Summary
May 2003 was part of Iceland's late spring, transitioning into high season as weather improves. Foreign guests recorded 62,476 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 55,562 in May 2002—a +12.4% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 51.6%, down 2.7 percentage points from 54.3% in 2002. Foreign card spending totaled 0.9 billion ISK (0.0% YoY).
May 2003 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through May, reached 211,890, up 8.5% on the same period of 2002. Within 2003, May ranked 5th of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for May over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 27.3%.
United Kingdom was the largest source market with 17.8% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 46.2%. Hotel occupancy of 51.6% means that share of available rooms was sold across the month; this is typical of Iceland's low season, when many rural hotels close and demand concentrates in Reykjavík. 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 May 2003, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2003 | Nights 2002 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Kingdom | 11,137 | 8,261 | +34.8% | 17.8% |
| 2 | United States of America | 8,862 | 11,831 | -25.1% | 14.2% |
| 3 | Germany | 8,862 | 5,745 | +54.3% | 14.2% |
| 4 | Norway | 7,133 | 5,212 | +36.9% | 11.4% |
| 5 | Sweden | 5,843 | 6,407 | -8.8% | 9.4% |
| 6 | Denmark | 5,259 | 4,256 | +23.6% | 8.4% |
| 7 | France | 3,693 | 2,679 | +37.8% | 5.9% |
| 8 | Netherlands | 3,056 | 2,604 | +17.4% | 4.9% |
| 9 | Other European countries | 1,836 | 1,502 | +22.2% | 2.9% |
| 10 | Finland | 1,320 | 2,872 | -54.0% | 2.1% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for May 2003:
| Region | Occupancy 2003 | Occupancy 2002 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 64.1% | 69.4% | -5.3 pp |
| East | 59.7% | 34.7% | +25.0 pp |
| Total | 51.6% | 54.3% | -2.7 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 45.6% | 45.1% | +0.5 pp |
| North | 33.2% | 30.6% | +2.6 pp |
| South | 29.3% | 31.6% | -2.3 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in May 2003 was 932.8 million ISK (0.93 billion ISK), compared to 0 million ISK in May 2002.
This represents a 0.0% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 17,246 overnight stays in hotels in May 2003, up 23.0% from 14,019 in 2002.
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