Harbin: China's Snow and Ice Wonderland
- riokatie
- Mar 24
- 5 min read
Harbin is a city in Northern China, above North Korea, and while it may not be on many people’s bucket list for travel, it really should be. With a fascinating history dating back an estimated 2200 years, Harbin has been shaped by a strong Russian and Jewish influence through the 20th century, and this is evident in the stunning architecture as well as in the unique music culture.
So, why visit Harbin? Visit in Winter, and Harbin is cold. Its four layers of clothing, warming packs stuck to your body, eyeballs freezing kind of cold. Its not for the faint-hearted, and its an incredible, unique experience.
Harbin Ice Festival
This is the main reason for winter visitors in Harbin, the Ice Festival! The scale of the festival is enormous and spans several sites.
Sun Island Park hosts the snow sculptures. Set over a huge site, there are hundreds of snow sculptures you can walk among and photograph. There is a big lake for ice skating, slipping around on, riding on tires, sleds, and all manner of sliding things, which is bordered by snow sculptures of massive proportions complete with slides down onto the ice lake below. The themes and shapes of these sculptures change every year, and I simply can’t fathom how many super talented people work on this to make it happen, its phenomenal. Other attractions on site include ski slopes with ride-ables, restaurants, and parks.
The Ice Sculptures exist at a different location, and as they are thoroughly lit up do ensure you visit them at night. You’ll find yourself walking through a make-shift city of buildings, statues, and all manner of attractions made from ice. The ice is generally sourced from the local Songhua River, harvested in giant blocks that are then transported and used to create the enormous works of ice.
Speaking of the Songhua River, this is also the site of more wintery fun, with ice skating, sledding, and sliding all on offer.
Zoo
Harbin boasts a zoo much like many others, and while we may not be big fans of caged animals, The Harbin Northern Forest Zoo is worth a look for its variety of interesting exhibits and has quite a good tour available too.
Architecture
Harbin was a destination for many thousands of Russian refugees around the time of the Russian Revolution, and at one time was known as the Moscow of the East. Again, around World War II, Harbin welcomed in thousands of Jewish refugees from Europe (incidentally, at one time China was one of very few countries in the world that welcomed Jewish refugees, and there is a remarkable history of the wonderful contributions Jewish communities made throughout China).
Take some time to tour the city architecture, and you’ll see the influence of these important groups of people still standing all over the city. Check out this tour of the city.
Stay
Its very common for Hotels in Chinese cities to have a Club Level – meaning you pay a little extra for your room, but gain access to a lounge with free food and drink and a great hang-out space. We highly recommend you book a Club Level room wherever you stay, so you’ll have warm, comfortable hang out space to warm up between outings and at the end of the day. Particularly important if you’re traveling in a group. It can also be a great way to get to chat to some local people who speak English, and other travellers – this can be the best way to get great tips on local restaurants and other attractions.
Try Fairfield by Marriott Downtown, or The Shangri-La for great options.
Eat
Walking around Harbin City, you’ll find many eateries to suit any tastes, however when venturing out to other attractions you’ll find food offerings potentially more sparse. We suggest you have your own snacks on hand when you venture out on day trips just in case, particularly if travelling with children or anyone who can’t comfortably wait to get back to the hotel! While Chinese convenience stores may not stock many familiar snack items, you should have no trouble locating basics like fruits, chips (crisps), noodles, and nuts.
Dress
Harbin is like anywhere else you’ll travel with extreme temperatures – the inside temperature will be wildly opposite from the outside! So, you need to be prepared to dress in multiple layers that enables you to shed a layer or two quickly when stepping into your overheated hotel or a restaurant. Our group generally went with four layers – a base layer of thermals, second layer of ‘normal’ clothes such as t-shirt and pants, third layer of a fleecy jumper or jacket, top layer of good quality thick ski jacket and ski pants. Gloves, socks, and hats in two layers are essential too – thin thermal layer then thick waterproof layers over top, and some good boots. I went the extra mile with heat packs stuck to my torso and feet – and I really needed them!
This is where I learned that while I can wrap up nearly every part of me from the cold, there was one thing I couldn’t protect – my eyeballs! The sensation of feeling extreme cold in my eyes was a new one for me and I won’t forget that!
We also learned a lesson regarding smart phones – particularly iPhone – they can’t stand the cold. We iPhone users all found that our phone batteries drained very quickly when exposed to the cold, and we had to be careful to take a few photos at a time then quickly put our phones away into a warm pocket to preserve some battery life. Unfortunately, this also meant that when one of my teenagers dropped his phone into the snow, the battery went flat in minutes.
Getting There and Getting Around
There are many flight options from nearby airline hubs, such as Shanghai. We flew in from Shanghai with a group of five families. Due to the extreme cold, public transport isn’t as easily navigated safely as it is in most travel destinations. You will need to know you have a warm car to get back into after your forays into the cold. Due to our group size, we hired a bus with driver for the duration of our stay. We recommend you hire a driver and vehicle size to suit your group – this may be a lot cheaper than you anticipate and there are many options available. Do check if your driver will speak your language, or if you’re relying on translator apps you may need to check what language your driver speaks and reads.
Rest assured, Harbin gets a lot of tourists in winter and any driver will know the places you want to go and the hotels you’re likely to book.
Travelling to popular destinations is never a mistake – but travelling ONLY to those busy tourist hotspots definitely is! When planning your next trip, think about going somewhere you hadn’t heard of before – maybe Harbin might be a good start!
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