Summary
August 2024 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 516,302 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 530,300 in August 2023—a -2.6% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 86.1%, up 0.3 percentage points from 85.8% in 2023. Foreign card spending totaled 48.1 billion ISK (+9.0% YoY).
August 2024 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through August, reached 2,971,131, down 4.9% on the same period of 2023. Within 2024, August ranked 1st of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for August over the five preceding years (excluding the pandemic years 2020 and 2021), this month came in ahead by 6.0%. Compared with August 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, foreign nights were up 6.5%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 38.0% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 54.0%. Hotel occupancy of 86.1% 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 2024, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2024 | Nights 2023 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 196,240 | 187,708 | +4.5% | 38.0% |
| 2 | Germany | 49,193 | 54,370 | -9.5% | 9.5% |
| 3 | Italy | 33,354 | 34,907 | -4.4% | 6.5% |
| 4 | United Kingdom | 29,790 | 29,782 | +0.0% | 5.8% |
| 5 | France | 27,562 | 25,653 | +7.4% | 5.3% |
| 6 | Spain | 23,492 | 26,452 | -11.2% | 4.6% |
| 7 | China | 20,143 | 14,935 | +34.9% | 3.9% |
| 8 | Canada | 15,069 | 12,077 | +24.8% | 2.9% |
| 9 | Netherlands | 14,195 | 15,674 | -9.4% | 2.7% |
| 10 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 12,432 | 13,520 | -8.0% | 2.4% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for August 2024:
| Region | Occupancy 2024 | Occupancy 2023 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| South | 89.9% | 91.9% | -2.0 pp |
| Capital Region | 89.2% | 84.3% | +4.9 pp |
| Total | 86.1% | 85.8% | +0.3 pp |
| East | 81.4% | 91.1% | -9.7 pp |
| North | 81.1% | 81.3% | -0.2 pp |
| Reykjanes | 80.5% | 88.2% | -7.7 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 72.0% | 79.4% | -7.4 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in August 2024 was 48,064.87 million ISK (48.06 billion ISK), compared to 44,103.25 million ISK in August 2023.
This represents a +9.0% year-over-year change. Spending increased even as overnight stays declined, suggesting higher per-visitor expenditure.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 92,447 overnight stays in hotels in August 2024, up 43.8% from 64,289 in 2023.
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