The iciest vacation spots on the planet

Tired of sun-soaked holidays? Consider truly cooling off on your next adventure!

Traveling to a freezing destination can ignite a love for the wildest aspects of our planet. With their snow-covered landscapes, icy terrain, and frigid peaks, the coldest regions on Earth are often the most remote and difficult to reach. However, many of these chilling locales deserve a spot on the itineraries of serious explorers.

From a national park in Alaska to Scandinavian ice fields and a snow corridor in Japan, these spots will undoubtedly send a thrilling chill down your spine.

Antarctica

Mesmerizing and otherworldly, Antarctica is shrouded by the largest ice sheet on the planet, covering roughly 19 million sq km (7.3 million sq miles) during winter. It’s the coldest place on Earth, and reaching it is no easy feat. A typical 10-day journey by expedition ship from Ushuaia in Argentina involves several stormy days navigating the turbulent Drake Passage. The payoff? Five days immersed in breathtaking nature, from majestic whales to uniquely sculpted icebergs.

Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway

As the northernmost inhabited settlement of any size in the world, Longyearbyen serves as the capital of Svalbard, a frozen archipelago marking the last land before reaching the North Pole. The snow is so abundant that snowmobiles are essential for transportation, and venturing outside the town requires an armed guide for safety against roaming polar bears. Visitors can enjoy thrilling excursions to witness Arctic wildlife and some of the planet’s most stunning aurora borealis displays.

Ellesmere Island, Nunavut, Canada

Among the many icy regions in northern Canada, Ellesmere Island in Nunavut province stands out as the most frigid of them all. This landmass, the northernmost on the planet aside from Greenland, consistently ranks as one of the coldest places in Canada year after year. The Inuit community of Grise Fjord here is likely the coldest permanently inhabited place on Earth. The island's breathtaking topographical diversity supports an incredible array of Arctic wildlife: it’s one of the last bastions for wild musk oxen, and it also hosts notable populations of polar bears and Arctic wolves. The easiest way to explore this remote paradise is as a stop on an Arctic cruise.

Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland

Upon landing in Greenland, it doesn't take long to appreciate the irony of its name. The northernmost land on Earth is predominantly white, with 80% covered by the massive Greenland ice sheet. The areas that aren't frozen are rocky, and no month sees temperatures rise close to the 10°C (50°F) deemed necessary for tree growth, so the color green is rarely found here. In Ittoqqortoormiit on the east coast, one of the most isolated permanently inhabited settlements, adventurous travelers are drawn by exceptional wildlife viewing – the local populations of polar bears, musk oxen, walruses, and narwhals far outnumber the human residents – and the presence of the world’s largest national park, Northeast Greenland.

Denali National Park, Alaska, USA

Just hearing the name “Alaska” makes you want to turn up the heat. Now, consider the frigid temperatures found on the slopes of the state’s tallest peak, Denali. (Spoiler: they’re extremely low.) Its summit is the coldest point on Earth and the third-highest mountain, where even in the height of summer, temperatures can plunge to a bone-chilling -30°C (-22°F). The vast expanses of rolling foothills, tundra, and taiga around Denali can be equally frigid. Denali National Park is one of the few US national parks where off-trail hiking is allowed, drawing many adventurers. Among the marked paths, the short yet steep Thorofare Ridge Trail offers stunning vistas of the mountain.

Hornstrandir Nature Reserve, Iceland

This northwestern stretch of Iceland isn’t the nature reserve you might envision: there are no well-marked paths or signs pointing out local wildlife. In fact, there’s not much at all. Long isolated from the rest of Iceland by the Drangajökull glacier, Hornstrandir is a frigid expanse of untamed peaks, tundra, towering cliffs, and tumultuous shores that will feel especially cold to visitors—because to truly experience it, you must hike through and camp in it. Once a place of exile for Icelanders (including the legendary Viking Erik the Red), it has become one of Europe’s most adventurous trekking locations. The bogs and river crossings can quickly leave hikers soaked, and temperatures rarely reach double digits, making it tough to dry off. The silver lining? Such cold brings with it extraordinary natural beauty.

Hakkōda Mountains, Japan

No list of frigid destinations would be complete without mentioning the Hakkōda Mountains, often regarded as the snowiest place on Earth. Just below the peaks lies Aomori, the snowiest city globally, which is blanketed in several meters of snow for about four months each year. One of the highlights here is the Hakkōda ski area, known for some of Japan’s finest backcountry snow activities. Another spectacle is the annual snow removal from the highway into Aomori following its winter closure: this month-long process creates a corridor with snow walls reaching around 8m (16ft) high, perfect for stunning winter social media photos.

Vestland County, Norway

This fjord-carved region of western Norway boasts numerous weather records due to its relentless rain and snowfall. Begin your chilling journey in Bergen, one of Europe’s wettest cities, where the likelihood of rain looms more than half the time. Then head northeast to Jostedalsbreen National Park, home to continental Europe’s largest glacier, or travel southeast to the massive Folgefonna glacier for snow sports at Røldal, the ski center known for the deepest powder in this snowy nation.

Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia

With its high elevation, distance from any coast that might bring warmer air, and position in the frigid grip of the Siberian anticyclone, Ulaanbaatar holds the title of the world’s coldest capital city. In winter, temperatures often plummet to between -30° and -40°C (-22° to -40°F). Mongolia is renowned for its breathtakingly wild landscapes of mountains, steppe, and desert—but if you can withstand the biting cold, the capital has much to offer. Begin at its striking main square, adorned with statues of national heroes Genghis Khan and revolutionary Damdin Sükhbaatar, and visit the exquisite center of Mongolian Buddhism, Gandantegchinlen Monastery.

Punta Arenas, Chile

In Punta Arenas, one of the southernmost cities in Chile (and on the planet), it’s the relentless wind that chills you to the core. Nestled by the somber waters of the Strait of Magellan in Chilean Patagonia, this city experiences gusts averaging over 22km/h (14 mph)—equivalent to a persistent moderate breeze year-round on the Beaufort Scale. And that’s just the average. So why venture all the way to this remote corner of the world? The city serves as a gateway for unforgettable journeys to the stunning trekking paradise of Torres del Paine or further south to Antarctica.