Buzz
Cleaning rooms at Sweden’s renowned ICEHOTEL is simpler than in a typical hotel. For example, the bed doesn’t feature regular sheets. Instead, it’s essentially an air mattress covered with reindeer fur, resting on a custom wooden pallet that leaves at least 60 centimeters of space beneath. On top of the reindeer hides is a sleeping bag, inside which is a sleep sack. Though the room remains a constant 20ºF, once guests wrap themselves in their sleeping gear, it becomes surprisingly cozy.
And, if they overlayer their clothes, things can get quite sweaty as well.
“I assure you the sleep sack is washed daily. I know this for sure because I love walking behind the laundry area—it’s so warm back there,” says James McClean, one of the few Americans, possibly the only one, to have worked at Sweden's ICEHOTEL. He was part of the construction and maintenance team for several years, sharing his experience with Mytour.
There isn’t much to clean in most of the guest rooms. The bathrooms and showers are located elsewhere in the hotel, and most guests only use the room for sleeping. However, accidents do happen—like in any hotel, bodily fluids sometimes end up where they shouldn't. Some guests vomit or get too comfortable to walk to the communal restrooms. Unlike other hotels, these fluids freeze instantly.
“You can imagine the types of bodily fluids that get, well, excreted… or expelled… or spilled on the walls,” says McClean. “At least once a week, there’s a yellow stain or a spilled glass of wine or cranberry juice… and it’s not something you want to see splattered all over the place.” Housekeeping removes these unsightly marks with an ice pick and shovel, patching them up with fresh snow from outside.
Each room features a 4-inch vent drilled into the icy wall to prevent CO2 levels from becoming harmful. Maintenance checks the vents daily to ensure they aren’t blocked by snow. To clear them, McClean says they use “basically a toilet brush on a stick.”
When maintenance isn’t busy clearing snow from the vent hole, they’re busy bringing snow through it. Every couple of days, a fresh layer of fluffy snow is piped into each room, then spread out evenly using a garden rake.
“It’s the equivalent of vacuuming the carpet,” McClean says.
