Ice Hotels

The winter building at Jukkasjärvi is cut from the frozen Torne river and rebuilt for each season. It stands beside the village on the river bank in northern Sweden. Snow and ice arrive from the water a short walk away. The rooms are shaped by artists chosen for that season. When the thaw comes, the building returns to the river.

The operator also keeps a building that stays open through the year, with rooms held below freezing by mechanical cooling. Warm quarters, a reception and a restaurant sit apart from the cold halls. Guests sleep in the cold rooms on beds of ice under insulated bags, and wash and change in the heated parts of the site.

Ask the hotel directly about the winter season, since building and opening depend on ice conditions. Confirm what is open in the warmer months, and which parts of the site are heated. It is worth asking as well how the cold rooms are used before and after the season.

Hôtel de Glace is redesigned and built again each winter on a site outside Québec City. The plan changes from year to year, so returning guests meet a different layout. Ice and snow are worked into walls, vaults and furniture. It stands beside year-round buildings run by the same operator. The cold building is taken down when the season ends.

The cold halls hold guest rooms, a bar and public passages open to day visitors as well. Heated buildings nearby carry reception, lockers and washrooms, so belongings and changing stay warm. Beds are set on ice bases and made up with insulated sleeping bags for the night. Day access and overnight stays use different parts of the plan.

Write ahead about the winter season and about which cold areas can be seen without staying the night. Ask what the neighbouring warm buildings include, and how arrival works on the day of a cold-room stay. Confirm what to bring for a night in the cold rooms.

SnowCastle of Kemi is raised from snow and ice each winter on the shore of the Bothnian Bay. The walls, the hotel rooms and the restaurant are built new for the season. Its outline changes from one winter to the next. Standing at the edge of town, it faces the frozen sea. Public parts of the castle are visited during the day as well.

The operator also keeps a separate snow building that stays open through the year with mechanical cooling. Warm service rooms sit beside the cold halls, and the restaurant serves within the snow walls. Sleeping rooms are kept below freezing, and bedding is arranged for cold nights. Warm changing rooms are used before and after a night in the snow.

Ask which building is open during your visit, as the seasonal castle and the year-round one differ. Check with the hotel about the winter season and about access for day visitors. It is worth confirming what a ticket to the site covers.

Arctic SnowHotel stands outside Rovaniemi and its snow rooms are built again each winter. Glass-roofed cabins stand on the same ground and are used through the colder months as well. Warm service buildings serve both kinds of room. Forest and a lake surround the site, a short drive from the town. The snow part is dismantled when it melts.

Guest rooms in the snow are held a little below freezing, and beds carry insulated bags. A restaurant, a sauna and changing rooms occupy heated buildings a short walk away. Ice sculpture work and a snow chapel appear on the site in some seasons. Both kinds of room are reached from the same central buildings.

Ask about the winter season before travelling, and about which parts of the site are heated. Confirm whether the glass cabins and the snow rooms are both available on your dates. Send requests about luggage storage and evening arrival in advance.