Icehotel, the world’s first ice hotel, has been melting and being rebuilt since 1990, and is one of the Seven Wonders of Sweden. Located in Jukkasjarvi village, the 64,600 sq foot hotel is rebuilt each year with snow and ice from the Torne River. The hotel exists from December until mid-April when it melts and returns to the river. It has around 100 rooms designed by artists from all over the world who vie annually for the opportunity to design one of the rooms. The hotel features chandeliers, furnishings, running fountains and statuary, all crafted of ice and snow. It hosts an ice chape, an ice restaurant, and a bar with glasses made of ice! The entire structure remains below freezing, around -5 degree C.
Given that climate control is one of the biggest challenges, steel pipes are drilled into the permafrost (at 16 feet below ground) to keep the building at 23 degrees (Fahrenheit)—the ideal temperature for the preservation of the hotel plus its ice and snow sculptures, according to Bergqvist. “That way, the building works like a thermos where it doesn’t let the cold air out nor the heat in,” he said. What’s more, approximately 7,320 square feet of solar-powered refrigerating plants will be used to keep the hotel cool during the summer months too.
Picture Credit : Google