Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry Statistics for 2008 – August 2009 Contents
Stockholm – The Capital of Scandinavia...... 4
Stockholm in perspective ...... 7 Stockholm’s international position...... 8 Stockholm’s position in Sweden ...... 10 Visitors to Stockholm...... 13 Where visitors come from...... 14 How visitors get to Stockholm...... 16 Where visitors stay...... 18 Commercial accommodation...... 22 Leisure travel and business travel...... 28 International meetings/conventions. 30 Visitor destinations in Stockholm ...32 Events in Stockholm...... 34 Stockholm on the water...... 35 How long visitors stay...... 36 What visitors spend...... 37 Economy and employment..... 39
Stockholm Visitors Board...... 44
About the statistics...... 46 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry
Stockholm continues to retain its position as ”The Capital of Scandinavia” and the engine of the Swedish tourist industry. Over the last ten years the number of guest nights in Stockholm has risen by 40 percent. 2008 saw a new peak of 9.6 million guest nights. And the first eight months of 2009 continue to show strong growth for Stockholm, especially in the leisure travel segment, which grew by 11 percent over the same period in 2008. This trend is clearly superior to that seen by other Scandinavian capitals.
Success breeds success as is well known, but this doesn’t mean that we can rest on our laurels. In cooperation with the LFV (the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration), we are continuing our efforts to preserve and expand the number of international airlines coming to Stockholm. 2010 promises to be an extremely exciting year for Stockholm. It’s certainly not every year that we simultaneously experience the wedding of a crown princess, a big year for conventions, new attractions, new hotels and the honor of being Europe’s first environmental capital. Moreover construction is proceeding on a new event arena and improved infrastructure to be able to meet the challenge of the future: a world-class city.
Traditionally the home market is the most important to Stockholm, and it continued to be so during 2008. A total of 6 million Swedes were responsible for overnight stays in the county. One overnight stay in Stockholm County out of three is by a foreign guest, and the percentage is increasing. Right now neighboring markets are leading this trend. There is also substantial potential for growth, and therefore we are making some additional efforts in our marketing to Norway, Denmark and Finland.
Our intent for ”Data on the hospitality industry” is to collect the most important key figures while highlighting the importance of the hospitality industry. The foundation of all of our marketing is the brand “Stockholm – The Capital of Scandinavia.” Having a shared brand and communication platform is an asset as we market Stockholm together.
We hope that reading this brochure will be rewarding for you!
Peter Lindqvist Olle Zetterberg CEO, Stockholm Visitors Board CEO, Stockholm Business Region Chairman, Stockholm Visitors Board Stockholm – The Capital of Scandinavia
There are many reasons why Stockholm is the natural capital of Scandinavia. Stockholm is the largest city in the largest Scandinavian country, and lies at its heart with world-class transportation.
Stockholm is also Scandinavia’s economic center edge in the Cleantech sector. Stockholm has been with the largest gross regional product and the most nominated as Europe’s first environmental capital multinational companies. One of the world’s largest by the EU, beginning in 2010. Moreover Stock- ICT clusters, one of Europe’s largest biotechnology holm is Scandinavia’s trendsetting cultural city clusters, and Northern Europe’s financial center are with its unique selection of galleries and museums, also located here. Stockholm is also on the cutting international food culture, and music production.
The three reasons that Stockholm is the capital of Scandinavia:
1. Stockholm is the natural center of Scandinavia – The Central Capital of Scandinavia The largest city in Scandinavia and its natural center World-class mobile and wired communications Stockholm’s ports are the largest meeting place on the Baltic Sea Several international airports World-leading academic institutions
2. Stockholm is Scandinavia’s economic center – The Business Capital of Scandinavia A center of innovation, with assets including ICT and world-class clean tech One of Europe’s largest biotech clusters The highest representation of multinational companies in Scandinavia Scandinavia’s leading financial center, with the largest exchange The largest hospitality industry
3. Stockholm is the trendsetting cultural city of Scandinavia – The Culture Capital of Scandinavia The Nobel Prize A center for music production International cuisine A unique selection of galleries and museums World-class design
4 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 5
Stockholm in perspective
Fakta om besöksnäringen i Stockholm 2007 7 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 7 Stockholm’s international position
Stockholm is Scandinavia’s natural center, economic center and trend-setting cultural city. Stockholm takes its place in the top division, as one of Europe’s leading visitor destina- tions with the most visitors in all of Scandinavia.
Stockholm’s hospitality industry holds up well in a Commercial overnight stays in Stockholm county European perspective. As a destination city, Stock- have risen without interruption for several years, holm belongs to the 40 major European cities that exhibiting strong average growth. Stockholm has make up The European Premier League, according also strengthened its position vis-à-vis the Scandi- to European Cities Monitor. Commercial over- navian capitals. In 2008 there were a total of 8.7 night stays in this group have risen by an average million overnight stays in hotels, hostels and va- of 5.3 percent per year from 2002-2007. Stock- cation villages in Stockholm County (9.6 million, holm stands out with higher than average growth including estimated unofficial statistics for camp- in this group, ranking fifteenth, which is the high- ing)*. This is a 5 percent increase in the county over est growth in Scandinavia. Valencia, Tallinn and 2007, and stronger growth compared with the cor- Prague were the cities with the highest growth dur- responding regions for Helsinki (+4%), Oslo (-1%) ing the period. *The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden assumed responsibility for camping statistics in Sweden in 2008. They have not released any statistics for camping yet.
8 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 and Copenhagen (-2%). Stockholm strengthened Stockholm county has the largest share of commer- its position even further in 2009, exhibiting growth cial overnight stays in Scandinavia with 37 percent. in the first eight months, both overall (+0.2%) and Copenhagen (the regional capital) comes in second for foreign visitors (+1%). place with 26 percent, followed by Oslo/Akershus with 19 percent and Helsinki with 17 percent.
Diagram 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M
Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden, Visit Denmark, Statistics Norway, Statistics Finland
2006 2007 2008 2008 8M 2009 8M 10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0 Stockholm1 Copenhagen2 Oslo3 Helsinki4
Table 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2009 8M Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden, Visit Denmark, Statistics Norway, Statistics Finland
Number Change, % 2006 2007 2008 2008 8M 2009 8M 2007 2008 2009 8M
Stockholm1 7,862,567 8,297,756 8,707,347 5,896,041 5,909,403 5.5 4.9 0.2
Copenhagen2 5,967,602 6,168,093 6,035,125 4,227,783 3,851,182 3.4 –2.2 –8.9
Oslo3 4,314,974 4,505,011 4,446,883 3,034,286 2,949,551 4.4 –1.3 –2.8
Helsinki4 3,617,165 3,875,483 4,045,611 2,755,248 2,608,432 7.1 4.4 –5.3
1 Stockholm county 2 Region Hovedstaden 3 Oslo/Akershus 4 Helsinki, Espoo och Vantaa
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 9 Stockholm’s position in Sweden
Out of all overnight night stays, just over half take place in the metropolitan counties of Stockholm, Västra Götaland and Skåne. Just over one overnight stay in four in the country takes place in Stockholm county.
In 2008 the number of overnight stays in hotels, metropolitan counties. The number of commercial hostels and vacation villages in Sweden grew by 2 overnight stays has also grown faster in Stockholm percent to just over 32 million. The metropolitan than in the rest of the country and the other metro- counties of Stockholm, Västra Götaland and Skåne politan counties in a 10-year perspective as well. together represented just over 17 million, or 52 per- The number of overnight stays in hotels, hostels and cent of the total overnight stays nationwide. Over vacation villages was unchanged in Sweden during the last ten years Stockholm county has represented the first eight months of 2009. On the other hand, close to one out of four overnight stays nationwide, the metropolitan counties and especially the cities while 15 percent were attributable to Västra Göta- have demonstrated growth. In Skåne the number land county and 10 percent to Skåne county. Un- of overnight stays grew by 4 percent, and in Stock- fortunately no camping data is available for 2008. holm county and Västra Götaland they grew slight- In 2008 growth in Stockholm county – and even ly in comparison with 2008. Meanwhile the large more so in the city of Stockholm – was significantly cities grew by 3 percent in the city of Stockholm, 7 higher than in both Sweden as a whole and the other percent in Malmö and 1 percent in Gothenburg.
10 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Diagram 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, large cities and in Sweden, 1999-2008 (in thousands) Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Stockholm county Västra Götaland county Skåne county 10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Table 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, large cities and in Sweden, 1998, 2002–2008 and 2008 8M–2009 8M (in thousands) Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
2008 2009 1998 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Jan-Aug Jan-Aug
Sweden 24,499 26,949 26,915 27,075 28,506 30,163 31,594 32,203 23,123 23,167
Stockholm county 6,291 6,545 6,517 6,904 7,357 7,893 8,304 8,704 5,896 5,913
Västra Götaland county 3,422 3,973 4,107 4,108 4,376 4,544 4,702 4,765 3,393 3,468
Skåne county 2,303 2,671 2,629 2,692 2,829 3,004 3,139 3,146 2,213 2,305
Of which
Stockholm 4,033 4,207 4,333 4,653 5,025 5,348 5,661 6,074 4,115 4,257
Gothenburg 1,784 2,106 2,217 2,231 2,419 2,529 2,629 2,639 1,833 1,850
Malmö 743 878 871 893 964 1,029 1,092 1,105 742 797
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 11 12 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 The Stockholm Visitor
Facts aboutFacts aboutStockholm’s Stockholm’s tourism tourism industry industry 2009 2009 13 13 Where visitors come from
Swedish visitors represent two out of three overnight stays in ho- tels, hostels and vacation villages in Stockholm county. Most of our foreign visitors come from Germany, the UK and the US.
In 2008 the number of overnight stays in hotels, parts of Europe have increased sharply. From a hostels and vacation villages in Stockholm county ten-year perspective growth in the number of guest by both Swedish and foreign visitors increased: nights was an impressive 46 percent. Swedish guest nights rose by 6 percent, while for- Germany is the largest foreign market, with just eign guest nights rose by 3 percent. The trend for over 340,000 guest nights, followed by the UK, the the first five months of 2008 was very positive. It US and Norway. If camping is included as well, the was a good summer for the Swedish market, while difference between Germany and the UK increases foreign guest nights declined slightly. The end of even more. Both Germany and the UK grew in 2008, and the beginning of 2009 even more so, 2008. In 2009 the German market continued to were marked by the global economic crisis, which grow, while the number of British guest nights de- led to a reduction in business travel. However the clined. The economic crisis has primarily affected 2009 summer months were unexpectedly strong travel from the US, which declined by 11 percent – particularly for the leisure travel market, which in 2008 and by an additional 12 percent during the compensated for the weak start to 2009. first eight months of 2009. Over the last three years since 2005, the number Swedish visitors come primarily from Västra Göta- of guest nights has risen by 18 percent. Primarily land county, followed by Östergötland, Skåne and Swedish guests and visitors from the non-Nordic Västmanland counties.
Diagram 3a. Swedish visitors in Stockholm county Diagram 3b. Foreign visitors in Stockholm county 2005–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M (in thousands) 2005-2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M (in thousands) Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
Number Camping Hotels, hostels and vacation villages Number Camping Hotels, hostels and vacation villages 7,000 7,000
6,000 6,000
5,000 5,000
4,000 4,000
3,000 3,000
2,000 2,000
1,000 1,000
0 0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2008 2009 2005 2006 2007 2008 2008 2009 Jan-Aug Jan-Aug Jan-Aug Jan-Aug 14 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Table 3. Commercial overnight stays by nationality 2008, Table 4. Swedish visitors by home Stockholm county* region 2008, Stockholm county Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Source: Resurs
Distri- Share in Change in % from Share 2008 bution Sweden 2007 2005 in %
Total 8,704,449 100% 25% + 5 + 18 Västra Götaland county 16.0 Sweden 5,767,324 66% 23% + 6 + 21 Skåne county 10.2 Abroad 2,937,125 34% 40% + 3 + 13 Östergötland county 9.7 Made up by: Nordic countries Södermanland county 7.5 excl. Sweden 485,733 5.6% 21% + 10 + 6 Europe excl. the Gävleborg county 7.4 Nordic countries 1,662,399 19.1% 45% + 6 + 20 Outside Europe 788,993 9.1% 56% – 5 + 5 Västmanland county 7.2 Distribution by country: Denmark 125,939 1.4% 16% + 10 + 9 Uppsala county 6.3 Norway 193,649 2.2% 17% + 14 + 7 Finland 157,175 1.8% 42% + 7 + 3 Örebro county 5.9 Iceland 8,970 0.1% 52% – 24 + 13 Dalarna county 5.4 Germany 342,165 3.9% 33% + 5 + 11 UK 330,193 3.8% 54% + 5 + 9 Jönköping county 4.3 Ireland 20,405 0.2% 56% – 6 + 17 The Netherlands 87,594 1.0% 27% + 13 + 28 Västernorrland county 3.7
Belgium 34,053 0.4% 45% – 1 + 5 Värmland county 2.7 Luxembourg 4,727 0.1% 61% + 32 + 68 France 137,338 1.6% 58% + 19 + 43 Västerbotten county 2.5 Switzerland 68,444 0.8% 54% + 13 + 21
Austria 35,572 0.4% 52% + 46 +112 Kronoberg county 2.2 Italy 156,531 1.8% 64% + 4 + 26 Spain 116,676 1.3% 70% – 6 + 15 Norrbotten county 2.1 Portugal 17,167 0.2% 48% + 47 + 65 Kalmar county 2.0 Greece 18,208 0.2% 71% – 6 + 15 Turkey 11,745 0.1% 54% + 19 +114 Jämtland county 1.4 Russia 108,883 1.3% 53% + 10 + 52 Estonia 8,539 0.1% 30% + 11 + 14 Halland county 1.4
Latvia 7,471 0.1% 34% + 27 + 83 Blekinge county 1.3 Lithuania 5,096 0.1% 26% – 13 – 0 Poland 33,326 0.4% 24% + 36 +100 Gotland county 1.0 Czech Republic 10,816 0.1% 29% – 6 + 25 Total 100 Slovakia 5,114 0.1% 45% +151 +184 Hungary 10,079 0.1% 44% – 22 – 11 The rest of Europe 92,257 1.1% 59% – 11 – 10 US 232,142 2.7% 59% – 11 – 8
Canada 28,144 0.3% 59% + 15 + 31 Central&South America 26,555 0.3% 60% + 6 + 15 Japan 60,721 0.7% 60% – 6 – 13 South Korea 8,815 0.1% 43% – 16 + 7
China 45,631 0.5% 45% – 12 + 13 The rest of Asia 93,979 1.1% 57% + 27 + 23 Australia 30,113 0.3% 61% + 13 + 14 New Zealand 3,487 0.0% 43% – 9 – 46
The rest of the world 111,868 1.3% 52% – 55 – 38
N/A 147,538 1.7% 56% +258 +200
* Hotels, hostels and vacation villages. No data for camping available. Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 15 How visitors travel to Stockholm
Stockholm is the natural center of Scandinavia. Every year millions of visitors travel to and from Stockholm by air, ferry, train and bus. However when Swedes travel to Stockholm, they usually do so by car.
Air percent. The number of airline passengers traveling 2008 was a favorable year for air traffic to and from internationally continued to grow during the year. Stockholm, despite an incipient recession. The Over a 10-year period international airline traffic has number of passengers at all of the airports in the increased its share of the total number of passengers Stockholm region increased over 2007. The number to and from Stockholm, from 59 to 71 percent. of passengers increased by a total of 3.5 percent to 73 passenger airlines make direct flights to 181 des- 22.6 million. Arlanda is the leader with 80 percent of tinations from Stockholm–Arlanda, of which 149 passenger flights, and the number of passengers grew are foreign destinations. Stockholm-Skavsta has 55 by just over 1 percent in 2008. Stockholm-Skavsta direct routes. Air travel makes up 15 percent of travel had 24 percent more passengers than in 2007, by Swedes to Stockholm county. thereby increasing its share of air traffic to and from Stockholm to 11 percent. Ferries and cruises Destinations in Europe are the beginning and end In 2008 close to 11.4 million passengers traveled to points for an ever greater share of airline trips. In or from Stockholm’s ports (Stockholm, Kapellskär 2008 six out of ten passengers travelled from an air- and Nynäshamn). Finnish traffic is still the leader, port in Europe. Destinations beyond Europe repre- with 74 percent of passengers. The 2007 decline in sent less than one airline trip in ten to and from the Finnish traffic turned around to a slight increase in Stockholm region. But these were the destinations 2008. Currently an ever greater share of passengers that grew the most during 2008, by 300,000 or 19 are traveling to and from the Baltic countries. Dur-
Table 5. Arriving and departing airline passengers 1998, 2004–2008 (in thousands) Airports in the Stockholm region Source: LFV (the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration) and Luftfartsstyrelsen
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Stockholm–Arlanda 16,148 16,254 17,101 17,539 17,877 18,107
Stockholm–Skavsta 210 1,347 1,741 1,773 1,995 2,480
Stockholm–Bromma 954 1,258 1,343 1,634 1,803 1,853
Stockholm–Västerås 96 242 221 183 179 187
Örebro Airport 154 87 86 85 84 70
Total 17,562 19,188 20,492 21,214 21,938 22,696
16 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Diagram 4. Arriving and departing airline passengers 1999-2008 (in thousands) Airports in the Stockholm region Source: LFV (the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration) and Luftfartsstyrelsen Domestic Europe The rest of the world 14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 ing the last ten years the Baltic share of passengers Buses and cars has grown from 5 percent to 11 percent. Baltic desti- Cars are the most common means of transport nations and cruise traffic also saw the most favorable when Swedes travel to Stockholm. Nearly half of all growth in 2008. trips in 2008 were by car. The bus was chosen for 6 International cruise ship traffic has increased stead- percent of trips. In 2009 Stockholm was named the ily since the 1990s. In 2008, 265 cruise ships put world’s best city for bus tourism by the European into Stockholm with 363,000 passengers. In 2009, bus industry. 293 cruise ships put into Stockholm with 443,000 passengers. Diagram 5. Swedish trips to Stockholm county by means of transport, 2008 Rail Source: Resurs/TDB Approximately 90,000 long-distance trains (SJ) Other, 2% Bus, 6% arrived or departed from Stockholm’s central train station in 2008. The number of passengers Air, 15% was 17 million, which is nearly unchanged from 2007. Train travel makes up 30 percent of travel by Car, 46% Swedes to Stockholm. For trips where the destina- tion is in the city of Stockholm, the train is used more often, almost as much as cars. Rail, 30%
Table 6. Arriving and departing ferry passengers 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm ports (in thousands) Source: Ports of Stockholm
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Finland 7,990 8,484 8,829 8,566 8,398 8,449
Baltic countries 442 833 863 933 1,042 1,222
Poland 95 154 163 151 168 174
Gotland 807 930 1,071 1,075 1,137 1,156
Cruise visitors 111 210 228 288 281 363
Total 9,445 10,611 11,154 11,013 11,026 11,364
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 17 Where visitors stay
In 2008 there were just over 24 million overnight stays in Stockholm county, which is approximately 66,000 overnight visitors per day in the county. In addition there were just over 5.2 million visits without an overnight stay.
Commercial accommodation other types of accommodation in Stockholm coun- The number of overnight stays in commercial ac- ty, 150,000 fewer than the year before. Staying with commodation facilities in Stockholm county has friends and relatives increased slightly, while week- grown steadily year after year, across economic cy- end cottages and pleasure boats were used less than cles. In 2008 the number of commercial overnight the previous year (2007) due to the poor summer stays grew by 3 percent to 9.6 million*. 6.2 million, weather. While commercial overnight stays primarily or 65 percent of these stays took place in facilities in take place in the city, the situation for other accom- the city of Stockholm. modations is the opposite. Seven out of ten overnight stays in other types of accommodation take place in Hotels represent just of 8 out of 10 commercial the county outside Stockholm city limits. overnight stays in Stockholm county. Hotels also represented the greatest increase in terms of volume Day trips in 2008. On the other hand the rate of growth was In addition to overnight stays, there are numerous significantly higher in hostels, where the number day trips to Stockholm county. This does not in- of overnight stays rose by 20 percent. Camping has clude short trips over the county line, but rather also grown steadily for a long time, and in 2007 it only trips of at least 100 kilometers. In 2008 there exceeded 1 million guest nights for the first time. were just over 5.2 million day trips Stockholm * Including estimated but unofficial statistics for camping. The Swedish county, Stockholm was the destination for more Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden have assumed responsibility for camping statistics as of 2008. Camping sta- than eight out of ten of these trips. The number tistics will also be historically revised in connection with this move. of day visitors in the entire country of Sweden has declined steadily since 2002, but day trips rose by Other accommodation close to 5 percent over 2007 in both the city and Most overnight stays in Stockholm county still take county of Stockholm. place in other types of accommodation than com- mercial facilities. However during the last five years Leisure travelers were the leaders in day trips in overnight stays from other types of accommodation 2008, with 2.6 million coming from other parts have declined from 75 percent to 60 percent of all of Sweden, 643,000 on Finland cruise ships and overnight stays. Other types of accommodation are 362,000 on international cruise ships. 1.6 million primarily overnight stays with friends and relatives, day trips were for business purposes. but overnight stays in places such as weekend cot- tages or pleasure boats also belong to this category. In 2008 there were 14.7 million overnight stays in
18 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Diagram 6. Overnight stays in commercial accommodations, other accommodations and day trips 1999-2008, Stockholm county (in thousands) Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden and Resurs Commercial accommodation Other accommodation Day trips 24,000
20,000
16,000
12,000
8,000
4,000
0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Table 7. Overnight stays in all types of accommodation and day trips 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm county (in thousands) Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden and Resurs
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Hotel 5,913 6,276 6,730 7,254 7,622 7,884
Vacation village 122 106 89 100 88 90
Camping 555 769 933 971 1,019 912*
Hostel 257 520 553 557 598 716
Commercial accommodation 6,847 7,671 8,305 8,882 9,327 9,602 City of Stockholm’s share 4,218 4,873 5,231 5,566 5,867 6,241
Weekend cottage 4,203 4,695 4,923 3,668 3,615 3,330
Friends/relations 11,382 14,319 12,798 13,341 10,362 10,878
Pleasure boat 408 690 552 538 704 337
Other overnight stays 2,341 1,398 449 166 174 159
Other accommodation 18,334 21,102 18,722 17,713 14,855 14,704 City of Stockholm’s share 5,931 6,626 5,504 5,596 4,385 4,551
Total overnight stays 25,181 28,773 27,027 26,595 24,182 24,306 City of Stockholm’s share 10,149 11,499 10,735 11,162 10,252 10,792
Day trips 6,382 6,559 5,443 5,531 4,994 5,225 City of Stockholm’s share 4,868 5,239 4,464 4,457 4,109 4,234
* Estimated unofficial statistics for camping. The table is based on preliminary statistics on commercial forms of accommodation.
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 19 Table 8. Commercial overnight stays by nationality and type of accommodation 2008, Stockholm county* Source: Swedish Agency for Ecoomic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
Hotels Hostels Cottages Total % % % %
Total 7,900,962 + 4 714,722 + 19 88,765 + 1 8,704,449 + 5
Sweden 5,299,243 + 5 388,831 + 10 79,250 – 6 5,767,324 + 6
Abroad 2,601,719 + 0 325,891 + 32 9,515 +142 2,937,125 + 3
Made up by: Nordic region excl. Sweden 457,757 + 8 26,728 + 30 1,248 + 77 485,733 + 10 Europe excl. the Nordic countries 1,414,731 + 2 239,618 + 34 8,050 +156 1,662,399 + 6 Outside Europe 729,231 – 7 59,545 + 24 217 +206 788,993 – 5
Distribution by country: Denmark 116,594 + 8 8,895 + 47 450 + 53 125,939 + 10 Norway 184,263 + 13 8,938 + 23 448 + 78 193,649 + 14 Finland 148,381 + 6 8,477 + 26 317 + 98 157,175 + 7 Iceland 8,519 – 25 418 – 7 33 – 8,970 – 24
Germany 271,641 – 0 68,761 + 30 1,763 +210 342,165 + 5 UK 311,894 + 4 18,060 + 31 239 + 63 330,193 + 5 Ireland 17,199 – 8 3,200 + 8 6 +200 20,405 – 6 The Netherlands 71,972 + 5 15,424 + 80 198 +183 87,594 + 13
Belgium 29,815 – 0 4,238 – 3 – –100 34,053 – 1 Luxembourg 4,155 + 26 566 + 98 6 +100 4,727 + 32 France 102,882 + 17 34,172 + 28 284 + 19 137,338 + 19 Switzerland 58,015 + 8 10,353 + 50 76 +100 68,444 + 13
Austria 28,945 + 42 6,613 + 81 14 – 95 35,572 + 46 Italy 131,173 + 3 25,254 + 15 104 + 53 156,531 + 4 Spain 95,766 – 11 20,820 + 26 90 + 41 116,676 – 6 Portugal 13,095 + 30 3,109 + 93 963 +96 200 17,167 + 47
Greece 16,913 – 9 1,289 + 66 6 + 50 18,208 – 6 Turkey 10,492 + 15 1,253 + 80 – – 11,745 + 19 Russia 105,251 + 8 3,618 + 53 14 – 67 108,883 + 10 Estonia 7,745 + 15 785 – 17 9 – 72 8,539 + 11
Latvia 5,531 + 15 1,931 + 95 9 – 86 7,471 + 27 Lithuania 4,054 – 15 990 – 11 52 +225 5,096 – 13 Poland 24,241 + 33 4,909 + 4 4,176 +181 33,326 + 36 Czech Republic 8,164 – 22 2,645 +148 7 +250 10,816 – 6
Slovakia 2,373 + 58 2,722 +405 19 – 5,114 +151 Hungary 8,305 – 31 1,774 + 82 – – 10,079 – 22 The rest of Europe 85,110 – 14 7,132 + 51 15 – 6 92,257 – 11 US 216,748 – 13 15,391 + 22 3 – 87 232,142 – 11
Canada 23,602 + 14 4,536 + 20 6 +200 28,144 + 15 Central&South America 20,748 + 3 5,801 + 19 6 – 26,555 + 6 Japan 56,493 – 5 4,220 – 9 8 – 60,721 – 6 South Korea 6,630 – 28 2,185 + 81 – – 8,815 – 16
China 42,140 – 15 3,373 + 27 118 – 45,631 – 12 The rest of Asia 88,905 + 28 5,068 + 20 6 + 20 93,979 + 27 Australia 21,406 + 10 8,638 + 19 69 – 30,113 + 13 New Zealand 2,136 – 20 1,351 + 15 – –100 3,487 – 9
The rest of the world 103,998 – 58 7,869 +139 1 – 91 111,868 – 55
N/A 146,425 +276 1,113 – 50 – –100 147,538 +258
* Hotels, hostels and vacation villages. No data for camping available.
20 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 21 Commercial accommodation facilities
Hotels of hotel rooms increased by 4 percent in the county The number of available hotels in Stockholm coun- and 7 percent in the city over 2007. The number of ty varies over the course of the year, from a mini- hotel rooms has increased by 12 percent, or approxi- mum of 228 in July to a maximum of 266 in the mately 2,500 rooms, in the county and 19 percent in fall. On average 24,700 hotel rooms were available the city since 2003. Meanwhile the number of occu- in the county, of which 14,900 rooms or just over pied rooms has increased by considerably more – by 60 percent were in the city. 30 in the county and 36 percent in the city. The number of hotels in Stockholm is increasing, The large addition of more hotel rooms over the and access to rooms is rising even faster. The number last year (2008) has caused the occupancy rate – the
Diagram 7a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues Diagram 7b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county in hotels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
Room capacity Occupied rooms per day Room capacity Occupied rooms per day Number per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) Number per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) 30,000 9,000 30,000 9,000
25,000 7,500 25,000 7,500
20,000 6,000 20,000 6,000
15,000 4,500 15,000 4,500 62% 61% 63% 58% 55% 10,000 3,000 10,000 3,000 69% 71% 70% 64% 67% 5,000 1,500 5,000 1,500
0 0 0 0 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
22 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 number of rooms occupied – to decline slightly de- ends, between the peak season and the off-season spite having more guests and more occupied rooms. and among different types of hotels. 4- and 5-star 70 percent of the available rooms in the city and 62 hotels in the city’s central districts and hotels at percent in the county were occupied. Capacity uti- Arlanda have the highest occupancy rates. lization varies widely, between weekdays and week-
Table 9a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues* Table 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues* in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county in hotels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Number of hotels 247 254 264 262 270 Number of hotels 112 115 119 122 127
Room capacity Room capacity (millions) 8.2 8.3 8.5 8.6 9 (millions) 4.7 4.8 4.9 5.1 5
Room capacity (in Room capacity (in thousands) per day 23 23 23 24 25 thousands) per day 13 13 13 14 15
Occupied rooms Occupied rooms (millions) 4.5 4.8 5.1 5.4 6 (millions) 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 4
Occupied rooms (in Occupied rooms (in thousands) per day 12 13 14 15 15 thousands) per day 8 9 9 10 10
Occupancy rate, % 55 58 61 63 62 Occupancy rate, % 64 67 69 71 70
Mon–Thurs, % 63 65 68 72 70 Mon–Thurs, % 71 73 76 79 77
Fri–Sun, % 44 48 50 51 51 Fri–Sun, % 55 58 61 61 60
Revenues (MSEK) 4,129 4,517 4,970 5,712 6,166 Revenues (MSEK) 2,838 3,100 3,419 3,965 4,389
Revenues per Revenues per occupied room, SEK 918 946 971 1,058 1,108 occupied room, SEK 943 975 1,007 1,101 1,154
Revenues per Revenues per available room, SEK 502 546 587 662 684 available room, SEK 600 651 698 779 805
* Lodging revenues excluding VAT and breakfast.
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 23 24 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 The average rate for hotel rooms continues to in- crease. In 2008 the average room rate was SEK 1,108 in the county and SEK 1,154 in the city. The rate for an occupied room has risen by close to 5 percent since 2007, while revenues per available room have risen by less. Hotels’ revenues for oc- cupied rooms (excluding VAT and breakfast) rose by 8 percent in the county to SEK 6.2 billion, of which SEK 4.4 billion was spent on hotels in the city of Stockholm.
Diagram 8. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues by month 2008, Stockholm county Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
Room capacity Occupied rooms (thousands) per day Number (thousands) per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) 30 900
25 750
20 600 74% 72% 68% 66% 15 62% 64% 63% 450 55% 61% 52% 51% 10 48% 300
5 150
0 0 Jul Jun Jan Feb Oct Apr Sep Dec Aug Mar Nov May
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 25 Hostels occupied. The corresponding figures for January were During the summer months of 2008 a maximum of 44 percent and 34 percent, respectively. 62 of the county’s hostels were open in Stockholm In 2008 lodging revenues for the county’s hostels rose county. During the off-season in January, only 39 by an impressive 49 percent over 2007, to MSEK 190 were available. Unlike hotels, most hostels (40) are (excluding VAT and breakfast). This was the result of located outside the city of Stockholm. Hostel bed more occupied beds combined with higher rates. The capacity rose by 10 percent over 2007 to 3,794 beds average cost of a bed was SEK 265 in the county and per day. Meanwhile the number of occupied beds rose SEK 277 in the city – a respective increase of 25 per- by 20 percent. Calculated over the entire year, 52 cent and 31 percent over 2007 procent. percent of beds were occupied. This was 5 percentage points more than in 2007. However seasonal varia- tions are substantial. In August 83 percent of the beds in the city and 68 percent of the beds countywide were
Diagram 9a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues Diagram 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hostels 2004–2008, Stockholm county in hostels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden
Bed capacity Occupied beds per day Bed capacity Occupied beds per day Number per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) Number per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) 4,000 200 4,000 200
3,500 175 3,500 175
3,000 150 3,000 150
2,500 125 2,500 125
2,000 100 2,000 100 52% 1,500 47% 75 1,500 75 43% 43% 42% 63% 58% 1,000 50 1,000 52% 53% 50 50% 500 25 500 25
0 0 0 0 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
26 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Cottage vacation villages has risen during the most recent five-year period There were 8 cottage vacation villages in Stock- from 38 percent to 45 percent in 2008. During holm county in 2008. The vacation villages almost 2008 lodging revenues amounted to MSEK 16.8 exclusively target Swedish visitors. Most of the (excluding VAT and breakfast). vacation villages are located in the archipelago. During the summer months the cottages are es- Camping sentially full, while occupancy in the spring and 2007 is the most recent year for which statistics on fall is considerably lower. Capacity has declined camping in Sweden are available.* At that point the somewhat since the previous year (2007), while the number of overnight stays in county campgrounds number of occupied cottages remained nearly un- exceeded 1 million. This means that just over one changed. Since 2003 the number of beds has de- commercial overnight stay in ten took place in one clined by barely 30 percent, while occupancy only of the county’s approximately 20 campgrounds. declined by just over half. Thus the occupancy rate Still, camping is less extensive in Stockholm than in other parts of the country. Stockholm is responsible Diagram 10. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues for vacation villages 2004–2008, Stockholm county for just over 5 percent of camping nights in the Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden country, while the county’s total share of commer- Capacity Occupied cottages per day Number per day (occupancy rate, %) Revenues (MSEK) cial overnight stays is 19 percent. Swedes represent 100 25 eight out of ten guest nights at county campgrounds. Among foreign camping guests, German tourists 80 20 occupy a unique position with 9 percent of guest nights, followed by the Dutch with just over 3 per- 60 15 cent. 3 out of 4 overnight stays took place in cam- ping trailers. This is roughly the same proportion as 40 10 for the country as a whole. Compared with the
38% 34% country as a whole, Stockholm has a somewhat hig- 37% 40% 45% 20 5 her share of overnight stays in camper vans, but fe- wer nights in cottages.
0 0 *The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Sta- tistics Sweden assumed responsibility for camping statistics in Sweden
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 in 2008, and they have not released any statistics for camping yet (Nov. -09).
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 27 Why people travel to Stockholm – tourists/business travelers
Stockholm attracts both tourists and business travelers. Busi- ness travelers were the dominant share of hotel guests for most of the year. If all visitors are included, then tourists significantly outnumber business travelers.
As a metropolitan region Stockholm has a natural the important particulars – and close to 15 million power of attraction, as a destination city for both overnight stays in non-commercial accommodations. travel and business. The city boasts a vibrant cul- During the most recent 10-year period the number tural life and a wide selection of national and inter- of leisure-related overnight stays at hotels rose by over national events, restaurants and shopping opportu- 50 percent, while camping nights rose by two-thirds, nities, with nearly everything conveniently located. and nights at hostels nearly tripled. Tourists who select Meanwhile, Stockholm is the leading business city a commercial accommodation are less influenced by in Scandinavia, with several areas that are strong the economy than business travelers. internationally, such as life sciences, banking and Business travelers made a total of 4.3 million over- finance, information and communication technol- night stays in hotels in Stockholm county during ogy (ICT) and clean tech. A high degree of reliabil- 2008, of which 2.7 million were spent in the city of ity and attractive pricing have helped Stockholm Stockholm. This is 3 percent higher than in 2007, evolve into one of the world’s leading destinations and an increase of just over 20 percent during the for conventions and travel. most recent 10-year period. Over 3.5 million overnight stays took place in coun- 5.2 million people visited Stockholm during the day, ty hotels by visitors who were in Stockholm as tourists. which is equivalent to 14,300 people per day. 3.6 To this figure should be added 1.7 million guest nights million of these day trips were made by tourists, and in hostels, vacation villages and campgrounds – fa- 1.6 million by business travelers. cilities that belong to the leisure travel market in all
28 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Diagram 11. Overnight stays at hotels by business and leisure travelers 1999-2008, Stockholm county and city (in thousands) STOCKHOLMS COUNTY CITY OF STOCKHOLM Source: Resurs Business Leisure Business Leisure 4,500
4,000
3,500
3,000 2,500
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Table 10. Overnight stays at hotels by business and leisure travelers 1998, 2004-2008, Stockholm county and city (in thousands) Source: Resurs
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
STOCKHOLM COUNTY
Business travelers 3,559 3,231 3,499 3,910 4,193 4,320
business 2,221 2,052 2,282 2,509 2,759 2,976
conference 1,338 1,179 1,217 1,401 1,434 1,344
Leisure travelers 2,354 3,045 3,231 3,344 3,429 3,564
group 997 1,122 1,126 1,016 940 946
leisure 1,357 1,923 2,105 2,328 2,489 2,618
CITY OF STOCKHOLM
Business travelers 1,920 1,873 2,030 2,308 2,530 2,689
business 1,645 1,554 1,715 1,879 2,071 2,285
conference 275 319 315 429 459 404
Leisure travelers 1,916 2,429 2,581 2,634 2,686 2,831
group 689 780 833 735 663 660
leisure 1,227 1,649 1,748 1,899 2,023 2,171
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 29 International meetings and conventions Stockholm is one of the world’s most popular convention cities. Every year hundreds of international meetings and conventions are held which attract thousands of visitors to Stockholm.
Corporate meetings and incentive trips Diagram 12. International conventions in Stockholm, 2004–2008 Source: Stockholm Visitors Board Since 2004, Stockholm has more actively created an identity as a location for international corporate 140 meetings. Interest in Stockholm as a destination 120 has also increased among international companies in recent years. The number of inquiries more than 100 doubled between 2006 and 2007. The boom con- 80 tinued in 2008, and the number of inquiries rose by 22 percent despite an incipient recession. 60
40 Conventions 20 Stockholm is one of the world’s most popular con- vention cities. In 2008 Stockholm was number eight 0 in the world, according to a ranking by the Interna- 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 tional Congress and Convention Association, ICCA. A record number of international conventions were Diagram 13. International convention participants in Stockholm, 2004-2008 (in thousands) also organized in Stockholm in 2008: 135, or 16 Source: Stockholm Visitors Board more than in last year. The number of participants, 70 close to 60,000, was about the same as for last year. Conventions in the areas of medicine and psychol- 60 ogy dominated, as in every other year. On one hand 50 numerous conventions are about these subject areas, but above all the truly large conventions usually 40 concern these subject areas. The 33rd Congress of 30 the European Society for Medical Oncology and the 20 Annual World Dental Congress both drew around 10,000 participants. 10
In 2008 the average convention participant stayed for 4.5 0 days and spent a total of approximately SEK 13,500.
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
30 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Diagram 14. International convention-related overnight Meeting and convention capacity stays in Stockholm, 2004-2008 (in thousands) Source: Stockholm Visitors Board Stockholm has a robust capacity for meetings 350 and conventions. It is the home of Stockholm
300 International Fairs, which is the largest conven- tion facility in Northern Europe, the centrally lo- 250 cated Stockholm City Conference Centre which
200 is one of the largest facilities in Scandinavia, and new addition Kistamässan, which is strategi- 150 cally located at the heart of Kista Science City.
100 Moreover there are numerous conference hotels, universities and colleges in Stockholm with the 50 capacity for both large and small conferences. 0 During the year Stockholm International Fairs
2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 organized 73 trade fairs which attracted 937,000 visitors, as well as 42 large conventions and 2,040 meetings which were attended by more Diagram 15. International convention participants than 312,000 visitors. Stockholm City Confer- by subject area in Stockholm, 2008 Source: Stockholm Visitors Board ence Centre organized over 1700 conferences and conventions, with over 100,000 partici- National and municipal government, 7% pants. Kistamässan opened in September 2008. Technology/statistics/chemistry, 7% The facility, which has premises totaling 15,000
Industry/ m2 (two thirds of which are exhibition space), business, 7% has the capacity for trade fairs, conventions and Medicine/ conferences for up to 1,400 people, and events Psychology, 61% and concerts for up to 4,500 people. Other, 23%
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 31 Visitor destinations in Stockholm Stockholm has an extremely rich array of attractions. Six of Sweden’s ten most popular tourist destinations are in Stock- holm. The visitor destinations are in the worlds of museums, sports arenas, activities, culture, theater, music and dance.
In 2008 there were 26 million visits to the destina- museums, with over 1.1 million visitors, followed tions and attractions in Stockholm county that are by the Moderna Museum and the National Mu- included in the Swedish Agency for Economic and seum. As far as cultural monuments are concerned, Regional Growth’s database of visitor destinations the most visitors were drawn by the Royal Palace, in Sweden. Eight of these destinations attracted Storkyrkan and City Hall. The largest arenas for more than a million visitors each. The top desti- activities are the Globe Arenas, Stockholm In- nations were Kulturhuset, Skansen and the Globe ternational Fairs, Råsunda and Cosmonova. The Arenas, with over 1.3 million visitors each. Stadsteatern and Dramaten theaters are in a class by themselves in the theater category, based on the As in previous years, the Vasa Museum was one of number of visitors and performances. the most-visited museums of the county’s over 60
32 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Table 11. The 50 largest visitor destinations in Stockholm county, 2008 Source: Stockholm Visitors Board
Number Number Destination visitors Destination visitors
1 Kulturhuset 2,552,830 26 The Royal Opera 240,89 6
2 Skansen 1,352,245 27 Aquaria 239,715
3 Globe Arenas 1,317,429 28 Solvalla 225,572
4 Archipelago tours, Strömma Group 1,308,000 29 Cirkus 218,589
5 Stockholm International Fairs 1,249,431 30 Medelhavsmuseet 216,281
6 Eriksdalsbadet swimming center 1,217,028 31 Royal Dramatic Theater (Dramaten) 210,415
7 Vasa Museum 1,143,404 32 Taxinge Palace 210,000
8 Gröna Lund 1,113,752 33 Parkteatern 208,300
9 Moderna museet 500,000 34 Konserthuset 203,600
10 Royal Palace excl. The Royal Armoury 495,347 35 Royal Palace, Royal Armoury 202,953
11 Storkyrkan 475,000 36 Nordiska museet 199,182
12 National Museum 474,276 37 City Museum 191,000
13 Råsunda 431,526 38 Stockholm Stadium 187,350
14 Sydpoolen swimming pool 406,540 39 Hågelbyparken 175,000
15 Casino Cosmopol 403,747 40 S:t Jakobs Kyrka 165,000
16 Junibacken 400,000 41 S:t Clara Kyrka 165,000
17 Stadsteatern 368,630 42 Prins Eugen’s Waldemarsudde 162,908
18 Swedish Museum of National History 346,617 43 Postmuseum 145,372
19 City Hall 320,648 44 Nobel Museum 145,079
20 Acquarium/Skansen 315,000 45 Berwaldhallen 135,000
21 Museum of Science and Technology 305,403 46 Torekällbergets museum 135,000
22 The Kaknäs tower 295,000 47 Östasiatiska museet 133,169
23 Cosmonova 286,078 48 Absolute Ice Bar 132,032
24 Steninge Palace Cultural Center 247,372 49 Historiska museet 130,053
25 Tom Tits Experiment 245,630 50 Folkens museum, Etnografiska 127,389
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 33 Events in Stockholm Stockholm is an international event city. Numerous events are hosted every day, attracting millions of visitors to Stockholm every year. Many of these events attract wide attention in the mass media both nationally and internationally.
Stockholm is characterized by numerous events Event capacity year-round. Many are annual events, while oth- Stockholm has a robust capacity for events. Stock- ers are more unique in nature. What they have in holm Globe Arenas is Scandinavia’s largest and common is that they attract numerous visitors. most flexible event space, in a class unto itself. The percentage of visitors attracted to Stockholm Stockholm International Fairs is the largest trade for the events varies. A Taste of Stockholm and the show facility in Northern Europe, and Stockholm Stockholm Cultural Festival attract many visitors, Stadium is the world’s oldest Olympic arena still not only Stockholmers even if the latter are in the in use. In addition there are numerous arenas and majority. But a large portion of the visitors are in event spaces in Stockholm with capacity for both Stockholm for other reasons, on vacation or in large and small events. order to visit friends and relatives. The situation is the reverse with people who have come for events such as the Elitloppet race, Scandinavian Masters or Tjejmilen, where nine out of ten visitors are in Stockholm primarily for the event.
Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from several events in Stockholm Source: Stockholm Visitors Board Unique visitors 0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000
Where the action is 2009
Melodifestivalen 2006*
Tjejmilen 2007
Stockholm Cultural Festival 2007
Allsång at Skansen 2007
Scandinavian Masters 2007
Elitloppet 2007
Sweden–Denmark (soccer) 2009
Europride 2008
NHL premier 2009
Bruce Springsteen 2009
Volvo Ocean Race 2009
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 * N/A, unique visitors Revenues
34 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Stockholm on the water The city’s waterways flow out to Stockholm’s large archipelago with around 30,000 islands and, islets and skerries. Hundreds of thousands of Stockholmers and tourists spend their vacations in the archipelago every year.
Waxholmsbolaget and Strömma Kanalbolaget are Diagram 17. Passengers, Waxholmsbolaget & Strömma Kanalbolaget, 2004-2008 (in thousands) the largest companies plying Stockholm’s waters. Source: Waxholms Ångfartygs AB, Strömma Kanalbolaget
Waxholmsbolaget also manages the Djurgården Archipelago traffic Port traffic ferry and Strömma Kanalbolaget offers day and 3,500 evening tours in the archipelago and on Lake 3,000 Mälaren. Despite the poor weather, the number of archipelago boat passengers rose by just over 2 2,500 percent to just over 3.1 million in 2008. However 2,000 port traffic has gradually declined over the course of this decade. 1,500
1,000 Pleasure boats 500 From May to September 2008 525,000 visitors stayed overnight on the 150,000 pleasure boats 0 that dropped anchor in the archipelago’s most pop- 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 ular natural harbors. Although the weather in the summer wasn’t the best, the number of visits rose by 5 percent over 2007. An unknown number of day visits should be added to this figure. Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from several events in Stockholm Source: Stockholm Visitors Board Diagram 18. Passengers by month 2008, Unique visitors Waxholmsbolaget (in thousands) 0 100,000 200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000 Source: Waxholms Ångfartygs AB
Where the action is 2009 Archipelago traffic Port traffic 500 Melodifestivalen 2006*
Tjejmilen 2007 400 Stockholm Cultural Festival 2007
Allsång at Skansen 2007
Scandinavian Masters 2007 300
Elitloppet 2007
Sweden–Denmark (soccer) 2009 200
Europride 2008
NHL premier 2009 100 Bruce Springsteen 2009
Volvo Ocean Race 2009 0 Ju l Ju n Ja n Fe b Oc t Apr Se p De c Au g Ma r No v
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 Ma y * N/A, unique visitors Revenues
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 35 How long visitors stay
Visitors who spend the night in Stockholm stay for an average of 2.5 nights. Visitors who stay at hotels stay for the shortest time. Campers and people spending the night on pleasure boats spend the longest time in Stockholm.
Diagram 19. Average number of nights spent by visitors in The length of stay for people visiting Stockholm different types of accommodation Stockholm county and city, 2008 Source: Resurs does not vary a great deal from year to year. For Stockholm county City of Stockholm commercial types of accommodation, hotel guests Overnight have the shortest stays at 1.7 nights on average, and trips, total camping guests stay the longest at 5.9 nights. Stays Hotel with friends and relatives are often quite short – an average of 2.2 nights in 2008. People ordinarily Other accommodation stay somewhat longer in accommodations that they Friends and relatives own such as weekend cottages or pleasure boats, or in rental cottages. Own weekend cottage/ apartment
Camping
Cottage, rented privately
Pleasure boat
051 234 678 Nights per trip
36 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 How much visitors spend
Business travelers at the county’s hotels are the category of visitors who spend the most money per day during their stay in Stockholm. People staying in weekend cottages and pleasure boats spend the least. Visitors’ daily spending has declined slightly from previous years.
There is a great difference in how much money is Tabell 12. Consumption per visitor and day in Stockholm county and city, 2008 spent by different categories of visitors during their City of Stockholm figures in parentheses stay in Stockholm. Business travelers staying in hotels Source: Resurs had the most outstanding spending in 2008 at SEK Comparison SEK 08/07, % 2,289 per day. Of course the accommodations were Hotel 1,841 (1,865) –1 (–4) responsible for a large share of their expenses. Leisure travelers staying in hotels spent SEK 1,362 per day. business travel 2,289 (2,395) 3 (–1) Business travelers increased their daily expenses by 3 leisure travel 1,299 (1,362) –9 (–8) percent over 2007, while leisure travelers’ consump- Vacation village 511 N/A 0 N/A tion was 9 percent lower than in 2007. Camping 305 (307) 3 (4) The daily costs for people staying in commercial Hostel 420 (419) 0 (0) accommodation types other than hotels are sig- Weekend cottage 173 N/A –12 N/A nificantly lower. Camping guests spent SEK 305 Friends/relations 317 (476) –10 (15) per day, people staying in cottage vacation villages Pleasure boat 199 (206) 41 (44) spent SEK 511 and people staying in hostels spent Other 522 (713) –45 (–24)
SEK 420. Visitors staying with friends and relatives Day trip visitors 514 (614) 1 (0) had a daily consumption rate of SEK 317. People N/A = Not applicable staying in weekend cottages or pleasure boats were the category of visitors who spent the least per day. Hotel guests don’t only spend more money than the others on their accommodations. They have the highest expenses per day for most types of expens- es. For visitors with relatively low accommodation costs, food is a big expense item instead. This is the case for example for people who are camping or staying in weekend cottages, pleasure boats or with friends and relatives. When the length of time visitors stay in Stockholm is taken into account, the spending differences be- tween hotels and other types of accommodation diminish somewhat.
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 37 38 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Economy and employment
Facts aboutFacts aboutStockholm’s Stockholm’s tourism tourism industry industry 2009 2009 39 39 Economy and employment
The hospitality industry is of great importance to Stockholm’s economy and employment situation. The hospitality industry in Stockholm has SEK 22 billion in revenues and creates em- ployment for 18,200 people.
Revenues responsible for an ever greater share of revenues. In In 2008 revenues from visitors to Stockholm coun- 2008 they were responsible for close to 70 percent ty were unchanged from 2007. Revenues from peo- of revenues. Ten years ago it was less than half. ple staying in commercial types of accommodation An impressive 95 percent of revenues from visitors rose by 2 percent to SEK 15.1 billion, while those in commercial types of accommodation come from from visitors staying in other types of accommo- hotel guests. They are the ones with the highest dai- dation declined by 4 percent to SEK 6.9 billion. ly spending, and this is the type of accommodation Visitors staying in commercial accommodations are that the majority chooses.
Table 13. Revenues1 from incoming tourists by accommodation type 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK) Source: Resurs
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Hotel 6,380 9,259 10,529 12,052 14,222 14,518
business travelers 4,453 5,395 6,787 7,878 9,308 9,888
leisure travelers 1,927 3,864 3,742 4,174 4,914 4,630
Vacation village 40 49 46 51 45 46
Camping2 96 200 247 286 301 278
Hostel 71 203 232 234 251 301
Commercial 6,587 9,711 11,054 12,623 14,819 15,143
Weekend cottage 429 836 788 719 712 576
Friends/relations 3,028 4,740 4,121 4,616 3,647 3,448
Pleasure boat 45 103 88 97 99 67
Other overnight stays 850 685 399 125 164 83
Day trips 2,840 2,985 2,373 2,677 2,537 2,686
Other 7,192 9,349 7,769 8,234 7,159 6,860
Total 13,777 19,060 18,823 20,857 21,978 22,003
City of Stockholm's share 8,393 12,069 12,208 13,688 14,766 15,353
1 Incl. VAT 2 Based on estimates, not official statistics on guest nights from camping
40 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009
Diagram 20. Revenues* from incoming visitors 1999–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK) Source: Resurs Commercial accommodation Other accommodation Day trips 16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 * Incl. VAT
Visitors who stay overnight with friends and county. The proportion has not changed very much relatives, as well as day visitors also make a large over the last ten years. What has happened is that a contribution to revenues in the county – not so growing share is spent in the city – partly because much because they spend more than others, but this is where commercial guest nights are primarily because they constitute such a large share of visits spent – while at the same time growth in the rest of to Stockholm. the county has been weaker. In 2008 incoming travelers to Stockholm county The total travel and tourism industry* had around generated the greatest revenues in the lodging, SEK 90 billion in revenues in Stockholm county. restaurant and shopping sectors. When compared The travel and tourism industry’s revenues in Swe- with 2007, the primary increase is in expenses for den are estimated at SEK 237 billion in 2008. activities. On the other hand spending on shop- * Including outbound tourism (51), trade fair operations (1) and ping has declined by 13 percent. Compared with regional shopping (16). Sweden as a whole, more is spent on lodging in Stockholm but less on food. Employment Just over a quarter of Sweden’s total revenues from Hospitality industry revenues in Stockholm county the hospitality industry are generated in Stockholm in 2008 were the equivalent of just over 18,200 per-
Table 14. Revenues* generated from incoming tourists by sector 1998 2004–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK) Tourist spending in Stockholm county 2008 Source: Resurs
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Lodging 3,938 5,352 6,043 6,707 7,922 8,142
Restaurant 3,209 4,366 3,840 5,039 5,495 5,637
Shopping 2,974 4,443 4,284 4,434 4,342 3,782
Transportation 1,993 2,237 2,245 2,267 2,031 2,140
Activity 675 1,126 958 1,131 1,043 1,207
Food 998 1,535 1,454 1,279 1,145 1,095
Total 13,777 19,060 18,823 20,857 21,978 22,003
City of Stockholm's share 8,393 12,069 12,208 13,688 14,766 15,353
* Incl. VAT
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 41 sons employed, of which 12,400 were in the city. Convention fees of SEK 4,600 on average should The greatest impact on employment is in the lodging be added to this figure. It is estimated that during industry with 9,900 persons employed, and in the 2008 international conventions in Stockholm gen- restaurant sector with 6,200 persons employed. erated revenues beyond the conference fee of close to SEK 617 million. Employment has remained largely unchanged dur- ing the period 2006-2008. From a ten-year per- Cruises spective employment has increased in the lodging, restaurant and activities sectors, but declined in Consumption from international cruise ship pas- food, transportation and shopping. Two-thirds of sengers who visited Stockholm in 2009 is estimated employment was created by revenues in the city of at approximately SEK 450 million in the city. The Stockholm. largest revenues are from passengers who began or ended their trip in Stockholm. In the summer of Tax revenues 2009 they spent an average of just over SEK 2,600 per person in Stockholm. Revenues from incoming tourists to Stockholm county in 2008 provided a total tax base cor- Events responding to tax revenues of just over SEK 2.9 billion for the county’s municipalities and county It’s also extremely important that events are being councils. The county council share of tax revenues organized in the Stockholm region. They stimulate was approximately 40 percent in both the county the economy and increase demand for goods and and the city. The tax base is calculated based on in- services. It’s estimated that tourists who come to come taxes for people who are directly or indirectly Stockholm to attend events spend approximately employed in the hospitality industry. Moreover the SEK 5 billion in the city, which helps both jobs hospitality industry generated VAT revenues and and new businesses in the region. Moreover events other tax revenues for the government. are important to the marketing of the region, and they offer residents an attractive city in which to Conventions work and live. International conventions are a significant source Receiving visitors professionally is one of the nec- of income for Stockholm’s hospitality industry. essary factors to help Stockholm grow as a visitor Every convention delegate is estimated to spend destination. close to SEK 9,000 during their stay in Stockholm.
Table 15. Employment* generated from incoming tourists by sector 1998, 2004–2008
Source: Resurs
1998 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008
Lodging 5,231 5,751 6,147 6,540 6,916 9,840
Restaurant 5,116 5,648 4,812 6,138 6,252 6,195
Shopping 1 778 2,198 2,052 2,064 1,993 1,678
Activity 1,244 1,688 1,390 1,595 1,425 1,594
Transportation 1,978 1,803 1,751 1,718 1,491 1,518
Food 483 613 562 480 397 367
Total 15,830 17,701 16,714 18,535 18,474 18,192
City of Stockholm's share 9,428 11,037 10,734 12,096 12,216 12,449
* Number of people employed
42 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 43 Stockholm Visitors Board
Stockholm Visitors Board, SVB, is a subsidiary of Stockholm Business Region, SBR, which is owned by the City of Stock- holm. The operation has four business areas: Leisure Travel, Meetings and Conventions, Events and Tourist Service, as well as press service.
Leisure Travel operators in Stockholm on study trips where the The Leisure Travel business area works closely with purpose was to educate, inform and inspire the the industry to market Stockholm as a destination agents to package and sell trips to Stockholm. We for leisure travelers. This is accomplished through also continually cultivate the travel industry with a large number of targeted marketing initiatives in promotional materials, agents manuals and news- high-priority markets and to selected segments. The letters. In addition we participate in trade fairs and primary areas of cultivation include selected focus workshops and conduct targeted campaigns directly areas such as major cities in Europe, Russia, Chi- to consumers. na and the US, as well as the target groups of the Stockholm Gay Network and Stockholm Cruise Meetings and Conventions Network projects. In addition we are monitoring The Meetings and Conventions business area is the growth of new markets, primarily in Eastern pursuing two partnership projects with over 130 Europe and Asia. companies in Stockholm, where the task is to market Stockholm as a destination for interna- An important part of Leisure Travel’s task is to in- tional corporate meetings and conventions. Meet form and educate the travel industry. In 2008 the Stockholm was formed in 2004 with the objective Leisure Travel area hosted 3,000 agents and tour
44 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 of increasing the number of international corpo- Tourist Services rate meetings in Stockholm. The target groups are A good tourist service is a precondition for Stock- agents in selected markets in Europe and selected holm to become the leading travel destination in parts of the US. Congress Stockholm has been Northern Europe and the primary destination in active since 1991, and works to get international visitor services. The Tourist Services business area organizations to hold their conventions, so-called is responsible for visitor services in Stockholm, i.e. Association Meetings, in Stockholm. The target the operation of Stockholm’s tourist offices (Stock- group is primarily organizations based in Europe. holm Tourist Centre and the tourist offices in the Congress Stockholm and Meet Stockholm, which cruise ports which are open during the high sea- will be called Stockholm Convention Bureau as son) and training in knowledge of Stockholm for of 2010, participate in several international trade frontline staff. Other parts of Tourist Services are fairs and workshops in Europe as well as conduct- guide training with certification. Stockholm Tourist ing their own events and activities, sometimes in Centre is designed to meet visitors’ high demands cooperation with VisitSweden. In addition 10-15 for service and information, and it conveys the vi- study trips to Stockholm are organized annually for sion of an important experience and meeting place. decision makers in these two segments. Tourist Services works strategically to meet visitors’ high demands for information and how they are re- Events ceived. We have an airport and tourist information The Events business area works on marketing and center at Stockholm–Arlanda Airport, Arlanda Vis- developing Stockholm as an event city in order to itor Center, in cooperation with the Swedish Civil achieve Stockholm’s vision of being a world-class city Aviation Administration (LFV). This center shares for events and experiences by 2030. Events is organ- its founding concept and vision with Stockholm ized based on two specializations: event facilitation Tourist Centre. and Event Stockholm. Event facilitation works on developing existing Press Services events being organized in Stockholm, as well as mak- Press Services primarily cultivates international ing it easier for event organizers to apply for and hold media with news, topics and through visits by events. Event Stockholm, which is a partnership with the press. Every year Stockholm Visitors Board the business community, works on marketing Stock- receives more than 600 journalists from all over holm as an event city and cultivates event organizers the world, including several TV teams visiting with the objective of recruiting international events Stockholm to report. in the areas of sports, entertainment, culture and trade fairs to Stockholm. Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 45 About the statistics
Sources • Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth • Stockholm International Fairs and Statistics Sweden • City Conference Centre • Resurs AB • Kistamässan • Swedish Civil Aviation Administration (LFV) and • Stockholm Visitors Board (SVB) Luftfartsstyrelsen • Utrednings- och Statistikkontoret (USK) • Ports of Stockholm • European Cities Marketing • SJ • Statistics Norway • Waxholms Ångfartygs AB • Statistics Finland • Strömma Kanalbolaget AB • Visit Denmark • Archipelago Foundation List of diagrams and tables 27 Diagram 10. Capacity, occupancy and lodging Page Diagram, table revenues for vacation villages 2004–2008, 9 Diagram 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Stockholm county Nordic capitals, 2006–2009 8M 29 Diagram 11. Overnight stays at hotels by business Table 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic and leisure travelers 1999-2008, Stockholm county capitals, 2006–2009 8M and city 11 Diagram 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and Table 10. Overnight stays at hotels by business and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, leisure travelers 1998, 2004-2008, Stockholm large cities and in Sweden, 1999-2008 county and city Table 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and 30 Diagram 12. International conventions in vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, Stockholm, 2004–2008 large cities and in Sweden, 1998, 2002–2009 8M Diagram 13. International convention participants 14 Diagram 3a. Swedish visitors in Stockholm county, in Stockholm, 2004-2008 2005–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M 31 Diagram 14. International convention-related Diagram 3b. Foreign visitors in Stockholm county, overnight stays in Stockholm, 2004-2008 2005-2009 8M Diagram 15. International convention participants 15 Table 3. Commercial overnight stays by nationality by subject area in Stockholm, 2008 2008, Stockholm county 33 Table 11. The 50 largest visitor destinations in Table 4. Swedish visitors by home region 2008, Stockholm county, 2008 Stockholm county 34 Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from 16 Table 5. Arriving and departing airline passengers several events in Stockholm 1998, 2004–2008. Airports in the Stockholm 35 Diagram 17. Passengers, Waxholmsbolaget & region Strömma Kanalbolaget, 2004-2008 17 Diagram 4. Arriving and departing airline Diagram 18. Passengers by month 2008, passengers 1999-2008. Airports in the Stockholm Waxholmsbolaget region 36 Diagram 19. Average number of nights spent by Diagram 5. Swedish trips to Stockholm county by visitors in different types of accommodation means of transport, 2008 Stockholm county and city, 2008 Table 6. Arriving and departing ferry passengers 37 Table 12. Consumption per visitor and day in 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm ports Stockholm county and city, 2008 19 Diagram 6. Overnight stays in commercial 40 Table 13. Revenues from incoming tourists by accommodations, other accommodations and day accommodation type 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm trips 1999-2008, Stockholm county county (MSEK) Table 7. Overnight stays in all types of accommoda- 41 Diagram 20. Revenues from incoming visitors tion and day trips 1998, 2004-2008, Stockholm 1999–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK) county Table 14. Revenues generated from incoming 20 Table 8. Commercial overnight stays by nationality tourists by sector 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm and type of accommodation 2008, Stockholm county (MSEK) county 42 Table 15. Employment generated from incoming 22 Diagram 7a and 7b. Capacity, occupancy and tourists by sector 1998, 2004–2008 lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county and city Photographers Bruno Ehrs, p 1. Shutterstock, pp 2, 44, 48. Cilla 23 Tabell 9a and 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging Lundqvist, p 3. Richard Ryan, p 6. Nicho Södling, pp 8, revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county 12, 28, 36, 37, 48. Henrik Trygg, p 10. Anne Jorun/ and city Clarion Hotel Sign, p 21, Åke E:sson Lindman/ Clarion 25 Diagram 8. Capacity, occupancy and lodging Hotel Sign, p 23. Sesse Lind/Nordic Light Hotel, p 24. revenues by month 2008, Stockholm county Yanan Li, pp 26, 32, 46. Orsolya Haarberg/Wild Wonders of Europe, pp 27, 37. Mathias Nero/Clarion Hotel Sign, 26 Diagram 9a and 9b. Capacity, occupancy and p 31. Matton, p 38. Jeppe Wikström, p 43. Christer lodging revenues in hostels 2004–2008, Stockholm Lundin, p 48. county and city
Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 47 Stockholm – The Capital of Scandinavia There are many reasons why Stockholm is the natural capital of Scandinavia. One is that Stockholm lies in the heart of Scandinavia with world-class communications. Another is that Stockholm is the largest city in the largest country in Scandinavia. This is also where you will find the most international companies, the largest stock exchanges and especially the most visitors. People come here for the cuisine, design and music. Stockholm also has a unique selection of galleries and museums, in the eyes of the world are upon it every year when the Nobel Prizes are awarded. Welcome to Stockholm – The Capital of Scandinavia.
Stockholm Visitors Board P.O. Box 16282 SE-103 25 Stockholm, Sweden Ph +46 8 508 28 500 [email protected] www.stockholmbusinessregion.se www.stockholmtown.com