New figures from the accommodation statistics show that there were about 2.3 million Norwegian and a little over 1 million foreign guest nights at Norwegian accommodation establishments in May this year. Norwegian Notice the difference between “guest nights” and “guest”. One guest may have several guest nights. increased by 2 per cent while foreign guest nights increased by 18 per cent.
– After the pandemic, we have seen foreign guest nights exceed one million in June, July and August. This year, for the first time, we saw that there were already over a million foreign guest nights in May, says Boyd Oyier, adviser at Statistics Norway.
– A favourable exchange rate against many currencies and the marketing of Norway as a tourist destination with unique nature experiences may help explain why more foreign tourists found their way to Norway, Oyier continues.
The share of foreign guest nights at The numbers refer to hotels, short-term holiday dwellings, camping sites, and youth hostels. has increased gradually. In May 2022, almost 23 per cent of overnight stays at Norwegian establishments were made by foreigners. In May 2023 and in 2024, this increased to 26 and just under 29 per cent, respectively. In May this year, it had risen to 32 per cent.
Germans accounted for 1 in 5 guest nights
In May this year, most foreign guests came from Germany. Of the roughly one million foreign guest nights at commercial accommodation establishments, nearly 200 thousand were by Germans. Sweden ranked second¹ with around 108 thousand guest nights, followed by the United Kingdom and the Netherlands with approximately 77 thousand and 56 thousand guest nights, respectively.
It is interesting to note a significant increase in guest nights from several Asian countries. The largest growth came from China, with nearly 21 thousand guest nights in May, more than double compared to the same month last year. There was also strong growth from India. There were nearly 12 thousand guest nights by Indian visitors in May, an increase of 50 per cent from the previous year.
Guest nights at commercial accommodation establishments in May
- 2.3 million guest nights at hotels, an increase by 9.5 per cent. Norwegian guest nights increased by 3.9 per cent and foreign guest nights increased by 25 per cent.
- 709 thousand guest nights at camping sites, a decrease by 2.2 per cent. Norwegian guest nights decreased by 4.9 per cent while foreign guest nights increased by 5.9 per cent.
- 308 thousand guest nights at holiday dwellings and youth hostels, an increase by 7.1 per cent. Norwegian guest nights increased by 7.6 per cent and foreign guest nights increased by 6.7 per cent.
¹ In the Statbank, USA appears as the country with the second most foreign overnight stays. Note that guests who book through certain online travel agencies and apps may be registered with USA as the country of residence, even though they actually reside in other countries.