Thanks to Ice Castles for sponsoring this trip! All opinions are my own.
The holidays may be over, but winter magic is alive and well at the Ice Castles in Dillon, Colorado.
Melanie and I had an icy blast twirling through glacier-blue slot canyons, marveling at 20-foot high sculpted walls of ice, and channeling our inner Elsa on frozen thrones. (There’s even an Olaf trash can.)
It snowed our entire visit, shrouding the snowcapped peaks around us from view but creating a magical winter wonderland inside.
“Just a little shake of the snowglobe,” one Breckenridge shopkeeper said.
What are the Ice Castles?
The Ice Castles are an open-air, acre-sized cathedral of solid ice, filled with magical ice tunnels, slot canyons, thrones, and kid-friendly ice slides to enjoy.
It takes a team of 20-40 “ice artisans” (dream job alert) two months to construct an Ice Castle from scratch, each consisting of 25 million pounds of solid ice. (There’s no internal frame they’re hanging the ice on: just the cold stuff!)
Each day the artisans grow 5,000 to 12,000 individual icicles, which are then harvested by hand and sculpted onto the existing ice walls. Then it’s all sprayed with water and Mama Nature does her magic.
All Ice Castles sites are located by a natural water source —in Colorado’s case, the Dillon Reservoir—so that the water returns to the local environment each spring.
The thick ice turns glacier-blue, giving the whole place an otherworldly winter glow. It’s the closest you’ll get to a glacier in Colorado.
At night, LED lights frozen inside the ice spring to life like Elsa’s castle in Frozen, appearing from afar like a terrestrial aurora borealis.
Thanks to constant fluctuations in wind, water, and temperature, you’ll never walk through the same Ice Castle twice.
Where are the Ice Castles?
There are now six Ice Castles locations around North America, including Colorado, Michigan, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Alberta, and Utah.
We visited the Ice Castles in Dillon, Colorado, about an hour west of Denver and 15 minutes from Breckenridge in Colorado’s ski country.
When do the Dillon Ice Castles open? (Dillon Ice Castles 2021 Dates)
Ice Castles Colorado opened in December 2020 and is scheduled to remain open until February 28, 2021 or later, if weather permits. You can find the latest opening and closing dates for 2021 on the Ice Castles website.
Ice Castles is open Thursday-Monday, with Thursdays and Mondays being your best chance to snag that perfect Instagram pic without the crowds.
To see the Ice Castles glint glacier-blue in the sun and shine with a Northern Lights-like multicolored glow at night, plan to arrive just before sunset (~4:30-5:00 entrance) and stay until dark, around ~5-5:30pm.
COVID-19 Precautions in 2021
Masks are required when visiting the Ice Castles, even though they’re mostly open-air. Attendees are also advised to stay 6′ away from others. Ice Castles staff will be masked and frequently sanitizing high-touch surfaces.
For more on COVID-19 precautions, see the Ice Castles FAQ.
7 Tips for Visiting the Ice Castles in Colorado
- Book tickets ahead of time
Time slots can fill up well in advance, so book your tickets early to guarantee your visit.
Mondays and Thursdays are cheaper, at $17.99 per adult / $12.99 per child.
Fridays, weekends, and holidays are $22.99 per adult / $17.99 per child.
You can also purchase a standby ticket at the weekend rate, but there’s no guarantee there will be slots available when you arrive. - Time your visit for sunset
There’s no bad time to see or photograph the Ice Castles. But if you want the best of both worlds, plan to arrive just before sunset (~4:30-5:00 entrance).
You’ll get to see the bright blue castles shimmering in the sun and, after the sun goes down, the spires lit up with a Northern Lights-like multicolored glow. - Dress in warm, waterproof clothing
With winter temperatures often well below freezing, bundle up! The warmer you are, the more fun you will have.
Even if it’s not snowing at the time of your visit, waterproof layers will keep you dry as you crawl through ice caves and zoom down the glassy slides. - Wear grippy shoes
The ice and snow on the floor of Ice Castles will be packed down, so you’re fine in a pair of shoes or boots with grippy soles. (Microspikes/snowshoes won’t be necessary.) - Arrive early & use the facilities beforehand
If you get to Ice Castles at the beginning of your time slot, you’ll be first in line for the slides and have a better chance at crowd-free photos. (Just don’t arrive too early, or you’ll have a chilly wait.)
There are port-a-potties just outside Ice Castles to use before you enter. Once you exit, you won’t be able to get back inside. - Head for the slides first
As soon as you enter the Ice Castles, head straight to one of the two ice slides (if you plan to use them.) Lines will form fast.
7. Grab a hot drink afterwards
Warm up with a marshmallow-y hot chocolate at the nearby Cameez Frozen Yogurt, which serves cocoa and crepes until 11pm.
If you’re done before 2:00, you can also visit The Pour House in Dillon for my personal favorite hot beverage, the Bee Sting: a latte infused with local honey-lavender syrup and cayenne. And for something a little stronger, the Irish coffee at Butterhorn Bakery in nearby Frisco (10 minutes from Ice Castles, open until 2:30) is also a great choice.
Ice Castles FAQ
How long can I spend inside the Ice Castles?
There’s no limit to how long you can spend inside the Ice Castles, but once you leave you won’t be able to re-enter.
Ice Castles reports that most people spend 30 minutes to an hour inside the castles, with longer times likely if you go on a weekend and have to wait for your photo ops.
We spent about 25 minutes gawking at the scenery and testing the slides before we’d had our fill (and couldn’t feel our toes.)
Can I bring my dog/drone/camera equipment?
No dogs, drones, or tripods are allowed.
Professional photography is only allowed during weekday opening hours, and you can’t block off sections of the Ice Castles to get your shot.
Where can I park?
Free parking for the Colorado Ice Castles is plentiful, with spaces available on Buffalo Dr right in front of the Ice Castles as well as overflow in the Town Hall parking lot.
The Ice Castles website has a great FAQ section with answers to more common questions.
What Else Is There to Do Near Ice Castles?
Ice Castles Colorado is ideally located in the heart of Colorado’s ski country, close to the Keystone, Loveland, and Arapahoe Basin ski areas.
But if you, like me, are not a skiier, there’s still plenty to do!
We combined our Ice Castles trip with an overnight snowshoe adventure to Francie’s Hut and an idyllic day in the town of Breckenridge. Next time I’d love to do a dog sledding tour, take a ski lesson, and/or check out the outlets at Silverthorne.
Ice Castles is also close enough to Denver for a quick in-and-out day trip, assuming you don’t get caught in snow traffic on I-70 like we did. #worthit
Thanks to the combined efforts of Melanie and Ruby Sue, we white-knuckled it though a winter whiteout and got back to Denver just in time to see my favorite band, Mandolin Orange, perform with the Denver Symphony.
Thanks to Ice Castles for sponsoring our trip and to Mama Nature for providing the snow! It was a magical winter adventure in Colorado.
Have you been to one of the Ice Castles locations? Questions about attending Ice Castles Colorado in 2021? Let me know below!
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