This guide is built from Iglu-Dorf’s own pages, prices and conditions — what is included, how the villages work and what each igloo is like come straight from the operator, never invented.

What an igloo hotel in Switzerland actually is

Let us clear up the first misunderstanding: Iglu-Dorf is not an “ice hotel” with walls of carved ice blocks and a reception desk. It is an igloo village made of snow. Every winter the team builds each village from scratch — about 3,000 working hours per village, using huge balloons that are covered with snow, then snow ploughs and, in their words, “a lot of muscle power”. The sleeping igloos are about four metres across, joined by corridors you can walk through upright, and the snow sets so hard that, according to Iglu-Dorf, a snow groomer could drive over it.

There are five villages in total. Two are outside Switzerland (Innsbruck Kühtai in Austria and the Zugspitze in Germany) and are not part of our partnership. The three Swiss villages are the ones this guide is about:

The company itself, Iglu-Dorf GmbH, started in 1995/96 when founder Adrian Günter built three small igloos for fifteen people in Scuol. Thirty seasons later it employs around 89 people from igloo builders to managing directors, holds a Guinness World Record for the largest igloo made of snow blocks, and has a patented building method. This is a professional operation, not a pop-up.

How a night in the igloo runs, hour by hour

Every overnight stay follows the same rhythm, whichever village you choose. You do not walk up on your own: you meet the igloo guides at a set point at a set time, timed to the last cableway or train.

• Late afternoon — arrival. In Davos you meet at 4:00 pm at the Panoramarestaurant Weissfluhjoch (up with the Parsennbahn). In Gstaad the village opens at 4:00 pm and check-in with an aperitif is at 4:30 pm at the igloo bar, after the Saanenmöser–Saanerslochgrat cable car. In Zermatt you meet at 4:30 pm at Rotenboden station — the Gornergrat train leaves Zermatt at 4:00 pm and takes about half an hour.
• Welcome drink and tour. An aperitif tray, then a guided walk through the corridors and art igloos so you know where everything (including the toilets) is.
• Dinner. All-you-can-eat Swiss mountain cheese fondue. It is lactose-free and contains less than 0.1% alcohol. If you do not eat cheese, ask when you book: Davos serves a vegetable stew, Gstaad and Zermatt pasta with tomato sauce. Other drinks are ordered on site and paid at the end of the evening.
• Whirlpool and sauna. Overnight guests get the hot tub and sauna in the evening, with a private time slot per igloo agreed on arrival. Bring swimwear, a towel and flip-flops.
• Night walk or snowshoe walk. Voluntary and easy. Headlamps on, stars out if the sky plays along — no promises on that.
• Bed. A snow bed with thermal mats, a thin mattress and real sheepskins, an expedition sleeping bag with a cotton liner. Lights and a USB socket in the igloo.
• Morning. Tea is brought to your sleeping bag, then breakfast: at the mountain restaurant in Davos (8:30 am, until 10:00), in the warm kota in Gstaad (8:00 or 9:00 depending on booking), and at Hotel Riffelhaus in Zermatt (a 15-minute downhill walk, buffet until 9:30).

One night is the recommended length. Iglu-Dorf says so itself: there are no warm rooms, running water or showers in the igloo, so a second night is more endurance than holiday.

The honest part: cold, toilets and sleep

We would rather you read this here than find out at 2 am.

Temperature. Inside the igloos it stays fairly constant between −2 and +2 °C whatever the weather outside. The expedition sleeping bags are rated for that, and fleece blankets are available on request. You sleep in dry thermals, socks and a hat — not in your day clothes.

Toilets. Shared dry toilets in the village centre, where you can also brush your teeth (hand sanitiser is provided). A private toilet exists only in the “Plus” igloo versions, which are not part of our deal. Running water and showers exist in Gstaad and Zermatt; Davos has none.

Warm room. Davos, Gstaad and Zermatt each have a heated kota next to the igloos in the evening, so you are not outdoors from 4 pm to breakfast.

Walking. The village is reached on a winter trail on snow, with a backpack — Iglu-Dorf says wheeled suitcases are unsuitable and the route is not possible for wheelchairs or limited mobility. In Zermatt you can leave luggage in chargeable lockers at the station; at Rotenboden and in Davos there are none.

Children. Iglu-Dorf recommends the overnight stay for children aged 6 and above and has no highchairs, changing tables or childcare. For younger children they point to the lower villages (Gstaad in Switzerland).

If any of that is a deal-breaker, the TinyLodge — Gstaad5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 is the answer: a heated wooden cabin inside the Gstaad village with a real bed, the same fondue, sauna and whirlpool evening, and it is covered by our code too.

Which igloo: Romantic, Family & Friends or TinyLodge

Our partnership covers exactly three products in the three Swiss villages. Everything else on Iglu-Dorf’s site (Plus igloos with private toilet, suites, day visits, fondue evenings) is outside the deal, so the code will not apply there.

Couples: the Romantic Igloo — Zermatt5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 if the Matterhorn matters to you, the Romantic Igloo — Davos Klosters5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 for the biggest village, the Romantic Igloo — Gstaad5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 for the lowest altitude and the TinyLodge fallback next door. Romantic extras such as a rose in an ice block (CHF 29) or a candle-light fondue for two with a bottle of wine (CHF 99) are added in the Gstaad checkout; ask for the other villages.

Families and groups of friends: the Family & Friends Igloo — Davos Klosters5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 and Family & Friends Igloo — Gstaad5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 take up to six. The Family & Friends Igloo — Zermatt5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 takes up to four and, at the time of writing, Iglu-Dorf only accepts enquiries for it by e-mail or phone — quote the code in your message.

Unsure about sleeping at 0 °C: the TinyLodge — Gstaad5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5, hands down.

Davos Klosters, Gstaad or Zermatt?

All three villages run the same programme and the same prices, so the choice is about the mountain and the logistics.

Zermatt is the postcard. The village sits just below Rotenboden on the Gornergrat railway at about 2,700 m, with the Matterhorn in front of the igloo doors. It is the smallest (24 guests) and the highest, so it books out fastest. Zermatt itself is car-free: drivers park in Täsch and take the train, leaving Täsch by 3:30 pm at the latest on igloo day. Showers and running water exist in the village.

Davos Klosters is the biggest village — 14 sleeping igloos and up to 46 guests, below the Weissfluhjoch in the Parsenn ski area. Breakfast is at the mountain restaurant. It is the one without running water or showers, which matters to some and not at all to others.

Gstaad is the lowest at around 1,900–2,000 m below the Saanerslochgrat, which Iglu-Dorf itself recommends for younger children and for pregnant guests. It is also the only village with the TinyLodge, and the only one where the hotel stays open on Monday nights after the New Year (more on that below). Check-in comes with an aperitif at the igloo bar.

Our pick for a first igloo night: Zermatt for couples who can get a Sunday or Thursday night, Gstaad for families and anyone who wants the warm-cabin safety net. Davos when the other two are full — it is not a consolation prize, just the least famous view.

When to go — and the Sunday-to-Thursday rule explained

The season runs from late December to 4 April 2027 in all three villages, but our code does not: HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 is valid for stays from 4 January to 4 April 2027, Sunday to Thursday nights only. Christmas and New Year, and every Friday and Saturday night, are at the public price.

There is a second thing to know, and we would rather be the ones to tell you. After 3 January the villages do not open every night: Iglu-Dorf’s own opening times say the Davos and Zermatt hotels are closed Monday to Wednesday, and Gstaad is closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Put the two rules together and the nights where the code applies are, in practice, Sunday and Thursday nights in Davos and Zermatt, and Sunday, Monday and Thursday nights in Gstaad. The live calendar in Iglu-Dorf’s checkout shows exactly which nights are open, so trust that over any blog — including ours.

Is that a bad deal? We don’t think so. Sunday and Thursday nights are the quiet ones; Iglu-Dorf says the villages are booked out quickest on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and in the holidays. A Thursday igloo night followed by a Friday ski day, or a Sunday night to end a weekend in Zermatt, is how we would plan it anyway. January brings the deepest cold and the clearest sense of “we actually did this”; March brings longer evenings and warmer terraces for the fondue, and the whole village melts away a few weeks later.

What to pack for an igloo night

Iglu-Dorf’s own list, which we would follow to the letter:

• Warm winter clothing and warm, waterproof winter shoes
• Good gloves, two hats (one to sleep in)
• Dry socks, long underwear and pyjamas to change into for the night
• Bath towel, swimwear and flip-flops for the whirlpool and sauna
• Flashlight or headlamp
• Toothbrush, sunglasses and sunscreen; ski goggles if the weather turns
• Everything in a backpack — a wheeled suitcase will not make it along the snow trail

Do not bring a sleeping bag; the expedition bag and liner are provided. Cash is not needed in the Swiss villages (Visa, Mastercard and Maestro are taken on site). Skiers can bring their skis — in Gstaad there is a warm room for boots, and valid ski passes count as your lift ticket; otherwise buy the cableway or Gornergrat ticket at the valley station, as it is not included in the igloo price.

How to book your igloo night with HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5

There are no special links or tracking cookies in this partnership. The code typed at checkout is the only thing that gives you the 5% and registers the booking as ours — so this is the one step not to skip.

1. Choose village and igloo. Use the links in this guide, or start at Iglu-Dorf5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5‘s quick-booking page and pick Davos Klosters, Gstaad or Zermatt, then Romantic Igloo, Family & Friends Igloo or TinyLodge.
2. Add your guests first (adults 16+, teenagers 10–15, children up to 9) — the date calendar only appears after that. Pick a Sunday-to-Thursday night between 4 January and 4 April 2027; the calendar shows which of those nights are open.
3. Fill in guest details and extras — single sleeping bags instead of a double, a dog, the vegetarian dinner alternative, a rose in ice.
4. Scroll to “Promo-Code — Do you want to redeem a promo code?”, type HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5, press Add and check that the total has dropped by 5% before you confirm. The field above it, “Voucher”, is for gift vouchers, not for our code.
5. Confirm. You can cancel free of charge up to 60 days before the night; after that Iglu-Dorf charges 10% (59–30 days), 50% (29–7 days) and 100% (under 7 days or no-show), with refunds preferably as vouchers. Discounts are not cumulative with other offers.

For the Zermatt Family & Friends Igloo, send the request to info@iglu-dorf.com or call +41 41 612 27 28 and write the code in your message. Full transparency: we are Iglu-Dorf’s affiliate partner and earn a small commission when you book with our code. It costs you nothing extra — you pay 5% less.

Who should not book an igloo night

We only recommend things we would do with our own family, and we would not take everyone. Skip it if you are travelling with children under about six (Iglu-Dorf’s own recommendation), if you need a private bathroom within a few steps at night, if you cannot comfortably walk 10–20 minutes on snow with a backpack, or if you are a light sleeper who genuinely cannot rest at 0 °C — in that last case book the TinyLodge instead. Skip it, too, if your only free nights are Fridays and Saturdays and the 5% is what makes it affordable: the code does not apply then, and we would rather you knew before you fell in love with the photos.

Everyone else: it is one night, it is run by people who have built igloos for thirty winters, and the fondue is bottomless. For more detail on each village and igloo type, start at our igloo hotel Switzerland hub.

FAQ

Our Honest Final Word

An igloo night with Iglu-Dorf is one of the few “unique stays” in the Alps that is exactly what it says: you sleep in snow, at 0 °C, with a bottomless fondue and a hot tub under the stars first. We chose them as a partner because they have done this for thirty winters, their conditions are published plainly, and the price is the same whichever of the three Swiss villages you pick — so you can choose by mountain, not by budget.

Book directly with Iglu-Dorf5% off · HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5, enter HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 in the Promo-Code box and you pay 5% less on a Sunday-to-Thursday night between 4 January and 4 April 2027 — that is the whole trick.

5% off · code HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5

Where we would sleep in an igloo

Tap an igloo to see live dates and prices on Iglu-Dorf’s booking page. Enter HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 at checkout for 5% off — stays 4 jan – 4 apr 2027, sunday to thursday nights.

Zermatt · sleeps 2Romantic Igloo — Zermattfrom CHF 538 per night for 2 (as shown on iglu-dorf.com, Nov 2026)Check dates with 5% off →Davos Klosters · sleeps 3–6Family & Friends Igloo — Davos Klostersfrom CHF 627 per night for 3 people, each additional person charged separately (as shown on iglu-dorf.com, Nov 2026)Check dates with 5% off →Gstaad · sleeps 2TinyLodge — Gstaadfrom CHF 438 per night for 2 (as shown on iglu-dorf.com, Nov 2026)Check dates with 5% off →

Code HUNGRYTRAVELFAMILY5 gives 5% off the public price when you book directly with Iglu-Dorf (Stays 4 Jan – 4 Apr 2027, Sunday to Thursday nights; Friday and Saturday nights excluded). We are Iglu-Dorf’s partner and earn a small commission when you book with our code. Our igloo guide →