Summary
May 2026 was part of Iceland's late spring, transitioning into high season as weather improves. Foreign guests recorded 379,031 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 370,885 in May 2025—a +2.2% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 62.4%, down 1.3 percentage points from 63.7% in 2025. Foreign card spending totaled 29.4 billion ISK (+2.9% YoY).
May 2026 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through May, reached 1,678,061, up 1.6% on the same period of 2025. Against the average for May over the five preceding years (excluding the pandemic years 2020 and 2021), this month came in ahead by 18.3%. Compared with May 2019, the last full year before the pandemic, foreign nights were up 37.0%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 33.2% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 51.4%. Hotel occupancy of 62.4% 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 May 2026, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2026 | Nights 2025 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 125,659 | 128,578 | -2.3% | 33.2% |
| 2 | Germany | 43,048 | 38,328 | +12.3% | 11.4% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 25,992 | 29,552 | -12.0% | 6.9% |
| 4 | France | 22,008 | 19,569 | +12.5% | 5.8% |
| 5 | China | 17,835 | 12,717 | +40.2% | 4.7% |
| 6 | Netherlands | 14,529 | 15,538 | -6.5% | 3.8% |
| 7 | Canada | 14,055 | 14,860 | -5.4% | 3.7% |
| 8 | Denmark | 9,003 | 8,716 | +3.3% | 2.4% |
| 9 | Italy | 8,826 | 8,351 | +5.7% | 2.3% |
| 10 | Other Asian countries | 8,295 | 7,641 | +8.6% | 2.2% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for May 2026:
| Region | Occupancy 2026 | Occupancy 2025 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reykjanes | 67.1% | 68.2% | -1.1 pp |
| Capital Region | 66.6% | 69.1% | -2.5 pp |
| Total | 62.4% | 63.7% | -1.3 pp |
| South | 62.3% | 63.4% | -1.1 pp |
| North | 56.7% | 51.8% | +4.9 pp |
| East | 52.6% | 54.4% | -1.8 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 46.8% | 50.6% | -3.8 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in May 2026 was 29,420.18 million ISK (29.42 billion ISK), compared to 28,585.71 million ISK in May 2025.
This represents a +2.9% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 54,989 overnight stays in hotels in May 2026, down 4.4% from 57,507 in 2025.
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