Summary
August 2019 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 484,764 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 466,453 in August 2018—a +3.9% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 82.5%, down 2.2 percentage points from 84.7% in 2018. Foreign card spending totaled 31.4 billion ISK (-6.8% YoY).
August 2019 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through August, reached 2,757,950, up 1.6% on the same period of 2018. Within 2019, August ranked 1st of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for August over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 28.0%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 30.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 47.9%. Hotel occupancy of 82.5% 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 2019, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2019 | Nights 2018 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 147,543 | 166,266 | -11.3% | 30.4% |
| 2 | Germany | 52,437 | 48,322 | +8.5% | 10.8% |
| 3 | China | 32,049 | 32,886 | -2.5% | 6.6% |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 30,879 | 30,234 | +2.1% | 6.4% |
| 5 | Spain | 27,246 | 21,290 | +28.0% | 5.6% |
| 6 | Italy | 26,786 | 21,326 | +25.6% | 5.5% |
| 7 | France | 26,590 | 22,197 | +19.8% | 5.5% |
| 8 | Denmark | 13,166 | 7,893 | +66.8% | 2.7% |
| 9 | Canada | 11,980 | 13,007 | -7.9% | 2.5% |
| 10 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 11,967 | 10,289 | +16.3% | 2.5% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for August 2019:
| Region | Occupancy 2019 | Occupancy 2018 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjanes | 87.8% | 93.5% | -5.7 pp |
| South | 85.2% | 86.0% | -0.8 pp |
| Capital Region | 85.1% | 86.3% | -1.2 pp |
| Total | 82.5% | 84.7% | -2.2 pp |
| East | 80.5% | 73.4% | +7.1 pp |
| North | 75.0% | 78.1% | -3.1 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 66.7% | 80.3% | -13.6 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in August 2019 was 31,358.19 million ISK (31.36 billion ISK), compared to 33,635.79 million ISK in August 2018.
This represents a -6.8% year-over-year change. Despite growth in overnight stays in hotels, spending declined—possibly reflecting lower per-visitor expenditure or shifts in spending patterns.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 38,181 overnight stays in hotels in August 2019, up 0.5% from 38,002 in 2018.
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