Overview: Built every January out of 30,000 tons of snow and ice, the only ice hotel in North America is a 45-room fairy tale at Valcartier Vacation Village, an all-season family resort park about a half-hour’s drive north of Quebec City.
Crowd: Expect a curious and intrepid international crowd here. Only dedicated Traveliers would spend $400 on a –5° C nap inside an ice palace.
Agenda: After the hot tubs and the ice bar (literally), overnight guests wriggle into thermal sleeping bags in their long johns, tucking phones into their armpits so they don’t freeze, praying they don’t have to use the portable toilet during the night. Your luggage remains safe inside the heated resort.
Essential: Splurge on a room with an ice sculpture and a gas fireplace, timed to shut off after you drift off.
Timing: Open every winter from January to March.
