Written by Evelyn Reid - The Montreal Snow Village, a Montreal winter attraction which debuted January 18, 2012, is a Canadian and North American first, the only snow village of its kind to be built in a major metropolitan area worldwide. As one of the city’s most important winter draws, activity options are anything but in short supply, with opportunities to play, eat, drink, sleep and even get married. On ice.
The village, composed almost entirely of snow and ice and located in Parc Jean-Drapeau, requires resculpting every year as a result of seasonal weather shifts which effectively, and naturally, melt the premises. The rebuilding process costs anywhere from $1.5 million to $2 million annually.
1. Montreal Snow Village: How It Works
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Find out how much it costs to visit the Montreal Snow Village as well as what sights said fee includes.
2. Montreal Ice Hotel
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Inspired by similar installations in Europe, the Montreal Ice Hotel is nonetheless different, different in the sense that, contrary to its older siblings across the Atlantic, it’s not a resort removed from the city. Rather, it's part of the city, a ten-minute subway ride or five-minute car drive from downtown Montreal, and a stone's throw from the Montreal Casino, representing the first and only snow village in the world located in a major metropolitan area. At least for now.
3. Montreal Ice Restaurant Pommery
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With a seating capacity of 60, Pommery's Michelin star chef Eric Gonzalez, who also helms the kitchen at Auberge St. Gabriel, proposes a Nordic menu with a Quebec flavor and accent on locally-available produce, featuring mostly warm offerings with some cold entrees. Think vodka and lime Atlantic salmon prepared Gravlax style, a Gonzalez signature dish, Norwegian vanilla and raspberry omelette flambéed at the table, and “Chantilly” butternut squash soup with hazelnut truffle and crispy bacon garnish.
4. Montreal Ice Bar
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From "5 à 7 Hot & Cold" happy hours to "Hockey Night" specials, Montreal ice bar Amarula -- "ice bar" as in a bar made completely of ice with an ambient room temperature of -2°C to -5°C (23° to 28°F) -- is an integral feature of North America's first snow village. And on a particularly busy night, expect condensation, droplets of water dripping onto patrons as the room's collective body heat revs up the mercury, with enough room to fit up to 250 people.
5. Montreal Ice Chapel
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Ever dream of a fairy tale wedding? The Montreal ice chapel may very well be its incarnation.
6. Icebreaker Convention Center
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From team pow wows to product launches to corporate meet-and-greets, the Montreal Snow Village's Icebreaker convention center proposes a slightly different way of doing business.
