Revenue from foreign tourists during the third quarter of 2023 was 233 billion ISK compared with the same period last year when it was almost 191 billion ISK. Revenue from foreign tourists has increased by 41% in the last 12 months when compared with the same period the year before, from 416 billion ISK to 586,5 billion ISK.
Employment in the tourism industries in Iceland was 32,244 in October 2023, an increase of 7% compared with October 2022. In the 12-month period from November 2022 to October 2023, an average of 31,766 individuals worked in the tourism industry compared with 27,886 in the previous 12-month period.
Turnover according to VAT reports in Icelandic tourism sectors was 169.3 billion ISK in September to October 2023, an increase of almost 17% from the previous year.
Overnight stays in hotels in October 2023 were 493,189 compared with 469,902 in October the year before. The number of overnight stays by Icelanders were 85,484 (-8%) and the number of overnight stays by foreign guests were 409,705 (8%). In November, there were 193,788 departures of passengers from Keflavik airport compared with 172,561 in November 2022. Departures of passengers with foreign citizenship were 150,346 compared with 138,193 a year earlier.
This release includes updated statistics on turnover by VAT reports, revenue from foreign tourists and overnight stays and register based employment. Also updated are statistics on rental cars from the Icelandic Transport Authority, traffic statistics from the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration, passengers count by nationality from the Icelandic Tourist Board and passengers’ statistics through Keflavik Airport along with traffic statistics published by ISAVIA.
Statistics Iceland no longer provides initial estimates of overnight stays for the latest month.
Statistics
Short term indicators in tourism
Passengers through Keflavik airport
Average daily traffic count on major roads
External trade in services