Summary
June 2015 was part of Iceland's peak summer season, characterized by midnight sun and maximum tourist activity. Foreign guests recorded 261,583 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 214,053 in June 2014—a +22.2% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 76.6%, up 0.6 percentage points from 76.0% in 2014. Foreign card spending totaled 18.4 billion ISK (+30.8% YoY).
June 2015 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through June, reached 1,096,682, up 25.3% on the same period of 2014. Within 2015, 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 47.1%.
Germany was the largest source market with 21.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 52.7%. Hotel occupancy of 76.6% 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 2015, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2015 | Nights 2014 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Germany | 55,953 | 47,043 | +18.9% | 21.4% |
| 2 | United States of America | 54,297 | 38,745 | +40.1% | 20.8% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 27,671 | 22,980 | +20.4% | 10.6% |
| 4 | France | 17,395 | 13,428 | +29.5% | 6.6% |
| 5 | China | 10,247 | 4,695 | +118.3% | 3.9% |
| 6 | Switzerland (incl. Liechtenstein) | 9,154 | 5,953 | +53.8% | 3.5% |
| 7 | Denmark | 9,072 | 8,333 | +8.9% | 3.5% |
| 8 | Norway | 8,709 | 10,194 | -14.6% | 3.3% |
| 9 | Sweden | 8,698 | 10,303 | -15.6% | 3.3% |
| 10 | Netherlands | 7,773 | 6,980 | +11.4% | 3.0% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for June 2015:
| Region | Occupancy 2015 | Occupancy 2014 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjanes | 83.7% | 68.1% | +15.6 pp |
| Capital Region | 81.3% | 87.0% | -5.7 pp |
| Total | 76.6% | 76.0% | +0.6 pp |
| South | 72.7% | 60.9% | +11.8 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 71.7% | 62.3% | +9.4 pp |
| East | 65.3% | 57.7% | +7.6 pp |
| North | 64.1% | 69.3% | -5.2 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in June 2015 was 18,384.99 million ISK (18.38 billion ISK), compared to 14,054.92 million ISK in June 2014.
This represents a +30.8% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 25,907 overnight stays in hotels in June 2015, up 0.6% from 25,749 in 2014.
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