As experts in providing inspirational prize content, it’s our job to know where’s hot and where’s not when it comes to offering winners the chance to visit some of the world’s most amazing destinations.

And there’s certainly ‘snow’ shortage of inspiration when it comes to fresh ideas for winter prize promotions.

Look beyond the well-trodden land of luxury hotels and celebrity ski resorts and you’ll find a wonderful world of extraordinary retreats in unusual locations to make your prize promotion campaign really stand out from the crowd.

At NDL we know exactly what goes into creating a brand experience like no other. It’s difficult to choose a top ten, but the following places well and truly deserve to be highlighted:

 

1. The Best Winter Spot …to sleep under the Northern Lights: (as seen above, recently featured on Unmissable.com)

Located deep in the heart of Finnish Lapland, the Kakslauttanen Arctic Resort is home to some of the most unique log cabins in the world, each featuring a glass igloo from which you can enjoy the sight of the dancing Arora Borealis in the night sky while keeping warm and dry in your designer bed. Each feature a private sauna, fireplace, kitchenette and a bedroom with a stunning glass roof, there is truly no more of a luxurious way to experience Lapland’s wild and breath-taking environment.

 

2. The Best Winter Spot …to sleep on a bed of ice

ICEHOTEL in Sweden is the world’s first hotel made of ice and snow. Created in 1989, it regenerates in a new appearance every winter, in the village of Jukkasjärvi – 200 km north of the Arctic Circle – using water and ice from the Torne River. The hotel never looks the same from one year to the next. Therefore, you can guarantee a truly one of a kind stay.

 

3. The Best Winter Spot …for aprés ski and views

 

Glass-enclosed platforms at a 9,800-foot elevation at the Austrian-Italian border, this panoramic bar with the promising name ‘Top Mountain Star’ is situated on the peak of Wurmkogel in Hochgurgl at 3,080 metres above sea level. The state-of-the-art designed rotund steel and glass dome allows for a breathtaking 360 degree view. The striking building clings to the mountainside like an alpine tree, rooted by steel anchors. Perched on top of the mountain, the views are spectacular with Alpine peaks stretching out over the Ötztal Alps and the Dolomites.

 

 

4. The Best Winter Spot …to enjoy a private ski lodge:

 

As featured recently in the Euromillions Mega Friday Promotion, the Copperhill Mountain Lodge, located in the trendy Swedish resort of Åre, is one of the world’s most opulent private ski lodges, perfectly named The Villa. With its snow-covered peaks, café-lined town square and red-hot après-ski scene, this mountain resort in northern Sweden is the Aspen of Scandinavia. This opulent property features a daily maid service, a chef to create a three-course gourmet meal each evening, working fireplaces, a gym, sauna, spa, Jacuzzi as well as its own helipad (should you have a helicopter handy). One of the best things about The Villa is its location. Situated directly on the slopes, you’ll literally be able to ski in and ski out as often as you fancy with a stunning view of the mountain’s greeting you each morning as you wake. And by night? With any luck, the Northern Lights will be dancing overhead.

 

5. The Best Winter Spot …to enjoy celebrity skiing

 

The Little Nell is the only 5 Star hotel in Aspen, Colorado. It’s not a case of who has stayed here, it’s a case of who hasn’t!  They host a Dom Perignon New Year’s Eve Party for a mere $500 a ticket featuring unlimited Dom Perignon throughout the night and a fireworks display at midnight.

 

 

 

 

6. The Best Winter Spot… to enjoy a pollution-free holiday

 

Skiing in Zermatt smashes every record: highest ski resort in Europe, snow certainty, two countries, no car pollution, 365 days a year (thanks to a Glacier). To prevent air pollution, which could obscure the town’s view of the Matterhorn, the whole of Zermatt in Switzerland is a combustion-engine car-free zone. Almost all vehicles in Zermatt (excluding emergency vehicles) are battery driven and almost completely silent. The region features 360km of pistes – including a run that is 14km long – which can reach the dizzying heights of 3,883m above sea level (that’s as high as 13 Shard’s or 41 Elizabeth Tower’s -which houses Big Ben – piled one on top of the other!). Great for gastronomy – over 200 restaurants in the area including 3 Michelin Starred.

 

7. The Best Winter Spot… to ski in the UK

 

Home to the UK’s highest Funicular Railway, Cairngorm Mountain in Scotland is one of the few places in the UK where you can experience top skiing. At the time of writing, there is already enough snow to open the pistes, with more forecast over the coming weeks. There is ski hire on-site so anyone can give it a go, regardless of whether you have your own equipment or not. Complete with ski school, après ski facilities and lifts, you’d be forgiven for thinking you were in the Alps, just without a St. Bernard in sight…You will find, however, The Cairngorm Reindeer, the only herd of reindeer in the British Isles. They now roam the high Cairngorms, after being re-introduced in the 1950s.

 

 

8. The Best Winter Spot… to sleep in a real igloo

 

Now in its 21st year of operation, Iglu-Dorf provides the unique opportunity to sleep in a traditional Inuit igloo right here in Europe. There is now a total of 7 locations where, each year the team begin the painstaking process of building each igloo from scratch, only to have it return back to its original water form come spring. Five Igloo Villages are in Switzerland, one in Germany and one in Andorra. From dormitory Standard-Igloos, cool Romantic-Igloos with en suite toilets, to the cosy, warm Hot-Igloo or the exclusive Igloo-Suite with private jacuzzi. There is a wide range of hotel rooms for couples, families, private or company events. The igloos are built with muscle power, snow ploughs, balloons and plenty of passion in around 3,000 hours every winter. A tunnel system connects the igloos to each other and international artists decorate the interior spaces of the Igloo-Villages with careful attention to detail, creating enchanting fantasy worlds in snow and ice art.

 

9. The Best Winter Spot …to sleep in a snow-castle

 

Pure white snow walls surround the gigantic SnowCastle, an artwork of ice and snow found right by the sea near the city centre of Kemi in Finland, from the 21st January until beginning of April 2017. The world’s largest SnowRestaurant seats over 200 guests, SnowChapel with mystical atmosphere is a memorable venue for wedding ceremonies, SnowHotel with unique beautifully decorated snow rooms offers a true arctic adventure. All made entirely of snow and ice from the sea water. SnowHotel is the World Luxury Hotel Global Award Winner – Bespoken Luxury Hotel 2016.

 

10 The Best Winter Spot… to ice-skate

 

Forget your skating on your local city-centre outdoor rink in the December drizzle because Canada has something altogether more special. Surrounded by soaring mountain peaks, the majestic Victoria Glacier and a glistening emerald lake, the iconic 100-year-old Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise hotel is in Alberta’s Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Home to endless outdoor winter recreational activities including downhill skiing and snowboarding, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling and horse drawn sleigh rides, the real highlight here is right on the doorstep as Lake Louise freezes over creating the perfect natural ice-rink in the most stunning natural surroundings possible. Voted as the World’s Best Skating Rink in 2014, the good people at the Fairmont clear the snowfall from the ice each day, leaving it fresh and clear for the perfect skate.  Travel in January and enjoy the Ice Magic Festival where ice artists gather to create sculptures out of nothing but ice (obviously!).

 

Making the most of your promotional campaign

Of course, selecting the right destination is only one aspect of running a successful prize promotion. Our Prize Content team can help ensure every aspect of your campaign runs to plan, supports your brand and achieves your marketing objectives. And our Customer Experience team will handle all the winner management for you.  Read our Guide to Running Successful Promotions or speak to one of our prize promotion experts on 020 7428 3090 today.

 

Enormous thanks to the individual destination websites for the use of their incredible imagery