Overnight stays in all accommodation in May 2019 were 656,000, compared with 731,000 in May last year. Overnight stays in hotels and guesthouses were 412,000, overnight stays in apartments, youth hostels, campsites etc. were 155,000, and overnight stays through websites such as Airbnb were approximately 89,000.
There was a 10.2% decrease in the number of overnight stays in May between years, thereof a 5.2% decrease in hotels and guesthouses, 9.2% decrease in other types of accommodation and a 29% decrease in private accommodation through Airbnb etc.
3% decrease in overnight stays at hotels, increase in Capital area
Overnight stays in hotels in May 2019 were 308,500, which is a 3% decrease from May last year. Still, there was a 2% increase in overnight stays in the Capital area, which accounts for 57% of all overnight stays in hotels. Overnight stays in hotels in the Southwest decreased by 25%, 12% in the South and 13% in the West and Westfjords, but increased in the East (17%) and North (11%).
| Overnight stays in hotels | ||||||
| May | June-May | |||||
| 2018 | 2019 | % | 2017-2018 | 2018-2019 | % | |
| Total | 317,689 | 308,523 | -3 | 4,313,984 | 4,405,749 | 2 |
| Capital region | 171,446 | 174,750 | 2 | 2,591,636 | 2,525,482 | -3 |
| Southwest | 25,096 | 18,928 | -25 | 296,186 | 301,784 | 2 |
| West and Westfjords | 21,927 | 19,114 | -13 | 203,670 | 251,990 | 24 |
| Northwest and Northe | 24,189 | 26,924 | 11 | 302,886 | 329,305 | 9 |
| East | 8,927 | 10,467 | 17 | 107,609 | 107,632 | 0 |
| South | 66,104 | 58,340 | -12 | 811,997 | 889,556 | 10 |
| Citizenship | ||||||
| Icelanders | 43,651 | 38,028 | -13 | 425,785 | 432,008 | 1 |
| Foreign visitors | 274,038 | 270,495 | -1 | 3,888,199 | 3,973,741 | 2 |
Occupancy rate for bedrooms in hotels was about 56.1% in May 2019, and decreased by 2.2 percentage points from May 2018, when it was about 58.3%. Over the same period, the number of hotel bedrooms has increased by 4.3%. The occupancy rate for bedrooms in May was highest in the Capital region, or 67.2%.
Over a twelve month period between June 2018 and May 2019, the total number of overnight stays in hotels was 4,405,800, which is a 2% increase from the preceding 12 month period.
| Supply and occupancy rates of hotel bedrooms | ||||||
| Number of Hotel bedrooms in March | Room occupancy rate in March | |||||
| 2018 | 2019 | % | 2018 | 2019 | pp | |
| Total | 10,026 | 10,459 | 4.3% | 58.3% | 56.1% | -2.2 |
| Capital region | 5,011 | 5,085 | 1.5% | 63.9% | 67.2% | 3.3 |
| Southwest | 627 | 634 | 1.1% | 74.2% | 55.2% | -19.0 |
| West and Westfjords | 746 | 880 | 18.0% | 51.9% | 40.6% | -11.3 |
| North | 1,123 | 1,208 | 7.6% | 40.6% | 42.4% | 1.8 |
| East | 439 | 441 | 0.5% | 36.6% | 44.8% | 8.1 |
| South | 2,080 | 2,211 | 6.3% | 56.5% | 46.8% | -9.7 |
Nights spent by foreign tourists in hotels were 270,500, which accounted for 88% of the total number of overnight stays in May. USA residents had the greatest number of overnight stays (84,500), then residents of Germany (29,200) and the UK (25,500). Overnight stays of Icelanders in May were 38,000.
Additionally, overnight stays in cars other than at campsites were 11,000 and the number of overnight stays with friends and relatives, through exchanges or in other places where no payment was made, was 22,000. 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.
All numbers for 2019 are preliminary.