Summary
October 2003 was part of Iceland's autumn/winter transition with increasing northern lights activity. Foreign guests recorded 56,871 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 42,869 in October 2002—a +32.7% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 48.1%, up 3.0 percentage points from 45.1% in 2002. Foreign card spending totaled 0.9 billion ISK (-29.8% YoY).
October 2003 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through October, reached 656,434, up 11.0% on the same period of 2002. Within 2003, October ranked 6th of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for October over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 46.4%.
United Kingdom was the largest source market with 17.4% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 48.3%. Hotel occupancy of 48.1% 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 October 2003, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2003 | Nights 2002 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Kingdom | 9,871 | 11,754 | -16.0% | 17.4% |
| 2 | Sweden | 9,204 | 4,344 | +111.9% | 16.2% |
| 3 | United States of America | 8,380 | 7,564 | +10.8% | 14.7% |
| 4 | Norway | 6,620 | 3,851 | +71.9% | 11.6% |
| 5 | Denmark | 4,464 | 3,867 | +15.4% | 7.8% |
| 6 | Germany | 3,591 | 2,564 | +40.1% | 6.3% |
| 7 | Japan | 3,414 | 477 | +615.7% | 6.0% |
| 8 | Finland | 2,150 | 1,444 | +48.9% | 3.8% |
| 9 | Other European countries | 1,970 | 822 | +139.7% | 3.5% |
| 10 | Netherlands | 1,421 | 1,545 | -8.0% | 2.5% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for October 2003:
| Region | Occupancy 2003 | Occupancy 2002 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 60.2% | 61.7% | -1.5 pp |
| Total | 48.1% | 45.1% | +3.0 pp |
| East | 44.2% | 30.4% | +13.8 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 36.4% | 33.8% | +2.6 pp |
| North | 32.0% | 18.9% | +13.1 pp |
| South | 27.1% | 23.5% | +3.6 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in October 2003 was 895.65 million ISK (0.90 billion ISK), compared to 1,276 million ISK in October 2002.
This represents a -29.8% year-over-year change. Despite growth in overnight stays in hotels, spending declined—possibly reflecting lower per-visitor expenditure or shifts in spending patterns.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 21,581 overnight stays in hotels in October 2003, up 40.7% from 15,339 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