“You’ll be picked up from the airport by a sleigh pulled by huskies”. Some things really stand out when you read a travel itinerary and this was certainly one of them.
The destination was Jukkasjärvi, a small Swedish village 200 km north of the Arctic Circle. This is the home of the famous Ice Hotel and the trip would also include snowmobile safaris, driving your own reindeer sleigh and attempting to control Saab motor cars on frozen Arctic lakes.
As someone that suffers from cold hands and feet on a mild autumn day in Blighty, I was not looking forward to the extreme cold of the Arctic Circle and had visions of returning with a black nose and missing toes like those of stranded mountaineers.
Upon exiting Kiruna airport, our luggage was taken care of whilst I and the rest of my travelling companions were taken to a large wooden cabin to change into outdoor gear. And this was real outdoor gear. Leather and fur hats and huge mitts were pulled over some seriously warm boiler suits. The insulation was completed by donning some of the chunkiest boots I’d ever seen. Despite looking like we were still into the Spice Girls, these boots kept our feet amazingly warm and well away from the cold ground.
By now the noise from the huskies was deafening as they strained and barked their enthusiasm to get started. With four of us per sleigh, we sped off into the Swedish countryside and, within minutes, the view became little but snow and trees. This was an incredibly exhilarating form of transport and surprisingly fast. Occasionally, we would pass a snowmobile pulling a trailer with assorted small children inside who would give us a bemused look and an unsure wave.
We soon discovered that wearing sunglasses was not only essential to prevent snow glard and to keep out the wind but also to keep out the occasional piece of husky excrement. The itinerary hadn’t mentioned that part and our host was well and truly splattered. Never sit at the front when travelling on a husky sleigh!
As we rode deeper into the forest we eventually reached a lone traditional Sami tent with welcoming smoke billowing from its top into the bright blue sky above. Inside continued the fairytale image as we sat around a pot above the fire and drank the local speciality, hot lingonberry juice.
Onward took us over a frozen lake and alongside a frozen river, although there wasn’t much time to marvel at such natural curiosities as the huskies pulled us along at breakneck speed. Timbered cottages were now beginning to appear and our sleigh driver informed us that these were not holiday cottages but the homes of full-time residents. Living in the country must feel lonely at times but being here in the midst of snow and ice must be incredibly isolated. I imagined having to live through the long winter evenings with the darkness that no outdoor street lighting and the deathly silence that snow brings. I would certainly be yearning for the summer when 100 days don’t actually have any dark nights.
As we entered the next clearing it gave way to a huge open expanse - the Torne River in Jukkasjärvi. Our sleighs were now right in the middle of the river (so, thankfully, it was still frozen solid) and in the distance we could just make out a white building. This, we were informed was our destination, the Ice Hotel. A very Dr Zhivago moment.
The hotel is made from 100% snow and ice. Each year at the start of winter, a new hotel is built from the crystal clear ice from the Torne River. In the spring, the hotel slowly melts to its original form and then, the following winter, the process begins again.
Nothing really prepares you for the spectacle inside the Ice Hotel; despite having seen the images on the website, it was still breathtaking. The first thing to remember is that there’s little point asking if things are made from ice, as it’s all made from ice. The walls, the ceiling, the reception desks, the bar, the glasses, the seats and the tables. It’s all solid ice.
At the ice block reception desk stood one unlucky receptionist dressed in warm winter clothing and a wonderful fur hat. To save them getting too cold, the bar and hotel staff are only allowed to work for a maximum of fifteen minutes before they need to swap with someone from the warm buildings nearby. A doorway took us into a rather majestic main hall. The huge ice pillars were entrancing and, looking closely, I could see parts of plants and other life trapped inside when the water froze. It’s surprising how many visitors insisted on sticking their tongue on the pillars but, unfortunately, no one got theirs stuck. The huge chandelier was the finishing touch to the hall, it too was made of ice but I have no idea how they managed it. It really is an incredible work of art made more special by its short life-span.
