Ice Skating Season Kicks Off At Rockefeller Center

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Winter is starting early in Rockefeller Center.

The ice skating rink opened for the season on Tuesday, despite the 70-degree weather.

"It's always a special day in New York when that rink opens," NYC & Company president Fred Dixon told 1010 WINS' Juliet Papa.

"It is a little odd cause I expected it to be sort of colder than this," said Amber of Figure Skating in Harlem, who was among the first to hit the ice.

Olympic gold medalists Meryl Davis and Charlie White were on hand to perform for the opening ceremony and offer some advice to young skaters.

"Once you feel like you've got a hang of it that's usually when you fall down and hurt yourself," White said.

The 90-minute skating sessions begin at 8:30 a.m.

It's advised to make reservations during the busy holiday season.

General admission is $25.

The rink opened Christmas Day in 1936 and now sees about 250,000 skaters annually.