FOR THE ADVENTURER...
THE ICEHOTEL, LAPLAND
There’s something incredibly special about the Icehotel. Nestled at the most northern tip of Swedish Lapland, 200km north of the Arctic Circle; it’s one of the most peaceful places I’ve ever visited. Maybe it’s the abundance of fresh air, or the freezing temperatures and comforting blanket of snow that envelops you, but it’s as if the outside world no longer exists. During a typical stay, you’ll experience one night in their so-called ‘cold rooms’ inside the iconic hotel – which is carved afresh each winter by a team of artists over the course of six weeks – and two nights in a ‘warm room’. Although these days, you can head to the Icehotel any time of the year and stay in the newly opened Icehotel 365, which has been built complete with a generator that will keep the ice frozen even in summer. Genius.
While the warm rooms here are simple and functional, it’s the cold rooms that will amaze, with their ornate beds carved from ice, topped with reindeer skins and surrounded by a differing array of ice art; imagine huge playing cards, mermaids and hanging icicles. Before we go to bed, we’re handed thick thermal sleeping bags, which leave us surprisingly snug, although a midnight run to the toilet proves to be a little uncomfortable.
Come morning, we’re woken with steaming mugs of lingonberry juice, and we head over to the warmth of the Icehotel restaurant, where coffee is accompanied by plates piled high with local cheese and sausages, pancakes topped with honey and steaming porridge; all essential fuel for braving the cold. Temperatures get as low as -29°C on our trip, although they can be as low as -40°C, and while we’re kitted out with thermal snowsuits, mittens and balaclavas, it’s still, well, freezing. So much so that one day my eyelashes and hair freeze within moments of stepping outside, covered in a light frosting of white ice.
Days are taken up with a variety of pursuits – think cross-country skiing (tiring), husky sledding (thrilling) and snowmobile excursions, while evenings are a laid-back affair. We dine in the Icehotel restaurant – where a five-course tasting menu serves up local delicacies such as elk, reindeer and Arctic char served on huge slabs of ice – and laze around the roaring log fire at the bar. The highlight of our rather magical trip sees us head out on a snowmobile excursion to chase the elusive Northern Lights. We’re lucky, and in the midst of miles and miles of snow, we see flashes of that famous dancing green light take over the entire sky. It’s bucket-list stuff. HANNAH DUNN