Summary
May 2012 was part of Iceland's late spring, transitioning into high season as weather improves. Foreign guests recorded 112,359 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 97,368 in May 2011—a +15.4% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 53.4%, up 3.7 percentage points from 49.7% in 2011. Foreign card spending totaled 5.8 billion ISK (+15.9% YoY).
May 2012 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through May, reached 449,320, up 27.2% on the same period of 2011. Within 2012, 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 24.4%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 17.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 44.8%. Hotel occupancy of 53.4% 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 2012, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2012 | Nights 2011 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 19,504 | 11,258 | +73.2% | 17.4% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 17,142 | 11,599 | +47.8% | 15.3% |
| 3 | Germany | 13,720 | 13,655 | +0.5% | 12.2% |
| 4 | Norway | 12,289 | 14,032 | -12.4% | 10.9% |
| 5 | Sweden | 9,190 | 8,522 | +7.8% | 8.2% |
| 6 | Denmark | 7,408 | 8,128 | -8.9% | 6.6% |
| 7 | Other European countries | 5,431 | 5,412 | +0.4% | 4.8% |
| 8 | France | 5,287 | 4,331 | +22.1% | 4.7% |
| 9 | Netherlands | 5,011 | 5,626 | -10.9% | 4.5% |
| 10 | Canada | 3,259 | 2,182 | +49.4% | 2.9% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for May 2012:
| Region | Occupancy 2012 | Occupancy 2011 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 67.5% | 60.3% | +7.2 pp |
| Total | 53.4% | 49.7% | +3.7 pp |
| Reykjanes | 45.3% | 56.3% | -11.0 pp |
| South | 34.1% | 31.8% | +2.3 pp |
| East | 32.9% | 29.5% | +3.4 pp |
| North | 30.9% | 30.9% | +0.0 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 28.8% | 35.0% | -6.2 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in May 2012 was 5,847.95 million ISK (5.85 billion ISK), compared to 5,047.54 million ISK in May 2011.
This represents a +15.9% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 27,182 overnight stays in hotels in May 2012, up 17.4% from 23,154 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