Lapland Ice Hotels & Glass Igloos — Best Stays Compared

I did not stay in a glass igloo until I was in my twenties. Growing up in Rovaniemi, the idea of paying to sleep under the sky seemed absurd when you could just walk outside your front door and look up. Then I actually tried it — a February night at a resort north of Rovaniemi, lying in a thermal bed while green light pulsed through the glass ceiling — and I understood why people fly across the world to do this.

Lapland offers two distinct accommodation experiences: the SnowHotel (a hotel built entirely from snow and ice that melts every spring) and glass igloos (cabins with thermal glass roofs designed for aurora viewing from your bed). They serve different purposes and budgets, and choosing between them depends on what you value more — the novelty of sleeping in an ice room at -5°C, or the comfort of watching the aurora through a heated glass dome.

I have stayed in both and visited most of the major options around Rovaniemi. Below is everything you need to know, including the best multi-day tour that combines both experiences.

Ice Hotels vs. Glass Igloos at a Glance

Table 1: Ice hotels vs glass igloos — key differences as of June 2026
Feature	SnowHotel / Ice Hotel	Glass Igloo
Temperature	-3°C to -6°C inside	Room temperature (heated)
Aurora Viewing	Step outside	From your bed through glass roof
Bathroom	Shared facilities (heated)	Private ensuite
Sleeping Bag	Extreme cold sleeping bag provided	Normal bed with duvet
Best For	Adventurers, novelty seekers	Couples, aurora chasers
Typical Price/Night	$200–400	$350–700

Featured Tours & Packages

Lapland Express — 2-Day Arctic Adventure

Best Combo Package

★ 4.4 78 reviews From $482

This is the tour I recommend most for visitors who want to experience both SnowHotel-style accommodation and Lapland's winter activities in a short trip. The package includes overnight accommodation in an Arctic hotel (not the SnowHotel itself, but a comfortable resort with glass igloo upgrade options), a husky safari, a snowmobile ride, and a northern lights hunt. It is an efficient way to pack the highlights into two days.

The key advantage is logistics: everything is organised — transfers, meals, thermal clothing, and activities — so you do not waste time figuring out how to get from one experience to the next. At ★ 4.4 with 78 reviews, it scores well for organisation and guide quality.

Who it's NOT for: If you specifically want to sleep in an ice hotel with carved ice walls, this package stays in a heated hotel with optional upgrades. Book the SnowHotel separately if the ice experience is your priority. Also, $482 per person is a significant investment for two days.

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SnowHotel Experience & Northern Lights Tour

Best Ice Hotel Option

★ 4.3 54 reviews From $350

I spent a night at the SnowHotel near Rovaniemi last winter, and it is exactly as surreal as it sounds. The walls are carved from compressed snow, the bed is a block of ice covered with reindeer furs and a thermal mattress, and the temperature inside stays at a constant -5°C while the wind howls outside at -25°C. You sleep in an extreme-cold sleeping bag rated to -40°C, and somehow — I am still not sure how — you sleep deeply.

The SnowHotel also has an ice bar where drinks are served in glasses made of ice, and an ice chapel where couples get married. The whole structure is rebuilt every winter starting in December, and it melts completely by April. There is something special about staying in a building that will not exist in six months.

This package includes a night at the SnowHotel (shared facilities), a northern lights tour, dinner, breakfast, and thermal clothing. It is the most direct way to experience ice accommodation without booking multiple separate tours.

Who it's NOT for: If you want a private bathroom and room-temperature comfort, do not stay at the SnowHotel. The novelty is real, but so is the cold. You will wake up at least once during the night needing to use the heated toilet block, and the walk across the snow at -5°C in slippers is a shock. Also, if you are claustrophobic, the ice corridors are narrow and windowless.

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What to Bring

Packing correctly makes the difference between enjoying your ice hotel or glass igloo stay and being miserable. Here is what I bring on every overnight winter stay in Lapland:

Merino wool base layers (top and bottom): The most important item. Cotton traps moisture and cools you down. Merino wicks sweat and insulates even when damp.
Thermal socks: Two pairs — one to wear, one to sleep in. Your feet will thank you.
Balaclava or wool hat: For the SnowHotel, you sleep with your head outside the sleeping bag. A hat is essential.
Hand and foot warmers: Disposable heat packs. Stick them in your gloves and boots. They last 6–8 hours.
Flip-flops: For the walk to the heated bathroom block at the SnowHotel. Your feet will not touch the ice floor.
A camera with manual controls: For aurora photography. Phone cameras do not capture the northern lights well without a tripod and manual settings.

Temperature Expectations

Here is what the temperatures actually feel like, based on my stays:

December–February: Outside temperatures -15°C to -30°C. SnowHotel interior: -3°C to -6°C. Glass igloo interior: +20°C (heated).
March: Outside -5°C to -15°C. The best month for a SnowHotel stay because the cold is less extreme.
November and April: Outside 0°C to -10°C. The SnowHotel may not be fully open (it melts by mid-April and is rebuilt from December).

The glass igloos are heated to room temperature year-round. The thermal glass roof has a defrosting element that keeps it clear even when it snows, so you never miss a potential aurora sighting.

My Experience at the SnowHotel

I checked in at 6 PM, was given my thermal sleeping bag and a briefing on how to stay warm, and then spent an hour exploring the ice rooms. Each room is carved by a different artist, and the themes change every year. My room had a frozen forest motif — carved trees along the walls and a reindeer silhouette above the bed. The ice bar served lingonberry vodka in glasses that cracked if you held them too long.

Sleeping in -5°C is strange. The sleeping bag is surprisingly warm — I actually unzipped it halfway through the night — but the cold air on your face keeps reminding you where you are. I woke at 3 AM to use the bathroom, and the walk through the dark ice corridor, lit only by blue LED strips embedded in the walls, felt like being inside a science fiction film. I did not see the aurora that night — it was overcast — but the experience itself was worth it.

Who These Stays Are NOT For

You need a private bathroom. The SnowHotel uses shared heated facilities. Glass igloos have private bathrooms, but the SnowHotel does not. If bathroom privacy matters, choose a glass igloo or a regular hotel.
You are a light sleeper. The SnowHotel is quiet, but the cold and the novelty mean you will wake up. It is not a restful night in the traditional sense.
You have respiratory issues. Breathing very cold air all night can irritate lungs. If you have asthma or similar conditions, stay in a heated glass igloo instead.
You are on a budget. Both experiences are expensive. A SnowHotel night starts around $200 and glass igloos start at $350. If accommodation is where you want to save money, book a standard hotel in Rovaniemi city centre for $80–120 per night and visit the SnowHotel as a day guest.

Official Resources

Mia Ahola

Rovaniemi-born Lapland Specialist · 8 years reviewing winter tours

I was born and raised in Rovaniemi, the capital of Finnish Lapland. I have spent eight winters testing northern lights tours, husky safaris, snowmobile rides, and every other winter activity this region offers. Every review on this site is based on first-hand experience — I book the same tours you would, pay the same prices, and share what I find, good and bad.