The Craziest Gingerbread Houses on The Internet

We swear these architectural triumphs are actually made from gingerbread.

By Sienna LivermorePublished: Dec 4, 2015

Temple, Hindu temple, Place of worship, Holy places,

Courtesy of Wally Gobetz/Flickr Creative Commons

We swear these architectural triumphs are actually made from gingerbread.

Gingerbread Castle

Spire, Steeple, Art, Majorelle blue, Turret, Holy places, Place of worship, Tower, Conifer, Finial,

Courtesy of Paul Cooper/Flickr Creative Commons

Now this is the kind of thing that fairytales are made of.

Giant Gingerbread House

Lighting, Interior design, Ceiling, Interior design, Light fixture, Decoration, Home fencing, Picket fence, Lighting accessory, Ceiling fixture,

Courtesy of arctic_whirlwind/Flickr Creative Commons

Hansel and Gretel just came to life.

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Snow-Covered Castle

Courtesy of Wally Gobetz/Flickr Creative Commons

We're down to slay a dragon made out of gingerbread.

Edmonton Hotel MacDonald Gingerbread House Replica

House, Mixed-use, Christmas, Holiday, Conifer, Town square,

Courtesy of Wilson Hui/Flickr Creative Commons

When can we check in?

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Lifesize Gingerbread House

Window, Architecture, Christmas decoration, Property, House, Home, Winter, Facade, Holiday, Christmas tree,

Courtesy of Sue S/Trip Advisor

The Fairmont Banff Springs has a giant house made out of real gingerbread in the lobby that will put your kid's playhouses to shame. Gingerbread > plastic.

Gingerbread Lane

Christmas, Sweetness, Decoration, Festival, Dessert, Gingerbread,

Courtesy of Inhabitat/Flickr Creative Commons

A gingerbread house is impressive, but this gingerbread village will make your jaw drop (and probably your stomach rumble ...).

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Empire State Building Replica

Place of worship, Holy places, Temple, Snow, Pilgrimage, Transparent material,

Courtesy of Wally Gobetz/Flickr Creative Commons

TBH we'd rather visit an Empire State Building made out of gingerbread than the real thing.

The Jumeirah Essex House

Joe J.Sutikno & Executive Pastry Chef Deden Putra

The Jumeirah Essex House's pastry chef in New York City built an exact scale replica of the hotel that was a whopping 10 feet tall.

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Baba Yaga Gingerbread House

<p><b>Location:</b> The New York Botanical Garden's 2009 Gingerbread Adventures (Bronx, NY)</p>
<p>Irina Brandler, a Russian immigrant and owner of Sugar and Spice Bake Shop in Bronx, NY, headed a team of four bakers to make a gingerbread house for Baba Yaga, a witch-like character from Russian folklore who lives in the forest in a hut that stands on chicken legs. Irina's version of the house stood more than two feet tall and featured a roof covered in shredded wheat cereal and Necco Wafers, pretzel fences and ladder, a trail formed with Boston Baked Beans candy, and Christmas trees made of frosted ice cream cones and pretzel rods. Three domes on the top of the house were all shaped out of fondant—one dome made of a Hershey's chocolate kiss melted and had to be replaced.</p>

Courtesy of The New York Botanical Garden

This house gives new meaning to the phrase "straight out of a storybook."

Replica of the Central Park Boathouse

<b>Location:</b> Le Parker Meridiens Gingerbread Wonderland 2011 (New York, NY)<br />
To benefit the hunger-fighting nonprofit City Harvest, this hotel invites local restaurants and bakeries to submit beautiful gingerbread houses for a yearly contest. The public is welcome to view the display — which includes this impressive replica of the Central Park Boathouse — in the lobby's 56th Street atrium and can vote on a favorite by donating $1. Bonus: Hidden behind a curtain, the hotel's Burger Joint makes a great stop for a quick meal.

Courtesy of Michel Ann O'Malley/Le Parker Meridien

If you can't visit the iconic landmark IRL, you could try to make it out of gingerbread!

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The English Cottage

<p><b>Location:</b> The Grove Park Inn & Spa's 2009 Gingerbread Competition (Asheville, NC)</p>
<p>Ten-year-old Lydia Gentry of Hendersonville, North Carolina, made creative use of edible materials to construct her prize-winning gingerbread house. Lydia thatched her cottage's roof with shredded wheat cereal, used chocolate rocks on the foundation and chimney, and poured hard candy to create the cottage windows. Outside, frosting-covered pasta formed porch supports while a chocolate candy and tapioca pearl walkway wound its way beneath a vine-covered trellis (gum paste, pasta and frosting), past rose bushes made of crushed cereal and marshmallow, and through a lawn made of frosting and speckled with coconut "snow."</p>

<a href="http://peakdefinition.com/" target="_blank">PeakDefinition.com</a>

We aren't sure if we want to eat it or live in it.

Santa's German Gingerbread Village

<p><b>Location:</b> The Sheraton Princess Ka'iulani Hotel, 2010 (Honolulu, HI)</p>
<p>Hotel executive chef Ralf Bauer and a team of culinary architects spent over 660 hours designing and constructing a gingerbread village that paid homage to both Bauer's native Germany and to old Hawaii. Medieval churches, bell towers, train stations, a carousel and skating rink mingled with iconic Hawaiian structures like the Kawaiha'o mission church and the magnificent Iolani Palace. The winter wonderland stood more than 14 1/2 feet high and 24 feet wide and was made with 200 gallons of icing, 100 pounds of dark chocolate, 30 pounds of white chocolate, and 60 sheets of gingerbread.</p>

Courtesy of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Waikiki

The kind of winter wonderland we want to walk in is made with 200 gallons of icing, 100 pounds of dark chocolate, 30 pounds of white chocolate, and 60 sheets of gingerbread.

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