I feel like an arctic explorer as I step out of the gondola lift at the base of Krvavec ski area. The mountain is deserted, the sun has long since retreated behind the peaks and the wind whips sharp snow crystals against my skin.

I’ve come to Slovenia’s coolest "hotel". Situated 30 minutes from Ljubljana, Slovenia’s handsome capital, Krvavec (pronounced: Kra-VAH-vetz), is the winter weekend haunt for the city’s snow sports fraternity and the home of Igloo Village.

The snowfall was been exceptionally heavy last year and it's hoped this year will be the same. Igloo Village’s warren of domed snow chambers and tunnels blend perfectly into the mountainside, and were it not for the large wooden door that marks the entrance, it would be completely hidden.

“Dober večer! Good Evening!” shouts Sasha, our Slovenian host who speaks fluent English (not to mention Croatian and Italian) as she hands us a warming cup of Apfel Strudel – Igloo’s signature drink – a blend of sweet, mulled cider and Malibu, spiced with cinnamon.

We sit in the bar, the central chamber furnished with cow-hide stools and lit with candles. Guests sleep in separate chambers on giant snow beds, each one covered with a thin mattress, a layer of animal furs and the all important sleeping bag that will apparently keep you warm in temperatures of -30C.

After a fondue meal, we are invited to try tubing – tobogganing on giant inflated inner tubes. As we trudge up the slope with our tubes in tow, Sasha points out a radio mast on a nearby peak, one of the few targets bombed by the Yugoslav People’s Army during the 10-day war that helped Slovenia win its independence in 1991. Now the only danger is the grooming machines that are busy preparing the pistes for tomorrow’s skiers.

We come back inside to several more warming Apfel Strudels, before turning in for the night. The bed chambers are lit with candles, which help keep the temperature at around 5 degrees C; it’s not what you’d call cosy, but we sleep well enough and at one point I actually get too hot and have to remove a layer.

Now entering its third season, the Igloo Village concept is proving popular and they are expanding into other resorts around the country.

“About 90 per cent of our clients are Slovenians; the remaining 10 per cent are Croatians and a few Brits”, Sasha tells us.

“We build the village at the start of each winter by piling and compacting snow on top of giant inflatable balloons to create the chambers. Then we deflate the balloons and build tunnels to connect them together. Every year it gets bigger.”

online.co.uk/tol/travel/winter_sports/article6874152.ece">read more...