Before you the greatest in the world the hotel completely made of an ice and a snow. Modestly having begun with a single room, hotel for 15 years razrossia up to 5 thousand square meters. 30 thousand tons of a snow and 4 thousand tons of an ice receive for a season of 37 thousand visitors.

Village Jukkasjärvi is in the Swedish Lapland in 200 kilometers from Northern polar circle. The name of this settlement on the river Torne from language saami is translated, as " the Place of a meeting ". To village approximately 500 years. Long, dark, cold and snow winters here possible to entice only very much few tourists.

So it to this day also was, if tour agency Jukkas AB, from the middle 1970 offered to tourists descent to rafts, fishing, visiting of camp saami, driving on deers and dog upriazzkah, has not turned on " the Place of a meeting " attention.

The place was not bad entered in the new concept of the company, decided to emphasize active winter rest.

In 1989 Jukkasjärvi the Japanese artists specializing on sculptures from a snow and an ice have visited. Their visit has come to the end with an exhibition of " ice art " which has drawn to a small village attention.

In the spring 1990 it is direct on an ice Torne the Eskimo hut has been constructed of the hardened snow having the form of the cylinder.

Inside on the area of 60 square meters the art gallery which has amazed hundreds of visitors has opened. A showroom have there and then named Artic Hall.

And here once some visitors have expressed desire in this construction to stay the night. Though Artic Hall for this purpose has not been intended not so. Uleglis' they in sleeping bags on skins of deers — and next morning were in ecstasy: up to that it there was warmly and well.

Thus, in the same 1990 the concept of ice hotel — Icehotel was born. Firm Jukkas AB was renamed Icehotel AB, and its head Ingvi Bergkvist (Yngve Bergqvist) became the father-founder of a unusual complex.

Today here there are 85 premises. These are columned and exhibition halls (Iceart exhibition), restaurant and a bar (Absolut Icebar), a cinema (Icehotel cinema), shop, the church (Icechurch – for weddings and christening), theatre (Ice Globe Theatre) and, certainly, the hotel rooms, capable to contain from 1 up to 4 person.

The climate in Icehotel varies depending on temperature outside — within the limits of from 4 up to 9 degrees of Celsius below, clear business, zero. Yes, and in the street without ceremony there can be a minus 40.

" You sleep in a warm sleeping bag on the special bed constructed of a snow and an ice, on olen'ih skins. In the morning you wake up a cup of a hot drink lingonberry ".

There is this pleasure from $400 (double room) up to $800 (lux). Probably, in day.

It is necessary to add, that all visitors Icehotel provides with warm outer clothing (a cap, mittens, boots), and also a snowmobile.

About the prices for various services, the cultural program and to that similar any interested person will easily find details on a site of hotel.

It would be desirable to tell about other. One of highlights Icehotel that every year tourists come actually to new hotel – 15 years it build up all anew — no more than 300 person has time to visit each of rooms before their self-destruction.

The matter is that in April the hotel starts to show, than it is actually — all attributes of that it is constructed of the frozen river water.

First water drips from a ceiling, and then already all constructions start to thaw and flow down to Torne. In the summer in the river last snow and an ice leaves.

However, no, all thaws not. Within March and April employees of hotel collect approximately 3 thousand tons of an ice and store their Center of art (Icehotel Art Center) — a huge deep-freezer the area of 1,5 thousand square meters. If to not make stocks, in November Icehotel to restore to the full it will not be possible.

" When in the end dawn the river freezes, we start to collect the frozen water molecules, taking some tons of absolutely transparent blocks of an ice, — the owner of hotel Ingvi Bergkvist, by the way, tells opened branch of hotel in Canada.

Construction new Icehotel every year demands enormous quantities of an ice. But the river generously shares with us. Each forty seconds the volume equivalent Icehotel, passes at my window in an eternal stream of pure, new and absolutely transparent water ".

In the end of October about 30 local artists, sculptors and builders begin work. Snow guns, loaders and other technics helps to disband a snow on steel arch sekciiam which then amplify ice columns and blocks (the some people 2 tons) weigh almost. Then — internal furnish which comes to the end before the beginning of a season.

Official opening of ice hotel is necessary on the middle of December. Usually it occurs 11 numbers. And to reserve to itself places it is possible at any time year. If they, certainly, will be.

Yes, the majority of people spends in Icehotel two day. Once spend the night in ice izbushke, and then — in the usual hotel located a stone's throw away. It is considered " a correct combination of an adventure and comfort ".