Departures from Keflavik airport decreased by 77% in the year 2020 compared with the year before. Last December there were 12 thousand departure passengers compared with 169 thousand the same month the year before (-93%).
Estimated overnight stays in hotels were 25 thousand in December compared with 307 thousand the year before (-92%). Estimated number of overnight stays in 2020 are 67% fewer than the year before, dropping from 4.5 million in 2019 to 1.5 million in 2020. Overnight stays paid by foreigners decreased by 77% while overnight stays paid by Icelanders increased by 23% during the year.
VAT turnover in key tourism sectors decreased by 72% in September – October compared with the same period the year before. Turnover decreased across all key tourism sectors during this period.
This release includes updated statistics on overnight stays, VAT turnover and number of employees in key tourism sectors. Also updated are statistics on rental cars from the Icelandic Transport Authority, traffic statistics from the Icelandic Road and Coastal Administration and passenger count from the Icelandic Tourist Board and ISAVIA through Keflavik Airport along with traffic statistics for Keflavik Airport.
The graph exhibits the number of departure passengers in 2019 and 2020. Departures decreased by 77% in 2020.
| Tourism short-term indicators January 2021 | November | December - November | ||||
| Overnight stays | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Total overnight stays1 | 477432 | 43752 | -91% | 8410652 | 3361192 | -60% |
| Hotels and guesthouses | 389312 | 32998 | -92% | 5791232 | 2268394 | -61% |
| Airbnb and similar sites | .. | .. | .. | .. | ||
| Other types of unpaid accommodation | .. | .. | .. | .. | ||
| Other types of listed accommodation2 | 88120 | 10754 | -88% | 2619420 | 1092798 | -58% |
| November | December - November | |||||
| Occupancy rate of hotel rooms | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Total overnight stays in hotels | 329598 | 24305 | -93% | 4528301 | 1774817 | -61% |
| Available hotel rooms | 10948 | 6625 | -39% | .. | .. | |
| Occupancy rate | 58% | 8% | -50 | 65% | 29% | -36 |
| December | January - December | |||||
| Experimental statistics - Overnight stays in hotels | 2019 (actual) | 2020 (estimated) | 2019 (actual) | 2020 (estimated) | % | |
| Overnight stays in hotels | 307186 | 25000 | -92% | 4533065 | 1492631 | -67% |
| – Iceland | 32209 | 21000 | -35% | 438779 | 540084 | 23% |
| – Foreigners | 274977 | 24000 | -91% | 4094286 | 952547 | -77% |
| Q3 | Q4-Q3 | |||||
| External trade in services (million ISK) | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Revenue from non-Icelandic tourists | 168934 | 32949 | -80% | 485192 | 197140 | -59% |
| – Passanger transport by air | 49385 | 4563 | -91% | 147858 | 55581 | -62% |
| – Travel / Consumption | 119549 | 28386 | -76% | 337335 | 141559 | -58% |
| September - október | Október - september | |||||
| VAT turnover3 (million ISK) | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Tourism industries | 109800 | 31101 | -72% | 642978 | 321554 | -50% |
| – Passenger flights | 41143 | 9919 | -76% | 230684 | 112475 | -51% |
| – Flight related services | 3743 | 817 | -78% | 22979 | 8013 | -65% |
| – Accommodation | 17696 | 3482 | -80% | 101009 | 44062 | -56% |
| – Catering and services | 15586 | 9534 | -39% | 93748 | 71592 | -24% |
| – Travel agents and planners (abroad) | 3304 | 183 | -95% | 17455 | 5164 | -70% |
| – Travel agents and planners (in Iceland) | 12751 | 1041 | -92% | 79763 | 26544 | -67% |
| – Massage parlours, tanning salons, saunas, etc. | 3458 | 298 | -91% | 19998 | 8759 | -56% |
| – Rental of leisure and sport goods & motor vehicles | 7734 | 5217 | -33% | 49912 | 34336 | -31% |
| – Passenger transport on land | 3425 | 442 | -87% | 22043 | 8897 | -60% |
| – Passenger water transport | 959 | 169 | -82% | 5384 | 1715 | -68% |
| October | Average employees November - October | |||||
| Register based employment | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Tourism industries | 29014 | 15802 | -46% | 30276 | 22882 | -24% |
| – Air transport | 4499 | 2219 | -51% | 4738 | 3636 | -23% |
| – Accommodation | 6936 | 2854 | -59% | 6994 | 4928 | -30% |
| – Food service activities | 9967 | 7171 | -28% | 10280 | 8509 | -17% |
| – Travel agency, tour operators and other reservation service | 2845 | 1047 | -63% | 2963 | 2044 | -31% |
| January | Average February - January | |||||
| Rental cars4 | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2019 | 2020 | % |
| Total rental cars | 24359 | 17794 | -27% | 24702 | 20830 | -16% |
| Rental cars (active) | 22534 | 12750 | -43% | 22902 | 16674 | -27% |
| Rental cars (inactive) | 1825 | 5044 | 176% | 1800 | 4281 | 138% |
| December | January - December | |||||
| Traffic on ring road5 | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| South Iceland | 10593 | 8278 | -22% | 177518 | 137821 | -22% |
| West Iceland | 10191 | 8201 | -20% | 173319 | 142266 | -18% |
| North Iceland | 4359 | 3831 | -12% | 103440 | 77189 | -25% |
| East Iceland | 1156 | 1000 | -13% | 27123 | 19200 | -29% |
| December | January - December | |||||
| Passenger count from Iceland6 | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Total Passengers | 168850 | 11646 | -93% | 2597536 | 608693 | -77% |
| - Foreign nationality | 125421 | 8135 | -94% | 1986153 | 478510 | -76% |
| - Icelandic nationality | 43429 | 3511 | -92% | 611383 | 130183 | -79% |
| December | January - December | |||||
| Traffic statistcs - Keflavik Airport7 | 2019 | 2020 | % | 2018-2019 | 2019-2020 | % |
| Total movements (departures/landings) | 4554 | 2251 | -51% | 85921 | 45217 | -47% |
| Total passenger movements | 453932 | 24907 | -95% | 7240819 | 1373969 | -81% |
| – Departures | 168914 | 11665 | -93% | 2612143 | 609337 | -77% |
| – Arrivals | 177618 | 11947 | -93% | 2607637 | 597954 | -77% |
| – Exchange passengers (counted twice) | 107400 | 1295 | -99% | 2021039 | 166678 | -92% |
1 Airbnb and unpaid accommodation not included in 12 month period
2 Other accommodations are camping sites, youth hostels, holiday centres, lodges in wilderness, apartments, sleeping-bag facilities and private-home accommodation. Other unpaid accommodation includes overnight stays in cars, tents or caravans outside campsites and indoor accommodation where no payment was made
3 Travel agencies (abroad): Services in connection with trips abroad, i.e. with zero VAT-rate according to paragraph 12 of the VAT-law (Act 50/1988). Travel agencies (in Iceland): Services in connection with trips in Iceland, i.e. not with zero VAT-rate according to paragraph 12 of the VAT-law (Act 50/1988)
4 Data from the Icelandic transport authority. Numbers from first weekday of each month.
5 According to numbers from 14 counters on the ring road from Icelandic Road Administration. Monthly numbers show the average count each month. 12 month rolling period specifies the total count during the period. Data is used from 14 counters located on the ring road
6 Data from the Icelandic Tourist Board
7 Data from ISAVIA - passenger movements count departures, arrivals and connecting passengers which are counted twice