Who created the Icehotel?


Who created the Icehotel? Yngve Bergqvist, entrepreneur and founder of Icehotel, arrived at Jukkasjärvi for the first time in the mid-1970s. At that time it was the long spring-winters, which offered perfect surface for skiing that attracted him.


Why do people stay in ice hotels?

The visual stimulation you get inside the hotel is incredible, but the snow and ice also create experiences for other senses, too. Snow and ice absorb sound, so when in you're in your room at night, wrapped in the sleeping bag, you will experience absolute silence like none other.


What year was the first Icehotel built?

Every year when the winter comes, the pristine waters the meandering of Torne River slow down and freeze into ice. On one chilly day in 1989, the first ever Icehotel was hand-sculpted out of these massive ice blocks harvested from this very river running alongside.


How long can the Icehotel stay up?

They're not intended to be permanent. Most ice hotels are only open for a few months — December-January through March-April, depending on their location.


Is the Icehotel 100% ice?

Is the Hotel de Glace really made entirely of ice? Yes! Well, ice and snow. At the beginning of winter, a frame is constructed and snow packed on top; once frozen, the frame is removed.


Do ice hotels melt?

Every year, we borrow ice from the river to build a new, seasonal hotel of ice and snow, which eventually melts and returns back to its origin come spring. The basic idea of Icehotel is built on the premise of the environmental cycle, and our relation to the water and the ice is central.


When did Icehotel start?

Every year when the winter comes, the pristine waters the meandering of Torne River slow down and freeze into ice. On one chilly day in 1989, the first ever Icehotel was hand-sculpted out of these massive ice blocks harvested from this very river running alongside.


Do they rebuild the Icehotel every year?

An ice hotel is a temporary hotel made up of snow and sculpted blocks of ice. Ice hotels, dependent on sub-freezing temperatures, are constructed from ice and snow and typically have to be rebuilt every year.


Are there ice hotels in Antarctica?

These hotels are protected from the outside climate and feature ice-sculpture interiors and amazing lighting. The temperature is freezing inside, so bring thermal underwear. Better yet, warm up in the next-door sauna. Meet the only luxury accommodation in Antarctica.


What is the story of the Icehotel?

Every year, when Torne River turns to ice, a new Icehotel is created in the small village of Jukkasjärvi in the north of Sweden. The ice of the river transforms to design and architecture - an ephemeral art project and the world's first, and largest hotel built of snow and ice.