Stagnation of international tourist arrivals in Iceland in 2025 worries the sector
Keflavik airport, the main international gateway to Iceland has just released the total number of visitors recorded on arrival. The airport accounts for 99% of all international arrivals to the country.
In 2025, the airport recorded a moderate decline of -0.4% equivalent to 2.253 million arrivals compared to 2.261 million a year before.
The top five inbound markets to Iceland generated a total market share of 54%, shared between the USA -Iceland top market with 0.65 million arrivals or 29%; the UK with 0.45 million arrivals or 10.3%; Germany with 0.15 million or 6.6%; China with 0.12 million or 5.5% and France with 0.10 million or 4.4%. China was the fastest growing market, up by 29.2% between 2024 and 2025. It was followed by Switzerland with a growth of 20.9% equivalent to 35,000 arrivals and Sweden up 17.7% equivalent to 30,000 arrivals.
The largest decline was registered with Poland, down by 28%. From 2023 to 2025, Polish outbound to Iceland was almost divided by two from 138,000 arrivals in 2023 to 78,000 arrivals last year. Baltic States arrivals dropped also by almost 25% generating only 30,000 arrivals compared to 40,000 a year before.
Another port of entry to Iceland is Seyðisfjörður seaport. In 2024, around 18,500 visitors came with MS Norröna ferry through that port. The country recorded also close to 322,000 cruise ship passengers at the Port of Reykjavik in 2024 (latest available data). However, they are not considered as tourists as such as they stay less than 24 hours in Iceland.
Worries around a lack of marketing
The weak performance of Iceland tourism generates worries about the tourism evolution in 2026. Iceland is indeed losing ground to rival destinations after scaling back international tourism marketing, industry leaders warn, with the impact now showing up clearly in booking data. Senior figures say competing countries have intensified their branding efforts just as Iceland has pulled away from global promotion, forcing the government to reconsider whether renewed investment is needed.
In a recent interview on State television, Pétur Þ. Óskarsson, managing director of the Icelandic Tourism Board, said recent booking trends are troubling, especially outside the peak summer season. Declines have been recorded in the first quarter of the year and again in October and November 2025.
Óskarsson noted that Iceland benefited from sustained consumer marketing between 2010 and 2022, when tourism expanded steadily. Since then, the country has largely withdrawn from image-building campaigns, even as competitors promote year-round travel. While private companies continue marketing efforts, he stressed that national branding is a long-term investment, highlighting tourism’s US$4.9 billion ( 620 billion Icelandic crowns) contribution to export revenues in 2024.
Meanwhile, the bankruptcy of low-cost airline Play in 2025 also contributed to Iceland tourism woes last year.
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