Sweden's Icehotel reveals its enchanting new suites for 2023

Supersized mushrooms, frozen video game characters and a glittering garden: Sweden’s Icehotel unveils its magical new suites for 2023

• Icehotel 33 is set in the village of Jukkasjarvi, north of the Arctic Circle and next to the Torne River
• Twenty-four artists have designed 12 suites for Icehotel 33 and one permanent suite for Icehotel 365
• The hotel was made from 500 tons of ice and 10 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of snow and ice 

It’s a whittled winter wonderland.

Sweden’s Icehotel for 2022/2023 is officially open for business. Filled with amazing ice sculptures, the hotel has been constructed and reconstructed every year since 1989 in the village of Jukkasjarvi, 125 miles north of the Arctic Circle next to the banks of the Torne River.

The construction of this year’s Icehotel, the 33rd overall, saw 24 artists from around the globe spend weeks carefully crafting 12 unique suites, plus one deluxe suite in Icehotel 365, the year-round version.

A glittering dome, video-game-inspired sculptures, and supersized mushrooms are among the beautiful ice creations that have been carved on the site. 

Sweden’s Icehotel for 2022/2023 is officially open for business in the village of Jukkasjarvi, 125 miles north of the Arctic Circle 

Twenty-four artists from around the globe spent weeks carefully crafting 12 unique suites for Icehotel 33. Above is ‘The Mushroom’ suite

Pictured is the ‘Enclosed Space’ suite, ‘where one can enjoy the protection of an igloo inside of another igloo’

Check into the ‘High Score’ suite, a space themed around video game marathons, and you’ll find a ‘playroom for soaking in the nostalgia of a simpler era’

On top of that, there is a new design for the hotel’s ceremony hall for ‘intimate celebrations’, complete with a ‘stylised flower’ at its heart, designed by Wouter Biegelaar and Viktor Tsarski.

The construction process began in the spring when blocks of ice were harvested from the Torne River and stored in an ice warehouse in Jukkasjarvi.

Later, when construction began, the artists sculpted their creations using a whopping 500 tons of ice and 10 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of ‘snice’ – a mixture of snow and ice. The hotel’s construction team and Creative Director Luca Roncoroni offered assistance in the build.

There is a new design for the ceremony hall for ‘intimate celebrations’, complete with a ‘stylised flower’ at its heart (above) 

The ‘Garden’ suite, by Natsuki Saito and Shingo Saito, is embellished with a giant flower motif

The artists sculpted their creations using a whopping 500 tons of ice and 10 Olympic swimming pools’ worth of ‘snice’ – a mixture of snow and ice. Pictured is the ‘Home Nature’ suite

The hotel’s construction team and Creative Director Luca Roncoroni offered assistance in the build. Above is the ‘What Is To Come’ suite 

The Celtic legend of the ‘Selkie’, a half-woman and half-seal, inspired the ice sculptures in the ‘Maighdeann-roin’ suite

According to the designers, ‘secrets and messages are hidden everywhere’ in the ‘Maighdeann-roin’ suite

Temperatures inside the hotel are maintained at minus five degrees Celsius (23 Fahrenheit) in order to keep the glistening suites in peak condition.

The ice dome features in the ‘Enclosed Space’ suite, ‘where one can enjoy the protection of an igloo inside of another igloo’, according to designers Rob Harding and Timsam Harding.

Meanwhile, the ‘Garden’ suite, by Natsuki Saito and Shingo Saito, is embellished with a giant flower motif.

Above is the ‘Bauh-ice’ suite, a space that’s inspired by the Bauhaus design movement of the 1920s and 30s

The ‘Bauh-ice’ suite invites guests to ‘travel back in time and experience geometric shapes, rounded furniture, lines and stripes’

‘The Mushroom’ suite sets out to create a fungi-filled forest that appears as a ’jungle of Jurassic proportions’

The ‘Garden’ suite. The winter hotel will be open until April 2023

Inspired by the Bauhaus design movement of the 1920s and 30s, the ‘Bauh-ice’ suite by Luc Voisin and Mathieu Brison invites guests to ‘travel back in time and experience geometric shapes, rounded furniture, lines and stripes’.

Check into the ‘High Score’ suite, a space themed around video game marathons, and you’ll find a ‘playroom for soaking in the nostalgia of a simpler era’. Sonia Chow and Huschang Pourian were the masterminds behind this room.

The Celtic legend of the ‘Selkie’, a half-woman and half-seal, inspired the ice sculptures in the ‘Maighdeann-roin’ suite, designed by Emilie Steele and Sara Steele. ‘Secrets and messages are hidden everywhere in a mix of snow sculptures, glittering ice, music and a bittersweet story that plays out the moment you step inside the room,’ say the designers.

Pictured are Wouter Biegelaar and Viktor Tsarski, who designed the ceremony hall 

Sonia Chow and Huschang Pourian channelled their love for video games into the ‘High Score’ suite 

The ‘Enclosed Space’ suite is the handiwork of artists Rob Harding and Timsam (above)

Emilie Steele and Sara Steele (above) dreamt up the striking ‘Maighdeann-roin’ suite 

Edmund Chan and TaiTien Tan, pictured, collaborated to create the ‘Dreams of Pencils’ suite 

Chris Pancoe and Peter Hargraves are the brains behind ‘The Mushroom’ suite 

Pictured is Lukas Petko, the designer of the stunning ‘Hidden Milan’ suite 

Artists Ilka Raupach and Line Jastram, pictured, created the ‘What is to Come’ suite 

A BLIZZARD OF FACTS ABOUT THE 2023 ICEHOTEL 

• Twenty-four artists (from 13 countries) have created the new art suites in Icehotel 33
• Five hundred tons of ice were used to build Icehotel 33
• Ten Olympic swimming pools of snice, a blend of snow and ice, were used to create the hotel
• Two hundred handmade ice crystals were used to create a crystal chandelier
• Icehotel 33 has a temperature of minus five degrees Celsius (23 Fahrenheit) inside the building
• It took six weeks to build Icehotel 33, from start to finish
• Approximately 60 to 70 people worked on the project
• One hundred and two artists submitted contributions to be a part of building this year’s edition of Icehotel

Chris Pancoe and Peter Hargraves are the brains behind ‘The Mushroom’ suite, which appears as an ice-carved fungi-filled forest ‘of Jurassic proportions’.

Once guests have explored their unique sleeping quarters, activities on offer at the hotel include private snowmobile rides, ice-fishing, dog-sledding, horseback tours and outings to see the Northern Lights.

Luca Roncoroni, Creative Director of Icehotel, says: ‘Every year I’m amazed of what this incredible team can achieve; talented international artists, flanked by a team of ice professionals, can really create magic. Welcome to Icehotel 33!’

The winter hotel will be open until April 2023. To book a trip to the Icehotel for this year or next year, visit Discover the World.

Activities on offer at the hotel include private snowmobile rides, dog-sledding and outings to see the Northern Lights

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