Harbin Ice and Snow Festival

Month : January
Place : Harbin, China
Famous For : Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Attractions : Yabuli alpine skiing, Winter Swimming, Ice Lantern Exhibition.

The annual Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival is one of the most awaited celebrations in China. It's held every year in Harbin, the capital of Heilongjiang province of People's Republic of China. Every year during the month of January, Chinese masses gather to enjoy the splendors of this exciting festival. The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival was started in the year 1963 & sine then it's celebrated every year, except some interruptions for a number of years during the Cultural Revolution. The festival regained its lost aura in the year 1985 and went on for an unforgettable celebration.

Major Attractions

Tagged as one of the world's four largest ice and snow festivals, the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival kicks off on January 5th and lasts for one month. Ice sculpture decoration technology ranges from the modern (using lasers) to traditional (with ice lanterns). There are ice lantern park touring activities held in many parks in the city. Winter activities in the festival include Yabuli alpine skiing, winter-swimming in the Songhua River, and the ice-lantern exhibition in Zhaolin Garden. Swing saws are used to carve ice into blocks, taken from the frozen surface of the Songhua River. Chisels, ice picks and various types of saws are then used by ice sculptors to carve out large scaled ice sculptures. Deionised water can also be used, producing ice blocks as transparent as glass to make clear sculptures rather than translucent ones. Multicoloured lights are also used to give colour to ice, creating variations on sculptured spectacles when lit up especially at night.