It could be any standard hotel room in the quaint northeastern Dutch city of Zwolle, with a bed, a minibar, bathrobes and two pairs of slippers. Except for the room temperature, which hovers just above freezing. Welcome to the first Dutch ice hotel, all the comforts at eight degrees Celsius (46 degrees Fahrenheit). "If you take a shower before bed, make sure your hair is dry or it will freeze. Do not drink too much alcohol, or eat too heavy a meal. Make sure you change clothes before entering the room," hotel manager Annet van Limburg told first-time visitors. Laughing a little nervously, Luc van Heijst and Maya Zhang, both 42, listened carefully to her advice, their luggage stuffed with several pairs of pants, sweaters, gloves and hats. "No, I'm not afraid, but I am still a little nervous," admitted Van Heijst, from Veghel, an hour-and-a-half's drive to the south. "We came for the experience," he told, adding: "I feel like a little boy." Built for an ice sculptors' festival in Zwolle and managed by a local hotel, the structure has three rooms and stands in a refrigerated warehouse, where the temperature hovers between six and eight degrees C (42 and 46 degrees F), depending on the number of visitors. It is the first time in Europe that an ice hotel has opened this far south, Van Limburg said. Indeed, the idea comes from the north. With some 47 rooms for the 2011/12 season, the largest ice hotel is at Jukkasjarvi in northern Sweden's Lapland. Read Full: Spending a night in a Dutch ice hotel | Deccan Chronicle
