Summary
September 2007 was part of Iceland's early autumn shoulder season, with the first northern lights appearances. Foreign guests recorded 91,218 overnight stays in hotels, compared to 93,328 in September 2006—a -2.3% change year-over-year.
National hotel occupancy stood at 55.7%, down 7.4 percentage points from 63.1% in 2006. Foreign card spending totaled 2.5 billion ISK (+13.9% YoY).
September 2007 in context
Foreign hotel nights for the year to date, January through September, reached 853,463, up 12.6% on the same period of 2006. Within 2007, September ranked 5th of the twelve months by foreign nights. Against the average for September over the five preceding years, this month came in ahead by 28.1%.
United Kingdom was the largest source market with 16.0% of foreign hotel nights, and the top three markets together accounted for 41.2%. Hotel occupancy of 55.7% 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 2007, ranked by overnight stays:
| Rank | Market | Nights 2007 | Nights 2006 | Change | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | United Kingdom | 14,574 | 15,017 | -2.9% | 16.0% |
| 2 | United States of America | 12,591 | 14,265 | -11.7% | 13.8% |
| 3 | Germany | 10,413 | 8,825 | +18.0% | 11.4% |
| 4 | Sweden | 8,519 | 7,959 | +7.0% | 9.3% |
| 5 | Norway | 7,699 | 9,613 | -19.9% | 8.4% |
| 6 | Denmark | 7,137 | 10,040 | -28.9% | 7.8% |
| 7 | Netherlands | 4,127 | 2,838 | +45.4% | 4.5% |
| 8 | Other European countries | 3,715 | 3,970 | -6.4% | 4.1% |
| 9 | Spain | 3,197 | 1,663 | +92.2% | 3.5% |
| 10 | China | 3,192 | 3,809 | -16.2% | 3.5% |
Hotel Occupancy by Region
Regional hotel occupancy rates for September 2007:
| Region | Occupancy 2007 | Occupancy 2006 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capital Region | 66.8% | 76.5% | -9.7 pp |
| Reykjanes | 58.3% | 0.0% | +58.3 pp |
| Total | 55.7% | 63.1% | -7.4 pp |
| East | 44.6% | 55.4% | -10.8 pp |
| North | 40.3% | 44.0% | -3.7 pp |
| South | 36.9% | 39.5% | -2.6 pp |
| West & Westfjords | 31.3% | 54.1% | -22.8 pp |
Foreign Card Spending
Total foreign card turnover in September 2007 was 2,460.04 million ISK (2.46 billion ISK), compared to 2,159.51 million ISK in September 2006.
This represents a +13.9% year-over-year change. Spending increased even as overnight stays declined, suggesting higher per-visitor expenditure.
Domestic Tourism
Icelandic residents recorded 29,418 overnight stays in hotels in September 2007, up 29.2% from 22,778 in 2006.
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