On December 31, 2023, the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival was officially crowned by The Guinness World Records as the largest ice and snow theme park in the world. With an area of 816,682.5 m², this construction was achieved thanks to the work of more than 10,000 people who for a month created sculptures and ephemeral buildings of ice and snow in the capital of Heilongjiang province, in northeastern China. These days (officially, January 5) the ‘miracle’ of ice occurs again.
Known as the ‘Ice City’, Harbin has established itself as one of the main winter tourism destinations in the world. Every year, the city attracts millions of visitors, attracted by those frozen creations illuminated with multicolored lights that they have surely seen on television or in a newspaper from anywhere in the world.
This now-known festival was held for the first time in 1963, although it was interrupted shortly after, during the Cultural Revolution. In 1985 it resumed its activity, gradually growing until it became an event of global repercussion that attracts more than eighteen million visitors annually.
The festival has several main attractions, including the ‘Ice and Snow World’which covers more than 750,000 m² and is considered one of the largest winter spectacles on the planet. For a month, visitors can enjoy dazzling ice structures that imitate castles, temples and historical monuments, all of them illuminated with LED technology which enhances its beauty during the night.
In addition to the sculptures, the Harbin event offers multiple recreational activities, from ice skating and downhill skiing in Yabuli to winter swimming in the icy Songhua River. The ice in the sculptures comes precisely from this river that freezes over at the beginning of December. You can also visit other local attractions, such as the Hagia Sophia, the Temple of Confucius and the Siberian Tiger Park.
In this region temperatures can drop down to -38.1 °C in winteralthough it is normal that in winter they do not go above 0 degrees. In any case, to overcome possible conservation problems, some local artists have developed innovative carving techniques that allow them to create ice and snow products that do not melt. The festival officially runs from January 5 to early February, although the main attractions usually open to the public from the end of December and, weather conditions permitting, extend into March.
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