Only 1% of Airbnb apartments are available in Reykjavík during the end of December, and very few hotel rooms are left. Vísir reports. According to Booking.com, 97% of all apartments are booked during New Year’s Eve.
“This market is simply sold out and all hotels are booked and a lot of Icelanders are renting out their apartments during New Year’s because then they can get very good prices,” Sölvi Melax, chairman of the Association of Short-Term Rental on Homes told Vísir.
According to Sölvi, the apartments that are now left are quite pricey. “People hope to do well by moving in with their parents or friends.”
Helga Árnadóttir, chairman of the Icelandic Travel Industry Association says this has been the norm for the past few years, as the tourism industry has been flourishing. She predicts that approximately 20.000 travellers will be visiting the country over the holidays and that companies are very well prepared to accommodate them.
“And just like three to four years ago most hotels in Reykjavík were closed over the holidays. So it’s changed a lot and the industry has been improving its services a lot over the seasons.”
