Ice Fest is an annual tradition in Downtown Ithaca! What holiday season would be complete without a celebration of cold weather and cold weather sports...like Ice Carving! Witness the nation’s finest ice carvers as they compete for $9,000 in prizes during 3 rounds of breathtaking competition in Downtown Ithaca. The festival features impressive display sculptures, fire demonstrations, the ever-popular Ice Bar: an outdoor bar made entirely of ice, serving beer, wine, and hot cocoa, and a tasty Chowder Cook-off. Ithaca Ice Festival ice carving competition is a National Ice Carving Association sanctioned event.