The Ice Castles, a popular winter attraction, is returning to New Brighton, Minnesota, this winter. (Ice Castles / Supplied)
NEW BRIGHTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - The Ice Castles are back in Minnesota this winter, with the popular attraction returning to Long Lake Regional Park in New Brighton.
The frozen attraction, known for its slides, tunnels and sculptures, will have a new feature this year: an ice bar, offering a selection of adult beverages. There will also be a "re-imagined and enhanced light walk" and "fun whimsical winter characters" for guests to meet, a news release said.
Construction on this winter's castle will begin as early as November, but it all depends on the weather. The opening date also depends on the weather, but the Ice Castles typically opens in early to mid-January and remains open until early March.
"Winter is such a magical time of year," Ice Castles CEO Kyle Standifird said in a news release. "We're honored to be returning to beautiful Long Lake Regional Park and have some fun new discoveries and surprises in store for guests of all ages."
Long Lake Regional Park hosted the attraction in 2022 and 2020 (2021 was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic). In past years, the attraction has also come to Eden Prairie, Stillwater and Excelsior.
It takes a team of about 20 ice artists, as they're called, to build the castles by growing and harvesting icicles, which are then placed one by one to form the castle. The ice is embedded with color-changing LED lights.
Tickets for the Ice Castles will be available on Nov. 28 online here.
Minnesota is one of four other Ice Castles locations. Another location is in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. There are also Ice Castles in Utah, New Hampshire and New York.
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Ice Castles returns bigger and brighter in New Brighton
The classic winter attraction returns to Long Lake Regional Park with sculptures, thrones, slides and tunnels. Alex Lehnert got a first look.