International Hair Freezing Contest — the frozen hairstyle contest of Whitehorse (Yukon)
The concept fits in one soak and one blast of cold. Near Whitehorse, in the Yukon, Eclipse Nordic Hot Springs welcomes you into a hot spring at around 40 °C, in the middle of the Arctic winter. You soak, you sculpt your wet hair and beard into extravagant shapes — spikes, waves, improbable architectures — then you lift your head into the freezing air, at −20 °C or below. Within minutes, the frost sets it all into a spectacular white sculpture. Take the photo, ring the bell, dive back in to melt it. Welcome to the International Hair Freezing Contest!
Created in 2011 by the hot springs (formerly Takhini Hot Springs), the contest has its categories — best male, best female, best group, people's choice — and its hour of glory: a Guinness World Record of 288 participants with simultaneously frozen hair, in 2020, reported by the international press. According to Rove.me, each category pays 2,000 dollars plus free soaks — a single-source figure, quoted as such.
But honesty is this festival's signature: everything depends on the thermometer. The contest exists only if the cold truly bites, at −20 °C or below — and, for lack of sufficient cold, it was cancelled or postponed during the two most recent winters, according to the press. The season usually runs from December to March, the organiser's official page is live (checked on 17 October 2026), but no firm date can be announced: the 2027 edition will happen if — and only if — the Yukon winter decides so. Number 10 in our Top 10 of the world's most unusual festivals: the only one whose headline act is the cold itself.
Practical information
International Hair Freezing Contest — ⚠️ entirely weather-dependent event (cancelled/postponed during two recent winters for lack of cold)
Where: Eclipse Nordic Hot Springs, near Whitehorse (Yukon), Canada
Next edition: winter season (usually December to March), conditional on temperatures of −20 °C or below — no firm date announced
Organiser: Eclipse Nordic Hot Springs
Official website: https://eclipsenordichotsprings.ca/hair-freezing-contest/
Tickets: prices not published in the sources consulted (checked on 17 October 2026)
— Moïse 1er, the Festival Explorer