Where to Find Ice Mazes, Sculptures, Bars and Festivals in Minnesota
Where to Find Ice Mazes, Sculptures, Bars and Festivals in Minnesota
By Andrew Parks
While we’d rather not deal with it on our drive to work, ice is the driving force in many popular activities throughout Minnesota during winter. We’re not just talking about heated fish house hangs and a wide range of ice rinks, either. Frosty mazes, bars, sculptures and festivals are a mainstay throughout the deep freeze season. Here is a breakdown that covers every corner of the state.
Spicer Winterfest
ICE CASTLES & MAZES
Spicer Winterfest brings community members and volunteers together to build a brightly lit point of pride on Saulsbury Beach. It's part of a month-long soiree that includes a polar plunge, a "Fire on Ice" dance, and a pond hockey tournament.
Sporting everything from ice slides to frozen waterfalls is the expanded Minnesota State Fairgrounds location of Ice Castles, a social media sensation that can only be found in five states across the U.S. Delano also has an outsider (the Idaho-based Youngstrom family) bringing their ice block skills to Minnesota for a Norwegian-style Ice Palace with tunnels, slides and bridges.
House of Thune pose with their award-winning sculpture in 2023 / World Snow Sculpting Championship
ICE SCULPTURES
The World Snow Sculpting Championship is back in downtown Stillwater along the St. Croix River in Lowell Park. Teams from as far away as Finland, Argentina, Ecuador and Turkey will be competing for a grand prize and bragging rights in what’s become the event for sculptors who are able to turn mounds of snow into museum-worthy works of art. A wild rice cook-off, indoor market and warming house will also be happening all weekend.
St. Paul Winter Carnival / Credit: The Great Northern Festival
ICE BARS
Speaking of sculptures, Saint Paul’s longtime Winter Carnival features several ice carving competitions. Swing by Rice Park’s outdoor bar for Minnesota-made beer and mulled wine, catch live entertainment and local vendors, and snap a photo on a frozen royal throne.
Building on the buzz of the floral ice bar at Cardamom is a similar outdoor setup at Daniel del Prado’s Rand Tower restaurant Blondette. Swing by on Friday or Saturday night to gaze up at downtown Minneapolis and sip on highly experimental cocktails.
The Social-ICE Festival in Rochester / Alpha Digital
Downtown Rochester’s Social-ICE is more than your average ice bar experience; it’s a full-blown winter extravaganza, held annually in Peace Plaza and boasting a wide assortment of themed ice bars. Previous years have featured signature drinks and speaker-rattling DJ sets alongside tributes to everything from the Minnesota Wild to Ghostbusters.
A winter staple on Lake of the Woods, the Igloo Bar at Zippel Bay Resort is a wooden structure covered with foam insulation that’s dragged onto the ice for anglers and anyone who wants to brave the elements with a beer. Pull open trap doors to go fishing from the comfort of your bar stool, or simply grab a drink, kick back and soak up the unique charms of the heated igloo bar.
Ice fishing in the Brainerd Lakes Area
ICE FESTIVALS
Even if you don’t ice fish, you can still celebrate this tried-and-true Minnesota tradition at one of many festivals around the state, including the world’s largest ice fishing contest: the Brainerd Jaycees Ice Extravaganza. Hosted each January on Gull Lake’s Hole-in-the-Day Bay, the tournament pulls in 10,000 anglers from around the world to compete for more than $150,000 in cash and prizes.
Other notable ice fishing fests include the Sleepy Eye Sportsmen’s Annual Ice Fishing Derby, the Poles N Holes Fishing Derby in Detroit Lakes, and the ice fishing contest at Wabasha’s annual Grumpy Old Men Festival.
The Minnesota Ice Festival maze at Winter Skolstice
The world’s largest ice carousel is one of the main draws at the annual Sunny Zwilling Memorial I.C.E. Fest in Little Falls, a free two-day event rounded out by igloo building, dog sledding, curling, ice diving with an underwater drone, and a spearfishing demo. Speaking of record-breaking activities, Minnesota Ice Festival boasts the world's largest ice maze as part of Eagan's three-month Winter Skolstice program.
One of Minnesota’s longest running ice-related events is Moorhead’s Frostival, which spreads cardboard sled races, kickball matches, a snow sculpture competition and disc golf over six action-packed weeks. For more trip ideas and a complete rundown of the countless festivals that keep Minnesotans busy all winter, check out our frosty fun guide here.
Andrew Parks is a senior digital strategist at Explore Minnesota. His previous work including copywriting and content design for such clients as the Michelin Guide, Apple, Food & Wine, Condé Nast Traveler, Bandcamp, AFAR, Bon Appétit, and Red Bull.