![A night view of illuminated ice sculptures on display during 20th China Harbin Ice and Snow World 2019 in Harbin city, Heilongjiang province, 20 December 2018. [Photo：IC]](http://img3.zhytuku.meldingcloud.com/images/zhycms_chinaplus/20190107/a4cf96fc-520d-454b-b95e-1842c9fa40f2.jpg?x-oss-process=image/resize,w_650)
Fireworks marked the opening of the 2019 Harbin Ice and Snow Festival.
As temperatures dip to minus 20 degrees Celsius, spectators from all over the world are descending on Harbin’s winter wonderland.
Tourist Shang Liqiang said “I’d never been to Harbin or seen the ice sculptures, but I usually read online that there were nice ice sculptures. This year I finally came here in person, I found they are more beautiful than I imagined.”
Huge castles, churches, fortresses, and temples have been built out of huge blocks of ice sourced from the nearby Songhua River.
The ice sculptures are lit with thousands of coloured LED lights and are displayed over an area of 600 thousand square meters.
In the daytime, entertainment facilities such as sleds, ice slides, skating and bikes are enjoyed by tourists.
The Harbin Ice and Snow Festival officially runs until February 5, however many attractions stay open until the ice melting season in late February or early March.
