Overnight stays in all accommodation in March 2019 were 694,000, compared with 719,000 in March last year. Overnight stays in hotels and guesthouses were 444,000, overnight stays in apartments, youth hostels, campsites etc. were 116,000, and overnight stays through websites such as Airbnb were approximately 134,000.
There was a 3.4% decrease in the number of overnight stays in March between years, thereof a 5.5% decrease in hotels and guesthouses, 3.3% decrease in other types of accommodation and a 3.9% increase in private accommodation through Airbnb etc. Additionally, overnight stays in cars other than at campsites were 4,000 and the number of overnight stays with friends and relatives, through exchanges or in other places where no payment was made, was 18,000.
Statistics Iceland is also publishing first estimates of the number of unregistered overnight stays in February 2019. The number of overnight stays at private accommodation sold through Airbnb etc. was approximately 118,000, which is a 2.6% increase from February 2018. Overnight stays in cars other than at campsites were 3,000 and the number of overnight stays with friends and relatives, through exchanges or in other places where no payment was made, was 14,000. Estimates of unregistered overnight stays are temporary and subject to change as further information becomes available, such as on VAT turnover, supply and occupancy rates of establishments offering accommodation through Airbnb.
2% decrease in overnight stays at hotels in March Overnight stays in hotels in March 2019 were 374,500, which is a 2% decrease from March last year. There was a decrease in overnight stays in hotels in the Capital and South regions, but an increase in other areas. Around 61% of all overnight stays were in the Capital region, or 227,100.
Over the most recent 12 month period, from April 2018 to March 2019, the total number of overnight stays in hotels was 4,431,800, which is a 3% increase from the previous 12 months.
| Overnight stays in hotels | ||||||
| March | April-March | |||||
| 2018 | 2019 | % | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | % | |
| Total | 381,803 | 374,545 | -2 | 4,314,650 | 4,431,751 | 3 |
| Capital region | 240,851 | 227,128 | -6 | 2,603,535 | 2,547,277 | -2 |
| Southwest | 21,670 | 24,508 | 13 | 295,050 | 306,014 | 4 |
| West and Westfjords | 15,980 | 18,564 | 16 | 196,926 | 253,071 | 29 |
| Northwest and Northe | 19,083 | 22,079 | 16 | 308,309 | 326,243 | 6 |
| East | 4,450 | 4,925 | 11 | 109,332 | 103,748 | -5 |
| South | 79,769 | 77,341 | -3 | 801,498 | 895,398 | 12 |
| Citizenship | ||||||
| Icelanders | 45,287 | 39,769 | -12 | 413,406 | 447,253 | 8 |
| Foreign visitors | 336,516 | 334,776 | -1 | 3,901,244 | 3,984,498 | 2 |
Occupancy rate for bedrooms in hotels was 65.6% in March 2019, and decreased by 3.9 percentage points from March 2018, when it was 69.5%. Over the same period, the number of hotel bedrooms has increased by 4.3%. The occupancy rate for bedrooms in March was highest in the Capital area, or 80.0%.
| Supply and occupancy rates of hotel bedrooms | ||||||
| Number of Hotel bedrooms in March | Room occupancy rate in March | |||||
| 2018 | 2019 | % | 2018 | 2019 | pp | |
| Total | 9,791 | 10,213 | 4.3% | 69.5% | 65.6% | -3.9 |
| Capital region | 5,064 | 5,094 | 0.6% | 84.6% | 80.0% | -4.5 |
| Southwest | 634 | 634 | 0.0% | 62.0% | 66.6% | 4.5 |
| West and Westfjords | 682 | 820 | 20.2% | 42.1% | 40.7% | -1.4 |
| North | 999 | 1,161 | 16.2% | 35.3% | 36.8% | 1.5 |
| East | 349 | 349 | 0.0% | 23.1% | 26.2% | 3.1 |
| South | 2,063 | 2,155 | 4.5% | 68.3% | 62.6% | -5.7 |
Nights spent by foreign tourists in hotels were 334,800, which accounted for 89% of the total number of overnight stays in March. USA residents had the greatest number of overnight stays (98,300), then residents of the UK (82,400) and Germany (23,300). Overnight stays of Icelanders in March were 39,800.
Numbers for 2019 are preliminary.