Welcome to China’s mystical winter wonderland made only of ice and snow.

 

Every year during the months of Β January and February, China hosts the wonderful Harbin Ice and Snow Festival, that often rakes in a turnout of 800,000 people – making it the best time to visit the country.

The festivals takes place in the province of Heilongjiang, Harbin – where unused land is turned into a temporary city made of ice that includes towering ice sculptures of birds, animals, characters and even an amusement park and an ice slide!

Apart from appealing to the child within us, there is also a lot of chilly ‘artwork’ and ice architecture you can spot around the winter wonderland like castles, parks and what not.

While the ice scuptures glisten in the sun, the real show is at night. Come twilight, all the coloured lights are lit and what you see is pretty much every traveller’s visual dream. For miles and miles you’ll witness multi-coloured lights reflecting and refracting through the ice and snow, making some glorious patterns.

This is a festival where you can capture some phenomenal pictures, so do remember to carry you camera along!

Here are some pictures to prove it’s magnificence

 

1. Toothless the Dragon, chillin’. Literally.

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(Image Courtesy :Β instagram.com/travels_with_toothless)

2. Horsing around in the sun

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(Image Courtesy :Β instagram.com/ingridteda)

 

3. Pillars of strength

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(Image Courtesy :Β instagram.com/ingridteda)

4. Wonderland, indeed

kim kyung-hoon-Reuters(Image Courtesy : Kim Kyung-Hoon / Reuters)

 

5. Almost looks as bright as Times Square

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(Image Courtesy : instagram.com/timandglo)

 

6. A castle for an Eskimo king?

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(Image Courtesy : instagram.com/timandglo)

 

7. Guard elephants for the Eskimo King

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(Image Courtesy: instagram.com/panda_mii/)

 

 

Β 8. Even the smoke is made of ice!

amandyliang

(Image Courtesy : instagram.com/amandyliang)

 

9. Take a trip down this slide, at your own risk. #buttfreeze

kim kyung-hoon-Reuters2(Image Courtesy : Kim Kyung-Hoon / Reuters)

 

10. Ice chandelier orΒ disco-ball? You choose

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(Image Courtesy :Β instagram.com/3ka21)

11. A chariot ride, by the moonlight. Just like a scene of out of ‘Frozen’

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(Image Courtesy :Β instagram.com/pang_yiqing)