In March 2017, overnight stays in hotels were 352,600, which is an increase of 17% compared with March 2016. Nights spent by foreign tourists accounted for 88% of the total number of overnight stays in March, and increased by 17% compared with March 2016. At the same time, the overnight stays of Icelanders increased by 15%.
In the capital region, the number of overnight stays was 233,000, which is a 12% increase compared with March 2016. Around 66% of all overnight stays were in the capital region, followed by overnight stays in the South region, which were 66,300. Overseas residents with the most overnight stays in Iceland in March were from the USA (93,700), UK (90,600), and Germany (24,300), while overnight stays of Icelanders in March were 42,000.
Over the last twelve months, from April 2016 to March 2017, overnight stays in hotels were 4,060,000, which is an increase of approximately 32% compared with the previous year.
73.3% occupancy rate for bedrooms in March 2017
Occupancy rate for bedrooms in hotels was 73.3% in March 2017, which is an increase of 4.3 points from March 2016, when it was 69.0%. The occupancy rate for bedrooms was highest in the capital region, or 91.1%.
| Overnight stays in hotels | ||||||
| March | April – March | |||||
| 2016 | 2017 | % | 2015-2016 | 2016-2017 | % | |
| Total | 301,331 | 352,572 | 17 | 3,073,445 | 4,059,894 | 32 |
| Capital region | 208,087 | 232,987 | 12 | 2,007,474 | 2,548,505 | 27 |
| Southwest | 14,520 | 20,897 | 44 | 156,075 | 229,379 | 47 |
| West and Westfjords | 10,397 | 12,327 | 19 | 128,021 | 179,665 | 40 |
| Northwest and Northeast | 15,516 | 16,491 | 6 | 198,519 | 287,018 | 45 |
| East | 3,206 | 3,549 | 11 | 80,425 | 108,864 | 35 |
| South | 49,605 | 66,321 | 34 | 502,931 | 706,463 | 40 |
| Icelanders | 36,438 | 42,019 | 15 | 341,541 | 416,975 | 22 |
| Foreign visitors | 264,893 | 310,553 | 17 | 2,731,904 | 3,642,919 | 33 |
The above data only show overnight stays in hotels that are operating for the whole year. Guesthouses and summer hotels are not included in this category. Numbers for 2017 are preliminary.
Alongside the publication of the number of overnight stays in hotels for March 2017, tables for overnight stays in other types of accommodation in 2016 are being updated. Further updates for previous years to adjust for the transfer of Höfn municipality from the East region to the South are also being worked on and will be published in May.