Top 10 coolest ice hotels in the world

Monday newsletters always feature top 10 travel lists to inspire.

Today: Top 10 coolest ice & snow hotels in the world

If you are looking for an awesome adventure this winter to embrace the cold instead of escaping it, why not book a stay in an igloo for a night in one of the coldest climates on earth? Since the first ice hotel popped up in northern Sweden more than 30 years ago, its concept has been copied in several other winter destinations. The idea is always the same: structures ranging from intimate hotels to huge villages and even castles are rebuilt (and redesigned) each winter, mixing tons of snow and ice blocks with delightful amenities and unique designs. I hereby share with you the 10 coolest ice and snow hotels around the globe that will provide a memory for a lifetime.

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10. SORRISNIVA IGLOO HOTEL, NORWAY

Since 1999, a new ice hotel is yearly built in Norway’s Sorrisniva, a settlement located on the banks of the Alta River. The Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel was the first one of its kind in Norway and the second in the world to make a hotel entirely of snow and ice, and to day remains Europe’s largest and the world’s northernmost ice hotel. The property started with six bedrooms but has grown since then to be a hotel with 26 bedrooms, 4 decorated suites, an ice chapel, ice bar and a lot of art work. The shapes of the hotel are made step by step, and all together it takes about five weeks of hard work to get it all ready. Guests stay in one of the igloo’s decorated ice rooms or sleep under the stars in a ‘lavvo’ (a teepee-like tent of the Sapmi people of Norway).

• Hotel website: Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel

9. ARTCIC SNOWHOTEL, ROVANIEMI, FINLAND

The Arctic SnowHotel in Rovaniemi, Finland, is open to visitors and overnight guests from December 15th to March 31st. The hotel is fully-functioning 30-room igloo that’s built afresh each winter using ice from the nearby Lake Lehtojärvi. Guests can choose to experience a memorable night in the snow and ice hotel, surrounded by stunning snow artwork, or in a glass igloo under the mesmerizing Northern Lights. The accommodation in glass igloos and several snow and ice experiences are available to visitors starting as early as September 1st. Whether you’re drawn by the Northern Lights or eager to indulge in unique offerings such as a snow sauna, drink from an ice glass, or a 3 course dinner at an ice restaurant, you are welcome to visit the property for a day or extend your stay overnight.

• ​Hotel website: Arctic SnowHotel

8. KIRKENES SNOWHOTEL, NORWAY

Kirkenes Snowhotel opened for the first time in 2006, offering its guests a wonderful experience in one of Norway’s most beautiful surroundings. Every room in Kirkenes Snowhotel is like a small treasure, uniquely decorated by artists from around the world, and featuring a different theme from the Arctic culture or nature. The lighted ice sculptures give the Snowhotel a very cosy and special atmosphere. The hotel also offer warm cabins, inspired by the traditional hunting and fishing hut – the so-called ‘gamme’ – that you find in the wilderness in the Sami areas of the Arctic. The huts are developed along with architects from Switzerland and are equipped with air conditioning, underfloor heating, natural tiles, an exclusive bathroom with a separate aurora wall.

• ​Hotel website: Kirkenes Snowhotel

7. SCHNEEDORF IGLOO, ÖTZTAL, AUSTRIA

Austria’s first igloo village is located s at 2000 m (6,500 ft) above sea level in the Ötztal, offering guaranteed snow and constant accessibility. What looks like huge mounds of snow with a few protruding peaks from the outside turns out to be a marvellous world of ice and snow on the inside. This extraordinary ‘ice hotel’ is made entirely of snow and ice and is rebuilt every year. Snow sculptors create fascinating works of art on the walls and ceilings of the igloos. Thanks to its central location in the middle of the Hochötz ski region, you can witness a fascinating spectacle. After the lifts close, peace and quiet slowly but surely returns. The hectic ski hustle and bustle shifts towards the valley, the sun sinks behind the Lechtal Alps and silence and darkness gently descend over the snow-covered landscape. The mountain belongs to itself again… …except for a few snow villagers.

• Hotel website: Schneedorf Igloo

6. ICE VILLAGE TOMAMU, HOKKAIDO, JAPAN

The Ice Village Tomamu is a lodging experience in a fantasy world surrounded by ice on Japan’s northern most island, Hokkaidō. The dome of the hotel is approximately 8.5 m (28 ft) in diameter and 3.5 m (11.5 ft) high, and is made from a single piece of seamless ice. The dome’s ceiling, walls, and furniture are all made of ice, and there is even an “Ice Open-Air Bath” outside, but the hotel provides sleeping bags designed for cold climates, so guests can keep warm and sleep comfortably until morning. In 2025, the “Ice Terrace” will make its debut, where you can spend the night under the softly illuminated birch trees, enjoying the warm light of lanterns. Through a one-night, two-day stay in this tranquil setting, guests of the Ice Village can fully immerse thelmselves in the enchanting world of ice.

• Hotel website: Ice Village Tomamu

5. SNOWVILLAGE, KITTILA, FINLAND

Each year, around 20 million kilos of snow and 350 000 kilos of crystal clear natural ice are used to build the spectacular SnowVillage which changes in shape, size and design to amaze visitors year after year. Located in the Western part of Finnish Lapland, the SnowVillage’s hotel offers 30 snow rooms and suites amid a vast network of striking corridors full of spectacular snow and ice art to explore. Here, you can spend a cosy night, a delicious dinner in the spectacular ice restaurant and the coolest drinks served “on the rocks” from the ice bar. Or, simply visit to marvel the vast corridors packed with snow rooms and snow and ice sculptures that are just waiting to be explored. 

• Hotel website: SnowVillage

4. HOTEL OF ICE BALEA LAKE, ROMANIA

Since 2005, in the heart of the Făgăraş Mountains, the most distinguished hotel of Romania – the Hotel of Ice Balea Lake – is built every winter. The hotel is fully snow-covered and constructed with ice blocks extracted from the largest glacier lake of the Fagaras Mountains, Bâlea Lake. In less than a month, ice artists and craftsmen manage to raise a home for winter lovers, and their work is rewarded by visiting tourists, with over 8,000 guests annually. The hotel has 14 double rooms with king size bed. Next to the hotel, for those who want more privacy, there are 6 igloos, each with double bed. The beds are constructed of large blocks of ice. The decor is entirely of ice and it is different in each room, from year to year, depending on the season theme.

• Hotel website: Hotel of Ice Balea Lake

3. HÔTEL DE GLACE, QUEBEC CITY, CANADA

Located only 4 km (2,5 mi) from the north end of Québec City, the Hôtel de Glace is a must-see attraction that has seduced over a million people around the world with its unique style and spellbinding deco since its opening in 2001. It’s a stunning yet ephemeral work of art and architecture entirely built of snow and ice and modeled after Sweden’s original icehotel (cf below). Every winter, this unique hotel is completely redesigned and rebuilt, offering an unforgettable experience in the only hotel of its kind in North America. Guests can choose to enjoy a cocktail served in a glass made of ice or spend the night in one of the 44 theme rooms and suites and relax in the outdoor hot tubs and sauna.

• Hotel website: Hôtel de Glace

2. IGLU-DORF HOTEL, GSTAAD, SWITZERLAND

The Iglu-Dorf Gstaad sits 2,000 m (6,500 ft) above sea level in the beautiful Bernese Oberland. International artists decorate the iglo rooms with great attention to detail, creating magical new worlds of snow and ice every year. The room categories range from shared rooms for families, friends and groups to a romantic igloo, with private toilet if desired, up to the exclusive suite with private hot tub. Guests can enjoy a regional cheese fondue and join the camp’s guides on a nocturnal snowshoe hike through the snow-covered mountains. During a day trip you can learn how to build an igloo or you can be an artist yourself during a snow sculpture construction introductory lesson. In addition, the Iglu-Dorf Gstaad offers a wellness area with a sauna and whirlpool as well as a heated barbecue hut with a cosy fireplace.

• Hotel website: Iglu-Dorf Hotel Gstaad

1. ICEHOTEL, JUKKASJÄRVI, SWEDEN

Icehotel is a world-famous hotel and an art exhibition made of ice and snow from the Torne Rover, the largest of Sweden’s four national rivers. Founded in 1989, it is reborn in a new guise every winter, in the Swedish village of Jukkasjärvi – 200 km (125 mi) north of the Arctic Circle. When the first snow has sprinkled the whole of Jukkasjärvi with white, artists from all over the world come together in the village to take part in creating the art exhibition of snow, ice and light that makes up Icehotel. Creating a setting for life-enriching moments, it is a place to discover silence, northern lights, glistening snow-clad forests, reindeer, cloudberries, kettle coffee and much more.

• Hotel website: Icehotel