Summary
July 2008 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 177,326 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 172,814 in July 2007—a +2.6% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 81.4%, up 1.7 percentage points from 79.7% in 2007. Foreign card spending totaled 5.2 billion ISK (+31.3% YoY).
July 2008 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through July, reached 609,080, up 0.8% on the same period of 2007. Within 2008, July ranked 1st of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for July over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 21.9%.
Germany was the largest source market with 22.3% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 45.2%. Hotel occupancy of 81.4% 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 July 2008, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2008 | Nights 2007 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 39,534 | 36,641 | +7.9% | 22.3% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 25,108 | 26,382 | -4.8% | 14.2% |
| 3 | United States of America | 15,559 | 16,990 | -8.4% | 8.8% |
| 4 | Other European countries | 11,670 | 8,459 | +38.0% | 6.6% |
| 5 | Denmark | 10,190 | 10,602 | -3.9% | 5.7% |
| 6 | France | 10,119 | 9,604 | +5.4% | 5.7% |
| 7 | Sweden | 10,014 | 10,172 | -1.6% | 5.6% |
| 8 | Netherlands | 9,034 | 8,159 | +10.7% | 5.1% |
| 9 | Spain | 7,314 | 5,939 | +23.2% | 4.1% |
| 10 | Norway | 6,974 | 7,422 | -6.0% | 3.9% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for July 2008:
| Region | Occupancy 2008 | Occupancy 2007 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| South | 86.3% | 83.3% | +3.0 pp |
| East | 83.3% | 81.8% | +1.5 pp |
| Total | 81.4% | 79.7% | +1.7 pp |
| Capital Region | 80.9% | 79.8% | +1.1 pp |
| Reykjanes | 80.7% | 79.4% | +1.3 pp |
| North | 80.3% | 77.7% | +2.6 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 74.1% | 70.2% | +3.9 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in July 2008 was 5,248.2 million ISK (5.25 billion ISK), compared to 3,998.5 million ISK in July 2007.
This represents a +31.3% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 24,804 overnight stays in hotels in July 2008, up 4.3% from 23,781 in 2007.
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