The Swedish hotel market saw occupancy rates edge up by just under 1 percent in May compared to the same month last year. This follows a growth rate of over 5 percent in the previous month.

This is according to a press release from the industry organization Visita.

The number of hotel rooms sold in Sweden increased by 1 percent in May, while total lodging revenues rose by 2 percent.

'The positive trend of recent months has been driven by increased demand from business travelers, but in May, it was instead the weekdays that slowed the growth rate. It is too early to call it a trend reversal, but if so, it would not be good news as they have such a significant impact on profitability,' says Thomas Jakobsson, Chief Economist at Visita.

In major cities, the number of hotel rooms sold decreased by 0.3 percent in May. The largest decline was seen in Malmö (-3 percent), while demand in Gothenburg and Stockholm remained virtually unchanged compared to May 2025. Outside the major cities, the growth rate was 1.6 percent year-on-year. However, this also represents a slowdown from the strong performance in April (+8 percent). Average revenue per occupied room (ADR) increased by only 1 percent.

The booking situation for the summer remains higher than at the same time last year. As of June 1, bookings were just over 4 percent higher, though this is a sharp decline from March when the booking position was 12 percent ahead, and is now in line with forecasts.

The forecast is that the average occupancy rate for Swedish hotels this summer will be 4 percent higher than in the summer of 2025.

The statistics cover the period May 1-28.

Benchmarking Alliance is the source of the data.