Tacoma’s Armory Is Turning Into a Giant Roller Rink

The Tacoma Armory has hosted concerts, art installations, wrestling matches and community celebrations. This fall, its enormous drill floor is taking on another identity: a roller rink.

Sunday Open Skate returns September 13, inviting skaters of every age and experience level to roll across what Tacoma Arts Live describes as the largest flat floor in the Pacific Northwest.

The five-hour skating session runs from 1 to 6 p.m. inside the historic Armory at 1001 South Yakima Avenue. Music will fill the building while families, experienced skaters and complete beginners share a floor considerably larger—and more dramatic—than the average neighborhood rink.

The sheer size of the Armory is a large part of the attraction.

Rather than circling a compact rink beneath a low ceiling, skaters will roll across the building’s vast open floor under the soaring roof of one of Tacoma’s most imposing indoor spaces. There is room to practice, find a comfortable pace or simply experience the novelty of gliding through a building designed for something entirely different.

Tacoma Arts Live describes the sessions as casual, welcoming gatherings rather than competitions or formal skating events. Visitors can bring friends and family, arrive alone or simply listen to the music while finding their footing.

All ages are welcome, and no previous skating experience is required.

Admission is $15.41, including online fees. Skaters may bring their own roller skates or rent a pair at the Armory for an additional $5. Both youth and adult sizes will be available.

People who are curious but not quite ready to launch themselves onto the Armory floor can arrive early for a beginner lesson presented by Tomorrowland Junior Roller Derby.

The introductory session begins at 12:30 p.m., 30 minutes before open skating. Instructors will cover the fundamentals: how to stand on skates, move forward, stop confidently and—perhaps most importantly—fall safely.

The lesson can be added by selecting the “General Admission + Lesson” option when purchasing a ticket.

That makes the event unusually approachable for adults who have not worn skates since childhood, children trying them for the first time or anyone whose memories of roller skating involve more time clutching the wall than cruising around the rink.

Once the lesson ends, participants can stay for the entire five-hour open-skate session and put their new skills to work.

September 13 is only the beginning of a packed fall schedule.

Additional Sunday sessions are scheduled for September 20 and 27; October 4, 11, 18 and 25; November 1 and 22; and December 27. Tacoma Arts Live has also added special Monday and Tuesday sessions on December 28 and 29.

Most sessions run from 1 to 6 p.m., giving visitors enough flexibility to stop in for an hour or make an afternoon of it.

The recurring schedule could also give Tacoma something it has long lacked: a regular all-ages indoor roller-skating destination. The city has no shortage of people who skate outdoors when the weather cooperates, but finding a large, smooth and dry floor becomes considerably harder once the Northwest rain returns.

Inside the Armory, neither rain nor chilly temperatures will interfere.

Whether you can skate backward, remember just enough to remain upright or have never strapped wheels to your feet, Sunday Open Skate offers a rare chance to roll through one of Tacoma’s most memorable buildings.

Just don’t forget the part about learning how to stop.

📍 Where: Tacoma Armory, 1001 South Yakima Avenue
📅 Next session: Sunday, September 13
🕐 Open skating: 1–6 p.m.
🛼 Beginner lesson: 12:30 p.m.
🎟️ Admission: $15.41, including online fees
👟 Skate rentals: $5 for youth or adult skates
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Ages: All ages and skill levels

View the complete schedule and purchase tickets through Tacoma Arts Live here.