Skip to content
Greensmagic

Ice Hotels

Four northern sites where guests sleep in structures made of snow and ice. Such buildings stand for one winter and are raised again from scratch the following year; exact opening and closing dates are set by each operator and are not promised here. Where an operator also keeps heated buildings, this is stated in the entry.

A snow structure at blue hour on a frozen northern shore

Arctic SnowHotel

Rovaniemi, Finland

A carved snow corridor leading to sleeping chambers in Finnish Lapland

Arctic SnowHotel stands by Lake Lehtojärvi at Sinettä, west of Rovaniemi in Finnish Lapland. The snow building is raised again each winter and taken down when it melts, so nothing of one season survives into the next. Heated glass igloos stand on the same site, and those are not snow rooms. The site lies a drive of some distance from the city, through forest and past small lakes.

Sleeping chambers, a chapel, a bar and a restaurant are cut from snow and ice each season, carved to a theme chosen that year. Beds are ice bases with insulated mats and expedition bags. Warm service buildings hold showers, saunas and lockers, and the glass igloos have heating and private bathrooms.

Ask the property for the dates of the winter season before you book anything else, since they are set afresh each year. Confirm what is provided for the night, where luggage is kept, and which parts of the site are heated. Ask too whether transfers from Rovaniemi are arranged by the property.

  • CategoryIce Hotels
  • LocationRovaniemi, Finland
  • CheckedSeptember 2026

SnowCastle of Kemi

Kemi, Finland

Packed snow vaults and carved ice seating beside the Bay of Bothnia

The SnowCastle stands on the shore of the Bay of Bothnia at Kemi, in northern Finland. Its snow chambers, snow café and carved work belong to the winter season alone and are built again from scratch each year. The operator also keeps a permanent building on the same site that stays open far beyond winter.

Walls and vaults are packed snow, with ice used for windows, seating and sculpture. Snow chambers hold ice beds, mats and cold-weather bags, and washing is done in heated buildings nearby. Glass villas by the water are ordinary heated accommodation and are let outside the winter months as well. A restaurant in the permanent building serves guests of both kinds of accommodation.

Because the seasonal and the permanent parts differ, write and confirm which building your booking covers. Ask for this season's opening and closing dates, and for what the property supplies against the cold, rather than assuming that last season's arrangements still hold.

  • CategoryIce Hotels
  • LocationKemi, Finland
  • CheckedSeptember 2026

Snowhotel Kirkenes

Kirkenes, Norway

Ice sculpture and reindeer hides in a frozen sleeping chamber in northern Norway

Snowhotel Kirkenes lies at Kirkenes in the far north-east of Norway, close to the Russian border. Unlike most snow buildings, this one is kept frozen and open in every month, with fresh snow and ice worked in as it is needed. That is particular to this operator, and it is not the rule elsewhere in this section.

Chambers are carved and set with ice sculpture, and beds carry reindeer hides over insulated mats and expedition bags. Guests wash and change in heated service buildings and eat in a warm restaurant. Heated cabins stand on the same site for anyone who would rather not sleep in the cold.

Ask whether the snow chambers or the heated cabins are being sold for your dates, since availability differs through the seasons. It is also worth confirming what warm clothing is lent, how luggage is stored, and how transfers from the airport are arranged.

  • CategoryIce Hotels
  • LocationKirkenes, Norway
  • CheckedSeptember 2026

Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort

Saariselkä, Finland

Snow igloos and heated glass igloos standing apart among northern forest

Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort spreads through forest near Saariselkä, in the Finnish part of Lapland. Two kinds of igloo stand on the same ground and are easily confused. The snow igloos are cut from snow, belong to the winter season and are rebuilt each year; the glass igloos are heated buildings with beds and bathrooms. The forest around is quiet and the site is spread out.

Beyond the igloos the site holds log cabins, restaurants, saunas and a snow chapel. Snow chambers are kept at a steady temperature below freezing, and guests sleep in insulated bags on mats over an ice base. Washing and changing take place in warm buildings a short walk away. Paths between the parts of the site are cleared through the season.

State which kind of igloo you mean when you write, because the two make entirely different nights. Ask for the winter season's dates, for what bedding and clothing are provided, and how far the warm buildings stand from where you will be sleeping.

  • CategoryIce Hotels
  • LocationSaariselkä, Finland
  • CheckedSeptember 2026

This site is an independent reference and sells nothing. Snow and ice buildings exist for the winter season and are rebuilt every year, and their dates are set by the operator, so ask before you travel. We are not affiliated with any hotel named here, take no bookings and cannot confirm availability.