Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry...10 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009In...

Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industryStatistics 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 industryStockholm 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

4 Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009

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 with the largest gross regional product and the most multinational companies. One of the world’s largest ICT clusters, one of Europe’s largest biotechnology clusters, and Northern Europe’s financial center are also located here. Stockholm is also on the cutting

edge in the Cleantech sector. Stockholm has been nominated as Europe’s first environmental capital by the EU, beginning in 2010. Moreover Stock-holm is Scandinavia’s trendsetting cultural city with its unique selection of galleries and museums, 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

Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 5

Fakta om besöksnäringen i Stockholm 2007 7Facts about Stockholm’s tourism industry 2009 7

Stockholm in perspective


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.

*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.

Stockholm’s hospitality industry holds up well in a European perspective. As a destination city, Stock-holm belongs to the 40 major European cities that make up The European Premier League, according to European Cities Monitor. Commercial over-night stays in this group have risen by an average of 5.3 percent per year from 2002-2007. Stock-holm stands out with higher than average growth in this group, ranking fifteenth, which is the high-est growth in Scandinavia. Valencia, Tallinn and Prague were the cities with the highest growth dur-ing the period.

Commercial overnight stays in Stockholm county have risen without interruption for several years, exhibiting strong average growth. Stockholm has also strengthened its position vis-à-vis the Scandi-navian capitals. In 2008 there were a total of 8.7 million overnight stays in hotels, hostels and va-cation villages in Stockholm County (9.6 million, including estimated unofficial statistics for camp-ing)*. This is a 5 percent increase in the county over 2007, and stronger growth compared with the cor-responding regions for Helsinki (+4%), Oslo (-1%)


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

Table 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2009 8M

1 Stockholm county 2 Region Hovedstaden 3 Oslo/Akershus 4 Helsinki, Espoo och Vantaa

Diagram 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M

Stockholm1 Copenhagen2 Oslo3 Helsinki4

2006

Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden, Visit Denmark, Statistics Norway, Statistics Finland

2007 2008 2008 8M 2009 8M10,000

8,000

6,000

4,000

2,000

0

and Copenhagen (-2%). Stockholm strengthened its position even further in 2009, exhibiting growth in the first eight months, both overall (+0.2%) and for foreign visitors (+1%).

Stockholm county has the largest share of commer-cial overnight stays in Scandinavia with 37 percent. Copenhagen (the regional capital) comes in second place with 26 percent, followed by Oslo/Akershus with 19 percent and Helsinki with 17 percent.


In 2008 the number of overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Sweden grew by 2 percent to just over 32 million. The metropolitan counties of Stockholm, Västra Götaland and Skåne together represented just over 17 million, or 52 per-cent of the total overnight stays nationwide. Over the last ten years Stockholm county has represented close to one out of four overnight stays nationwide, while 15 percent were attributable to Västra Göta-land county and 10 percent to Skåne county. Un-fortunately no camping data is available for 2008.

In 2008 growth in Stockholm county – and even more so in the city of Stockholm – was significantly higher than in both Sweden as a whole and the other

metropolitan counties. The number of commercial overnight stays has also grown faster in Stockholm than in the rest of the country and the other metro-politan counties in a 10-year perspective as well.

The number of overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages was unchanged in Sweden during the first eight months of 2009. On the other hand, the metropolitan counties and especially the cities have demonstrated growth. In Skåne the number of overnight stays grew by 4 percent, and in Stock-holm county and Västra Götaland they grew slight-ly in comparison with 2008. Meanwhile the large cities grew by 3 percent in the city of Stockholm, 7 percent in Malmö and 1 percent in Gothenburg.

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.


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

Diagram 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, large cities and in Sweden, 1999-2008 (in thousands)

Stockholm county Västra Götaland county Skåne county

2008

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden

10,000

8,000

6,000

4,000

2,000

0


The Stockholm Visitor



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, hostels and vacation villages in Stockholm county by both Swedish and foreign visitors increased: Swedish guest nights rose by 6 percent, while for-eign guest nights rose by 3 percent. The trend for the first five months of 2008 was very positive. It was a good summer for the Swedish market, while foreign guest nights declined slightly. The end of 2008, and the beginning of 2009 even more so, were marked by the global economic crisis, which led to a reduction in business travel. However the 2009 summer months were unexpectedly strong – particularly for the leisure travel market, which compensated for the weak start to 2009.

Over the last three years since 2005, the number of guest nights has risen by 18 percent. Primarily Swedish guests and visitors from the non-Nordic

parts of Europe have increased sharply. From a ten-year perspective growth in the number of guest nights was an impressive 46 percent.

Germany is the largest foreign market, with just over 340,000 guest nights, followed by the UK, the US and Norway. If camping is included as well, the difference between Germany and the UK increases even more. Both Germany and the UK grew in 2008. In 2009 the German market continued to grow, while the number of British guest nights de-clined. The economic crisis has primarily affected travel from the US, which declined by 11 percent in 2008 and by an additional 12 percent during the first eight months of 2009.

Swedish visitors come primarily from Västra Göta-land county, followed by Östergötland, Skåne and Västmanland counties.

Diagram 3a. Swedish visitors in Stockholm county 2005–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M (in thousands)

Camping

2005 2006 2007 2008 2008Jan-Aug

2009Jan-Aug

Hotels, hostels and vacation villagesNumber


7,000

6,000

5,000

4,000

3,000

2,000

1,000

0

Diagram 3b. Foreign visitors in Stockholm county 2005-2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M (in thousands)

Camping

2005 2006 2007 2008 2008Jan-Aug

2009Jan-Aug

Hotels, hostels and vacation villagesNumber


7,000

6,000

5,000

4,000

3,000

2,000

1,000

0


Table 3. Commercial overnight stays by nationality 2008, Stockholm county*Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden

Table 4. Swedish visitors by home region 2008, Stockholm countySource: Resurs

Distri- Share in Change in % from 2008 bution Sweden 2007 2005

Total 8,704,449 100% 25% + 5 + 18

Sweden 5,767,324 66% 23% + 6 + 21

Abroad 2,937,125 34% 40% + 3 + 13

Made up by: Nordic countries excl. Sweden 485,733 5.6% 21% + 10 + 6 Europe excl. the Nordic countries 1,662,399 19.1% 45% + 6 + 20 Outside Europe 788,993 9.1% 56% – 5 + 5

Distribution by country:Denmark 125,939 1.4% 16% + 10 + 9Norway 193,649 2.2% 17% + 14 + 7Finland 157,175 1.8% 42% + 7 + 3Iceland 8,970 0.1% 52% – 24 + 13

Germany 342,165 3.9% 33% + 5 + 11UK 330,193 3.8% 54% + 5 + 9Ireland 20,405 0.2% 56% – 6 + 17The Netherlands 87,594 1.0% 27% + 13 + 28

Belgium 34,053 0.4% 45% – 1 + 5Luxembourg 4,727 0.1% 61% + 32 + 68France 137,338 1.6% 58% + 19 + 43Switzerland 68,444 0.8% 54% + 13 + 21

Austria 35,572 0.4% 52% + 46 +112Italy 156,531 1.8% 64% + 4 + 26Spain 116,676 1.3% 70% – 6 + 15Portugal 17,167 0.2% 48% + 47 + 65

Greece 18,208 0.2% 71% – 6 + 15Turkey 11,745 0.1% 54% + 19 +114Russia 108,883 1.3% 53% + 10 + 52Estonia 8,539 0.1% 30% + 11 + 14

Latvia 7,471 0.1% 34% + 27 + 83Lithuania 5,096 0.1% 26% – 13 – 0Poland 33,326 0.4% 24% + 36 +100Czech Republic 10,816 0.1% 29% – 6 + 25

Slovakia 5,114 0.1% 45% +151 +184Hungary 10,079 0.1% 44% – 22 – 11The rest of Europe 92,257 1.1% 59% – 11 – 10US 232,142 2.7% 59% – 11 – 8

Canada 28,144 0.3% 59% + 15 + 31Central&South America 26,555 0.3% 60% + 6 + 15Japan 60,721 0.7% 60% – 6 – 13South Korea 8,815 0.1% 43% – 16 + 7

China 45,631 0.5% 45% – 12 + 13The rest of Asia 93,979 1.1% 57% + 27 + 23Australia 30,113 0.3% 61% + 13 + 14New 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

Share in %

Västra Götaland county 16.0

Skåne county 10.2

Östergötland county 9.7

Södermanland county 7.5

Gävleborg county 7.4

Västmanland county 7.2

Uppsala county 6.3

Örebro county 5.9

Dalarna county 5.4

Jönköping county 4.3

Västernorrland county 3.7

Värmland county 2.7

Västerbotten county 2.5

Kronoberg county 2.2

Norrbotten county 2.1

Kalmar county 2.0

Jämtland county 1.4

Halland county 1.4

Blekinge county 1.3

Gotland county 1.0

Total 100

* Hotels, hostels and vacation villages. No data for camping available.


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

2008 was a favorable year for air traffic to and from Stockholm, despite an incipient recession. The number of passengers at all of the airports in the Stockholm region increased over 2007. The number of passengers increased by a total of 3.5 percent to 22.6 million. Arlanda is the leader with 80 percent of passenger flights, and the number of passengers grew by just over 1 percent in 2008. Stockholm-Skavsta had 24 percent more passengers than in 2007, thereby increasing its share of air traffic to and from Stockholm to 11 percent.

Destinations in Europe are the beginning and end points for an ever greater share of airline trips. In 2008 six out of ten passengers travelled from an air-port in Europe. Destinations beyond Europe repre-sent less than one airline trip in ten to and from the Stockholm region. But these were the destinations that grew the most during 2008, by 300,000 or 19

percent. The number of airline passengers traveling internationally continued to grow during the year. Over a 10-year period international airline traffic has increased its share of the total number of passengers to and from Stockholm, from 59 to 71 percent.

73 passenger airlines make direct flights to 181 des-tinations from Stockholm–Arlanda, of which 149 are foreign destinations. Stockholm-Skavsta has 55 direct routes. Air travel makes up 15 percent of travel by Swedes to Stockholm county.

Ferries and cruises

In 2008 close to 11.4 million passengers traveled to or from Stockholm’s ports (Stockholm, Kapellskär and Nynäshamn). Finnish traffic is still the leader, with 74 percent of passengers. The 2007 decline in Finnish traffic turned around to a slight increase in 2008. Currently an ever greater share of passengers 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


ing the last ten years the Baltic share of passengers has grown from 5 percent to 11 percent. Baltic desti-nations and cruise traffic also saw the most favorable growth in 2008.

International cruise ship traffic has increased stead-ily since the 1990s. In 2008, 265 cruise ships put into Stockholm with 363,000 passengers. In 2009, 293 cruise ships put into Stockholm with 443,000 passengers.

Rail

Approximately 90,000 long-distance trains (SJ) arrived or departed from Stockholm’s central train station in 2008. The number of passengers was 17 million, which is nearly unchanged from 2007. Train travel makes up 30 percent of travel by 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.

Buses and cars

Cars are the most common means of transport when Swedes travel to Stockholm. Nearly half of all trips in 2008 were by car. The bus was chosen for 6 percent of trips. In 2009 Stockholm was named the world’s best city for bus tourism by the European bus industry.

Diagram 4. Arriving and departing airline passengers 1999-2008 (in thousands)Airports in the Stockholm region

Domestic Europe The rest of the world

2008

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: LFV (the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration) and Luftfartsstyrelsen

14,000

12,000

10,000

8,000

6,000

4,000

2,000

0

Diagram 5. Swedish trips to Stockholm county by means of transport, 2008 Source: Resurs/TDB

Rail, 30%

Air, 15%

Bus, 6%

Car, 46%

Other, 2%

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


Commercial accommodation

The number of overnight stays in commercial ac-commodation facilities in Stockholm county has grown steadily year after year, across economic cy-cles. In 2008 the number of commercial overnight stays grew by 3 percent to 9.6 million*. 6.2 million, or 65 percent of these stays took place in facilities in the city of Stockholm.

Hotels represent just of 8 out of 10 commercial overnight stays in Stockholm county. Hotels also represented the greatest increase in terms of volume in 2008. On the other hand the rate of growth was significantly higher in hostels, where the number of overnight stays rose by 20 percent. Camping has also grown steadily for a long time, and in 2007 it exceeded 1 million guest nights for the first time.

Other accommodation

Most overnight stays in Stockholm county still take place in other types of accommodation than com-mercial facilities. However during the last five years overnight stays from other types of accommodation have declined from 75 percent to 60 percent of all overnight stays. Other types of accommodation are primarily overnight stays with friends and relatives, 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

other types of accommodation in Stockholm coun-ty, 150,000 fewer than the year before. Staying with friends and relatives increased slightly, while week-end cottages and pleasure boats were used less than the previous year (2007) due to the poor summer weather. While commercial overnight stays primarily take place in the city, the situation for other accom-modations is the opposite. Seven out of ten overnight stays in other types of accommodation take place in the county outside Stockholm city limits.

Day trips

In addition to overnight stays, there are numerous day trips to Stockholm county. This does not in-clude short trips over the county line, but rather only trips of at least 100 kilometers. In 2008 there were just over 5.2 million day trips Stockholm county, Stockholm was the destination for more than eight out of ten of these trips. The number of day visitors in the entire country of Sweden has declined steadily since 2002, but day trips rose by close to 5 percent over 2007 in both the city and county of Stockholm.

Leisure travelers were the leaders in day trips in 2008, with 2.6 million coming from other parts of Sweden, 643,000 on Finland cruise ships and 362,000 on international cruise ships. 1.6 million day trips were for business purposes.

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.

* Including estimated but unofficial statistics for camping. The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden have assumed responsibility for camping statistics as of 2008. Camping sta-tistics will also be historically revised in connection with this move.


Commercial accommodation Other accommodation Day trips

2008

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Statistics Sweden and Resurs

24,000

20,000

16,000

12,000

8,000

4,000

0

Diagram 6. Overnight stays in commercial accommodations, other accommodations and day trips 1999-2008, Stockholm county (in thousands)

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

* Estimated unofficial statistics for camping. The table is based on preliminary statistics on commercial forms of accommodation.

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


Total overnight stays 25,181 28,773 27,027 26,595 24,182 24,306


Day trips 6,382 6,559 5,443 5,531 4,994 5,225



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 + 10Norway 184,263 + 13 8,938 + 23 448 + 78 193,649 + 14Finland 148,381 + 6 8,477 + 26 317 + 98 157,175 + 7Iceland 8,519 – 25 418 – 7 33 – 8,970 – 24

Germany 271,641 – 0 68,761 + 30 1,763 +210 342,165 + 5UK 311,894 + 4 18,060 + 31 239 + 63 330,193 + 5Ireland 17,199 – 8 3,200 + 8 6 +200 20,405 – 6The Netherlands 71,972 + 5 15,424 + 80 198 +183 87,594 + 13

Belgium 29,815 – 0 4,238 – 3 – –100 34,053 – 1Luxembourg 4,155 + 26 566 + 98 6 +100 4,727 + 32France 102,882 + 17 34,172 + 28 284 + 19 137,338 + 19Switzerland 58,015 + 8 10,353 + 50 76 +100 68,444 + 13

Austria 28,945 + 42 6,613 + 81 14 – 95 35,572 + 46Italy 131,173 + 3 25,254 + 15 104 + 53 156,531 + 4Spain 95,766 – 11 20,820 + 26 90 + 41 116,676 – 6Portugal 13,095 + 30 3,109 + 93 963 +96 200 17,167 + 47

Greece 16,913 – 9 1,289 + 66 6 + 50 18,208 – 6Turkey 10,492 + 15 1,253 + 80 – – 11,745 + 19Russia 105,251 + 8 3,618 + 53 14 – 67 108,883 + 10Estonia 7,745 + 15 785 – 17 9 – 72 8,539 + 11

Latvia 5,531 + 15 1,931 + 95 9 – 86 7,471 + 27Lithuania 4,054 – 15 990 – 11 52 +225 5,096 – 13Poland 24,241 + 33 4,909 + 4 4,176 +181 33,326 + 36Czech Republic 8,164 – 22 2,645 +148 7 +250 10,816 – 6

Slovakia 2,373 + 58 2,722 +405 19 – 5,114 +151Hungary 8,305 – 31 1,774 + 82 – – 10,079 – 22The rest of Europe 85,110 – 14 7,132 + 51 15 – 6 92,257 – 11US 216,748 – 13 15,391 + 22 3 – 87 232,142 – 11

Canada 23,602 + 14 4,536 + 20 6 +200 28,144 + 15Central & South America 20,748 + 3 5,801 + 19 6 – 26,555 + 6Japan 56,493 – 5 4,220 – 9 8 – 60,721 – 6South Korea 6,630 – 28 2,185 + 81 – – 8,815 – 16

China 42,140 – 15 3,373 + 27 118 – 45,631 – 12The rest of Asia 88,905 + 28 5,068 + 20 6 + 20 93,979 + 27Australia 21,406 + 10 8,638 + 19 69 – 30,113 + 13New 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.


Hotels

The number of available hotels in Stockholm coun-ty varies over the course of the year, from a mini-mum of 228 in July to a maximum of 266 in the fall. On average 24,700 hotel rooms were available in the county, of which 14,900 rooms or just over 60 percent were in the city.

The number of hotels in Stockholm is increasing, and access to rooms is rising even faster. The number

of hotel rooms increased by 4 percent in the county and 7 percent in the city over 2007. The number of hotel rooms has increased by 12 percent, or approxi-mately 2,500 rooms, in the county and 19 percent in the city since 2003. Meanwhile the number of occu-pied rooms has increased by considerably more – by 30 in the county and 36 percent in the city.

The large addition of more hotel rooms over the last year (2008) has caused the occupancy rate – the

Commercial accommodation facilities

Diagram 7a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county

Room capacity per day

Occupied rooms per day (occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007


30,000

25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

0

9,000

7,500

6,000

4,500

3,000

1,500

0

55%

62%58%

61% 63%

Diagram 7b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm

Room capacity per day

Occupied rooms per day (occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007


30,000

25,000

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

0

9,000

7,500

6,000

4,500

3,000

1,500

0

64%70%

67% 69% 71%


number of rooms occupied – to decline slightly de-spite having more guests and more occupied rooms. 70 percent of the available rooms in the city and 62 percent in the county were occupied. Capacity uti-lization varies widely, between weekdays and week-

ends, between the peak season and the off-season and among different types of hotels. 4- and 5-star hotels in the city’s central districts and hotels at Arlanda have the highest occupancy rates.


2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Number of hotels 247 254 264 262 270

Room capacity (millions) 8.2 8.3 8.5 8.6 9

Room capacity (in thousands) per day 23 23 23 24 25

Occupied rooms (millions) 4.5 4.8 5.1 5.4 6

Occupied rooms (in thousands) per day 12 13 14 15 15

Occupancy rate, % 55 58 61 63 62

Mon–Thurs, % 63 65 68 72 70

Fri–Sun, % 44 48 50 51 51

Revenues (MSEK) 4,129 4,517 4,970 5,712 6,166

Revenues per occupied room, SEK 918 946 971 1,058 1,108

Revenues per available room, SEK 502 546 587 662 684

Table 9a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues* in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county


2004 2005 2006 2007 2008

Number of hotels 112 115 119 122 127

Room capacity (millions) 4.7 4.8 4.9 5.1 5

Room capacity (in thousands) per day 13 13 13 14 15

Occupied rooms (millions) 3.0 3.2 3.4 3.6 4

Occupied rooms (in thousands) per day 8 9 9 10 10

Occupancy rate, % 64 67 69 71 70

Mon–Thurs, % 71 73 76 79 77

Fri–Sun, % 55 58 61 61 60

Revenues (MSEK) 2,838 3,100 3,419 3,965 4,389

Revenues peroccupied room, SEK 943 975 1,007 1,101 1,154

Revenues per available room, SEK 600 651 698 779 805

Table 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues* in hotels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm

* Lodging revenues excluding VAT and breakfast.


Diagram 8. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues by month 2008, Stockholm county

Room capacity(thousands) per day

Occupied rooms (thousands) per day(occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May Jun Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec


30

25

20

15

10

5

0

900

750

600

450

300

150

0

52%55%

51%

62%

72%64%

61%

68%74%

66%63%

48%

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.


Hostels

During the summer months of 2008 a maximum of 62 of the county’s hostels were open in Stockholm county. During the off-season in January, only 39 were available. Unlike hotels, most hostels (40) are located outside the city of Stockholm. Hostel bed capacity rose by 10 percent over 2007 to 3,794 beds per day. Meanwhile the number of occupied beds rose by 20 percent. Calculated over the entire year, 52 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

occupied. The corresponding figures for January were 44 percent and 34 percent, respectively.

In 2008 lodging revenues for the county’s hostels rose by an impressive 49 percent over 2007, to MSEK 190 (excluding VAT and breakfast). This was the result of more occupied beds combined with higher rates. The average cost of a bed was SEK 265 in the county and SEK 277 in the city – a respective increase of 25 per-cent and 31 percent over 2007 procent.

Diagram 9a. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hostels 2004–2008, Stockholm county

Bed capacity per day

Occupied beds per day (occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007


4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

200

175

150

125

100

75

50

25

0

43%42%

43% 47%

52%

Diagram 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hostels 2004–2008, city of Stockholm

Bed capacity per day

Occupied beds per day (occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007


4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

200

175

150

125

100

75

50

25

0

52%50%

53% 58%63%


Cottage vacation villages

There were 8 cottage vacation villages in Stock-holm county in 2008. The vacation villages almost exclusively target Swedish visitors. Most of the vacation villages are located in the archipelago. During the summer months the cottages are es-sentially full, while occupancy in the spring and fall is considerably lower. Capacity has declined somewhat since the previous year (2007), while the number of occupied cottages remained nearly un-changed. Since 2003 the number of beds has de-clined by barely 30 percent, while occupancy only declined by just over half. Thus the occupancy rate

has risen during the most recent five-year period from 38 percent to 45 percent in 2008. During 2008 lodging revenues amounted to MSEK 16.8 (excluding VAT and breakfast).

Camping

2007 is the most recent year for which statistics on camping in Sweden are available.* At that point the number of overnight stays in county campgrounds exceeded 1 million. This means that just over one commercial overnight stay in ten took place in one of the county’s approximately 20 campgrounds. Still, camping is less extensive in Stockholm than in other parts of the country. Stockholm is responsible for just over 5 percent of camping nights in the country, while the county’s total share of commer-cial overnight stays is 19 percent. Swedes represent eight out of ten guest nights at county campgrounds. Among foreign camping guests, German tourists occupy a unique position with 9 percent of guest nights, followed by the Dutch with just over 3 per-cent. 3 out of 4 overnight stays took place in cam-ping trailers. This is roughly the same proportion as for the country as a whole. Compared with the country as a whole, Stockholm has a somewhat hig-her share of overnight stays in camper vans, but fe-wer nights in cottages.

*The Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth and Sta-tistics Sweden assumed responsibility for camping statistics in Sweden in 2008, and they have not released any statistics for camping yet (Nov. -09).

Diagram 10. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues for vacation villages 2004–2008, Stockholm county

Capacity per day

Occupied cottages per day (occupancy rate, %)Number Revenues (MSEK)

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007


100

80

60

40

20

0

25

20

15

10

5

0

37%38% 34%

40% 45%


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 power of attraction, as a destination city for both travel and business. The city boasts a vibrant cul-tural life and a wide selection of national and inter-national events, restaurants and shopping opportu-nities, with nearly everything conveniently located. Meanwhile, Stockholm is the leading business city in Scandinavia, with several areas that are strong internationally, such as life sciences, banking and finance, information and communication technol-ogy (ICT) and clean tech. A high degree of reliabil-ity and attractive pricing have helped Stockholm evolve into one of the world’s leading destinations for conventions and travel.

Over 3.5 million overnight stays took place in coun-ty hotels by visitors who were in Stockholm as tourists. To this figure should be added 1.7 million guest nights in hostels, vacation villages and campgrounds – fa-cilities that belong to the leisure travel market in all

the important particulars – and close to 15 million overnight stays in non-commercial accommodations. During the most recent 10-year period the number of leisure-related overnight stays at hotels rose by over 50 percent, while camping nights rose by two-thirds, and nights at hostels nearly tripled. Tourists who select a commercial accommodation are less influenced by the economy than business travelers.

Business travelers made a total of 4.3 million over-night stays in hotels in Stockholm county during 2008, of which 2.7 million were spent in the city of Stockholm. This is 3 percent higher than in 2007, and an increase of just over 20 percent during the most recent 10-year period.

5.2 million people visited Stockholm during the day, which is equivalent to 14,300 people per day. 3.6 million of these day trips were made by tourists, and 1.6 million by business travelers.


Business Leisure

2008

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: Resurs Business Leisure

Diagram 11. Overnight stays at hotels by business and leisure travelers 1999-2008,Stockholm county and city (in thousands)

4,500

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

STOCKHOLMS COUNTY CITY OF STOCKHOLM

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


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

Since 2004, Stockholm has more actively created an identity as a location for international corporate meetings. Interest in Stockholm as a destination has also increased among international companies in recent years. The number of inquiries more than doubled between 2006 and 2007. The boom con-tinued in 2008, and the number of inquiries rose by 22 percent despite an incipient recession.

Conventions

Stockholm is one of the world’s most popular con-vention cities. In 2008 Stockholm was number eight in the world, according to a ranking by the Interna-tional Congress and Convention Association, ICCA. A record number of international conventions were also organized in Stockholm in 2008: 135, or 16 more than in last year. The number of participants, close to 60,000, was about the same as for last year. Conventions in the areas of medicine and psychol-ogy dominated, as in every other year. On one hand numerous conventions are about these subject areas, but above all the truly large conventions usually concern these subject areas. The 33rd Congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology and the Annual World Dental Congress both drew around 10,000 participants.

In 2008 the average convention participant stayed for 4.5 days and spent a total of approximately SEK 13,500.

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: Stockholm Visitors Board 140

120

100

80

60

40

20

0

Diagram 12. International conventions in Stockholm, 2004–2008

2006

2007

2008

2004

2005

Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Diagram 13. International convention participants in Stockholm, 2004-2008 (in thousands)


Meeting and convention capacity

Stockholm has a robust capacity for meetings and conventions. It is the home of Stockholm International Fairs, which is the largest conven-tion facility in Northern Europe, the centrally lo-cated Stockholm City Conference Centre which is one of the largest facilities in Scandinavia, and new addition Kistamässan, which is strategi-cally located at the heart of Kista Science City. Moreover there are numerous conference hotels, universities and colleges in Stockholm with the capacity for both large and small conferences.

During the year Stockholm International Fairs organized 73 trade fairs which attracted 937,000 visitors, as well as 42 large conventions and 2,040 meetings which were attended by more than 312,000 visitors. Stockholm City Confer-ence Centre organized over 1700 conferences and conventions, with over 100,000 partici-pants. Kistamässan opened in September 2008. The facility, which has premises totaling 15,000 m2 (two thirds of which are exhibition space), has the capacity for trade fairs, conventions and conferences for up to 1,400 people, and events and concerts for up to 4,500 people.

2006

2007

2008

2004

2005

Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

350

300

250

200

150

100

50

0

Diagram 14. International convention-related overnight stays in Stockholm, 2004-2008 (in thousands)

Diagram 15. International convention participants by subject area in Stockholm, 2008 Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

Medicine/Psychology, 61%

National and municipal government, 7%

Technology/statistics/chemistry, 7%

Industry/business, 7%

Other, 23%


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-tions and attractions in Stockholm county that are included in the Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth’s database of visitor destinations in Sweden. Eight of these destinations attracted more than a million visitors each. The top desti-nations were Kulturhuset, Skansen and the Globe Arenas, with over 1.3 million visitors each.

As in previous years, the Vasa Museum was one of the most-visited museums of the county’s over 60

museums, with over 1.1 million visitors, followed by the Moderna Museum and the National Mu-seum. As far as cultural monuments are concerned, the most visitors were drawn by the Royal Palace, Storkyrkan and City Hall. The largest arenas for activities are the Globe Arenas, Stockholm In-ternational Fairs, Råsunda and Cosmonova. The Stadsteatern and Dramaten theaters are in a class by themselves in the theater category, based on the number of visitors and performances.


Table 11. The 50 largest visitor destinations in Stockholm county, 2008Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

NumberDestination visitors

26 The Royal Opera 240,896

27 Aquaria 239,715

28 Solvalla 225,572

29 Cirkus 218,589

30 Medelhavsmuseet 216,281

31 Royal Dramatic Theater (Dramaten) 210,415

32 Taxinge Palace 210,000

33 Parkteatern 208,300

34 Konserthuset 203,600

35 Royal Palace, Royal Armoury 202,953

36 Nordiska museet 199,182

37 City Museum 191,000

38 Stockholm Stadium 187,350

39 Hågelbyparken 175,000

40 S:t Jakobs Kyrka 165,000

41 S:t Clara Kyrka 165,000

42 Prins Eugen’s Waldemarsudde 162,908

43 Postmuseum 145,372

44 Nobel Museum 145,079

45 Berwaldhallen 135,000

46 Torekällbergets museum 135,000

47 Östasiatiska museet 133,169

48 Absolute Ice Bar 132,032

49 Historiska museet 130,053

50 Folkens museum, Etnografiska 127,389

NumberDestination visitors

1 Kulturhuset 2,552,830

2 Skansen 1,352,245

3 Globe Arenas 1,317,429

4 Archipelago tours, Strömma Group 1,308,000

5 Stockholm International Fairs 1,249,431

6 Eriksdalsbadet swimming center 1,217,028

7 Vasa Museum 1,143,404

8 Gröna Lund 1,113,752

9 Moderna museet 500,000

10 Royal Palace excl. The Royal Armoury 495,347

11 Storkyrkan 475,000

12 National Museum 474,276

13 Råsunda 431,526

14 Sydpoolen swimming pool 406,540

15 Casino Cosmopol 403,747

16 Junibacken 400,000

17 Stadsteatern 368,630

18 Swedish Museum of National History 346,617

19 City Hall 320,648

20 Acquarium/Skansen 315,000

21 Museum of Science and Technology 305,403

22 The Kaknäs tower 295,000

23 Cosmonova 286,078

24 Steninge Palace Cultural Center 247,372

25 Tom Tits Experiment 245,630


Stockholm is characterized by numerous events year-round. Many are annual events, while oth-ers are more unique in nature. What they have in common is that they attract numerous visitors. The percentage of visitors attracted to Stockholm for the events varies. A Taste of Stockholm and the Stockholm Cultural Festival attract many visitors, not only Stockholmers even if the latter are in the majority. But a large portion of the visitors are in Stockholm for other reasons, on vacation or in 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.

Event capacity

Stockholm has a robust capacity for events. Stock-holm Globe Arenas is Scandinavia’s largest and most flexible event space, in a class unto itself. Stockholm International Fairs is the largest trade show facility in Northern Europe, and Stockholm Stadium is the world’s oldest Olympic arena still in use. In addition there are numerous arenas and event spaces in Stockholm with capacity for both large and small events.

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.

Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from several events in Stockholm Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

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

Unique visitors

Revenues

200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000100,0000

100 150 200 250 300500* N/A, unique visitors


Waxholmsbolaget and Strömma Kanalbolaget are the largest companies plying Stockholm’s waters. Waxholmsbolaget also manages the Djurgården ferry and Strömma Kanalbolaget offers day and evening tours in the archipelago and on Lake Mälaren. Despite the poor weather, the number of archipelago boat passengers rose by just over 2 percent to just over 3.1 million in 2008. However port traffic has gradually declined over the course of this decade.

Pleasure boats

From May to September 2008 525,000 visitors stayed overnight on the 150,000 pleasure boats that dropped anchor in the archipelago’s most pop-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.

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.

Diagram 17. Passengers, Waxholmsbolaget & Strömma Kanalbolaget, 2004-2008 (in thousands)

Archipelago traffic Port traffic

2008

2004

2005

2006

2007

Source: Waxholms Ångfartygs AB, Strömma Kanalbolaget

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from several events in Stockholm Source: Stockholm Visitors Board

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

Unique visitors

Revenues

200,000 300,000 400,000 500,000 600,000100,0000

100 150 200 250 300500* N/A, unique visitors

Diagram 18. Passengers by month 2008, Waxholmsbolaget (in thousands)

Archipelago traffic

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May Jun Jul

Aug Sep

Oct

Nov Dec

Port traffic

Source: Waxholms Ångfartygs AB

500

400

300

200

100

0


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.

The length of stay for people visiting Stockholm does not vary a great deal from year to year. For commercial types of accommodation, hotel guests have the shortest stays at 1.7 nights on average, and camping guests stay the longest at 5.9 nights. Stays with friends and relatives are often quite short – an average of 2.2 nights in 2008. People ordinarily stay somewhat longer in accommodations that they own such as weekend cottages or pleasure boats, or in rental cottages.

Diagram 19. Average number of nights spent by visitors in different types of accommodation Stockholm county and city, 2008Source: Resurs

Overnighttrips, total

Hotel

Other accommodation

Friends and relatives

Own weekend cottage/apartment

Camping

Cottage, rented privately

Pleasure boat

Nights per trip

Stockholm county City of Stockholm

2 310 5 6 7 84


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 spent by different categories of visitors during their stay in Stockholm. Business travelers staying in hotels had the most outstanding spending in 2008 at SEK 2,289 per day. Of course the accommodations were responsible for a large share of their expenses. Leisure travelers staying in hotels spent SEK 1,362 per day. Business travelers increased their daily expenses by 3 percent over 2007, while leisure travelers’ consump-tion was 9 percent lower than in 2007.

The daily costs for people staying in commercial accommodation types other than hotels are sig-nificantly lower. Camping guests spent SEK 305 per day, people staying in cottage vacation villages spent SEK 511 and people staying in hostels spent SEK 420. Visitors staying with friends and relatives had a daily consumption rate of SEK 317. People 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.

Tabell 12. Consumption per visitor and day in Stockholm county and city, 2008

Source: ResursCity of Stockholm figures in parentheses

Comparison SEK 08/07, %

Hotel 1,841 (1,865) –1 (–4)

business travel 2,289 (2,395) 3 (–1)

leisure travel 1,299 (1,362) –9 (–8)

Vacation village 511 N/A 0 N/A

Camping 305 (307) 3 (4)

Hostel 420 (419) 0 (0)

Weekend cottage 173 N/A –12 N/A

Friends/relations 317 (476) –10 (15)

Pleasure boat 199 (206) 41 (44)

Other 522 (713) –45 (–24)

Day trip visitors 514 (614) 1 (0)

N/A = Not applicable


Economy and employment



Revenues

In 2008 revenues from visitors to Stockholm coun-ty were unchanged from 2007. Revenues from peo-ple staying in commercial types of accommodation rose by 2 percent to SEK 15.1 billion, while those from visitors staying in other types of accommo-dation declined by 4 percent to SEK 6.9 billion. Visitors staying in commercial accommodations are

responsible for an ever greater share of revenues. In 2008 they were responsible for close to 70 percent of revenues. Ten years ago it was less than half.

An impressive 95 percent of revenues from visitors in commercial types of accommodation come from hotel guests. They are the ones with the highest dai-ly spending, and this is the type of accommodation that the majority chooses.

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.

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


Visitors who stay overnight with friends and relatives, as well as day visitors also make a large contribution to revenues in the county – not so much because they spend more than others, but because they constitute such a large share of visits to Stockholm.

In 2008 incoming travelers to Stockholm county generated the greatest revenues in the lodging, restaurant and shopping sectors. When compared with 2007, the primary increase is in expenses for activities. On the other hand spending on shop-ping has declined by 13 percent. Compared with Sweden as a whole, more is spent on lodging in Stockholm but less on food.

Just over a quarter of Sweden’s total revenues from the hospitality industry are generated in Stockholm

Commercial accommodation Other accommodation Day trips

2007

2008

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Source: Resurs

16,000

14,000

12,000

10,000

8,000

6,000

4,000

2,000

0

Diagram 20. Revenues* from incoming visitors 1999–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK)

* Incl. VAT

Table 14. Revenues* generated from incoming tourists by sector 1998 2004–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK)Tourist spending in Stockholm county 2008Source: Resurs

* Incl. VAT

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


* Including outbound tourism (51), trade fair operations (1) and regional shopping (16).

county. The proportion has not changed very much over the last ten years. What has happened is that a growing share is spent in the city – partly because this is where commercial guest nights are primarily spent – while at the same time growth in the rest of the county has been weaker.

The total travel and tourism industry* had around SEK 90 billion in revenues in Stockholm county. The travel and tourism industry’s revenues in Swe-den are estimated at SEK 237 billion in 2008.

Employment

Hospitality industry revenues in Stockholm county in 2008 were the equivalent of just over 18,200 per-


sons employed, of which 12,400 were in the city. The greatest impact on employment is in the lodging industry with 9,900 persons employed, and in the restaurant sector with 6,200 persons employed.

Employment has remained largely unchanged dur-ing the period 2006-2008. From a ten-year per-spective employment has increased in the lodging, restaurant and activities sectors, but declined in food, transportation and shopping. Two-thirds of employment was created by revenues in the city of Stockholm.

Tax revenues

Revenues from incoming tourists to Stockholm county in 2008 provided a total tax base cor-responding to tax revenues of just over SEK 2.9 billion for the county’s municipalities and county councils. The county council share of tax revenues was approximately 40 percent in both the county and the city. The tax base is calculated based on in-come taxes for people who are directly or indirectly employed in the hospitality industry. Moreover the hospitality industry generated VAT revenues and other tax revenues for the government.

Conventions

International conventions are a significant source of income for Stockholm’s hospitality industry. Every convention delegate is estimated to spend close to SEK 9,000 during their stay in Stockholm.

Convention fees of SEK 4,600 on average should be added to this figure. It is estimated that during 2008 international conventions in Stockholm gen-erated revenues beyond the conference fee of close to SEK 617 million.

Cruises

Consumption from international cruise ship pas-sengers who visited Stockholm in 2009 is estimated at approximately SEK 450 million in the city. The largest revenues are from passengers who began or ended their trip in Stockholm. In the summer of 2009 they spent an average of just over SEK 2,600 per person in Stockholm.

Events

It’s also extremely important that events are being organized in the Stockholm region. They stimulate the economy and increase demand for goods and services. It’s estimated that tourists who come to Stockholm to attend events spend approximately SEK 5 billion in the city, which helps both jobs and new businesses in the region. Moreover events are important to the marketing of the region, and they offer residents an attractive city in which to work and live.

Receiving visitors professionally is one of the nec-essary factors to help Stockholm grow as a visitor destination.

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


* Number of people employed


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

The Leisure Travel business area works closely with the industry to market Stockholm as a destination for leisure travelers. This is accomplished through a large number of targeted marketing initiatives in high-priority markets and to selected segments. The primary areas of cultivation include selected focus areas such as major cities in Europe, Russia, Chi-na and the US, as well as the target groups of the Stockholm Gay Network and Stockholm Cruise Network projects. In addition we are monitoring the growth of new markets, primarily in Eastern Europe and Asia.

An important part of Leisure Travel’s task is to in-form and educate the travel industry. In 2008 the Leisure Travel area hosted 3,000 agents and tour

operators in Stockholm on study trips where the purpose was to educate, inform and inspire the agents to package and sell trips to Stockholm. We also continually cultivate the travel industry with promotional materials, agents manuals and news-letters. In addition we participate in trade fairs and workshops and conduct targeted campaigns directly to consumers.

Meetings and Conventions

The Meetings and Conventions business area is pursuing two partnership projects with over 130 companies in Stockholm, where the task is to market Stockholm as a destination for interna-tional corporate meetings and conventions. Meet Stockholm was formed in 2004 with the objective


of increasing the number of international corpo-rate meetings in Stockholm. The target groups are agents in selected markets in Europe and selected parts of the US. Congress Stockholm has been active since 1991, and works to get international organizations to hold their conventions, so-called Association Meetings, in Stockholm. The target group is primarily organizations based in Europe. Congress Stockholm and Meet Stockholm, which will be called Stockholm Convention Bureau as of 2010, participate in several international trade fairs and workshops in Europe as well as conduct-ing their own events and activities, sometimes in cooperation with VisitSweden. In addition 10-15 study trips to Stockholm are organized annually for decision makers in these two segments.

Events

The Events business area works on marketing and developing Stockholm as an event city in order to achieve Stockholm’s vision of being a world-class city for events and experiences by 2030. Events is organ-ized based on two specializations: event facilitation and Event Stockholm.

Event facilitation works on developing existing events being organized in Stockholm, as well as mak-ing it easier for event organizers to apply for and hold events. Event Stockholm, which is a partnership with the business community, works on marketing Stock-holm as an event city and cultivates event organizers with the objective of recruiting international events in the areas of sports, entertainment, culture and trade fairs to Stockholm.

Tourist Services

A good tourist service is a precondition for Stock-holm to become the leading travel destination in Northern Europe and the primary destination in visitor services. The Tourist Services business area is responsible for visitor services in Stockholm, i.e. the operation of Stockholm’s tourist offices (Stock-holm Tourist Centre and the tourist offices in the cruise ports which are open during the high sea-son) and training in knowledge of Stockholm for frontline staff. Other parts of Tourist Services are guide training with certification. Stockholm Tourist Centre is designed to meet visitors’ high demands for service and information, and it conveys the vi-sion of an important experience and meeting place. Tourist Services works strategically to meet visitors’ high demands for information and how they are re-ceived. We have an airport and tourist information center at Stockholm–Arlanda Airport, Arlanda Vis-itor Center, in cooperation with the Swedish Civil Aviation Administration (LFV). This center shares its founding concept and vision with Stockholm Tourist Centre.

Press Services

Press Services primarily cultivates international media with news, topics and through visits by the press. Every year Stockholm Visitors Board receives more than 600 journalists from all over the world, including several TV teams visiting Stockholm to report.

About the statistics

Sources• Swedish Agency for Economic and Regional Growth

and Statistics Sweden• Resurs AB • Swedish Civil Aviation Administration (LFV) and

Luftfartsstyrelsen• Ports of Stockholm• SJ• Waxholms Ångfartygs AB • Strömma Kanalbolaget AB• Archipelago Foundation

• Stockholm International Fairs• City Conference Centre• Kistamässan• Stockholm Visitors Board (SVB)• Utrednings- och Statistikkontoret (USK)• European Cities Marketing• Statistics Norway• Statistics Finland• Visit Denmark


List of diagrams and tables Page Diagram, table

9 Diagram 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2009 8M

Table 1. Commercial overnight stays in the Nordic capitals, 2006–2009 8M

11 Diagram 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, large cities and in Sweden, 1999-2008

Table 2. Overnight stays in hotels, hostels and vacation villages in Swedish metropolitan counties, large cities and in Sweden, 1998, 2002–2009 8M

14 Diagram 3a. Swedish visitors in Stockholm county, 2005–2008, 2008 8M–2009 8M

Diagram 3b. Foreign visitors in Stockholm county, 2005-2009 8M

15 Table 3. Commercial overnight stays by nationality 2008, Stockholm county

Table 4. Swedish visitors by home region 2008, Stockholm county

16 Table 5. Arriving and departing airline passengers 1998, 2004–2008. Airports in the Stockholm region

17 Diagram 4. Arriving and departing airline passengers 1999-2008. Airports in the Stockholm region

Diagram 5. Swedish trips to Stockholm county by means of transport, 2008

Table 6. Arriving and departing ferry passengers 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm ports

19 Diagram 6. Overnight stays in commercial accommodations, other accommodations and day trips 1999-2008, Stockholm county

Table 7. Overnight stays in all types of accommoda-tion and day trips 1998, 2004-2008, Stockholm county

20 Table 8. Commercial overnight stays by nationality and type of accommodation 2008, Stockholm county

22 Diagram 7a and 7b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county and city

23 Tabell 9a and 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hotels 2004–2008, Stockholm county and city

25 Diagram 8. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues by month 2008, Stockholm county

26 Diagram 9a and 9b. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues in hostels 2004–2008, Stockholm county and city

27 Diagram 10. Capacity, occupancy and lodging revenues for vacation villages 2004–2008, Stockholm county

29 Diagram 11. Overnight stays at hotels by business and leisure travelers 1999-2008, Stockholm county and city

Table 10. Overnight stays at hotels by business and leisure travelers 1998, 2004-2008, Stockholm county and city

30 Diagram 12. International conventions in Stockholm, 2004–2008

Diagram 13. International convention participants in Stockholm, 2004-2008

31 Diagram 14. International convention-related overnight stays in Stockholm, 2004-2008

Diagram 15. International convention participants by subject area in Stockholm, 2008

33 Table 11. The 50 largest visitor destinations in Stockholm county, 2008

34 Diagram 16. Revenues and unique visitors from several events in Stockholm

35 Diagram 17. Passengers, Waxholmsbolaget & Strömma Kanalbolaget, 2004-2008

Diagram 18. Passengers by month 2008, Waxholmsbolaget

36 Diagram 19. Average number of nights spent by visitors in different types of accommodation Stockholm county and city, 2008

37 Table 12. Consumption per visitor and day in Stockholm county and city, 2008

40 Table 13. Revenues from incoming tourists by accommodation type 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK)

41 Diagram 20. Revenues from incoming visitors 1999–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK)

Table 14. Revenues generated from incoming tourists by sector 1998, 2004–2008, Stockholm county (MSEK)

42 Table 15. Employment generated from incoming tourists by sector 1998, 2004–2008

PhotographersBruno Ehrs, p 1. Shutterstock, pp 2, 44, 48. Cilla Lundqvist, p 3. Richard Ryan, p 6. Nicho Södling, pp 8, 12, 28, 36, 37, 48. Henrik Trygg, p 10. Anne Jorun/Clarion Hotel Sign, p 21, Åke E:sson Lindman/ Clarion Hotel Sign, p 23. Sesse Lind/Nordic Light Hotel, p 24. Yanan Li, pp 26, 32, 46. Orsolya Haarberg/Wild Wonders of Europe, pp 27, 37. Mathias Nero/Clarion Hotel Sign, p 31. Matton, p 38. Jeppe Wikström, p 43. Christer Lundin, p 48.

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.sewww.stockholmtown.com

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