Large buildings and sculptures made of ice. Best viewed after sunset. This festival is one of the main reasons people come to Harbin in winter.
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黑龙江省科学技术馆
太阳岛国际雪雕艺术博览会; Tàiyángdǎo guójì xuědiāoyìshù bólǎnhuì
Beautifully carved snow sculptures, massive dimensions. However, if you plan to visit the Ice and Snow World then this is not a must see. Pretty expensive for what you get to see and all other activities in the park are extra.
冰雪大世界
A magical kingdom built with 400,000 cubic meters of ice and snow. Highlights include the 500-meter super ice slide, the Snowflake Ferris Wheel, and the Asian同心 Main Tower. Lights turn on around 16:00-16:30, creating a dreamlike atmosphere.
太阳岛 Tàiyángdǎo
Park offering a pleasant to stroll during the warmer months and on the weekends newly married couples can be seen taking pictures. In the winter it becomes part of the snow sculpture festivities. However, as with everything in Harbin, the park is still very Chinese with a cage full of squirrels, a petting deer area (just have to buy them some food), go carts, a pond that is just full of turtles, and newly weds sporting bright colored dresses.
A nice way to work your way back from Sun Island in a gondola car that takes you over the banks of the Songhua.
江畔公园 Jiāngpàngōngyuán
Long tree covered walkway that stretches the city-side banks of the Songhua river, a really nice and pleasant walk.