The short answer: the world's first and largest ice hotel is ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjarvi, Sweden, rebuilt from river ice every winter since 1990. The only one open all year is Snowhotel Kirkenes in northern Norway, and the only ice hotel in North America is Hotel de Glace near Quebec City. Almost all are seasonal, built fresh each winter and melted by spring.
By the Hotels for Kings Editorial Team · Last updated: June 10, 2026
We may earn a commission when you book through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. Rankings are editorial and never sold. Founding dates, room counts, seasons and every "first / largest / only / northernmost" claim below were checked against each property's own published information and reputable dated sources in June 2026.
An ice hotel is the rare luxury record that resets to zero every year. Nobody can renovate their way to a permanent title, because the building itself returns to the river each spring and is sculpted again from scratch each December. That makes provenance the whole story: which one was first, which is largest, which dared to stay frozen through summer, and which sits farthest north. This ranking treats every superlative the way an archivist would, dated and sourced, and it ranks by the strength of each property's verified record rather than by a star rating that a melting building cannot really hold. A note on seasons: most of these hotels are built new each winter and close when the thaw comes, so an entry being "between seasons" in June is not a closure, it is the nature of the form.
Quick comparison
| Hotel | Place | Rooms | 2025-26 season | Verified record |
|---|
| ICEHOTEL | Jukkasjarvi, Sweden | Varies; ICEHOTEL 365 year-round | Winter art suites Dec to Apr; 365 wing all year | World's first and largest ice hotel |
| Snowhotel Kirkenes | Kirkenes, Norway | 13 (39 beds) | Open year-round | World's only year-round snow hotel |
| Hotel de Glace | Quebec, Canada | ~30 | Early Jan to mid-Mar | Only ice hotel in North America |
| Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel | Alta, Norway | Igloo rooms and suites | 20 Dec to 7 Apr | World's northernmost igloo hotel (own claim) |
| Lapland Hotels SnowVillage | Yllas, Finland | 13 snow rooms | 25 Dec to 6 Apr | Themed snow village with ice restaurant |
| Iglu-Dorf Zermatt | Zermatt, Switzerland | 10 igloos (to 24 guests) | Dec to mid-Apr | Alpine igloo village at 2,727 m, Matterhorn view |
How we ranked and verified this
We rank by the strength and rarity of each property's verified record, not by a conventional star score, because a hotel rebuilt every winter cannot carry a permanent rating. The original and largest leads; the only year-round one follows; then the only one on its continent, the northernmost, and the design-led newcomers. Open-and-operating status, founding dates and room counts were checked against each hotel's own site and current listings in June 2026. Where a "first / only / northernmost" title is the property's own marketing claim, we say so and name the source. Seasonal closure for the summer thaw is noted, not penalised, because that is how ice hotels work.
The ranked list
1
Jukkasjarvi, Swedish Lapland
ICEHOTEL
World's first and largest · ~5,500-6,000 m² · ICEHOTEL 365 open all year
Why it's number one: every other hotel on this page exists because this one did it first. ICEHOTEL sits about 17 km from Kiruna in the village of Jukkasjarvi, and its origin is precise: in 1989 a group asked to sleep inside an ice art structure on reindeer hides, the first hotel opened in 1990, and it has been carved anew from Torne River ice every winter since. It is also the largest ice and snow hotel in the world, spanning roughly 5,500 to 6,000 square metres in a layout that changes each year, built from about 1,000 tonnes of ice and tens of thousands of cubic metres of "snice." Its year-round wing, ICEHOTEL 365, is kept frozen even in summer by solar power harvested from the midnight sun, and holds art suites, an ice gallery and the famous ICEBAR.
Who it's for: travellers who want the definitive version, with the deepest art programme and the option to come in summer. When to book: the full winter art suites run roughly December to April; ICEHOTEL 365 is bookable any month, and from 13 April to 30 November 2026 it is the only part standing.
Honest note: cold-room stays are priced from roughly 400 to 700 euros a night and you sleep at well below freezing, so the standard play is one icy night plus warm rooms either side. This is an experience first and a hotel second.
Source: ICEHOTEL official site; Icehotel, Jukkasjarvi; Visit Sweden.
See every hotel world record, verified →
2
Kirkenes, Finnmark, Norway
Snowhotel Kirkenes
World's only year-round snow hotel · 13 rooms, 39 beds · -4°C all summer
Why it's here: it solved the problem every other ice hotel surrenders to. Snowhotel Kirkenes, in Norway's far northeast near the Russian border, runs the only year-round snow hotel on earth, branded Snow Hotel 365, holding its sculpted halls at a constant minus 4 degrees Celsius even through the Arctic summer. The snow hotel itself holds 13 rooms with a total of 39 beds, each carved fresh, and the wider resort adds warm Gamme cabins on the fjord, a husky kennel and king crab safaris, so guests can do the cold night without organising the whole trip around a three-month window.
Who it's for: travellers who want the ice-room experience but cannot travel in deep winter, or who want it paired with huskies and king crab. What to book: one night in the snow hotel, then a warm Gamme cabin overlooking the water.
Honest note: Kirkenes is genuinely remote, usually reached by a flight via Oslo or the coastal Hurtigruten ship, and 13 ice rooms means it sells out fast in the aurora months. The summer snow hotel is impressive but smaller in spirit than a full winter build.
Source: Snow Resort Kirkenes, Snow Hotel 365; Visit Norway.
See the world's northernmost hotels by latitude →
3
Saint-Gabriel-de-Valcartier, Quebec, Canada
Hotel de Glace
Only ice hotel in North America · ~30 rooms · early Jan to mid-Mar
Why it's here: it owns an entire continent. Hotel de Glace, rebuilt each winter at Village Vacances Valcartier about 20 minutes north of Quebec City, is the only ice hotel in North America, and the only one many travellers in the Americas can reach without crossing the Atlantic. The build runs to roughly 30 rooms and themed suites alongside a vaulted Grand Hall, an ice chapel that hosts real weddings, an ice slide and an ice bar serving drinks in frozen glasses. Rooms can be sectioned off for private overnight use from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m., with daytime visitors touring earlier.
Who it's for: North American travellers who want the ice-hotel night without a flight to Lapland, and couples drawn to the ice chapel. When to book: the 2026 season opened 4 January and runs to around mid-March; book the overnight package rather than a day ticket if you want to actually sleep there.
Honest note: the season is short and weather-dependent, the surrounding resort is a busy family waterpark complex rather than a wilderness retreat, and the winter 2026 sleeping season has already closed, reopening next January.
Source: Village Vacances Valcartier, Hotel de Glace; Visit Quebec City.
More stays like no other: the most unusual luxury hotels →
4
Alta, Finnmark, Norway
Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel
World's northernmost igloo hotel (own claim) · ~2,000 m² · 20 Dec to 7 Apr
Why it's here: it pushes the form about as far north as a hotel goes, near 70 degrees north on the Alta River. Sorrisniva bills itself as the world's northernmost igloo hotel, rebuilt every winter from local snow and ice into a structure of roughly 2,000 square metres with igloo suites, igloo rooms and family rooms, each bed laid with reindeer hides and warm sleeping bags. The site pairs the frozen hotel with a year-round wilderness lodge, two restaurants including the Sami-tent Lavvu that has run since 1992, a sauna and outdoor hot tubs, so the cold night sits inside a proper Arctic resort.
Who it's for: aurora chasers who want the northernmost address with a comfortable warm lodge to retreat to. What to book: an igloo suite for the night, then the wilderness lodge, timed to the dark-sky months for the northern lights.
Honest note: the "northernmost" title is the property's own marketing claim, true for a snow-igloo hotel but the kind of qualifier these records always carry; and the build ran only to 7 April in 2025-26, so it is firmly a winter proposition.
Source: Sorrisniva, The World's Northernmost Igloo Hotel; Booking.com listing.
Compare the world's most remote luxury hotels →
5
Yllasjarvi, Kittila, Finnish Lapland
Lapland Hotels SnowVillage
13 themed snow rooms · 10 m ice restaurant · 25 Dec to 6 Apr
Why it's here: because it treats the rebuild as a yearly art commission. Lapland Hotels SnowVillage near Yllas takes a fresh theme each winter, carved across 13 individually decorated snow rooms and a 10-metre-high snow igloo housing the Ice Restaurant, which serves a three-course menu of locally sourced dishes inside the frost. For the 2025-26 season the theme is "Pure Celebration," and the village runs 25 December to 6 April. Sleeping bags with fleece liners, a morning wake-up and a hot berry drink are part of the cold-room stay, with warm Lapland Hotels rooms close by.
Who it's for: travellers who care as much about the sculpture and the ice dining as the night itself, and want it set among Yllas's ski and aurora country. What to book: dinner in the Ice Restaurant plus a snow suite, balanced with a warm room for the rest of the trip.
Honest note: the theme and layout change every year, so a suite that wowed last winter will not exist this one; and at 13 rooms it is intimate but small, so cold-night space is limited.
Source: Lapland Hotels SnowVillage; SnowVillage snow suites.
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6
Zermatt, Valais, Swiss Alps
Iglu-Dorf Zermatt
Alpine igloo village at 2,727 m · 10 igloos, to 24 guests · Dec to mid-Apr
Why it's here: it is the one that trades the Arctic for an alpine view of the Matterhorn. Iglu-Dorf Zermatt is a cluster of interconnected igloos on the mountainside just off the Riffelhorn piste at 2,727 metres, the original location of a small Swiss chain. It holds 10 overnight igloos and space for up to 24 guests, running from simple Romantic Igloos for two to a lavish Igloo Suite with its own private Jacuzzi and toilet, all looking out at Switzerland's most famous peak. A sun terrace, fondue dining and a hot tub under the stars round out the stay.
Who it's for: couples who want the snow-room novelty with an alpine, ski-in setting and a Matterhorn view rather than an Arctic expedition. What to book: the Igloo Suite with the private Jacuzzi for the view, on a clear-weather night.
Honest note: it is a high-altitude mountain igloo village reached by cable car and a short walk, opening dates depend on snow, and the simpler igloos are shared, communal sleeping rather than private rooms.
Source: Iglu-Dorf Zermatt; Switzerland Tourism.
See the highest hotels on earth by altitude →
Are ice hotels actually comfortable, or just a stunt?
They are a designed discomfort, managed carefully. The bedrooms sit around minus 4 to minus 8 degrees Celsius because the ice would otherwise melt, so the comfort comes from the kit rather than the room: an insulated mattress and reindeer hides on the ice plinth, an expedition sleeping bag rated well below the room temperature, and a warm service building a short walk away with lockers, showers, saunas and breakfast. None of these hotels expect you to spend a whole holiday frozen, which is why every serious one pairs its ice rooms with heated lodging, whether ICEHOTEL's warm cabins, Kirkenes's Gamme huts or Sorrisniva's wilderness lodge. Treated as one extraordinary night rather than a week, an ice hotel is one of the few luxury experiences that genuinely cannot be replicated anywhere warm, and that resets entirely the next year, so no two stays are ever the same.
Source: ICEHOTEL, tickets and opening hours; Snowhotel Kirkenes.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the world's first ice hotel?
- ICEHOTEL in Jukkasjarvi, Swedish Lapland, is the world's first ice hotel. It traces its origin to 1989, when visitors asked to spend the night inside an ice art structure on reindeer skins, and it has been rebuilt from Torne River ice every winter since the first hotel opened in 1990. It is also the largest, spanning roughly 5,500 to 6,000 square metres in a design that changes each year.
- Is there an ice hotel open all year?
- Yes. Snowhotel Kirkenes in northern Norway operates the only year-round snow hotel, marketed as Snow Hotel 365, held at a constant minus 4 degrees Celsius even through the Arctic summer. Sweden's ICEHOTEL also keeps a year-round wing, ICEHOTEL 365, cooled by solar power from the midnight sun, while its larger winter art suites melt back into the river each spring.
- Is there an ice hotel in North America?
- Hotel de Glace near Quebec City is the only ice hotel in North America. It is rebuilt every winter at Village Vacances Valcartier, roughly 20 minutes north of the city, with about 30 rooms, an ice bar, chapel and slide, and runs a short season from early January to mid-March.
- What is the northernmost ice hotel?
- Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel in Alta, northern Norway, bills itself as the world's northernmost igloo hotel, near 70 degrees north. It is rebuilt from snow and ice each winter and ran from 20 December to 7 April in the 2025-26 season.
- How cold is it inside an ice hotel room?
- Ice hotel bedrooms sit around minus 4 to minus 8 degrees Celsius regardless of the weather outside, because the snow and ice would otherwise melt. Guests sleep on ice plinths topped with mattresses and reindeer hides, inside expedition-grade sleeping bags, and most properties keep a warm building nearby with saunas, lockers and proper bathrooms.
- Do you sleep in the ice hotel the whole stay?
- Usually not. The standard pattern is one night in a cold ice room for the experience, followed by nights in a warm room or cabin, which is why most ice hotels pair their frozen suites with heated lodging on the same site. Bathrooms, showers and breakfast are in warm service buildings, not in the ice rooms.