For those looking for a unique vacation, ice hotels are the latest trend sweeping the globe. Ice hotels are exactly what they sound like—hotels made of (or at least incorporating) ice. At the Hotel Kakslauttanen Igloo Village is in Saariselka, Finland, guests can opt for a glass or snow igloo. The hotel also features an ice sculpture gallery and offers sled rides.
Snow Village and Hotel de Glace are the most popular snow retreats in North America. Located in Montreal, guests of Snow Village can stay in ice suites or igloos, sip ice cocktails, and dine in an ice restaurant. Just outside of Quebec City, the Hotel de Glace is known for its snow art and tours that show how the snow buildings are made.
For a regal experience, The Snowcastle of Kemi in Kemi, Finland, is the place to go. It’s known not as a hotel, but as a “snow castle full of intricate ice sculptures and unique rooms. Like many of the other ice-centered retreats, this one is rebuilt every year for prime ice retreat season, but the Snowcastle is different in that it is built with a different, unique design each year.
Other hotels centered around ice are the Eskimska Vas (Eskimo Village) in Slovenia, Snow Village in Finland, Kirkenes Snowhotel in Norway, and Icehotel in Sweden. While staying at an ice hotel is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, it doesn’t come cheap. Rooms/igloos can range from $300 all the way up to several thousand dollars per night.