By EMMA REYNOLDS
Last updated at 9:34 AM on 7th February 2012
These are the spectacular ice sculptures lighting up a freezing February in Beijing.
The city was brought to life by the fantastical, rainbow-coloured creations in sub-zero temperatures as a grand finale to the Lunar New Year celebrations.
The vibrant Yangqing Ice Festival is an annual tradition that forms part of the spectacular Chinese Lantern Festival.
Winter wonder: A gorgeous palace of ice shines brightly in the darkness as the Lantern Festival draws visitors to Beijing
Chill in the air: Tourists from around the world wrapped up warmly as they marvelled at the glorious sight of the ice city
Land of dreams: Brilliant light transforms a dark winter's night at Yanqing Ice Festival, marking the end of China's Lunar New Year
Beijing showed it can still put on a show as impressive as its amazing Olympic opening ceremony of four years ago as visitors flocked to see the shining buildings before they thaw out.
Blocks of ice filled with neon lights make up a kitsch replica city beneath a ceiling hung with fairy lights.
Children from around the world dressed in coats and bobble hats came with their families to marvel at the magnificent display. They were able to climb on to the sculptures, wander through tunnels and watch beautiful fireworks and lantern displays fill the night sky overhead.
Yanqing Ice Snow Tourism Festival is one of the most well known of the popular winter festivals in northern China. Besides the ice sculpture exhibition, activities like ice skating, skiing and ice statue competitions make up part of the festival.
Snow ship: A thrilled child waves at the shore from a majestic boat of ice
Breathtaking beauty: Multi-coloured neon lights make the display a fabulous antidote to a freezing February
Not the hot-seat: Families chill out in the interactive and intricate city of ice
It has attracted visitors from across the world to visit Yanqing and admire breathtaking natural scenery as well as these man-made wonders.
The Lantern Festival is also known as the Yuanxiao Festival or Shangyuan Festival in China. Other areas embraced the chill in the same fashion, with the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival in north-east China attracting thousands of visitors since it opened on Christmas Day.
Tourists travelled around the gleaming theme park on horse-drawn carriages, climbing snowy staircases and sliding down icy ramps as they drank in a magical experience.
Elsewhere, resourceful blacksmiths celebrated the Lantern Festival with a money-saving 'firework display', achieved by flinging molten iron against a wall.
The technique is an annual tradition that has been running for 300 years in the village of Nuanquan, in China's Hebei province, which is famous for its blacksmiths.
The festivities herald the Year of the Dragon - an important symbol in Chinese culture.
Statuesque: Onlookers take snaps of the lanterns and sculptures, with the natural beauty of snowy rock rearing up in the background
Snowed in! Visitors pick their way through hundreds of cold creations at the Beijing festival before the thaw begins
View from an igloo: A scarlet imbued tunnel leads to a girl in a bobble hat transfixed by the visions before her
