Summary
September 2003 was part of Iceland's early autumn shoulder season, with the first northern lights appearances. Foreign guests recorded 63,787 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 58,467 in September 2002—a +9.1% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 51.9%, down 5.2 percentage points from 57.1% in 2002. Foreign card spending totaled 1.6 billion ISK (+10.3% YoY).
September 2003 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through September, reached 599,563, up 9.3% on the same period of 2002. Within 2003, September ranked 4th of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for September over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 19.0%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 18.2% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 48.4%. Hotel occupancy of 51.9% 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 September 2003, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2003 | Nights 2002 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 11,624 | 10,416 | +11.6% | 18.2% |
| 2 | Germany | 9,793 | 5,819 | +68.3% | 15.4% |
| 3 | United Kingdom | 9,473 | 8,933 | +6.0% | 14.9% |
| 4 | Denmark | 6,619 | 7,192 | -8.0% | 10.4% |
| 5 | Sweden | 6,252 | 5,693 | +9.8% | 9.8% |
| 6 | Norway | 6,024 | 6,977 | -13.7% | 9.4% |
| 7 | Other European countries | 2,130 | 1,722 | +23.7% | 3.3% |
| 8 | Japan | 1,958 | 904 | +116.6% | 3.1% |
| 9 | Netherlands | 1,868 | 2,277 | -18.0% | 2.9% |
| 10 | France | 1,821 | 2,347 | -22.4% | 2.9% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for September 2003:
| Region | Occupancy 2003 | Occupancy 2002 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 61.2% | 70.7% | -9.5 pp |
| East | 60.8% | 54.0% | +6.8 pp |
| Total | 51.9% | 57.1% | -5.2 pp |
| North | 42.9% | 43.6% | -0.7 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 42.2% | 46.6% | -4.4 pp |
| South | 33.2% | 34.0% | -0.8 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in September 2003 was 1,600.49 million ISK (1.60 billion ISK), compared to 1,451 million ISK in September 2002.
This represents a +10.3% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 14,137 overnight stays in hotels in September 2003, up 15.6% from 12,234 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