Exploring domestic tourism in the Nordics
The role of domestic tourism increased during the COVID-19 pandemic due to severe restrictions on international arrivals. The crisis required flexibility from tourism companies and the ability to update their offerings to better meet domestic tourism demand and nearby markets. In a Nordic context, this could mean an increased role for domestic tourism and tourism in neighbouring regions, e.g. border regions between the Nordic countries. In addition, some predict that the popularity of domestic tourism will continue to increase in the coming years due to the increasing demand for more sustainable tourism services.
The project focuses on the development that took place in domestic tourism in the Nordic countries since the COVID-19 pandemic hit and explores what the development of domestic tourism could be in the future. The focus was on gathering information on how it has been possible to develop and market domestic tourism in the Nordic countries. The project was led by the Finnish consulting company Innolink and was carried out in collaboration with Oxford Research and ITRC.
In autumn 2022, ITRC made country case analysis on domestic tourism in Iceland 2019-2021 and interviewed tourism stakeholders in Iceland. A country case summary was returned to Innolink in October 2022. A final report ready to be published via Nordic Council of Ministers’ publishing system will be ready in the spring of 2023.
Main findings and background of the study was presented at a webinar, organised in April 2023 by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland:
Project manager in Iceland: Eyrún Jenný Bjarnadóttir
Borgum v/Norðurslóð
600 Akureyri, Iceland