A fantastical tour through China's winter wonderland

The Harbin International Snow and Ice festival makes the most brutal of seasons magical

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People ride the slides on the ice sculptures during the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival.
People visit ice sculptures illuminated by colored lights during a trial operation of the Harbin Ice and Snow World on Dec. 22, 2014.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Stringer)From December to March, the so-called "ice city" welcomes millions of tourists to experience a veritable winter wonderland designed and built by some 10,000 artists and work)

Jan. 5, 2016.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Aly Song))

Jan. 5, 2015
(Image credit: People ride slides on ice sculptures.)

Jan. 5, 2016.
(Image credit: (REUTERS/Aly Song))

Jan. 4, 2015
(Image credit: (FRED DUFOUR/AFP/Getty Images))

Jan. 4, 2015
(Image credit: Visitors use kaleidoscopes to view the winter landscape and ice sculptures.)

Jan. 5, 2012
(Image credit: The sun sets behind a castle made from blocks of ice.)

Jan. 3, 2011
(Image credit: A man takes a photo of an ice sculpture on a main street in Harbin.)

Jan. 3, 2010
(Image credit: People visit an ice sculpture made to look like Rome's Colosseum.)

Jan. 4, 2014
(Image credit: A woman is dwarfed by a giant snow sculpture.)

Dec. 24, 2009
(Image credit: People visit an ice sculpture made to look like China's Forbidden City.)

Jan. 5, 2011
(Image credit: Spectators watch fireworks explode over ice sculptures.)

Lauren Hansen
Lauren Hansen

Lauren Hansen produces The Week’s podcasts and videos and edits the photo blog, Captured. She also manages the production of the magazine's iPad app. A graduate of Kenyon College and Northwestern University, she previously worked at the BBC and Frontline. She knows a thing or two about pretty pictures and cute puppies, both of which she tweets about @mylaurenhansen.