Summary
August 2017 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 431,602 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 411,836 in August 2016—a +4.8% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 86.7%, down 3.8 percentage points from 90.5% in 2016. Foreign card spending totaled 33.1 billion ISK (+6.7% YoY).
August 2017 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through August, reached 2,643,118, up 14.7% on the same period of 2016. Within 2017, August ranked 2nd of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for August over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 48.9%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 30.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 53.1%. Hotel occupancy of 86.7% means that share of available rooms was sold across the month; at this level most hotels in the capital are effectively full on peak nights. Spending figures are foreign card turnover reported by the Central Bank and exclude cash and purchases made before arrival.
Foreign Overnight Stays by Source Market
The top source markets for August 2017, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2017 | Nights 2016 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 131,008 | 103,626 | +26.4% | 30.4% |
| 2 | Germany | 58,824 | 78,499 | -25.1% | 13.6% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 39,316 | 40,923 | -3.9% | 9.1% |
| 4 | China | 24,395 | 19,350 | +26.1% | 5.7% |
| 5 | Italy | 21,240 | 18,996 | +11.8% | 4.9% |
| 6 | Spain | 21,013 | 17,704 | +18.7% | 4.9% |
| 7 | France | 19,889 | 21,943 | -9.4% | 4.6% |
| 8 | Canada | 11,774 | 12,145 | -3.1% | 2.7% |
| 9 | Sweden | 10,049 | 13,358 | -24.8% | 2.3% |
| 10 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 9,864 | 11,443 | -13.8% | 2.3% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for August 2017:
| Region | Occupancy 2017 | Occupancy 2016 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 89.4% | 93.1% | -3.7 pp |
| South | 88.1% | 87.2% | +0.9 pp |
| Total | 86.7% | 90.5% | -3.8 pp |
| East | 86.0% | 84.3% | +1.7 pp |
| North | 83.2% | 89.1% | -5.9 pp |
| Reykjanes | 78.3% | 96.7% | -18.4 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 76.5% | 81.9% | -5.4 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in August 2017 was 33,066.13 million ISK (33.07 billion ISK), compared to 30,990.88 million ISK in August 2016.
This represents a +6.7% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 32,507 overnight stays in hotels in August 2017, down 8.0% from 35,322 in 2016.
Data Sources
- Overnight Stays: Statistics Iceland (Hagstofa Íslands) — foreign and domestic guest nights in registered hotels
- Occupancy Rates: Statistics Iceland — room occupancy as % of available hotel capacity
- Card Spending: Central Bank of Iceland (Seðlabanki Íslands) — foreign debit/credit card turnover