Ice Hotels — four questions
An ice hotel is a building with a life of a few months. It is made from frozen water, it is raised again each winter, and it goes when the temperature does. The four questions ask where the material comes from, what decides the plan, and what stands around it. Hotels with one cold room or an ice bar do not qualify.
Four questions about buildings that are made again every winter.
11
Which hotel is cut from a river every winter?
Icehotel
Jukkasjärvi, Sweden
the short answer: Icehotel is cut from the Torne river. Blocks of ice are taken from the water and stored, then used to build the winter hotel at Jukkasjärvi, which has been raised again each season since 1989.
the long answer: Ice is harvested in spring, when the river ice is thick and clear, and kept in cold storage through the summer. In autumn the building goes up as snow sprayed over forms, with the stored blocks used for walls, art rooms and furniture. When spring returns the structure melts and the material goes back to the river it came from, which is why the hotel is never the same building twice.
what else is true: Rooms are shaped by artists who are chosen for each season, so the interiors change from year to year. There is also year-round accommodation on the site that is kept cold by other means. Sleeping in ice means a sleeping bag, warm layers and a heated building nearby for washing.
answer checked: February 2027
Icehotel, Jukkasjärvi: walls raised from Torne river ice.
12
Which hotel changes its story every season?
SnowVillage
Kittilä / Lainio, Finland
the short answer: SnowVillage changes its story every season. The Finnish Lapland site is built again each winter around a chosen theme, and the carved walls, rooms and bar follow whatever that theme is for the year.
the long answer: Because snow and ice have to be rebuilt annually, there is no reason to repeat the previous design, and the village treats that as the point. Sculptors work to a subject decided in advance, cutting scenes into the corridors and rooms. The result is a hotel that keeps its address and its materials while changing its interior completely, then disappears when the season ends.
what else is true: A theme means the visual material changes, not the conditions: the building stays near freezing whatever is carved into it. The village has stood at more than one location over the years, so an old article may describe a site that is no longer in use.
answer checked: February 2027
SnowVillage, Lainio: carved snow corridors rebuilt for a new season.
13
Which hotel is the only one of its kind on its continent?
Hôtel de Glace
Québec, Canada
the short answer: Hôtel de Glace is the only ice hotel in North America. It is built near Québec City for the winter, opens for a season of a few months, and is taken down when the temperature no longer holds it up.
the long answer: Ice hotels need a long, reliable freeze, and in North America few places have both that climate and enough visitors to justify the yearly rebuild. The Québec building is assembled from snow blown over arched forms and from ice used for walls, sculpture and furniture. Each season brings a new plan, so the layout of rooms and passages is drawn again before construction starts.
what else is true: Being the only one of its kind means demand is concentrated into a short season. Many people visit the building during the day without staying the night, so the public parts are busier than the sleeping areas. Warm accommodation stands nearby for guests who need it.
answer checked: February 2027
Hôtel de Glace, Québec: an arched hall built from snow and ice.
14
Which hotel raises a fortress out of snow?
SnowCastle of Kemi
Kemi, Finland
the short answer: SnowCastle of Kemi is built as a fortress. Walls, towers and gates of packed snow are raised each winter on the shore of the Gulf of Bothnia, and the castle holds a hotel, a restaurant and a chapel inside them.
the long answer: The castle has been rebuilt for winters since the mid-1990s, and its plan changes with each build, so the shape of the walls is not fixed from year to year. Snow is packed over forms to make thick load-bearing sections, while ice is used where light needs to pass or where a surface has to be smooth. The sea beside it freezes, which puts the fortress on a white plain rather than a beach.
what else is true: Weddings are held in the snow chapel, and the restaurant serves at tables cut from ice, so the site is used for more than sleeping. Kemi is a working port town, and an icebreaker moored there is a separate attraction that people often combine with a visit.
answer checked: February 2027
SnowCastle of Kemi: snow walls and towers above the frozen gulf.
The questions are ours; the answers come from published material and are written in our own words. Nothing here is a recommendation, and the month under an answer is when we last checked what it rests on.
