Frozen forest, giant lizards, a hot dog stand, sauna and a world of toys are just some of this year’s unique designs.
The doors to the 31st rendition of the original Icehotel in Swedish Lapland have just opened, as Discover the World shares the first images including a virtual 360° tour so Britons who are unable to travel right now can still step into Icehotel's pristine world.
The new winter hotel is an ephemeral art exhibition made entirely of snow and ice from Torne River, which opens each winter in December before melting back into the Torne River come spring. Together with Icehotel's building and ice production team, artists from Sweden have created the 12 unique art suites in the winter Icehotel #31 as well as six new art suites in Icehotel 365, the year round hotel and there’s a new design for the ceremony hall for intimate celebrations.
“The pandemic forced us to think differently, but the result is a stunning homage to Sweden. The 31st edition of Icehotel will be a memorable one! The 24 Swedish-based artists created concepts that will mesmerise our guests, giving them a much needed escape from the reality of this year”, says Creative Director of Icehotel, Luca Roncoroni.
Audio Guides & Handcrafted art
This year guests can step into a frozen forest in the Ceremony Hall ‘Skogen’, a world full of toys in an art suite called ‘Toybox’, a suite celebrating typographic art, ‘A Journey into Letterspace’ or enter what’s probably the coldest sauna in the world in the suite called ‘Sauna’.
This year all the art suites are also equipped with a QR code that can be scanned to hear an audio guide that tells the story about each art project to further enhance the visitor experience.
Covid 19 Travel Restrictions
Brits interested in visiting the hotel in person this year will have to quarantine on their return as Sweden is not currently on the UK’s travel corridor. Or, choose to wait until later into the season for things to improve and hopefully travel restrictions to ease.
New virtual 360° tour
For those who are unable to travel in person for the very first time there is a 360° tour of some of the new suites – a digital journey to Icehotel’s world of ice and snow – from your living room – go to https://www.discover-the-world.com/blog/the-31st-icehotel/ to find out more.
“Even before the first Icehotel opened 31 years ago Discover the World was already offering dog sledding holidays to Jukkasjarvi, the picturesque village that is home to Icehotel. With such a long history of working together it is hard to imagine a winter without a trip to one of our favourite places,” commented Clive Stacey, Founder & Chairman of Discover the World.
“So, we have everything crossed that the situation will change and we will be taking clients to see the new Icehotel for at least the latter part of this winter season. In the meantime we really hope people will enjoy the images and the 360° experience of the incredible new ice art from the comfort of their homes,” added Stacey.
The winter hotel will be open until 11 April 2021. Discover the World is offering a three night break including return flights from £688 per person for travel this winter with all clients able to take advantage of a comprehensive flexibility promise.
12 art suites have now been completed (six in Icehotel 365 and six in Icehotel 31), ready and waiting with sparkling ice art for their first visitors. Another six art suites will be opening in Icehotel 31 on 21 December with images available shortly afterwards.
In addition, to the art experience the guests will be able to enjoy the many outdoor Arctic experiences such as snowmobile adventures under the northern lights and dogsledding, or savour award-winning cuisine at Icehotel Restaurant, sip cocktails out of the iconic Icebar frozen glasses or challenge themselves to a spot of ice sculpting. The Icehotel is totally compliant to all Covid-19 safety recommendations to create an enjoyable and secure experience for both guests and staff.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
