This section keeps notes on buildings made of snow and ice in northern Europe. Each of them is put together at the start of the cold months and lasts only while the frost lasts; the following year the work begins again from new snow and new river ice. Warm buildings usually stand beside them on the same ground.
Entries run from north to south, by the latitude of the site.
Sorrisniva Igloo Hotel
Sorrisniva stands on the bank of the Alta river, a short drive inland from the town of Alta in northern Norway. The ground around it is open, wooded in places, and given over to snow for much of the year. Through the cold months the operator raises a building of snow and ice on that riverside site.
Inside are corridors of packed snow, sleeping chambers with beds of ice, a hall used for gatherings, and carved surfaces that change from one winter to the next. Entry is at ground level from the yard. A heated lodge stands nearby on the same property, with warm rooms, a restaurant and washing facilities.
The operator describes the snow building as a structure of the winter season, standing while the cold holds and gone once it lifts. Opening and closing dates are settled each year, so ask the address directly. Nothing written here should be read as a promise about weather.
In Alta, Norway · Built not confirmed · Looked at August 2026
Snowhotel Kirkenes
Kirkenes sits close to the Barents Sea in the far north-east of Norway, near the Russian border. Snowhotel Kirkenes occupies a lakeside property outside the town, with cabins, kennels and open ground around it. The snow building itself is shaped anew for the cold months on that same site.
Corridors run between sleeping chambers cut from packed snow, with carved walls and beds dressed for cold nights. A separate reception, a restaurant and warm cabins stand on the property. The operator reports that its snow rooms are held at a low temperature and kept available across the year, not in winter alone.
Because the snow building is cooled through the warmer months, this address is not tied to the winter season the way the others in this section are. Sleeping arrangements, the temperature held inside and what is provided for the night are set out by the house; confirm them before travelling.
In Kirkenes, Norway · Built not confirmed · Looked at August 2026
Tromsø Ice Domes
The Tromsø Ice Domes are built in Tamokdalen, a valley inland from Tromsø, on a site the operator uses well away from the city. Mountains close the valley on either side and its floor holds snow deep into spring. The domes are raised there for the cold months and stand on open ground.
The structure is a run of linked domes of snow and ice: sleeping chambers, a bar of ice, a hall with carved figures and a room used for meals. The entrance leads in from the valley floor. Warm service buildings stand beside the domes for changing, storage and hot drinks.
The operator gives the winter season as the working period and takes the domes down when the snow gives way. Dates shift with conditions, so confirm them with the address. Details of bedding and of the temperature held inside are published by the house.
In Tamokdalen, Norway · Built not confirmed · Looked at August 2026
Icehotel
Icehotel stands at Jukkasjärvi, a village on the Torne river in Swedish Lapland, east of Kiruna. Ice is cut from the river in spring and stored for the following winter. The building is put together from that ice and from snow on ground beside the water, in sight of the village.
Chambers range from plain walls of ice to suites carved by invited artists, and there is a hall, a bar and a ceremony room. The operator also runs a second structure on the site, cooled by solar power, which stays standing beyond the winter season. Warm accommodation is available nearby.
What is made from river ice lasts only as long as the cold, and the operator publishes its working period year by year. The cooled structure keeps different dates. Sleeping bags, the temperature held inside and what is included are described by the house; confirm before travel.
In Jukkasjärvi, Sweden · Built not confirmed · Looked at August 2026
This site is independent and for reference only. What is written here comes from open sources and can change without notice. Buildings here work in winter alone and are made afresh each year, apart from where an entry says otherwise. The site is not connected with any hotel, sells nothing and takes no bookings; confirm everything with the house.
