Summary
June 2012 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 179,920 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 154,053 in June 2011—a +16.8% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 77.6%, up 7.6 percentage points from 70.0% in 2011. Foreign card spending totaled 9.4 billion ISK (+18.0% YoY).
June 2012 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through June, reached 629,240, up 24.0% on the same period of 2011. Within 2012, June ranked 3rd of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for June over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 32.6%.
Germany was the largest source market with 21.9% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 48.7%. Hotel occupancy of 77.6% means that share of available rooms was sold across the month; this is a healthy shoulder-season level with capacity still available outside the capital. 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 June 2012, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2012 | Nights 2011 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 39,415 | 34,236 | +15.1% | 21.9% |
| 2 | United States of America | 29,272 | 22,349 | +31.0% | 16.3% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 18,902 | 14,731 | +28.3% | 10.5% |
| 4 | France | 13,223 | 8,498 | +55.6% | 7.3% |
| 5 | Norway | 12,885 | 12,636 | +2.0% | 7.2% |
| 6 | Other European countries | 10,370 | 8,237 | +25.9% | 5.8% |
| 7 | Sweden | 10,168 | 9,631 | +5.6% | 5.7% |
| 8 | Denmark | 8,889 | 8,204 | +8.3% | 4.9% |
| 9 | Netherlands | 6,065 | 6,018 | +0.8% | 3.4% |
| 10 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 4,687 | 3,542 | +32.3% | 2.6% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for June 2012:
| Region | Occupancy 2012 | Occupancy 2011 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 87.5% | 78.3% | +9.2 pp |
| Total | 77.6% | 70.0% | +7.6 pp |
| Reykjanes | 76.0% | 70.1% | +5.9 pp |
| South | 71.0% | 59.4% | +11.6 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 58.3% | 54.8% | +3.5 pp |
| North | 56.8% | 57.0% | -0.2 pp |
| East | 54.0% | 51.9% | +2.1 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in June 2012 was 9,378.63 million ISK (9.38 billion ISK), compared to 7,951.13 million ISK in June 2011.
This represents a +18.0% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 28,429 overnight stays in hotels in June 2012, up 15.1% from 24,689 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