We featured the Ice Hotel two years ago, and it seems it's a destination that just keeps getting cooler. There could literally not be a more chill place to get married than the ice church.
The ICE HOTEL's unique lodgings, from the 40 rooms, to the bar, and even the church, are built out of 45,000 tons of snow and ice, and carved to perfection.
After the wedding in the chapel (don't forget your Uggs!), guests can hit the ICEBAR for the reception. Everything in the ABOSLUT bar is made of ice, from the chairs to the glasses you drink from. Guests have to take care their tongues and lips don't get stuck when sipping chilled vodka from ice shotglasses!
The IceHotel is located in Jukkasjärvi, 200 km north of the Arctic Circle, and all the hotel's ice comes from the nearby Torne River.
"The heart and backbone is the River Torne flowing freely through the unspoilt wilderness. Covered with a meter thick ice layer winter time the river is the source of all our art, architecture and design," the hotel's site explains. "The pure water and the steady movement of the river creates the clearest ice possible."
One of the most fabulous attributes of this hotel is how it came to be. Originally, the resort was only used in summer, as the long nights of the winters held little appeal for tourists.
"By the end of the 1980s it was decided to turn things around. Instead of viewing the dark and cold winter as a disadvantage, the unique elements of the arctic were to be regarded an asset," the site explains. "Inspired by the work of visiting Japanese ice artists, in 1990 the French artist Jannot Derit was invited to have the opening of his exhibition in a specially built igloo on the frozen Torne River."
They have a range of packages, depending on personal interest. Guests intrigued by the Northern Lights can learn more from the lesson provided at the space center. There is also an arctic trail snowmobile safari and for geology nuts, a sculpture park of magnetite.
Can't make it to Sweden's arctic circle? The good news is, there are replicas of the hotel's ABSOLUT ICEBAR all over the world, so you can chill out in style for a night in Milan, London, Tokyo, Shanghai or Copenhagen and Stockholm.
Check out Canada's Ice Hotel in Quebec:
Weddings in Igloos
Get Married in an Ice Church
Trend Themes
1. Ice Weddings - The trend of getting married in ice hotels, churches or igloos is rising.
2. Ice Architecture - The trend of using snow and ice as a building material for hotels, bars, and other structures is gaining popularity.
3. Replica Icebars - The trend of replicating ice bars from popular destinations around the world is increasing.
Industry Implications
1. Tourism - There is potential for hospitality providers to innovate by offering unique destination wedding experiences in ice hotels.
2. Architecture and Design - Architects and designers can explore the use of ice as a building material for creating unique and sustainable structures for commercial and residential purposes.
3. Event Planning and Catering - The rise of ice weddings and ice bars presents an opportunity for event planners and catering companies to offer creative and unique solutions for their clients' special events.