When the mercury plummets and winter arrives, festivals the world over celebrate the snow and ice that comes with it. Mammoth ice sculptures are carved, snow slides spring up and fireworks glitter high above the frosty creations. We're celebrating the season with beautiful photos from the world's most impressive snow and ice events.
Click through this gallery to discover the very best ice and snow festivals around the globe...
The brainchild of Utah-based artist Brent Christensen, these ice castles appear in five locations in the US each year – one apiece in Utah, Minnesota and New Hampshire and two in Colorado. Thousands of icicles are fashioned into incredible confections, which include slot canyons, slides, tunnels and more. Throw in plenty of rainbow LED lights and you've got yourself a veritable winter wonderland.
Dates are dependent on conditions, so keep an eye on the event website and book in advance to avoid disappointment.
Breckenridge is lauded for its ski resort and dreamy Rocky Mountains location – and come January there's another reason to visit. The International Snow Sculpture Championships see teams come together to transform gargantuan blocks of snow into mind-blowing works of art. All the work is done by hand (power tools aren't allowed) and the finished creations are spectacularly lit by night. The event takes place 20-29 January 2025.
Love this? Follow our Facebook page for more travel inspiration
More icy artworks are on display at the International Ice Sculpture Festival in Jelgava, a leafy city in central Latvia. The theme for 2025's event (7-9 February) is 'the story of the universe', with themes from previous years including 'ancient deities' and 'the glorious animal world'. Other activities will include a skating rink, fire shows, ice games and two stages boasting ice-sculpting demonstrations.
Since 1979 the Canadian capital has embraced the cold with Winterlude (31 January-17 February), a two-and-a-half-week event complete with snow slides, skating and sculptures galore. Full details will be announced in January, but visitors can expect ice carving and sweet treats in Sparks Street and family-friendly thrills in the Snowflake Kingdom. They can also discover Indigenous traditions at the Canadian Museum of History and enjoy the freezing-cold Igloofest music festival.
The Sapporo Snow Festival is a popular winter event in northern Japan which draws more than two million visitors a year. The festival is split into three sites including Odori Park, where visitors will find entire buildings hewn from the snow, and the Susukino district, where glittering ice sculptures sit alongside an ice bar. The 2025 event will take place between 4 and 11 February.
Held in Fairbanks, Alaska, over more than six weeks, the World Ice Art Championships bring together more than 100 artists from across the country and beyond. Since 1990, visitors have come to see blocks of ice hewn into jaw-dropping displays in a series of competitions. The 2025 event is scheduled to run from 14 February to 2 March.
A celebration of ice-cold art, the World Snow Festival, held in the pretty Alpine village of Grindelwald and Männlichen ski area, has been running since the 1980s. Artists descend on the town from all over the world, conjuring towering hunks of snow into weird and wonderful designs, ready to be surveyed by expert judges. The 2025 festival will take place 13-18 January and follow the theme 'tradition' – a celebration of the festival's 40th anniversary.
Visitors have a whole month to sample the delights of the Snowkings' Winter Festival (1-28 March 2025), which takes place in the capital of Canada's Northwest Territories. Each year, Yellowknife locals use the icy weather to their advantage and carve an impressive castle from snow and ice. It's used to host cultural events, ranging from live music to theatre.
This festival gets extra points for its stunning location in Banff National Park and on the shores of Lake Louise. Here, artists carve a winter wonderland of sculptures each year, from ice queens to woolly mammoths, while wintry activities like dog-sledding, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing add to the list of icy attractions.
The main event will take place between 17 January and 2 February 2025, and guests at a number of hotels in Lake Louise can see smaller sculpture displays and local carvers at work during those dates too.
A celebration of the snowy season in Swedish Lapland, the Kiruna Snow Festival (24-26 January 2025) is a three-day bonanza of wintry fun. There's a snow sculpture competition, plus outdoorsy activities like dog sledding, skating and a snowy playground. Quizzes, live music and a craft fair add to the fun. Keep an eye on the website for updates.
Snow isn't actually white and other mind-blowing weather facts
Near the little city of Zwolle – around 50 miles (80km) east of Amsterdam – you'll find a glittering annual display of ice and snow sculptures. More than 500 tonnes of snow and ice are whipped into shape, with the frosty artworks tailored to whimsical themes. The festival is open Tuesday to Sunday every week until 2 February, with the exception of New Year's Day.
One of the world's most celebrated winter sports festivals, X Games (23-25 January 2025) is held at the Buttermilk ski area in Aspen, Colorado every year. Anticipated events include the big air ski and snowboard finals – where athletes perform all manner of heart-thumping airborne tricks – plus superpipe, snow-biking and slopestyle competitions. Beyond the games, there's plenty of live music and, of course, the chance to hit the slopes yourself.
The Winter Carnival, which runs this year between 23 January and 2 February, is a highlight of Saint Paul's calendar, and has a schedule packed to the gills with wintry events. Much of the fun takes place in the Vulcan Snow Park, which boasts snowy attractions ranging from a snow maze to sculpting competitions and a play area for kids. The event's Facebook page has regular updates.
This snow and ice sculpture festival has been hosted annually in Valloire for more than four decades. Imaginative snow and ice sculptures dot the picturesque ski area for up to a week, and visitors can warm up with mulled wine or hot chocolate while wandering between the sculptures as the winners are decided. The coming edition of the festival will run 14-17 January 2025.
Dubbed the largest annual winter festival in western Canada, the Festival du Voyageur – or 'Festival of the Traveller' – takes place in Winnipeg's attractive French District each year. It's both a celebration of the snow and of the area's French-Canadian heritage, with stunning snow sculptures complementing live music and regional cuisine. The coming festival is scheduled for 14-23 February 2025.
To witness incredible snowsport spectacles, visitors can book tickets to the World Ski and Snowboard Festival, held in the world-class Whistler ski area. Attendees are treated to the usual adrenaline-fuelled contests – including big air competitions and one of the steepest ski races in the world – plus film screenings and live music. Hailed as the largest festival of its kind in North America, the event is set to run 7-13 April 2025.
An ice festival with a difference, this winter event (23-26 January 2025) in southwestern Colorado is one for adrenaline junkies. The Ouray Ice Park is a man-made ice-climbing venue set within a natural gorge, and the breathtaking ice formations are made by spraying water down the rugged canyon walls. To celebrate the unique setting, this ice festival, including climbing and themed parties, is held each year.
When the temperature drops at New York's Saranac Lake, the folks here celebrate in style. The Saranac Lake Winter Carnival (31 January-9 February 2025) has been a local tradition since 1897, and the highlight is an elaborate illuminated ice palace. Alongside the palace – the first of which was constructed right back in 1898 – there's also a parade, ski races, games of snow rugby and a closing fireworks display.
The city of Québec, which dubs itself the world's snow capital, comes to life in the winter, not least because of its winter carnival. An enormous ice palace is built every year, while snow sculptures abound and the event's beloved mascot, a snowman named Bonhomme, can be seen all over town. This season the event will include a snow bath, night parades and an ice canoe race, and is planned for 7-16 February 2025.
The mother of all the world's snow and ice events, the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival puts on a jaw-dropping display. Spread throughout the city, the festival boasts absolutely enormous sculptures – think hulking castles and intricate temples – as well as an ice lantern fair and wintry sports like snow football. The festival officially opens on 5 January and runs until early March.
Now take a look at these images of snow and ice in unexpected destinations