Simsbury Farms' Winter Season Starts on October 1

The Simsbury Farms Ice Rink opens on Saturday, November 7, 2026. The first deadline of the skating season comes more than five weeks earlier. Registration for the first learn-to-skate session opens Thursday, October 1, at 11 a.m. Between now and opening day, the 235 acres at 100 Old Farms Road go from golf and pickleball to ice. This is also the first fall with a new restaurant in the clubhouse.

So October at the Farms is a planning month. Most of what decides how a household's winter goes there happens before the rink opens.

The October-to-December calendar in one view

Most of these dates come from the Simsbury Culture, Parks and Recreation Department. They're spread across separate flyers, calendar pages and facility pages, so here they are in one place.

One dating conflict is worth knowing about. The lesson flyer puts Session 2 registration on November 2. A fee note in the town's 2026-27 rink brochure lists December 1, the date the flyer gives for Session 3. If a particular session matters to you, the department's number is 860-658-3836.

What the lesson sign-up actually buys

Learn-to-skate meets on Sundays in two 35-minute blocks, 12:30 to 1:05 p.m. and 1:15 to 1:50 p.m. Each session costs $90. Levels start at Pre-Star for ages 4 and 5, then Stars 1 through 3 for ages 6 and up.

The lesson fee covers more than the lesson. According to the town's brochure, enrolled skaters get free skate rentals by reservation, up to five free public-skate sessions and free practice time. A drop-in resident pays $6 for public skate plus $5 for rentals. At that rate, five public sessions with rentals would come to $55, which is well over half the $90 session fee. That gap is the practical reason the October 1 opening matters.

Sign-up runs online through Simsbury Parks and Recreation.

The public-skate schedule has no regular Saturday

The 2026-27 public-skate grid lists weekday sessions from 10 a.m. to noon, Monday through Friday, plus one Sunday session from 2:15 to 4:15 p.m. There's no regular Saturday public skate on the schedule. For a household with school-age kids, Sunday afternoon is the main open window on the posted calendar. Weekday mornings mostly suit preschoolers, retirees and anyone with a flexible workday.

Rates for the season:

• Daily public skate: $6 resident, $8 nonresident
• Skate rental or sharpening: $5 each
• Family season pass, up to four people: $100 resident, $150 nonresident
• Individual season pass: $55 resident, $80 nonresident
• Senior season pass: $30 resident, $45 nonresident

The fee for each additional family member depends on which town document you read. The daily-fees sheet says $40 resident and $50 nonresident. The brochure says $30 and $35. Families of five or more should confirm with the rink before buying. The town has also posted a separate 2026-27 holiday-break skating schedule and marks it subject to change.

Before the ice, October still belongs to the courts and the course

The rink's lead time leaves October open for outdoor play. The town calendar lists free drop-in pickleball on Monday and Wednesday evenings, October 5 through 28, from 6 to 8 p.m. Mondays are for beginners, and Wednesdays are for advanced beginner and intermediate players. The program page says no registration or fee is needed. Outside those nights, the four courts with pickleball lines can be reserved for $6 per court-hour.

The paddle-tennis courts follow their own cold-weather rules. Under the posted winter policy, crews clear reserved courts after priority parking areas and roads. Heaters can help with frost or light precipitation, and courts may close in heavier snow, rain or sleet.

The golf course, designed by Geoff Cornish, sits on an orchard that was farmed until 1971. In 2023, Links Magazine ranked it seventh in the country for fall-foliage golf. The 2026 walking rates are $48 on weekdays and $52 on weekends for 18 holes, $27 and $29 for nine, and $38 for senior weekday 18-hole rounds. The course homepage lists weekday 18-hole rounds with a cart at $70, or $60 for seniors. The town hasn't published a 2026 closing date for the course, so the last foliage round of the year depends on the weather and the pro shop.

The clubhouse has a new kitchen and a familiar family

The biggest change at the Farms this year is inside the clubhouse. Birdie & The Barrel opened at the golf course this spring. The Town of Simsbury announced it on April 30, and Patch reported the opening the next day. The operators are the Pasquariello and Brown families, longtime owners of the Cracker Barrel Pub in Tariffville. In March, the Board of Selectmen gave them a five-year lease after a competitive process.

The town says the indoor and outdoor dining areas were fully refreshed, with new seating, a new bar and updated lighting and televisions. Its announcement says the patio has "some of the best views in the Farmington Valley." The restaurant describes its food as upscale pub fare, including gourmet burgers, fresh salads and chef-inspired entrees. It also takes catering and private-event inquiries.

You don't need a tee time to eat there. The town says the restaurant is open to the public as well as to people using the recreation complex. Tom Tyburski, director of Simsbury Culture, Parks and Recreation, described it as a place to stay longer after "a great round of golf, an exciting pickleball match, or a great day of fun in the sun at the pool." Town Manager Marc Nelson pointed to the team's local experience. He noted that "the landscape of the municipal golf course industry is often challenging for small restauranteurs."

Hours need checking. The restaurant's online-ordering listing shows 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on weekends. The hours page on its own website still says "Coming Soon." The restaurant hasn't said whether it will keep those hours after golf season or through the rink months, so call before planning a post-skate dinner in November.

The family's Tariffville spot keeps its usual schedule. The Cracker Barrel Pub lists itself as open seven days, from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. or later, with the kitchen closing at 9 p.m. Trivia runs Wednesdays at 7 p.m., and bingo is on Thursdays.

Two West Simsbury dates that fall in the same window

Flamig Farm is at 7 Shingle Mill Road in West Simsbury. Its Haunted Walk Through runs October 16 and 17 and October 23 and 24, from 6 to 8 p.m., with rain dates on October 18 and 25. Tickets are $16 per person for ages 3 and up. The 6 to 7 p.m. hour is billed as kid-friendly and the 7 to 8 p.m. hour as scarier.

Heublein Tower's season ends within days of the rink opening. The Friends of Heublein Tower list hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Friday through Monday, with Monday, November 2, as the last open day. The Connecticut State Parks page for Talcott Mountain says the museum closes after October 31. If you're planning a visit, aim for the last weekend of October rather than counting on November 1 or 2. The free Tower Toot Festival runs October 17 and 18, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Getting there takes a hike of about 1.25 miles from the parking area. October 18, the festival's second day, is also the rain date for Flamig's first haunted weekend.

Whatever happens with the tower's closing date, the next fixed date at the Farms is November 7. That Saturday the rink opens, and the regular public-skate schedule picks up with weekday mornings the following Monday.

If you're a Simsbury homeowner wondering how amenities like Simsbury Farms show up in what nearby homes are worth, Diana Brown knows West Simsbury street by street and can walk you through the local numbers. Schedule a market consultation and bring your questions about the neighborhood.