Tourism in Iceland
Encyclopedia
Tourism in Iceland has become a more significant part of the national economy
Economy of Iceland
The economy of Iceland is small and subject to high volatility. In 2007, gross domestic product was US$12.144bn in total and $38,400 per capita, based on purchasing power parity estimates...

. The tourism industry was estimated to contribute to 4.1% of the country's GNP as of 2006.In 2010, 500,000 tourists visited Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...

.

History

Tourism to Iceland has grown steadily since the 1990s. In 2000, the annual number of visitors exceeded the total resident population for the first time. Since then, tourism has grown by about 11% on average each year. Some 360,000 people visited Iceland in 2004,, compared with 485,000 in 2007 and over 500,000 in 2008. The number of nights spent was 0.585 million in 2000 and 1.05 million in 2008.

Jobs in the tourism industry were estimated at 7,385 in 2000 and at 8,211 in 2006 (4.5% of the workforce, compared to 6% each in the fishing industry and in agriculture).

According to the director of sales at Icelandic airlines, Israelis spend more time in Iceland than any other foreign tourists. Israeli tourists, backpackers and businessmen stay in the country an average of 10-12 days.

External links



regional sites of the Icelandic Tourist Board
  • http://www.visitreykjavik.is for Reykjavík
    Reykjavík
    Reykjavík is the capital and largest city in Iceland.Its latitude at 64°08' N makes it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói Bay...

  • http://www.westiceland.is for West Iceland
  • http://www.westfjords.is for Westfjords
    Westfjords
    The Westfjords or West Fjords is the name for the large peninsula in northwestern Iceland. It is connected to the rest of Iceland by a 7 km wide isthmus between Gilsfjörður and Bitrufjörður. The Westfjords are very mountainous; the coastline is heavily indented by dozens of fjords surrounded by...

  • http://www.northiceland.is for North Iceland
  • http://www.east.is for East Iceland
  • http://www.south.is for South Iceland
  • http://www.visitreykjanes.is for Reykjanes
    Reykjanes
    Reykjanes or Reykjanesskagi is a peninsula and a volcanic system situated at the south-western end of Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík....

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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