Summary
July 2012 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 237,392 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 204,073 in July 2011—a +16.3% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 88.9%, up 6.8 percentage points from 82.1% in 2011. Foreign card spending totaled 13.1 billion ISK (+20.3% YoY).
July 2012 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through July, reached 866,632, up 21.8% on the same period of 2011. Within 2012, 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 29.7%.
Germany was the largest source market with 25.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 47.6%. Hotel occupancy of 88.9% 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 2012, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2012 | Nights 2011 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 60,227 | 46,361 | +29.9% | 25.4% |
| 2 | United States of America | 31,353 | 27,635 | +13.5% | 13.2% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 21,452 | 19,346 | +10.9% | 9.0% |
| 4 | France | 15,542 | 12,284 | +26.5% | 6.5% |
| 5 | Other European countries | 12,041 | 11,946 | +0.8% | 5.1% |
| 6 | Sweden | 11,305 | 11,597 | -2.5% | 4.8% |
| 7 | Norway | 10,612 | 10,435 | +1.7% | 4.5% |
| 8 | Denmark | 10,569 | 9,509 | +11.1% | 4.5% |
| 9 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 9,560 | 7,656 | +24.9% | 4.0% |
| 10 | Other Asian countries | 8,864 | 5,357 | +65.5% | 3.7% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for July 2012:
| Region | Occupancy 2012 | Occupancy 2011 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 91.9% | 83.4% | +8.5 pp |
| South | 90.2% | 82.4% | +7.8 pp |
| Total | 88.9% | 82.1% | +6.8 pp |
| Reykjanes | 85.2% | 79.6% | +5.6 pp |
| North | 81.2% | 79.9% | +1.3 pp |
| East | 80.9% | 72.1% | +8.8 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 78.8% | 76.9% | +1.9 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in July 2012 was 13,087.38 million ISK (13.09 billion ISK), compared to 10,882.43 million ISK in July 2011.
This represents a +20.3% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 26,405 overnight stays in hotels in July 2012, up 12.8% from 23,407 in 2011.
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