4.5 million guest nights were registered for June this year, the highest number ever recorded for the month of June. There was a large increase in foreign guest nights in addition to increased Norwegian guest nights compared to June 2021.
According to the data published by Statistics Norway on Friday (July 29), there were around 4.5 million guest nights at commercial accommodation establishments in June 2022. which is almost 1.8 million more guest nights compared to June 2021, an increase of 64 per cent. There were 1.3 million more foreign guest nights, just 7.2 per cent lower than in 2019.
The data also revealed, “Foreign guest nights at camping sites, holiday dwellings and youth hostels were higher compared to June 2019. Foreign guest nights at hotels, however, remained lower compared to the pre-pandemic period.”
“According to seasonally adjusted figures, guest nights at hotels, camping sites and holiday dwellings were unchanged from May to June 2022. Foreign guest nights increased by 1.5 per cent while Norwegian guest nights were at about the same level as in the previous month. Foreign guest nights were low throughout the pandemic, but domestic guest nights have varied more, peaking in the summer months when more Norwegians spent their holidays within the country. Seasonally adjusted Norwegian guest nights in June 2022 were at a higher level than before the pandemic.”
Fewer foreign guest nights at hotels than before the pandemic
Guest nights at hotels contributed the most to the high number of guest nights in June. Norwegians accounted for 1.9 million guest nights at hotels. This was a record for the month of June. Foreigners registered 706 000 guest nights. Both Norwegian and foreign guest nights increased by over 600 000 from June last year.
The number of foreign hotel guest nights is still lower than before the pandemic. Guest nights from Asia, especially, are still low. China, Japan and South Korea had altogether 110 000 fewer guest nights compared to June 2019, says Higher Executive Officer Boyd Oyier in Statistics Norway.
The number of foreign guest nights at hotels in June 2022 was about three-quarters of what they were before the pandemic. USA, Germany, China and Sweden had the highest number of foreign guest nights in 2019. Germany and Sweden returned to their 2019 levels. The largest declines since 2019 were from China, the USA and South Korea.
Foreign guests back at camping sites and holiday dwellings
There were almost 1.5 million guest nights at Norwegian camping sites in June. This was a 32 per cent increase from June last year. 531 000 of these were foreign guest nights. This represented 514 000 more foreign guest nights than in June 2021 and 93 000 more than in 2019. Norwegian guest nights on the other hand decreased by 162 000 compared to last year.
Foreign guests have returned to camping in Norway. Several camping sites reported especially large increases from Germany and the Netherlands says Boyd Oyier.
