The case in summary: Northern Norway has experienced record high visitor numbers for tourism businesses in September and October, with Tromsø as the most visited city. The hotels in Tromsø had the highest occupancy in the whole country in October, with 85 per cent of all rooms rented. The reason for the increased tourism is a combination of tropical heat and a weak krone exchange rate, which has made it more attractive for foreign tourists to visit the region. The number of foreign overnight stays in Northern Norway increased by 36 per cent in September, with the largest increase in Troms and Nordland. Executive director of Sparebank1 Nord-Norge, Hanne Karoline Kræmer, emphasizes that the weak krone exchange rate is beneficial for the region and contributes to fewer bankruptcies and work for everyone. Statistics Norway reports that the record-warm September and the weak krone exchange rate have contributed to increased travel activity towards Northern Norway and the West. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAI. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. – Northern Norway is attractive. We can see that from the figures from tourism – where the number of visitors has tripled over the course of a couple of decades. And preliminary figures from 2024 show further strong growth, said Executive Vice President of Sparebank1 Nord-Norge Hanne Karoline Kræmer during the opening of Agenda Nord-Norge on Tuesday. The hotels in Tromsø have the highest occupancy rates in the whole country. 85 per cent of all rooms were let in October. It is the hotel collaboration Benchmarking Alliance that has analyzed the figures from the hotels. – In Tromsø, room prices are 10 per cent higher than last year, while room occupancy in Bodø is 17 per cent higher. Also in Harstad-Narvik and Lofoten, the growth so far this year is large, writes Peter Wiederstrøm of the Benchmarking Alliance, in a press release. Increase in tourism from abroad The reason for the good figures from tourism companies comes from a strong increase in foreign hotel stays in Northern Norway in the past year. In September, the number of foreign overnight stays in Northern Norway increased by 36 per cent. Troms and Nordland have an increase of 42 per cent and 39 per cent respectively, while Finnmark has an increase of 11 per cent, according to figures NHO has collected from accommodation companies in the region. Regional director of NHO Nordland, Hans Christian Hansson, is very excited about the positive trend. – It is pleasing to note that both foreign traffic and Norwegian traffic are showing a nice increase in most places in the region and on Svalbard. The significant growth in international traffic indicates that the winter season in the north can be very good, he points out. Statistics Norway: Record heat and weak krone exchange rate According to Statistics Norway, it was a record-warm September for Northern Norway and Western Norway, which contributed to increased travel activity to these regions. In addition, several accommodation companies have opened in Troms and Nordland in the past year. – Never before has Northern Norway recorded tropical heat in autumn at the same time as large parts of Southern Norway reported a lot of rain and precipitation, several heat records were broken in Northern Norway and Western Norway, which may have encouraged the travelers to seek out these regions, writes adviser Boyd Oyier on Statistics Norway’s website. – In addition, the Norwegian krone is still very weak, if this continues in the future it may contribute to a continued increase in foreign overnight stays, adds Oyier. The CEO of Sparebank1 Nord-Norge, Hanne Karoline Kræmer, opened the Agenda Nord-Norgekonferansen on Tuesday. On the same day, the Economic Survey for Northern Norway was presented. She emphasizes that the weak krone exchange rate is important for parts of business life in the region. – North Norwegian business is still doing very well. Much is driven by the fact that we export goods that the world wants, and the low krone exchange rate is thus an advantage. That means fewer bankruptcies and work for everyone, says Kræmer. Published 05.11.2024, at 13.10 Updated 05.11.2024, at 13.19
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Tropical heat and a weak krone exchange rate fill the hotels in Northern Norway – news Troms and Finnmark
