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Ice Hotels
by Lynne Hand
An ice hotel is a temporary hotel made up entirely of snow and sculpted blocks of ice and therefore an example of novelty architecture. They are promoted by their sponsors and have special features for travelers who are interested in something a bit different and unusual. Their lobbies are often filled with ice sculptures, and food and beverages are specially chosen for the circumstances.
In Sweden
The Ice Hotel near the village of Jukkasjärvi, Kiruna, Sweden is the first and most famous of the ice hotels. In 1989, Japanese ice artists visited the area and created an exhibition of ice art. In Spring 1990, French artist Jannot Derid held an exhibition in a cylinder-shaped igloo in the area. One night there were no rooms available in the town, so some of the visitors asked for permission to spend the night in the exhibition hall. They slept in sleeping bags on top of reindeer skin - the first guests of the “hotel.”
Since its creation, the hotel has been featured in many television travel programmes, magazines, and newspapers. With the exception of the beds, the entire hotel is made completely out of ice blocks - even the glasses in the bar are made of ice. The ice is made from water taken from the Torne River. The hotel has more than 60 rooms and suites, a bar, reception area and chapel. It charges around 2,800 Swedish Krona (approx. 377 US dollars) per room per night. The hotel only exists between November and May. In its latest incarnation it will probably be over 5000 square metres (53,700 square feet) in size. The management boasts that each room is unique and that the architecture of the hotel is changed each year, as it is rebuilt from scratch.
Finland
The Mammut Snow Hotel is not an ice hotel per se as it is made entirely of snow. Many of its furnishings and its decorations, such as the ice sculptures, are made of ice. It is located within the walls of the SnowCastle of Kemi, which is the biggest snow castle in the world. It includes The Mammut Snow Hotel, The Castle Courtyard, The Snow Restaurant and a chapel for weddings, etc.
Norway
The Alta Igloo ice hotel has been rebuilt yearly since 2000. It is Europe’s northernmost ice hotel, as it is located in the Finnmark region and is approximately 250km from North Cape. The hotel has 30 rooms, including 2 suites. It has a size of 2000 square metres and it is decorated with numerous ice sculptures and ice furnishings, including lighting systems which enhance the different types of crystalline formations. Besides the bed rooms the Alta Igloo Hotel also contains an ice chapel, ice gallery and of course ice bar where drinks are served in glasses made of ice. The Alta Igloo Hotel has a changing theme every year. In 2004 it was the vikings, 2005 Norwegian fairytales and in 2006 the theme was wild animals of the region. The guests use sleeping bags that sit ontop of reindeer hides.
