Jukkasjarvi, Sweden: The explosive North American growth of sport-utilities (SUVs) has hyped appreciation for the grippy, go-anywhere capability of all-wheel drive. Once the province of jeeps and trucks, this confidence-inspiring feature is now found in a myriad of cars. It's just penetrated the ultraluxury coupe class, with the debut of the Bentley Continental GT.
Named for a 1952-'54 British "Grand Routier," (the highly collectible 120-mph R-Type Continental was one of the fastest four-seater production cars in the world in its day), the newest Bentley to wear the hallowed Continental name packs a lusty 552-hp, twin-turbo W12, shifts effortlessly through its six-speed electronic automatic and is the only car in its class with full-time, virtually seamless, all-wheel-drive.
To test that tractability, last December we drove a new Continental GT about as far north as we could, to Jukkasjarvi in Swedish Lapland. A remarkable hotel is constructed there each year, using crystal-clear ice that's been carved from the Torne, a fast-moving river that streaks from the North Pole to the sea. The Icehotel, situated some 124 miles north of the Arctic Circle, is now in its 15th season. It attracts visitors from around the world, some of whom employ its stunning architecture and unusual location for christenings and weddings.
As you'd expect, the Swedes have a thing for ice.
Svenolof Karlsson and Fredrik Emden, authors of Ice Age, The Hotel at the End of the World, wrote: "Ice is an interlude in this eternity, frozen motion, frozen time. When water solidifies as ice; time stands still. Time only comes to life again when the spring sunshine begins to fall upon the landscape. Ice suspends normality," the Swedes insist. "It leaves no scope for everyday burdens."
We arrived at the Icehotel in late afternoon. With the abbreviated daylight characteristic of Swedish winters, it was dark…but the brightly lit buildings glowed, promising a warm welcome. Once you're inside, the perfectly formed Gothic-arched interior takes on a pale bluish, almost dreamlike luminescence when light penetrates the ice, then refracts, reflects and enhances the soft bright glow of the frozen walls, highlighting the ice sculptures on display. Most visitors stay one evening. Not everyone dares, but the promise of a commemorative diploma (laced with the fear of failure) challenges us all.
Our memorable night began with a four-star dinner in the hotel's acclaimed Laplandic restaurant. Don't worry, it's in the "warm" part of the hotel. We feasted on fresh shrimp, perfectly cooked reindeer steak and crisp greens, then retired to change into heavy thermal exterior gear that would have sufficed for a night on Mount Everest.
Cocktails in the Ice Bar soon followed. A necessity before turning in for the evening, the most popular beverages here are made with Absolut Vodka laced with tart native lingonberry and other fruit juices. Caviar appears as if by magic, displayed on a crystalline ice tray. You must eat it before the tray melts. Drinks remain perfectly chilled in square-shaped glasses carved from solid ice. You need a full measure of personal antifreeze when the interior temperature is minus-10 degrees Celsius (about 15 degrees Fahrenheit). It was actually colder inside the hotel than outside during my one-night sojourn.
If you dare to spend the night, you're issued a serious mountaineer's sleeping bag that's placed atop reindeer skins that in turn cover an ice slab carved in the shape of a double bed. Each of the hotel's 67 ice rooms is slightly different; many of them feature individually carved ice sculptures for your enjoyment.
There's no TV and there's just one light, but it's not likely you'll sit up reading. It's a leap of faith to strip down to just a ski hat, thermal underwear and heavy socks (even less clothing if you're really brave), and then to squirm around in the sleeping bag until your body heat reaches a cozy accommodation. The hotel provides double-sized bags if you've brought a companion. I wish I had done so. It would have been a remarkable shared experience and a delightful way to stay warm.
Everyone insists on knowing about the facilities, so here's the bad news. There aren't any bathrooms in the frozen section of the Icehotel. That's right…. No bathrooms! Should the need arise, you must dress fully (it's very cold outside) and scurry over to the warm part of the hotel again, about a quarter of a mile away. Little wonder most guests grit their teeth and tough it out. I'll admit to waking up once, taking a deep breath of frigid air then burrowing back down into sound slumber.
In the morning, you awake to a hot glass of lingonberry juice (sans vodka, this time) and head for a steamy sauna and a buffet breakfast at the Jukkasjarvi Wardshus. En route, you're presented with a beautiful diploma that celebrates your achievement and notes the temperature inside and outside the hotel. Breakfast is spent comparing notes with brave souls who stuck it out, and sympathy for those who just couldn't endure the big freeze.
Should you wish to stay overnight there in significantly warmer style, the Icehotel has 30 bungalows, equipped with ceiling skylights so you can watch the Northern Lights flash across the sky. As well, there are 28 Kaamos-designed hotel rooms. But seriously, why would you come this far without staying in the "real" Icehotel?
The Icehotel melts each April and its clear water returns to the rushing river. One hundred long days pass, virtually without night, then the Icehotel's construction process begins anew. Dedicated designers build it a bit differently each year; there are imitators, in Finland and Northern Quebec, but the Jukkasjarvi-based Icehotel is the original.
Naturally, an experience like this doesn't come cheaply. Visit www.icehotel.com for details. The nearest airport (about a 15-minute drive from the Icehotel) is Kiruna, an 85-minute flight from Stockholm via SAS. Should you wish to drive there in style, the 2005 Bentley Continental GT retails for $156,000. There's currently a waiting list.
Epilogue: Heading southward, ensconced on heated glove leather seats, enjoying the Bentley's luxurious interior (it's like a posh British men's club on wheels), you sweep along northern Sweden's snow-swept roads with aplomb (and perfect traction). You're warm, once again, with icy memories you'll never forget.
Named for a 1952-'54 British "Grand Routier," (the highly collectible 120-mph R-Type Continental was one of the fastest four-seater production cars in the world in its day), the newest Bentley to wear the hallowed Continental name packs a lusty 552-hp, twin-turbo W12, shifts effortlessly through its six-speed electronic automatic and is the only car in its class with full-time, virtually seamless, all-wheel-drive.
To test that tractability, last December we drove a new Continental GT about as far north as we could, to Jukkasjarvi in Swedish Lapland. A remarkable hotel is constructed there each year, using crystal-clear ice that's been carved from the Torne, a fast-moving river that streaks from the North Pole to the sea. The Icehotel, situated some 124 miles north of the Arctic Circle, is now in its 15th season. It attracts visitors from around the world, some of whom employ its stunning architecture and unusual location for christenings and weddings.
As you'd expect, the Swedes have a thing for ice.
Svenolof Karlsson and Fredrik Emden, authors of Ice Age, The Hotel at the End of the World, wrote: "Ice is an interlude in this eternity, frozen motion, frozen time. When water solidifies as ice; time stands still. Time only comes to life again when the spring sunshine begins to fall upon the landscape. Ice suspends normality," the Swedes insist. "It leaves no scope for everyday burdens."
We arrived at the Icehotel in late afternoon. With the abbreviated daylight characteristic of Swedish winters, it was dark…but the brightly lit buildings glowed, promising a warm welcome. Once you're inside, the perfectly formed Gothic-arched interior takes on a pale bluish, almost dreamlike luminescence when light penetrates the ice, then refracts, reflects and enhances the soft bright glow of the frozen walls, highlighting the ice sculptures on display. Most visitors stay one evening. Not everyone dares, but the promise of a commemorative diploma (laced with the fear of failure) challenges us all.
Our memorable night began with a four-star dinner in the hotel's acclaimed Laplandic restaurant. Don't worry, it's in the "warm" part of the hotel. We feasted on fresh shrimp, perfectly cooked reindeer steak and crisp greens, then retired to change into heavy thermal exterior gear that would have sufficed for a night on Mount Everest.
Cocktails in the Ice Bar soon followed. A necessity before turning in for the evening, the most popular beverages here are made with Absolut Vodka laced with tart native lingonberry and other fruit juices. Caviar appears as if by magic, displayed on a crystalline ice tray. You must eat it before the tray melts. Drinks remain perfectly chilled in square-shaped glasses carved from solid ice. You need a full measure of personal antifreeze when the interior temperature is minus-10 degrees Celsius (about 15 degrees Fahrenheit). It was actually colder inside the hotel than outside during my one-night sojourn.
If you dare to spend the night, you're issued a serious mountaineer's sleeping bag that's placed atop reindeer skins that in turn cover an ice slab carved in the shape of a double bed. Each of the hotel's 67 ice rooms is slightly different; many of them feature individually carved ice sculptures for your enjoyment.
There's no TV and there's just one light, but it's not likely you'll sit up reading. It's a leap of faith to strip down to just a ski hat, thermal underwear and heavy socks (even less clothing if you're really brave), and then to squirm around in the sleeping bag until your body heat reaches a cozy accommodation. The hotel provides double-sized bags if you've brought a companion. I wish I had done so. It would have been a remarkable shared experience and a delightful way to stay warm.
Everyone insists on knowing about the facilities, so here's the bad news. There aren't any bathrooms in the frozen section of the Icehotel. That's right…. No bathrooms! Should the need arise, you must dress fully (it's very cold outside) and scurry over to the warm part of the hotel again, about a quarter of a mile away. Little wonder most guests grit their teeth and tough it out. I'll admit to waking up once, taking a deep breath of frigid air then burrowing back down into sound slumber.
In the morning, you awake to a hot glass of lingonberry juice (sans vodka, this time) and head for a steamy sauna and a buffet breakfast at the Jukkasjarvi Wardshus. En route, you're presented with a beautiful diploma that celebrates your achievement and notes the temperature inside and outside the hotel. Breakfast is spent comparing notes with brave souls who stuck it out, and sympathy for those who just couldn't endure the big freeze.
Should you wish to stay overnight there in significantly warmer style, the Icehotel has 30 bungalows, equipped with ceiling skylights so you can watch the Northern Lights flash across the sky. As well, there are 28 Kaamos-designed hotel rooms. But seriously, why would you come this far without staying in the "real" Icehotel?
The Icehotel melts each April and its clear water returns to the rushing river. One hundred long days pass, virtually without night, then the Icehotel's construction process begins anew. Dedicated designers build it a bit differently each year; there are imitators, in Finland and Northern Quebec, but the Jukkasjarvi-based Icehotel is the original.
Naturally, an experience like this doesn't come cheaply. Visit www.icehotel.com for details. The nearest airport (about a 15-minute drive from the Icehotel) is Kiruna, an 85-minute flight from Stockholm via SAS. Should you wish to drive there in style, the 2005 Bentley Continental GT retails for $156,000. There's currently a waiting list.
Epilogue: Heading southward, ensconced on heated glove leather seats, enjoying the Bentley's luxurious interior (it's like a posh British men's club on wheels), you sweep along northern Sweden's snow-swept roads with aplomb (and perfect traction). You're warm, once again, with icy memories you'll never forget.
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