During the first four weeks of July, the number of hotel rooms sold in Sweden was essentially unchanged compared to the same period in 2023. Demand increased in Stockholm and Gothenburg while it decreased slightly in the rest of Sweden.
– The number of hotel rooms sold also decreased in July across the country, except in Stockholm and Gothenburg, where demand increased. The booking situation on July 1 showed a decline of 4 percent, which indicates that hotel guests are booking later this year. This has a positive impact on the forecast for the summer, says Thomas Jakobsson, chief economist at Visita.
– Despite the lack of events this year, such as Coldplay's concerts, demand for hotel rooms in Gothenburg was slightly higher than last year. However, the lack of major events is affecting the hotels' profitability, as accommodation revenues have decreased by just over 20 percent.
– The booking situation for August 1 has improved compared to a month ago. This means that the forecast that summer 2024 will surpass last year stands.
– At the same time, both households and companies are pressured by high cost levels and it will be a while before interest rate cuts have a real economic effect. This may affect the hotel market when summer tourism ebbs away, concludes Thomas Jakobsson.
*The reason for presenting data for 1-28 of each month is to improve comparability by avoiding day-of-week effects on an entire month, as demand naturally fluctuates over the week and a month spans more than four weeks.
The data is preliminary and refers to a selection of 707 open hotels in Sweden. The data is not calendar-adjusted and does not take into account which days of the week various holidays fall on.
According to the press release.
