The Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival has been held annually since 1985, officially starting on January 5 and lasting for a month. As the largest and most extraordinary of its kind in the world, this grand festival is held to coincide with the Harbin World Ice and Snow Sculpture Exhibition held in Stalin Park, the Harbin Sculpture Fair Snow on the Isla del Sol and the Ice Lantern Fair. held in Zhaolin Park (in the center of Harbin along the Songhua River).

During the festival, many events are held, for example, fantastic fireworks (the opening night), winter swimming, ice hockey games, snow football games, ski races, speed skating races , ice sculpture competition, poetry jamboree, wedding ceremony, and ice and snow cinematic festival. All these events have annually attracted numerous snow enthusiasts from all over the world to visit Harbin.

Today, this festival is reputed to be the world-class Disneyland of ice and snow.

Sun `s Island

Sun Island is located on the north bank of the Songhua River, facing Stalin Park, known for its summer resort and winter events. In winter, when the snow covers this beautiful island, tourists from all over the world gather here to ski, make snowmen, take out the sleds pulled by horses or dogs, go sledding, participate in the Snow Sculpture Fair… Lots of activities you can join. Landing on this island and drinking fresh air in the snow world, you will stay there to enjoy all the things you forget when you return to your hotel.

ice lantern art fair

Harbin is the home of the Ice Lantern Art. Started in 1963, it has been successfully held many times in Zhaolin Park in Harbin. This ice lantern art fair is now the oldest and largest of its kind, and the largest outdoor ice lantern art fair with the classic traditional programs. It has been praised by many Chinese state leaders and has created 7 Guinness World Records in these years.

The materials for making the lanterns are ice from the Songhua River, water, and colored lights. Piling, building, placing, sculpting, spraying, watering, icing according to different themes and general arrangements in the park, artists from all over the world will show a myriad of fantastic lanterns before you! Ice building, ice sculptures, ice waterfalls, ice flowerbeds, ice slide boards, ice calligraphy, ice miniature gardens, ice advertisement, ice flowers, ice mountains… form a wonderful garden here , wherever you move, what appears before your eyes is the various beautiful lanterns.

If you are lucky, you can take part in the international sculpture competition at Zhaolin Park. But in a word, visiting the Ice Lantern Fair is not to be missed on your trip to Harbin.

world of ice and snow

The World of Ice and Snow dates back to 1999 to greet the arrival of the new millennium. With varied themes each year, it has been reputed as the ice Disneyland of the world.

This year, the World of Ice and Snow is open on December 24, 2007 and will admit 50,000 visitors at the same time. For the meeting of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, the theme of this time will focus on the Olympic Games. Just as its theme “Snow World, Olympic Dreams” indicates that it will tell the origin and development of the Olympic Games in the language of ice and snow, and show its events from a different angle. The World of Ice and Snow will combine snow with tourism, entertainment and participation.

This year, the Ice and Snow World will cover an area of ​​about 400,000 square meters, using 120,000 and 100,000 cubic meters of ice and snow respectively. It will consist of six themed scenic areas, namely the Olympic Games Sacred Flame Area, 2009 Universiade Area, Holy Olympus Area, Recreational World Area and Fuwa Paradise Area. In the Ice and Snow World garden, you will enjoy more than 2000 vantage points or views, or you can participate in many activities, and in this fascinating world, you will share the glamor and conviviality of the Olympic Games with more people.

Also, in the Ice and Snow World garden, you will admire the most beautiful, grandiose and enchanting wonders of ice and snow. You can drink in the ice bars, visit the ice inns or hotels, play golf or soccer on the snowy ground, go ice climbing or look for treasures in the ice labyrinth… and if you visit it at night, you will see yourself a fairyland decorated with colored lights. At that time, your dreams of ice and snow will come true there.

snow sculpture fair

The 20th Snow Sculpture Fair will open on December 20, 2007. It is reported that this fair will be the largest in scale and investment in history. Its theme is “French flavor condenses in Harbin”, so you will see that the sculptures are imitations of French buildings and sculptures. Being artistic, entertaining and participative, it will be a great parade in winter.

In addition, numerous cultural activities and sculpture competitions will take place during the fair. You can enjoy entertainment programs, Taiji performance (shadow boxing, twice a day during the fair), Ice Dragon Boat Race, Heilongjiang Provincial Sculpture Competition, National Sculpture Competition and the International Sculpture Competition.

Humanly, at the fair, you will get some considerate services. There is a multifunctional tourist service center and convenient and fast traffic facilities; tour guide service, sleeved and non-slip shoe covers, coats with sleeves, souvenirs, guide maps, etc. are provided free of charge; and you won’t shiver if you board the tourist carriages with soft cushions.