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Held in Heilongjiang Province, China, the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival is ranked among the world's largest ice and snow festivals, featuring numerous fun activities and spectacular installations.
The festival takes place from January 5th to February 5th every year. Some attractions even open to visitors before the official opening ceremony, the most popular being the Harbin Ice and Snow World amusement park. This park is constructed from ice hauled from the nearby Songhua River. This year, Harbin Ice and Snow World spans 600,000 square meters and includes over 100 sculpted landmarks. The park itself is made up of 110,000 cubic meters of ice and 120,000 cubic meters of snow.
Visitors can walk through giant illuminated ice castles, admire an exquisite ice Buddha statue made from 4,500 cubic meters of snow, watch 3D light shows, and challenge themselves on the 340-meter-long "Northern Lights" themed ice slides. In addition, visitors can see the works from the annual Harbin Ice Sculpture Competition by sculptors from 12 different countries.
Tickets to the Harbin Ice and Snow World currently cost 330 yuan, equivalent to $48. In addition, there are many free activities around the town that visitors can enjoy until the end of February, such as the 2,019 snowmen of various shapes and sizes built along the river.
