As anyone who knows me understands, winter is my favorite season. Don’t get me wrong, I love warm summer days on the lake, the smell of spring, and the blaze of autumn colors, but there’s something about snow and cold that is just magical. My most ‘zen’ or in the moment experiences have come in the cold, be it standing in the middle of a field as huge snowflakes silently blanket the ground, or in the middle of a perfect, high speed turn on cold hard corduroy at the mountain.
This winter we once again made the pilgrimage to Quebec City to see, and for the first time stay, in the Ice Hotel. A behemoth of snow and ice, the hotel has 44 rooms to sleep in, a bar, chapel, ice slide and enough detailed carvings to make you think you’re in an art gallery.
- Ice Hotel, Quebec City
- Pouring drinks at the Ice Hotel bar. The shot glasses are made of ice.
- Ice Shot glasses at Ice Hotel, Quebec City
- The not so steep ice slide
- M gettin’ her groove on, arctic style.
- The ever changing lights of the Ice Hotel’s chandelier.
- Should we thaw her out?
- Fully wired for electricity, Ice Hotel, Quebec City.
- Mayan inspired room, Ice Hotel, Quebec City
- This room also included it’s own hot tub (just out the door)
- Ice Hotel, Quebec City
- Our room #25.
- Ready for bed, Ice Hotel, Quebec City.
- The Ice Hotel stays a constant 28 degrees inside (regardless of the outside temp). The incredible insulating powers of snow also blocks out almost all sound, making for a super deep sleep. The one thing snow doesn’t block is light, so even though you’re under 3 feet of snow, if it’s light outside it will be light inside. We both slept better than we had in a while. The cozy -20 sleeping bags and the heavy silence were amazing.
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- Waking up rested in the Ice Hotel. Photo by Miriam
- Ice Hotel, Quebec City. Photo by Miriam
- Ice Hotel, Quebec City. Photo by Miriam
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- Looking up the hill, Quebec City.
- If you get the chance, I highly recommend heading up north for a real winter adventure. Sleeping in the Ice Hotel isn’t as extreme as it sounds, (they really make it easy) and then you can head into Quebec City for great food and a little Euro flavor.
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