# Harbin Ice and Snow World > Harbin Ice and Snow World (哈尔滨冰雪大世界) is a winter-only park of full-size castles, towers and slides built from Songhua River ice and lit in colour after dark. It usually runs from mid or late December to late February, roughly 10:00–21:30. Last season's adult ticket was ¥328. Allow 3–4 hours and arrive before sunset. Web page: https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/ice-and-snow-world - City: [Harbin](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin), China - YesGo score: 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) - Time on site: 3 h - With kids: Fine with kids - Season: Winter only. Last season opened on 17 December and closed early on 21 February during a thaw - Coming season: Announced; opening date not yet published — past seasons opened mid to late December - Ticket: ¥328 standard adult last season; ¥298 in the opening week - Discounts: Free for children under 6 or under 1.2 m and visitors 65+; reduced ticket for ages 6–18 and students about ¥240 (unofficial) - Hours: ≈ 10:00–21:30 daily in season; some guides list 11:00–22:00 with last entry 21:30 - Lights on: At dusk, around 16:30 - Booking: Park's WeChat account, Alipay, Trip.com; ticket in your passport name, overseas cards accepted - Metro: Line 2, Ice and Snow World station (冰雪大世界), Exit 4 - Address: Taiyangdao West Area, Songbei District — north bank of the Songhua River - Coordinates: 45.77795, 126.55638 - Facts checked: 04.11.2026 ## Key facts - **1999** — first season; the park is rebuilt from scratch every winter (source: Chinese and English Wikipedia; Travel China Guide) - **≈ 120 ha** — park area last season; 125 ha announced for the coming one (source: China Daily; Science and Technology Daily; Cover News; Beijing Daily) - **≈ 400,000 m³** — of ice and snow go into the buildings each season (source: Science and Technology Daily; Beijing Daily) - **Songhua ice** — blocks are cut from the frozen river (source: English, Russian and Chinese Wikipedia) - **521 m** — longest run of the Super Ice Slide, which has 24 lanes (source: China Daily; Science and Technology Daily) - **120 m** — height of the Snowflake Ferris wheel (source: Science and Technology Daily; Travel China Guide) - **Since 2001** — on the west side of Sun Island, north bank of the Songhua (source: Chinese Wikipedia; Dahepiao) - **Line 2** — metro — Ice and Snow World station by the east gate (source: Chinese Wikipedia; Wanderin China; China for Travelers) - **Year-round** — indoor halls next door — ice hall, play hall and food hall (source: Chinese Wikipedia; Dahepiao; China News) - **New theme** — every season — new buildings, and last year's melt in spring (source: English Wikipedia; Travel China Guide) > **Winter only — and the coming dates aren't out yet** The ice city is built from scratch each season and shut once it starts to melt. The coming season's opening date hasn't been published. Last season opened on 17 December and closed early on 21 February after record warmth. In summer only the indoor halls are open. If you're planning for late February, keep a spare day. ## When does Harbin Ice and Snow World open? It opens in mid or late December and runs to late February, as long as the cold holds. The coming season is officially announced — the park grows to 125 hectares, with a new extra-long slide and more than a thousand ice and snow structures — but no opening date has been given yet. Past seasons are the best guide. The last one opened on **17 December at 10:00**; in late February a record warm spell softened the ice and the park closed early, on 21 February. The safest window is **late December to mid-February**. January is the heart of the season — and the coldest part of it. The wider Harbin ice festival holds its opening ceremony around 5 January, but the park has been open for a couple of weeks by then. There's no reason to wait for it: the ice buildings are the same before and after. New Year and Chinese New Year are the busiest days, with hour-plus queues for the slides and the wheel. If you can choose, go on weekdays in the first half of January or just after Chinese New Year, but not later than mid-February. ## How much are tickets, and how do foreigners buy them? Prices for the coming season aren't published yet. Last season a standard adult ticket was **¥328**, or ¥298 in the opening week. The season before, the park kept the price unchanged, so ¥300–330 is a fair working figure. Children under 6 or under 1.2 m and visitors aged 65+ go free. A reduced ticket for ages 6–18 and students was about ¥240 according to third-party sellers. There was no separate night ticket last season: one ticket covers the whole day, and re-entry isn't guaranteed. Tickets are tied to an ID. The park sells them in its WeChat account and through Alipay, Trip.com and Chinese apps; foreigners book with a **passport number** and show the passport at the gate. Overseas bank cards are accepted. The easiest route for most visitors is Alipay or WeChat Pay linked to a foreign Visa or Mastercard, or a Trip.com booking in English. The big slide and the Ferris wheel are included, but each needs a free timed slot booked in the park's mini-programme once you're inside. Slots go fast on busy evenings. ## What is Harbin Ice and Snow World? It's the ice-architecture park at the centre of the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival: palaces, pagodas, fortress towers and arches built life-size from blocks of ice, with LEDs set inside the walls so the whole place glows red, blue and green after dark. The first season ran in 1999 to mark the millennium, on a sandbar of the Songhua River. Since 2001 it has stood on the west side of Sun Island, on the north bank. The ice comes straight off the frozen Songhua — crews saw it into blocks once it's thick enough. Everything is rebuilt each winter around a new theme, mixing replicas of world landmarks with Chinese halls and abstract towers. In spring it's broken up or left to melt. For Harbin this is the winter attraction — the reason most people come between December and February. ## What to see inside - **The main tower** in the centre — the tallest build of the season, with lighting that shifts colour after dark. - **The Super Ice Slide**: 24 lanes, the longest 521 m. It's the park's signature ride; you book a time slot, and there's usually still a queue. - **The Snowflake Ferris wheel**, 120 m tall, looks over the whole ice city and the lights across the river. One turn takes about 20 minutes. - **Shows on the main stage**: an ice show, a car ballet on snow and a themed parade are promised for the coming season; times are in the mini-programme. - **The ice sculpture competition** — carvers work inside the park, and the finished pieces stay up all season. - **Heated halls** for food and a break — duck into one every hour or so. - Small slides and ice mazes all over the park — much shorter lines than the big slide. ## How to get to Harbin Ice and Snow World 1. From [Central Street](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-central-street), go down to Central Street (Zhongyang Dajie, 中央大街) station on metro Line 2. 2. Ride north towards Jiangbei University Town for 3 stops — People's Square, Sun Island, then Ice and Snow World (冰雪大世界). About 10 minutes on the train. 3. Leave by **Exit 4**, signed 冰雪大世界; the park's east gate is a few minutes' walk. 4. Buy a single ticket at a machine with an English menu, or use the Alipay/WeChat transit QR code with the city set to Harbin. 5. A taxi or DiDi from the centre takes roughly 20–30 minutes across the river, longer on holidays. After 21:00, cars are slow to reach the south gate — walking back to the metro is quicker. 6. Check the last train back before you go in; it changes with the date. ## Day or night: when to go Aim to arrive **around 15:00–15:30**. In daylight you see that the buildings really are clear ice; by about 16:30 the lights come on and it turns into the neon night scene from the photos. One ticket, both versions. Night only means the best photos but also the deepest cold and the longest queues. Day only means shorter lines for the slides, but the park looks half-finished without the lights. If the slide is your priority, come at opening time, when slots are easier to get. Give the park **3–4 hours**, or 5–6 with the big slide and the wheel. Few people last longer than that in the cold — plan breaks in the heated halls. ## What to wear and bring - [ ] Thermal base layers, fleece and a long down coat — January evenings can drop to −25 °C or lower - [ ] A hat that covers your ears, a face buff, and mittens over thin gloves - [ ] Thick-soled winter boots and wool socks — you'll be standing on ice - [ ] Hand and foot warmers - [ ] A power bank in an inside pocket — phones die in minutes in this cold - [ ] Your passport — the ticket is in its name - [ ] A vacuum flask; there are hot-water points in the park - [ ] Alipay set up, plus some cash in small notes > **Is Harbin Ice and Snow World worth it?** Yes, if you're in Harbin between late December and mid-February: there's no other ice architecture on this scale, and the night lighting earns the ticket price. Skip it if you struggle with serious cold, or if you're arriving in late February or later — the ice may be melting, and in summer there's no ice city at all. ## Not to be confused with Ice and Snow World is the park of ice buildings. The Snow Sculpture Expo on [Sun Island](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-sun-island) is a separate festival venue next door, to the east. The indoor halls that stay open all year next to the park are not the ice city itself. ## Harbin after dark: compare and choose Places in Harbin that shine after sunset, as scored by YesGo. - [St Sophia Cathedral](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-st-sophia-cathedral) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Square free, inside ≈ ¥25 - [Central Street](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-central-street) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free - [Stalin Park and Flood Control Monument](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/stalin-park) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free - [Harbin Grand Theatre](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-grand-theatre) — YesGo score 38/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Outside free; inside ≈ ¥19.9 - [Harbin Ice and Snow World](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/ice-and-snow-world) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ¥328 (last season), winter only - [Dragon Tower](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-dragon-tower) — YesGo score 32/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · ≈ CNY 95 ## A winter day: old town, riverfront, ice at night The cathedral and Central Street by day, the Songhua riverfront at dusk, then the metro across to the ice city. Add it to your route and YesGo sets the times and walks. 1. [St Sophia Cathedral](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-st-sophia-cathedral) — YesGo score 44/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 45 min · Square free, inside ≈ ¥25 2. [Central Street](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-central-street) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h 30 min · Free 3. [Stalin Park and Flood Control Monument](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/stalin-park) — YesGo score 43/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 1 h · Free 4. [Harbin Ice and Snow World](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/ice-and-snow-world) — YesGo score 36/100 (Yes, if nearby) · 3 h · ¥328 (last season), winter only ## Tips - Arrive by 15:00 to see the ice in sunlight and the lights coming on with one ticket. - Book the big slide and the wheel in the park's mini-programme as soon as you're in — slots run out. - Warm up in a heated hall every hour or so, or you won't last until the best of the lights. - Keep your phone and power bank in an inside pocket; batteries drain fast at −20 °C. - Head home by metro from Exit 4 — taxis are slow to reach the south gate at night. - Spend the day on Central Street and at [St Sophia Cathedral](https://yesgo.io/china/harbin/harbin-st-sophia-cathedral), and keep the evening for the ice. ## Questions ### When does Harbin Ice and Snow World open this winter? The park hasn't published the date yet. It usually opens in mid or late December — last season on 17 December. ### When does Harbin Ice and Snow World close? Usually in late February, depending on the weather. Last season a warm spell closed it early, on 21 February. ### How much is a ticket to Harbin Ice and Snow World? New prices aren't out yet. Last season a standard adult ticket was ¥328, or ¥298 in the opening week. ### Can foreigners buy tickets? Yes, with a passport number — through the park's WeChat account, Alipay or Trip.com. Overseas cards are accepted; bring the passport to the gate. ### How do I get to Harbin Ice and Snow World by metro? Take Line 2 to Ice and Snow World station and use Exit 4. From Central Street it's 3 stops, about 10 minutes. ### What are the opening hours? Roughly 10:00–21:30 every day in season; some guides give 11:00–22:00 with last entry at 21:30. Check the park's account before you go. ### Is it better during the day or at night? Both — arrive around 15:00 to see the ice in daylight, then stay for the lights, which come on at about 16:30. ### How long do you need at Harbin Ice and Snow World? 3–4 hours to walk it, 5–6 if you ride the big slide and the Ferris wheel. ### How cold is it and what should I wear? January evenings can drop to −25 °C or lower. Wear thermal layers, a long down coat, a hat, mittens, winter boots, and bring warmers. ### Is it open in summer? No. Only the indoor halls next to the park run all year; the ice buildings are made anew each winter. ## How we checked Last season's opening and prices come from the park's announcement as carried by Guangming Online and Xinhua; the coming season's plans from Cover News and Beijing Daily. At the time of checking, the park had not published the new season's date or prices, so they are marked as verifying. Sources disagree on daily hours (10:00–21:30 vs 11:00–22:00), so we show both. The reduced ticket, light-up time and taxi time are unofficial. Other facts are checked against at least two sources. ## Sources - Guangming Online (gmw.cn), park announcement for last season — opening date, ¥328 and ¥298 prices - Xinhua (news.cn) — standard ticket price unchanged, opening in mid to late December - Science and Technology Daily and China Daily — last season's opening, area, slide, Ferris wheel, overseas card payment - Cover News (Sichuan) and Beijing Daily — announcement of the coming season: area, ice volume, new slides and shows - China News — early closure of last season during a thaw - Dahepiao — free entry by age and height, indoor halls and their hours - Chinese Wikipedia: 哈尔滨冰雪大世界 and 冰雪大世界站; English and Russian Wikipedia articles on the Harbin ice festival; Wikidata Q10895490 - Travel China Guide, China for Travelers, Wanderin China — hours, lighting, metro exit, practical tips --- This is the Markdown version of a YesGo page for AI assistants. Quote the web page link above, not this file.