Summary
September 2005 was part of Iceland's early autumn shoulder season, with the first northern lights appearances. Foreign guests recorded 75,965 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 64,602 in September 2004—a +17.6% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 55.5%, up 2.5 percentage points from 53.0% in 2004. Foreign card spending totaled 1.9 billion ISK (+16.6% YoY).
September 2005 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through September, reached 685,188, up 5.0% on the same period of 2004. Within 2005, 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 29.9%.
United States of America was the largest source market with 19.3% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 45.7%. Hotel occupancy of 55.5% 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 2005, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2005 | Nights 2004 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States of America | 14,668 | 10,655 | +37.7% | 19.3% |
| 2 | United Kingdom | 10,425 | 10,182 | +2.4% | 13.7% |
| 3 | Germany | 9,597 | 7,660 | +25.3% | 12.6% |
| 4 | Norway | 7,609 | 6,407 | +18.8% | 10.0% |
| 5 | Sweden | 6,783 | 6,639 | +2.2% | 8.9% |
| 6 | Denmark | 6,457 | 6,672 | -3.2% | 8.5% |
| 7 | Other European countries | 3,715 | 3,349 | +10.9% | 4.9% |
| 8 | Japan | 2,833 | 1,003 | +182.5% | 3.7% |
| 9 | Netherlands | 2,235 | 2,071 | +7.9% | 2.9% |
| 10 | Finland | 2,229 | 1,915 | +16.4% | 2.9% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for September 2005:
| Region | Occupancy 2005 | Occupancy 2004 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 68.3% | 63.7% | +4.6 pp |
| Total | 55.5% | 53.0% | +2.5 pp |
| East | 47.3% | 61.3% | -14.0 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 42.6% | 42.3% | +0.3 pp |
| South | 37.9% | 34.8% | +3.1 pp |
| North | 31.7% | 35.8% | -4.1 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in September 2005 was 1,887.66 million ISK (1.89 billion ISK), compared to 1,619 million ISK in September 2004.
This represents a +16.6% year-over-year change.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 17,948 overnight stays in hotels in September 2005, up 3.8% from 17,290 in 2004.
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