at me for hold the powdered sugar after she told me to move down the line. I live in herkimer I drove over an hour to get here, this was supposed to be a fun family night with my fam. all I can say is I'm beyond disappointed with the service here I wish I could give less than one star, I will never come back. If you're thinking about going, don't waste your money!

Wow first time skating here enjoying time with my family & friends.What a amazing Roller Skating Arena! The only thing I thought was slightly over priced and weirdly priced was there drinks at the snack bar.Other than that what a fantastic evening!(:

Brought my two girls here for the first time. My 7 year old was able to skate pretty well so i spent my time with my 3 year old who insisted on trying. She's been ice skating before and has used buckets to hold on to as she pushed along. So there were some white buckets that I piled up so she could use. Some guy came over and very rudely said I couldn't use their garbage cans. I had no idea they were garbage cans. I said as much and asked if their was something she could use. He said no, only the railings, but where we were their were no railings. Then he got really really rude when I pushed the bins aside while still holding my daughter up. He said "what you don't remember where you got those? Expect me to put them back?" Guess he expected me to just leave her on the floor alone. Later I realized they have a special spot for beginners- why he didn't tell me this I don't know. I later learned he is actually one of the Guptills. I guess he just thought helping a customer was beneath him. Their is no water fountain so you've got to bring in water or buy it. You can only buy a pizza if your in a party and the pizza by the slice is kinda gross and way overpriced. Too bad we had such a bad experience with one guy. Otherwise I could have gotten into the place and overlooked the bad cafe. Oh yeah, and the nasty guy was just leaning up against a wall for the rest of the few hours I was there. Clearly too busy to help introduce a young skater to the sport.

I had a blast skating here last weekend with my children. The place is very well kept and holds a lot of history. The place provides a whole night of fun. My kids loved the skating, followed by dancing in secrets. I also had a chance to check out the party rooms and look at the information- I am planning on booking a party with them soon. Should be fun! I look forward to coming skating again, what a fun filled night.

*It is extremely filthy. *The bathroom has one soap dispenser and the dryer barely works. *Bathroom is completely disgusting. *They don't disinfect the skates when you return them. *The party room is disgusting and smells of a musty basement. *They charge admission and skate rental fee for parents hosting the birthday party to skate ($12 + $4) after paying $200+ for the party. *Party host is worthless. I had to go find her to do her job many times. They pre-pour kids drinks before you get there. I asked for a pitcher and they said "That is an extra $5" Really?! *They use plates ridiculously too small for the pizza. *Entry into the building is very unorganized, time consuming, and confusing. *Lockers are garbage and malfunction many times to consume all your quarters (even though it costs $0.25 to lock it after you open it each time. One would think you could just rent if for the time you were there. No.) *Secrets doesn't open until 3 so party starts at 12. 1 1/2 hours of skating, 1 1/2 hours of party room (because it takes that long for kids to eat pizza and cake), then 1 hour in Secrets. In reality it takes 30-45 minutes tops to consume pizza and cake so..you are left waiting for 1 hour for Secrets to open. Meanwhile, all the kids want to play in the arcade...shocker, no coins included in party fees. So you dole out even more money for that. *Literally have to shower/bathe your kids and disinfect everything before you touch anything in your house. So dirty. The kids had fun though ;) However, never again. So gross. Save your money and do your party somewhere else. So, so gross.

I was disappointed to say the least after attending a birthday party at Guptils this past weekend. After speaking to a very rude older gentleman on the way in to the rink, the tone was set for the rest of my encounters with rude staff. I was at the party to assist my special needs niece. To my surprise, to be able to assist her while skating I would be required to pay the $8 admission(because the party guests parents are only allowed to walk on the premise with the paid party) plus a skate rental. I had no choice but exclude her from the activity or pay the addional cost. I do not feel the skate rental was out of line but the additional admission feels like double dipping, the parents of the birthday girl paid over $500 to have a party, I would think the rink could extend a hand of gratitude and allow parents to just pay an additional skate rental fee, not a seperate admission and skate rental. I spoke to either a manager or owner after being told this, and having trouble with the skates fitting my nieces safety equipment, and what I was told was cofirmed as "their policy" and he turned to walk away. I would like to note that this is a cash only establishment, so make sure you have enough or you will be using their non bank branded atm. During this confusion and trying to find skates that my neice could use with her equipment the staff at the ticket counter were nothing but rude about the situation to not only myself but the parents who rented the facility. The room the party was in was very small for the amount of kids, and most of the parents had to stand out side. The decor of the establishment looks to not have been improved in decades if not the 70's. The staff serving the party basically slammed the pizza down and left. Additional pitches of soda were $5 I was bumped into not only once but twice by different staff in the food area that said a loud "excuse me" after running into the back of me (while on skates, and supporting my niece), one of these staff members was the woman serving our party. The general feel of the staff I encountered was that, I the customer, felt like a burden to them, with the exception of the young men working at the skate exchange counter, they tried their best to help me. I have recently attended a party at another local kid friendly establishment and I can say Guptils provided a starke, depressing contrast to the way they do business. I am highly dissapointed by my experience this past Sunday at Guptils, a place where I have fond memories of my own as a child. I hope the management of this establishment takes a realistic look at how the majority of their employees and staff are treating their loyal customers. A smile, a helpful hand to those in need and some general kindness would have gone a long ways. Instead of saying " I have to deal with screaming kids all day" , maybe understand that these kids and family's are the ones who believe in and enjoy your business.

This is the perfect place to go if you enjoy rude management on a power trip. Although they'll charge you full price for admission, they don't allow you to skate at certain times for their couples or trio skates unless you are paired up or in a group of three. The skate guard repeatedly harassed me and those I was with for not following this structure they had set up. During a couples skate, I was in a group of three and the guard cut off one of the group members and told her to get off the rink. She very sternly said to me, as I was skating alone at a time during a couples skate that I had "...three choices: find someone to skate with, get off the rink, take off your skates and leave, or go talk to management." I said maybe I'd do that, but was going to just brush it off until she talked to the manager and was looking over at my friends and I. I then talked to him about why I shouldn't have restricted skating times if I'd paid full price to skate and didn't have someone to skate with; his response was just oh, people like to do those special skates. Well, okay, do them, but don't kick others out if they don't want to participate. This isn't a school yard game where I need to just wait to take my turn, it's an activity that I paid for and hoped to enjoy. Furthermore, while I was standing close by, a man who I believe was a worker commented to the manager that if I met people, I'd enjoy it. I was very disappointed with the way that my friends and I were treated and, needless to say, I won't be skating there again.