::Sweden::The Ice Hotel - Lapland
Experience the extraordinary, unique and glistening ice Hotel at Jukkasjarvi deep in the heart of Swedish Lapland. Enjoy traditional cuisine; the absolute bar; snowmobile, reindeer and husky safaris for a thrilling holiday with a difference.

Each December, using the skills of several different Scandanavian ice sculptures, the celebrated Ice Hotel is crafted from 30,000 tonnes of snow and 3,000 tonnes of ice cut from the river Torne. The entire structure melts away each spring. Each year's design differs from that before, the final detail beiong revealed when the last ice block is in place and the bedroom finished.

The hotel consists of Absolut Ice Bar, cinema, amphitheatre, art gallery, consecrated chapel, and several bedrooms (no two of which are the same). Guests sleep in special thermal arctic sleeping bags on ice beds topped with reindeer skins.

The wider complex also includesJukkaskarvi Inn, where most meals are served, and 30 log cottages, 10 with two bedrooms (each with 2 bunk beds), kitchenette/living-room area, shower and wc and 20 'Aurora' cottages. The latter have 1 double and 1 single bedroom, with skylights through which, if lucky, you can view the Northern Lights from the comfort of your own bed.

Lapland Winter activities 2002/2003
You can take part in several adventures when You are in Jukkasjärvi! The coming winter we offer the following snowmobile safaris, dogsled tours, and Sami cultural events for You to try. We recommend You to book tours latest 3 weeks prior to arrival since they tend to fill up.

Snowmobile safari 1,5 hour. Guided tour, 2 persons per snowmobile. You will receive a short driving lesson before the tour begins. A tour for You who have never driven a snowmobile before but definitely want to try! Daily: 3:00 pm - 4:30 pm. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Snow-mobile from Kiruna airport to Jukkasjärvi Our guide meets You upon arrival to Kiruna Airport, separate luggage transportation to Ice hotel is included, as is warm outer clothing for the snowmobile tour. You will have a sandwich & something to drink either before You set off, or en route. Daily: upon flight arrival, minimum 4 persons. Time: 1½ hour

Snowmobile tour 3 hours with lunch. Guided snowmobile tour during the afternoon with lunch in the traditional Sami tent in the wilderness. The lunch consists of smoked reindeer meat served in bread with vegetables and dressing, ham/cheese sandwich, blueberry cake and coffee/tea as well as lingonberry juice for the meal. Departure: 11:00 am - 2:00 pm Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Wilderness Snowmobile tour 5 hours with lunch. Guided extra long snowmobile tour in the wilderness area around Jukkasjärvi primeval forests, with traditional wilderness lunch. The lunch consists of smoked reindeer meat served with bread, salmon soup with herbal aioli, lingonberry cake and coffee/tea as well as lingonberry juice for the meal. Departure: 9:00 am - 2:00 pm Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure. Price: SEK 1195 2/p snowmobile

Northern Lights snowmobile tour with Dinner 3,5 hours. Guided snowmobile tour in search of the Northern Lights. Evening Dinner included with: sandwich with smoked salmon, traditional moose soup, coffee/tea and apple cake with warm vanilla sauce, and lingonberry juice for the meal. Slide show about "aurora borealis" as well as interesting information on these Northern lights. Departure: 6:00 pm - 9:30 pm Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Snowmobile and reindeer safari in Jukkasjärvi 3,5 hours. Snowmobile tour of about 45 minutes to the Sami camp in Jukkasjärvi. You are invited to sit down in the sledge and try to drive the reindeers and hear about the Sami culture, our indigenous people. Sami meal included in their tent, consisting of traditional reindeer soup (Biidos), home-baked bread (rieska) with butter, juice to drink. Coffee/tea. Departure: 6:00 pm - 9:30 pm Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Overnight snowmobile tour to Lappeasuando Wilderness camp Snowmobile tour to Lappeasuando wilderness camp for a night in the wild. The safari is about 95 kilometres, total driving length. You will drive in total wilderness passing only the small village of Svappavara. Together with skilled and experienced guides, this is truly a trip you will never forget! Sleeping bags and sauna/towels included in the overnight stay. Your dinner in the wilderness restaurant consists of a main course buffet with a dessert. The menu varies from season to season, but is always consisting of the best from the region. The wilderness restaurant is fully licensed for those who enjoy a good wine with the dinner or a cold beer in the sauna. The guides serve a hearty wilderness breakfast the next morning. And en route of the safari there will also be a stop for a wilderness snack around the open fire right in the middle of "nowhere". We recommend you to drive 1/person per snowmobile due to the length of the safari.

Departures:
Fridays: 2:00 pm
Saturdays: 4:00 pm
Friday dep: Starting Jukkasjärvi Day 1 2:00 pm ending Jukkasjärvi day 2 10:30 am
Saturday dep: Starting Jukkasjärvi Day 1 4:00 pm ending Jukkasjärvi day 2 1:30 pm. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.
Notes: Please ask for detail itinerary for more details of this safari. In extreme cases when the temperature drops below - 25 Celsius, we reserve the right to change the length and the route of this safari. Min 2 pers, max 39 pers, ideal 21 pers.

Dogsled tour 13 kilometres. There are more dogs than people in Jukkasjärvi and surroundings! You seat Yourselves comfortably on the dogsled, a quick pull and then You are off. A short stop for coffee boiled over open fire and cake. Driving length 13 kilometres, approximately 1,5 hours.
Daily at: 9:30 am - 11:00 am and 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm.
Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Dogsled tour with lunch 28 kilometres. There are more dogs than people in Jukkasjärvi and surroundings! You seat Yourselves comfortably on the dogsled, a quick pull and then You are off. This trip also includes a traditional lunch, served outside in the wilderness or inside a house depending on the temperature and other weather conditions. Total driving length 28 kilometres, approximately 4 hours.
Daily at: 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.
Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure.

Ráidu - Reindeer sleds in Sami camp. Traditional tour to a Sami camp in the outskirts of the village of Jukkasjärvi, where You will have a glimpse into the rich Sami culture and also will learn how to drive with a reindeer and sledge. You eat a traditional Sami meal in the "Lavvo" tent by the open fire, before it is time to set off back towards Jukkasjärvi. Daily: 9:30 am - 2:00 pm. Assembly 15 minutes prior to departure

Frequently Asked Questions ICEHOTEL®

1. Where is Icehotel? How do I get there? On the banks of the Torne River 200 km north of the Arctic Circle, lies the little village Jukkasjärvi and Icehotel. Jukkasjärvi is located 12 km from Kiruna airport and 17 km from Kiruna train station. Mondays-Fridays there are local buses from Kiruna bus station, not on weekends. Transfer from Kiruna airport or tågstation can be booked through our Reservations Department at a cost of SEK 90 per person one-way.

2. When does Icehotel open for the winter? We accept reservations all year round for our winter season which starts in the middle of December. This winter season 2001/2002 we opened on 13th December for overnight stays.

3. When does Icehotel close in springtime? We are in the hands of the weather gods when it comes to the durability of Icehotel. From experience we know that sometime at the end of April we must close due to the roof dripping. From around the 20 April Icehotel starts to show signs of actually being, like it is, built of frozen river water. Then it melts down into the river, and the week of Midsummer Celebration (2 months later) the last drift of snow usually trickles into the Torne River.

4. For how many years has there been an Icehotel? The winter of 2001/2002 was our twelfth Icehotel. This means that we are the first to master the construction of snow and ice in this way here in Jukkasjärvi.

5. Are the bedrooms at below zero temperature? Absolutely! Around -5 degrees Celsius is the indoor temperature in Icehotel. If outdoor temperature falls below -30, then it may be -8 inside, but not colder!

6. Can I really sleep well in Icehotel? Of course. All overnight guests at Icehotel have a guided tour upon check-in either at 2 pm or 5 pm - whichever suits You best. Then You will find out how to actually sleep well during the night. You can read more about this under Equipment.

7. How many nights do people stay? The Icehotel facility in Jukkasjärvi has, in addition to "cool" accommodation also warm accommodation: 4 bed cabins, Aurora houses and Kaamos hotel rooms. Ususally this means that for practical purposes, and to have the right mix of adventure and comfort, our guests stay one night in Icehotel proper and then a night or more in accommodation with private bathroom, luggage keeping etc. Most people stay at least 2 nights.

8. How big is Icehotel? Since Icehotel melts every spring, the exact number of rooms do vary a little. Icehotel spans over some 4 000 m2. The winter of 2001/2002, we had 64 rooms in total, including 18 ice suites and 2 Deluxe suites, where invited artists decorate each suite which are all unique and where all works of art melt in the springtime as does all of Icehotel!

9. Is the hotel always the same each winter? No, not at all. There is a new architecture each year as well as new art works and themes, ans also new artists from year to year.

10 . What kind of clothes should I bring? Icehotel offers warm outer clothing to all guests in the form of: snow-mobile overall, hat, mittens and winter boots. In addition to this it is very good to bring thermal underwear meaning long-johns and long-sleeved undershirt, woollen and fleece sweaters are very useful, scarf and Your own gloves/mittens are also good, as well as plenty of socks and woollen socks. And then Your tooth brush! Towels are available in the morning sauna houses and naturally in the warm accommodation, so You do not have to bring towels.

11. How are the toilets when sleeping in Icehotel? Ther are (believe it or not) warm, ordinary toilets in Icehotel. These are in a samll house which is incorporated into the Icehotel construction so You can step directly through a door from Icehotel into the warm and comfortable Ladies' and Gents' rooms.

12. Isn't it very dark in Jukkasjärvi in wintertime? The fact is that, even if we do not see the sun in the weeks of 50-52, and the daylight gradually returns after this, the snow reflects all the light there is. The starry skies are perfectly visible here, as are the northern lights. Icehotel itself is all white, there's light therapy for You! From the return of the sun one week into January we receive 1 more hour of daylight each and every week, until the Midnight sun att he end of May.

14. What do we do in the summertime? Icehotel melts down. The entire hotel literally trickles into the Torne River, to resurrect during November and December next winter, with a new architecture and new works of art. So You can come each winter and experience a new Icehotel. This means thast there are only 300 persons who have the time to spend the night in each room… then it melts.

What do we actually do in the summer, then? Well, we must stock ice from the Torne River for the coming winter. We harvest about 3000 tonnes of ice during March and April and stock it in "Icehotel Art Center" in order to be able to built with full force in November. Art Center is a gigantic freezer at 1500 m2 where a summer art exhibition is prepared with ice sculptures, ice bar, ice cinema, evan a small igloo village of Greenland-style igloo accommodation for overnight stays in the middle of summer starting in 2001! This ice museum has already been noted in media and tens of thousands have visited Art Center these first 3 summers. Art Center has also made it possible for our artists to travel around the world and sculpt and work with ice anywhere! In combination with a summer stay at Art Center, You can also choose to ice sculpt, go river rafting, fishing, go for a Sami culture tour to the reindeer corral, rent mountain bikes, trek in the mountains, enjoy hot saunas, eat good food, visit cultural landmarks such as Jukkasjärvi Church from 1608 and the Old Homestead area. You can be calmed by our clean environment and glorious nature, fresh air, clean water, clear summer colours and a whole lot of mosquites. We are quite proud of them too, and if You challenge them You may see that mysterious Midnight Sun - and in a setting which makes You want to come back.

From a Visitors Point of View.......

Hi Christine,

Just dropping you a line, as I said I would, to let you know how we got on at the Icehotel.

In short, we had the most wonderful time, so thanks once again for making the arrangements. My daughter said it was the best holiday ever, and I wouldn't disagree. All four flights left and arrived on time - a rare event. The only minor hitches were when checking in at both locations. Both the Icehotel and the Scandic Ferrum seemed to be expecting two people only, and both switched us to different rooms when we checked in (which, fortunately, they were able to do). The Norvista vouchers showed that we were a party of three, so I'm not sure how the confusion occurred. But no harm done. I told my wife and daughter where we were going as we checked in at Heathrow. They both knew a little about the Icehotel, and were really excited to learn that that was our 'mystery destination'.

I have to say that none of the pictures on the Internet prepare you for how beautiful, and eccentric, the Icehotel is. I'd assumed that there would be a few ice sculptures in the corridors. But each of the suites is fantastically lit, and decorated in a different theme. The rooms are all available for viewing until 7pm, so you can inspect each of the interiors. Our suite was one of our two favourites. We were also perfectly warm, both outside during the day and overnight in the ice suite, but temperatures were only a little below freezing while we were there.

We all enjoyed the snowmobiling (reached 90 kph - hurrah! and turned it over in the deep snow - boo!), and the dog sledding. The restaurant over the road from the Icehotel is very good too, and there's a simple Homestead restaurant nearby for good soups and snacks. Unfortunately, the Northern Lights didn't put on a show for us - so we'll have to go back! The guides felt that the weather was too warm. They told us that, a week or so ago, the Lights had appeared for six consecutive nights. Most of the guests seemed to be Brits - I think the Swedes have been concentrating their marketing efforts on us. But a Japanese film crew were on site while we were there, and we saw other signs to suggest that interest may be growing in other countries.

As well as the Icehotel, they have a full-size replica of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in ice! They were performing Hamlet while we were there, but in the Lappish Sami language. And one evening they put on a concert played on ice instruments! We didn't sample either of these.

Here are some general tips which may help when you're placing other guests, although you probably know most of this already:

>Spend your first night(s) in the warm accommodation, and make the Icehotel itself your last night. You need to acclimatise a little to the cold.

>The suites are much more spectacular, and larger, than the ordinary rooms. Worth paying the extra.

>The clothing supplied is excellent. They provide a rabbit fur hat, snow suit, warm boots and mittens.But you'll still need to wear several layers underneath. Most people wear this equipment the whole time they're at the site. One of the staff told me that the suits are not warm enough if the temperature is down to -35C, which it can be at the height of the winter. You might need a ski suit underneath then. We took ours but never used them.

> I'd suggest taking in addition: thermal underwear including long johns (essential), warm socks, thin polo necks, trousers to wear under the snow suit, ski gloves, thin inner gloves, a neopreme ski mask or balaclava, and ski goggles (your eyes can water when snowmobiling fast, and the huskies kick up ice when sledding).

>A small rucksack is useful for extra clothing and equipment, and can be attached to the shelf on the back of the snowmobile. - You don't need to wear much to sleep in the Icehotel because the arctic sleeping bags are very warm and the temperature is constantly at -5C or just below. I'd suggest just warm pyjamas or thermal underwear.

> The Icehotel rooms and corridors are lit with nightlight candles in case you need to get up in the night. The flickering may disturb light sleepers, so an eye mask might be worthwhile.

> Kiruna itself is nothing special. The main tourist attraction is the iron ore mine, but in winter you have to book tours in advance (which we hadn't done). We would probably have done better to spend three nights at the Icehotel - two in the warm and one in the "igloo" - and arrange other daytime activities. Or perhaps spend the third night in Stockholm. - Useful web sites are: www.icehotel.com and www.lappland.se. This second one has a very good winter travel guide that you can download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format, but it's nearly 5MB and so takes quite a while to download. Hope some of this helps, and I'd be happy to provide any other information if you'd like.

Best wishes,
Mark