The destination Swedish Lapland will increase by 5 percent in the number of guest nights for 2018, an increase distributed over the entire year, according to preliminary accommodation statistics from Statistics Sweden.
The proportion of foreign guest nights increases from 29 to 34 percent, a good mark for the attractive companies that exist and the marketing efforts that are being made within the destination.
Preliminary accommodation statistics for 2018 were released today – a record year for Swedish Lapland. The total increase, compared to 2017, is +5 percent. An increase higher than the national average and for nine out of twelve months the number of visitors has been the highest ever.
“Our already strong winter season continues to increase by 13 percent compared to the previous year. But even more important for the development of the industry is that we see that the increase is distributed throughout the year for the markets we serve,” says CEO Erika Mattsson.
– Together with local destinations and companies, we are actively working to strengthen all seasons, because we are aware that the destination has a lot to offer the global traveler, all year round. That is why it is also extra gratifying that in 2018 we passed the 1 million foreign guest nights mark, Erika continues.
More guests with new direct flight
In 2018, both Skellefteå and Kiruna received a direct flight from Rotterdam and Amsterdam, one in the summer and one in the winter. An establishment that was followed up with targeted marketing and an increase in Dutch guest nights by 42 percent.
-Swedish Lapland has a lot to attract the Dutch traveler – partly our Fly & Drive concept which is well suited to the summer, and partly our ice rinks in the winter which attract the Dutch skating league. It takes time to build awareness of a new destination among travelers, so it is nice to see that we are already attracting a lot of new Dutch guests in our first year of operation, says Johanna Ögren, Marketing Manager.
Digital summer campaigns targeting Norway in particular have been very successful this year, both in terms of getting camping guests here and then getting them to stay a few extra nights. From May to September, the highest number of Norwegian guest nights ever was recorded.
-Together with the destination's camping company, we have targeted digital advertising around current events and offers to Norwegian guests who have already been to the region to get them to stay longer. It has been particularly fun to see that many camping facilities have actually done business directly on Facebook Messenger thanks to our advertising campaigns, says Marketing Manager Johanna Ögren.
Key markets such as the UK and Germany have also increased in 2018, but the fastest growing markets are the Netherlands, the US and parts of Asia – particularly India, Singapore and Taiwan. The proportion of foreign visitors was 34 percent in 2018 compared to 29 percent the previous year, which is higher than the national average.
