Dundonald International Ice Bowl — Attraction in Ballyhanwood

Would give 0 stars if possible. I am DISGUSTED with the customer service here. I first of all went to the Ice skating and took a snowman helper as i couldnt skate. I was in the middle of the rink and a member of staff came and pulled it off me saying, 'you're too tall' he then proceeded to do the same to my 10 year old sister who then began to cry and hyperventilate because of her fear of falling. I asked for it back and was told i couldnt. I then asked for a refund, saying we had been body shamed for being too tall. Staff at the checkout were pointing and laughing at us which added to the humiliation more. The manager came out and told us we couldnt have a refund after being told we could because we were there for more than 15 minutes but we were waiting longer than that for them to serve us for our refund. I then asked if there was anything else to do and she said only bowling which i dislike! I went anyway as i had paid for the ice rink which was more expensive than bowling so i was getting something out of it. I went to the bowling and was immediately greeted with blasting loud music which gave me a headache and i couldnt even hear the person beside me speak. I went to the staff member at the till and said, "could you please turn down the music" and she said, " No. Its extreme DJ day" and then she said, " but i can place you in a pane further down." i looked around and all the lanes except the ones near us were full and i said, " i think they are all full" she then said while shaling her head in a sassy gesture, "no they are not so drop the attitude and come to speak with me when you do." This was a young woman of around 20 with long brown hair. I was appauled and will mot be spoken to like a child so i said nothing and walked away. At the end of my very loud bowling experience, i went to the desk and asked another staff member for the girl's name and was told to ask her myself. The girl saw me and took off the badge she was wearing which had the first three letters 'che'. I asked her what her name was and she said, " im not telling you. I didnt bring my badge today." And i said, "i saw you with it a minute ago" i was made to feel stupid. I then said, " why wont you give me your name? Is it because you know youve been rude to customers and will most likely get reported" she said , " i dont care." And then i left and the manager came and stuck up for the girl saying she doesnt have to show me her name and i said, " then why was she wearing a name badge. The girl told the manager i took photos of her and i showed the manager i had not i was simply holding my phone looking up the customer service policy. The manager then told me she would have a word with the girl. I will never return with my family or friends again. We are mortified to be discriminated against and called liars and i would like you to add to your customer service policy which already states that staff should always be friendly and willing to help that you must never use attitude...

Don't bring your children on a Saturday morning unless you are all very confident skaters. Or maybe at all, I don't know how it is for the rest of the week.

Really not a suitable environment, no safety advice given and penguins etc are not guaranteed, it's everyone for themselves and staff members are reluctant to provide any assistance.

Visited with 4 year old (her first skating experience, I had tried skating a handful of times years before).

Due to having little experience and having to skate slowly beside her while she found her feet I found I needed to stay close to the edge.

Due to skating lessons, a rude staff member kept harassing me and sending me with my frightened 4 year old into the middle of the ice rink. Apparently there was no other option as we couldn't go through the lesson (which by the way was very poorly signed) and it was forbidden to turn back instead of carrying on in the, also unsigned, one way system. The staff member was rude and unhelpful and really spoiled the experience for both of us before reluctantly offering very minimal assistance (after about 5 solid minutes of argy bargy he went to get me something to hold on to. I get the impression if I hadn't stood my ground he would have been content to send me and my 4 year old to our doom leaving us alone to cross the middle of the ice rink unaided).

He was a complete power tripper and should not be in that role if he does not understand his role in contributing to safety, has no idea how to communicate politely with customers, and no understanding of what it means to be inexperienced on the ice while in charge of a nervous child who is hoping to enjoy the experience.

It was hard to hear each other anyway because of the incredibly loud music.

Really not an environment you should be put into unless you're a confident skater, have no young children with you, (and don't mind just about everyone being rude and unhelpful).

The receptionist did not seem to be able to understand my complaint and called the manager who sensibly continued hiding while someone else came down and, not seeming particularly surprised, offered free bowling. This did somewhat salvage the morning but really didn't make up for a truly awful experience of ice skating. There are other bowling alleys and honestly my advice is AVOID this place. Especially if you are hoping...

Myself and my daughter went ice skating last week. The staff at the counter were friendly. The first pair of skates I got were very blunt. Wouldn't even grip the ice. I went back to ask for another pair and the guy said because they were so busy they had all had a lot of use. Surely there should be someone there sharpening them if they know it's going to be busy? The second pair were slightly better but not the best. My daughter has only been a few times and this has been over the course of 3 years. So she was very nervous. There were plenty of snowmen around despite it being busy. She really needed support to help her around. She had nearly pulled me down from going round on her own. She did get to use it for a while until a young guy with glasses came over and rudely pulled it out of her hands. All I saw was a hand signal from him. He didn't even help her over to the side and just left her standing in the middle of the ice with people flying past her. She nearly burst into tears. She's shy and sensitive. I honestly couldn't believe it. Thankfully I was near and I helped her over to the wall. It really knocked her confidence too. I was even more annoyed when I saw he was letting 2 women with handbags on,(I thought you aren't allowed to wear bags), use the snowmen. I watched and he did look at them but never went over and took them. I went over at the end when I saw him and said the way he had treated my daughter was ridiculous and yet he lets 2 women continue to use them. He said he told my daughter she was too tall but I never heard him say that or see his mouth move. Only the hand signal. I said it was the way he just grabbed it from her and left her standing there was absolutely ridiculous. He denied seeing the women but I had seen him looking at them and doing nothing. Dreadful attitude and lack of...