With Moscow's parks frozen over and the temperatures dropping to the lowest level in decades, the time for quiet strolls has gone and the time for ice-skating, one of Russia's favorite winter pastimes, has arrived. A number of parks around town feature skating rinks, and in some places, such as Chistye Prudy, people just clear off the snow themselves and lace up their skates. However, official locations are affordable, safer and better prepared for skating.

Of course, you don't even have to bother going outside, since the city boasts quite a few indoor rinks. Some skating enthusiasts claim skating indoors is better because the rinks are protected from the elements, making for warmer skating and smoother ice. Outside, the ice begins to deteriorate and makes for poor skating when the temperature rises above minus five degrees Celsius.

Unfortunately, the majority of indoor rinks rent out their time to local hockey teams and figure skating clubs, so you'll only be able to skate during public skating hours, or "chasy massovogo kataniya" in Russian. Most do not offer skate rentals, either, but this isn't a problem since the skates available for rent are often of questionable quality and many are simply uncomfortable. Most sporting goods stores in Moscow carry them for reasonable prices. Ice hockey skates retail for around $70-$500, while figure skates are roughly $50-$200. Make sure they fit well, are comfortable and suit your level of proficiency. An average skater has little need for $500 skates.

Indoors:

UMKA
12 Levoberezhnaya Ul., Bldg. 1 (to the right of Hotel Soyuz).
Metro: Rechnoi Vokzal.
Tel: 458-1084.
Open daily from 8 a.m. until 9 p.m.
Open to the public: Adults: Sat. from 7:45 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. and Sun. from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Children: Sun. from 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.
Tickets cost 40 rubles for adults and 20 rubles for children.
Rentals: None.

ICE PALACE MARYINO
10 Myachkovsky Boulevard, Bldg. 3.
Metro: Bratislavskaya.
Tel: 345-6800.
Open daily from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Open to the public: Sat. from 10:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.
Tickets cost 40 rubles for adults and 20 rubles for children.
Rentals: None.
Nice, new and clean. Too bad it¨Vs open so rarely.

RADUZHNY
6 Chobotovskaya Ul.
Metro: Prospekt Vernadskogo.
Tel: 447-4388, 733-0369.
Open daily from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Open to the public: Sat. from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Sun. from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
Tickets cost 35 rubles for adults and 20 rubles for children.
Rentals: None.

ICE PALACE YUZHNY
2a Bulatnikovskaya Ul.
Metro: Prazhskaya.
Tel: 383-8738, 383-9001.
Open daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Open to the public: Sat. and Sun. from 7:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Tickets cost 30 rubles for adults and 15 rubles for children.
Rentals: None.

ICE PALACE RUS
13/3 Voronezhskaya Ul.
Metro: Domodedovskaya.
Tel: 393-4009, 399-4797.
Open daily from 7 a.m. to midnight.
Open to the public: 9:15 p.m. to midnight.
Tickets cost 20 rubles for adults and 10 rubles for children.
Rentals: None.

KATOK TAGANSKAYA PARK (Kids only)
15a Taganskaya Ul.
Metro: Taganskaya.
Tel: 911-1016.
Open Mon. through Thurs. from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., Sat. and Sun. from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Tickets cost 70 rubles an hour, 600 rubles a month for 10 sessions, or 1,000 rubles for 20 sessions.
Rentals: 50 rubles an hour.
A dirty little place for kids only. There is a dilapidated wooden table with a teapot that serves as a cafe.

SOKOLNIKi PARK
1 Sokolniki Val.
Metro: Sokolniki.
Tel: 268-8277.
Open weekdays from 1 p.m. to 11 p.m., weekends from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Admission is free! Lockers cost 30 rubles. A good number of skaters just take turns smoking cigarettes, drinking beer and watching over their shoes and backpacks.
Rentals: None.
A cool place. It can get pretty crowded, though.

PARK TAGANSKAYA
40/42 Taganskaya Ul.
Metro: Taganskaya.
Open Tues., Wed. and Thurs. from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., Fri., Sat. and Sun. from 10:30 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Tickets cost 15 rubles an hour.
Rentals: 20 rubles an hour, plus skate sharpening for 50 rubles. But you don¨Vt want to rent these skates.
A nice, big pond to skate on and relatively thin crowds.

ICE PALACE MOSKVICH, LYUKS
15 Lyublinskaya Ul.
Metro: Tekstilshchiky.
Tel: 179-3664.
The outdoor rink Lyuks is located behind the soccer stadium and open Tues. through Sun. from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. with a break from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. to clean the ice.
Tickets cost 15 rubles an hour.
Rentals are free.
Small and crowded, but friendly.

GORKY PARK
9 Krymsky Val.
Metro: Park Kultury.
Tel: 237-1266.
Open: Daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Tickets cost 25 rubles an hour.
Rentals: 40 rubles an hour. These skates have a bad reputation with regular visitors.
This is probably one of the nicest places in Moscow, including a small path through the woods to skate on. Long lines form on the weekends, so get there early. The guards protecting the exit accept bribes, but not with members of the press nearby.

LUZHNIKI
24 Luzhnetskaya Nab.
Metro: Sportivnaya.
Tel: 201-1815.
Open Tues. through Fri. from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., Sat. and Sun. from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. with a break from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. to clean up the ice.
Tickets cost 15 rubles an hour for adults and 5 rubles an hour for children.
Rentals are 25 rubles an hour. Regulars say these are good skates.
Big rink with clean ice.

IZMAILOVO PARK
17 Narodny Prospekt.
Metro: Izmailovskaya.
Tel: 166-8690.
Open daily from 11 a.m. until 9 p.m.
Admission is free on weekdays and 10 rubles on weekends.
Rentals include hockey skates for 10 rubles an hour and figure skates for 20 rubles an hour.
A fun little place, but the crowds can be thick.