Temple Hills Skating Palace

I mean… it’s ok. Nothing fancy. I stopped by on Saturday for a early morning roller derby match and I was shocked at how small the rink itself is. Very small and it smelled a little funny.
Needless to say, I won’t be going back again. No thanks!

I take my daughter here all the time. I usually go on a Sunday, much quieter and my daughter can skate in peace. This location is right next to Branch Avenue station, green line. The size of the skating rink is huge and location is very spacious. The food is a bit overpriced but I do expect that due to it being a skating rink. Fridays and Saturdays is the busiest times mostly because of teenagers. So I usually avoid going those days or if I do, I go in morning. The staff is very friendly and seem to monitor the floor on a consistent basis. They keep close tabs on everything. Which I really love. They also have security as this location as well. All in all I would recommend this place to go take the kids for some fun!

Well, it’s better than skating on the sidewalk with Fisher Price shoe-​skates.
Listen, this place is one of the capital cities in the Kingdom of Ghettodom. Don’t go into it expecting much. As long as your skates have four wheels on them and they give you both skates, you’re winning.
This place could use an efficiency expert. My nephew’s party was scheduled from 3:30 — 6:00. They didn’t unlock the doors until 3:35 and then didn’t get us through check-​in until 3:50…and we were the first ones in line. After that, they told the adults that we’d have to go back outside and stand in line if we wanted skates. 20 mins later, I finally paid for my skates and made my way to the 20 minute line to pick up the skates.
The staff was friendly enough. I imagine it’s easy to have an attitude here, but I didn’t run into any problems. There were a million kids with those walker things that they give novice skaters. Those made for a nice obstacle course for the adults, but it was family skate time and the kids seemed to be having fun. That’s all that matters.
It’s not bad if you manage your expectations.

I WOULD NEVER EVER WALK IN TO THIS PLACE AGAIN.
I had my daughter’s 12^th bday here and it was a nightmare! The party was for 7:30 until 10. We did not get seated until 7:50. It was over booked. They ran out of skates!!! some of my kids did not get skates until 9:40. I had to give my personal skates off my feet to the third child. The PIZZA was beyond horrible!!! BEWARE!

Took my kids last Monday (Family Night), 6:39 — 9:30pm… We absolutely LOVED it!!! It wasn’t too crowded so the kids could skate more than normal. My kids are still learning to skate so I was glad there were other little kids there in the same boat.

It’s not the same how I use to be when I was young my son had a party there it was horrible sodas was flat employes was confused they gave my pizza to someone else the man who was the manager yesterday was very rude disrespectful no birthday shout outs he was awful he talked rude to my family and quest he did not help us with our problem never going back it smelled like pee employes need training also the manger never will I return again

NEVER EVER WILL WE ENTER THIS MAD HOUSE. NEVER!!!
This was all for my daughter’s 12^th birthday. My wife found a deal for $$.$$ on GroupOn. I’m thinking it has been 20 years and things should have improved from what I remember as a kid, Wrong. I think it was over packed, unorganized, had bad service, and as far as I am concerned un-​safe. They Staff need to be retrained and go out to some of there competitors to see how its done. I would pay 3 times what i paid to another establishment for a better experience. «Palace» more like Crazy House.

This rink is a staple amongst my friends. We play derby for DC, but with the limited locations in which to skate, we look outside the district for options. We have been skating here for years and it has proved well. The floor is really tacky, so we use some pretty hard wheels. The location is pretty ideal as well since it is just off the metro stop.

I brought my eleven-​year-​old daughter and her friend here today after purchasing a Groupon. It started out nicely, despite the off-​putting wreck of a parking lot. It’s crowded, but the staff seems to really be on top of safety. There are people walking around and on the floor constantly. I really liked that.
However.
Isn’t there always a «however»?
Concessions were an unmitigated disaster. After waiting at the window more than 45 minutes, the cheese sticks we got were EMPTY. I ended up waiting more than an hour for a freaking soft pretzel. No exaggeration.
Both change machines for the games were apparently not working, and then after the girls waited in one of the cash register lines for more than 20 minutes, they refused to give them change! And they were not polite about it. A very sweet manager came over to randomly check on us (not because I asked to see one), though, and gave us change later.
If you come, bring your own food and change. We probably won’t be back.

Not sure why anyone eats in this place. This organization has been in the Washington Post because of roach/​mice infestation, there was mice dropping in the freezer, unclean surfaces… You guys need to read the paper. The health department has cited this establishment many times…
Folks need to wise up and find better places for their children to go. The bathrooms don’t work, stalls are always full of urine and feces.
The management seems to stay the same, they continue to hire Stormin Norman, who plays horrible and then has the nerve to charge $ 10. The management would see how disgusted the patrons were with the music he played and they ignored it. Stormin Norman plays on Sunday’s now…
If there was better management and not the foolish ones they continue to employ, this rink would be better off… Just sad so much potential is now ruined by bad business owners, a lack of knowledge as to how to run a successful business and the ghetto mentality that hoovers over this establishment.
Sad but True…

This roller rink reminds me so much of my times skating with friends as a kid. It has a very 80s feel to it, skate dancers included. I love that they have low rates for family skate night on Mondays. It’s only $ 3. On Saturday, they offer drop-​in skate lessons for $ 10. My son always has a great there with the other kids in class. It is also a great place to have parties because they have a full kitchen that offers anything from pizza to burgers, candy, and soft drinks. And of course there’s a DJ that plays all sorts of R&B, hip-​hop, and pop music to help you get your skate bougie on. It’s just a good time place to be reminiscent of yesteryear!

This is a disgrace of a business with unprofessional management staff and no regard for paying customers! Please be aware if you plan a party here, even if you sign a contract specifying date and time, you may very well find yourself looking for an alternative skating rink as this company overbooks and neglects to reveal their error even up to 24 hours before the event! In addition to this disrespectful and uncouth manner of business, the unqualified manager did not apologize, offer any type of recourse other than «reschedule» with less than 24 hour notice and had the audacity to expect to keep the deposit! This is highly unacceptable and so discouraging. Please share this with anyone planning a party, especially a children’s party because no one should have to be disappointed when its their special occasion!

Here’s the deal with Skate Palace (formerly known as Crystal Skate «back in the day»). It’s pretty much a local standby because there isn’t anywhere else to skate within about 30 miles or more. It’s been in the neighborhood for decades… and unfortunately it shows (in spite of a recent paint job). If convenience is top priority (or you simply want some place to hear some music and skate) and you can tolerate mediocre service, skates, food, etc. Skate Palace will be fine. If you are used to-​or expect-​a top notch facility with a happy, smiling highly efficient staff, you will most likely be disappointed… you’re not gonna have it all. If you decide to go, just prepare yourself ahead of time and you are more likely to have a good time. It gets 2 stars for customer service, etc. with 1 star due to my own bias.
As for customer service, expect the bare minimum. For as long as I can remember, whatever woman that has the unfortunate job of selling tickets has always looked like they wished they were somewhere else, doesn’t volunteer any information other than the price and acts like its taking forever for you to pay her so she can move on. However, I will point that they have never been rude. Yes, the rental skate line has never been efficient and has always been long (these things you just have to mentally prepare yourself for if you chose to stomach going). To avoid it, as others have mentioned… go early. And yes, the skates do seem to be the very same ones since we came here during high school (a looong time ago). And there’s the food line (or lines) with more than enough people behind the counter but no one seems to know who’s on first, second, third… what their name is or what your order was lol.
For folks from the area (like myself), there is some nostalgia and once you have gotten used to the pair of skates given to you, tag teamed the food line (or stood on your own while everyone else is having fun) for a good 20 minutes (that’s about how long it will take when really busy)…it’s actually ok. After all is said and done, you usually end up having a good time with friends and family… unless everything I mentioned was just too much to tolerate (this is where my extra star comes from).
Then there’s the «location». It may seem «dodgy» to those not familiar with the area and if you are coming from VA it may seem like another world all together. «Back in the day» I would have probably advised someone from one of those two camps to not take any chances. However, these days the area is really just run down and unfortunately looks worse than it really is (gentrification hasn’t made it to these parts yet). Also, note that I“m speaking as someone from the area, meaning if you aren’t used to «colorful people» or if they (us) make you uncomfortable… don’t come. Finally, a reviewer mentioned that it is in Anacostia… that’s not true. It’s on the MD side in Temple Hills.

Toooo many kids. Kids are rude. Looks a little run down. Food takes forever!!! I’ve been standing in line for 20 minutes and I still didn’t get to order my food yet. I give it 2 stars just to be nice and also because it’s gospel skate night lol!

Great place for roller skating with a 70s flair. Lots of lights, sounds and action. Good seating area with snack bar that has the basics. Saw the DC Rollergirls in action there and will be back. Fun event! Lots of parking!

I remember this place from the good olé days and nothing has changed.
No really, nothing has changed.
I go about once every 6 weeks on Sundays only. I can’t deal with teens. It’s always fun, I get there early when they open and leave by 10:30 once all the professional skaters begin to take over the floor. If you are a beginner or intermediate skater, GET THERE EARLY if you want space to skate.
Great price for skates and rental but skip the food or any concession. It will leave you disappointed.

My daughter and her friends wanted to go skating and I decided to take them here. I used to frequent this spot in my «younger» days and know this place from when it was called «Crystal’s Skating Rink». Needless to say I was a little excited about going and was looking forward to the nostalgia feeling I would get from going here. Well, let me give you the run down. We went for Matinée Public Skate which was Saturday, 3:30pm — 6:30pm. We got there a little after 3:30pm and immediately noticed a line going out the door, so I’m thinking while they must be really crowded if the line is still this long and it’s already after 3:30. Only to make it to the line to find out that after 20+ years they have yet to master the art of people paying and getting in smoothly. I stood in line for at least 35 minutes. By the time I got to the window to pay for admission and skates It was a little after 4pm. Once in you have to go through security which went rather quickly as they only checked for wrist bands, tickets, etc. to make sure you were a legit paid customer. Ok, so now we are in we have to go all the way in the back and get skates. That part hasn’t changed. The skate rental booth is still located in the back of the rink. When I walked in I immediately looked around anxiously to see what I had changed… NOTHING! The carpet was still the same, main rink still the same, food booth still the same, picture spot still there… EXCEPT for they used to have a separate rink for little people and beginners and now that has been turned into one big area for birthday parties and OMG let me now forget about the… I honestly don’t know what they call these things but they were shaped like walkers with rollers and the little kids were using it to help them skate… it was one of the biggest distractions… drove me crazy and I’ll get to details of that in a few. So we make our way back to pick up our skates while the other part of our family went to locate a table for us to sit. We get to the booth and it was a little line but the guys back there were all over things and we had our skates in no time.
We head back over to our table and let the fun begin! It’s time to put on our skates and create new memories and bring back old ones! I was SO excited! :0) Ok so, we purchased a family pack for 4 which was $ 44 and included admission for 4, skate rental, a large pizza and a pitcher of soda. While we are lacing up the other part of our family (who decided not to skate) was taking care of the food order. By this time it was around 4:30 so I’m think we have lost a hour just to get in here, get skates and find a table so let’s hurry so you can enjoy the last 2 hours. Well… we put in our order for pizza, soda and 1 slice of pepperoni pizza after they stood in line for another 15 min or so for that. Little did we know that was only the beginning! The food literally took about a hour to get!!! I WAS VERY DISAPPOINTED! There was a young lady working the register by the name of Monica and all she could say was there is a guy in the back making pizza and he is moving as fast as he can; your food will be out soon. I’m like WTH??? Also, be sure to note that we were not the only family waiting for our food and one family waited so long that they bought the funnel cake out first, the little boy ate the whole funnel cake while standing in line waiting on the rest of there food… that I can’t even remember if it ever came. Finally around 5:30 we get the large cheese pizza but oh let’s not forget about the 1 slice of pepperoni that took another 30 minutes to come AFTER we got the large pizza! We received 3 slices instead 1 for waiting so long but that just wasn’t enough for me. I was just done with this place by than! So finally at 6 (½ hour before they close) we finally have all of our food… needless to say we were frustrated and was just totally done with the food aspect of things by than.
Details about skating; since they close the little rink and make everyone skate on one big rink it really made skating a little less exciting because you were concentrating so much on not tripping up on the «roller walkers» and running over the little people. Now, I haven’t been skating in YEARS so I am not a pro by a long shot so I definitely hit the ground quite a few times LOL it was fun BUT would’ve been a lot more fun if I didn’t have to worry about tripping up or over little people. I can blame 3 of my falls on the simple fact that I was trying not to skate over, or run into someone’s little one.
Details about music; Music was on point for skating and was a great blend of old but not too old and present music.
Overall, between the food taking damn near 1 ½ hours and waiting in line for a ½ hour (thank God it wasn’t really cold, hot or raining that day because I probably would’ve left), the rink not changing much at all after 20+ years… I don’t see myself going back here anytime soon but do plan to check out the other skating rinks in the area.

I have not been here in awhile but I been hearing some good reviews lately. My mom goes thier for lessons and most events and my cuz bike club has meetings thier sometime east coast rollers or something like that so I say if your grown get ur roll on if ur young move to seabrook or down Baltimore.

Sunday nights are not for the the faint of heart! As a novice skater, it can be quite intimidating. I didn’t realize that skating was still such a huge deal until I came to this place and saw all the skilled and talented folks on 4 wheels.
The facility itself is a little older but it’s clean and all the staff was super friendly. The music played takes you back to the good old days and has you trying to remember where exactly you were in life when that song first came out.
I like this place and I’ll probably return once I step up my skating skills.

I went there for a birthday party. I bought a groupon deal for $ 18 which included entry for two, two slices of pizza, and two sodas. Upon arrival on Sunday night for adult skate, the manager tells me that my voucher could not be honored. I read all the details and stipulations before purchasing the groupon and it did not state any specific days that it could not be used. The manager granted me entry but did not honor my groupon fully by refusing to give me my two slices of pizza and two sodas. He claimed that he would be losing money. I told him that he needs to offer groupon more specific details if he is trying to get business through their site.

Jam skating is alive and well at Temple Hills!
Skating is super cheap here (notably Mondays for $ 2 for entry), and they have specials all the time on skate lessons, theme nights (gospel, adult skate, teen skate, Scooby Doo Dance Party). Skate rentals available for $ 3. They have skate mates for the kids too! Private parties are available.
Best place to check specials, since they don’t have their own website is here:
Bonus, it’s metro accessible to Naylor Road station, although I usually drive since it’s not a great place at night.

I have been here many times before!
for those of you that went and seen a lot of teens maybe you should have checked first because they have a time or kids/​teens and also a time for adults ONLY!
for those that do not like R&B music, they have a whole day set aside when they do NOT play rap/r&b, they even have a all gospel day!
this is a skating ring so if you go early or early evening it will be kids/​teens UGH!
I gave this place 4 stars because they have good prices and try to accommodate EVERYONE! just do your research on what is the best time for you to go!
I did take 1 star away because i do feel that they can make the overall look of the place better!
Every time I went everyone was super friendly and was out to have a good time skating etc.
As far as the location: LOOK it is 2012 people are not safe in movie theaters! I have never heard of anything bad happening at this place, People are so quick to stereotype because it may not be in a ”UPPITY’ area. Sh*t happens everywhere so do not let that stop you!!! MY OPINION