Ice hotels are for those adventurer travelers who are interested in novelties and unusual environment. A temporary hotel made up of snow and sculpted blocks of ice is known as ice hotel. Ice hotels are dependent on subfreezing temperatures and typically have to be rebuilt every year. Several countries have ice hotels with varying constructions styles. Many ice hotels offer services and amenities like ice bars, restaurants, saunas, hot tubs and chapels.
Visitors have to be ready to sleep in beds made of snow or ice. Of course they will sleep in the warmth of furs, blankets and sleeping bags designed to withstand extremely cold temperatures. Lobbies of ice hotels are often filled with ice sculptures. Imaging you sitting on a bench made of ice, drinking from a glass also made of ice, nothing can compare to this thrill.
Contents
10 Most Fascinating Ice Hotels:
Ice hotel prices are pretty high and you simply cannot arrive there asking for rooms either. Ice hotel booking has to be made beforehand, in some cases up to a year in advance. So select one of the ice hotels from below and plan a cool ice hotel holidays.
10. Snow Village Hotel Kittila
A magical world of ice and snow situated high above the Polar Circle, 20 minutes’ drive from Ylläs is Snow Village. This awesome ice hotel is located in Finland 45km away from Levi. This exceptional hotel offers rooms made of ice, 2 restaurants and many organized activities such as ice fishing, dog sledding trips and snowmobile and reindeer safaris. The rooms feature sculpted ice furniture, and some also have ice and snow decorations.
The heated indoor Log Restaurant serves a large breakfast buffet as well as Lapland cuisine for lunch and dinner. Guest can have a dinner in the Ice Bar, enjoy the igloo disco or they can just marvel at the wonderful sculpture art all around the area. Guest can even enjoy a sauna. Snow Village Hotel Kittila is one of the most breathtaking ice hotels in the world.
9. Hoshino Resort Tomamu The Tower
Among the ice hotels in the world, Hoshino Resort Tomamu the Tower is unique in its own right. This awesome ice hotel is situated within the picturesque countryside of Shimukappu. The Alpha Resort Tomamu in Japan features its own ice village and the Tower offers comfortable accommodation and a wide range of facilities designed to suit the requirements of any traveler. Everything from dining room, bedroom to bathroom are all made out of ice.
Even dinner is served on an ice plate. Pets are also welcome. Of course it doesn’t come cheap, but then again ice hotel prices are almost always high. Guest will have to pay about 50,000 yen ($603) a night, which is two and a half times as much as comparable room elsewhere in the resort. But the experience of spending a night in one of the fascinating ice hotels has to be counted too.
8. Snow Village Canada
The Snow Village Canada is located on St. Helen’s Island about 5 km (3 miles) from the city center of Montreal. It is one of the most fascinating ice hotels of the world as the hotel reproduces a different major city out of ice and snow and the buildings are colorfully lit at night each year.
The rooms and igloos at Snow Village are made completely of ice. Ice, a wood frame, and a mattress made up the beds of the hotel. To keep warm at night, a thermal sleeping bag is provided. Guests can relax in one of the hot tubs or get a drink in an ice glass at The Kube Ice Bar. Snow village is one of the more fascinating ice hotels of the world.
7. Igloo Village Kakslauttanen
The Igloo Village Kakslauttanen is located high up above the Arctic Circle in Finnish Lapland. It offers accommodation in glass and snow igloos and also features the largest smoke sauna in the world. Including 2 in a traditional Laplander hut, there are 4 restaurants in the Igloo Village. Laplander specialties are served in each restaurant such as reindeer and char-grilled salmon.
Even the hotel’s smoke sauna has its own restaurant. Guests can try thrilling winter safaris by reindeer, husky and snowmobile or take part in a snow rally during their stay. Guests can also rent cross-country skis, Nordic walking sticks and snow shoes. Indulge yourself with the awesome view of Northern light from a Laplander hut. It is truly one of the best ice hotels in the world.
6. Balea Ice Hotel
Balea Ice Hotel is the only hotel of ice in Romania and Eastern Europe and is made of the ice blocks from Balea Lake. This beautiful ice hotel is situated at 2,000 meters above sea level in the Faragas Mountain. The hotel is rebuilt every year with a new design using ice bricks from the nearby Balea Lake. Rooms here feature hand-carved ice beds with comfortable mattress covered with bed-sheets and soft furs. Blankets are made of reindeer fur and thermal blankets are provided. Guests will also be provided with a sleeping bag for the night.
Ice Hotel Balea also offers a restaurant that serves international food. Drinks are served in glasses made of ice at the bar. There is an Ice Church next to the hotel. As one of the best ice hotels, the Balea Ice Hotel also feature activities like Snow-shoeing, ice skating, ice sculpting, snow mobile and sledging.
5. Snow Hotel
Snow Hotel is part of the Snow Castle of Kemi in Finland; the Snow Castle is the biggest snow fort in the world, and one of the most fascinating ice hotels of the world. Made entirely out of ice and snow, all rooms at Hotel Snow feature beds covered with lamb skin and sleeping bags with fleece interiors. Breathtaking ice carvings decorate some rooms.
As one of the exceptional ice hotels, Snow Hotel features the Snow Castle, the Snow Chapel for weddings, several sculptures with light effects as well as the Gemstone Gallery and Snow Castle Exhibition. Since 1996 it is rebuilt every winter with a different design. Guests can choose different activities and experiences from the weekly program. There is also a gift shop located in the hotel.
4. Kirkenes Snowhotel
Another one of the fascinating ice hotels is the Kirkenes Snowhotel. Located outside the Arctic town of Kirkenes, the snow hotel offers unique accommodation. Opened in 2006 for the first time, the Kirkenes Snowhotel has provided its guests with a brilliant experience in one of Norways most striking surroundings. The hotel is rebuilt each winter and opens approximately at December 20. Exclusively built with ice and snow, the hotel also feature normal beds with mattresses for a healthy sleep comfort.
There are arctic themed snow suites available only in the winter and air-conditioned wooden cottages available year round. The snow suits feature intricate snow sculptures, thermal bedspreads and sleeping bags to keep guests warm at night. The cottages feature large windows with mountain views, lounge chairs covered with sheep skins and a private bathroom.
Next to the Snow hotel there is a heated service building and an exotic, heated Lavvo restaurant. Guests can enjoy activities such as husky rides, northern lights tours and snowmobiling in the winter. The region is known for hiking, fishing and king crab rafting during the summer. This is one of a kind place to spend ice hotel holidays.
3. Hotel de Glace
The first and only ice hotel in North America, the Hotel de Glace is located about 5 km (3 miles) north of Quebec City on the first slopes of the Laurentian Mountains. As one of the most fascinating ice hotels, it has welcomed over a million people around the world since its opening in 2001. Opens each year in early January, the Hotel de Glace has a three-month lifespan before being brought down in April.
The 51 double beds are made of ice and followed by a solid wood base and comfortable mattress. Only the bathrooms are heated and located in a separate insulated structure. As a tourist hotspot and one of the best ice hotels of the world, Hotel de Glace also feature a grand hall, a bar, a grand ice slide and a chapel where weddings are celebrated.
2. Alta Igloo Hotel
Located in Sorrisniva, about 25 minutes from Alta airport, the Alta Igloo Hotel is Norway’s largest and the northernmost ice hotel in the world. The Alta Igloo Hotel is made entirely from snow and ice every year and offers guests a unique experience in the far north of the country. Each room has reindeer leather sleeping pads and ultra-warm sleeping bags but with a constant temperature between -4 and -7 °C, guests are also encouraged to bring their own thermal under garments.
There are a sauna and 2 outdoor hot tubs for warming up and relaxation in the hotel. Artistic ice sculptures are on display throughout the hotel. Guests can enjoy snowmobile safaris and explore the surroundings or drinks at the ice bar served in glasses made of ice. It is truly one of the most wonderful ice hotels of the world.
1. Icehotel
Located in the tiny village of Jukkasjärvi in northern Sweden, the Icehotel was the world’s first ice hotel. The hotel has been rebuilt each year with snow and ice from December to April since its first opening in 1990. Including the chairs and beds, the hotel is constructed from snow and ice blocks taken from the nearby Torne River. As one of the most fascinating ice hotels in the world, artists are invited to create different rooms and decorations from ice every year.
There is also a bar with glasses made of ice and an ice chapel that is popular with marrying couples. The Icehotel is a place to discover silence, glistening snow clad forests, cloudberries, northern lights, reindeer, kettle coffee and much more. It is without a doubt one of the most fascinating ice hotels in the world.