Record-Breaking Summer in Umeå – More Visitors Than Ever Before
Preliminary figures from Benchmarking Alliance indicate that the summer of 2025 could be one of the best ever for Umeå’s hotel establishments in terms of occupancy rate and rooms sold. During June–August, the average occupancy was 69 percent – an increase of 14 percent compared to last year. During this period, over 107,000 rooms were sold, which is 7.4 percent more than during the previous record summer of 2023.
”We are very happy with the result that shows Umeå has a strong position as a pulsating summer city. A unique and attractive restaurant and shopping offering combined with major events, conferences, and targeted marketing efforts have made more guests than ever choose Umeå this summer,” says Gabriella Hed Vall, CEO of Visit Umeå.
Events and Meetings Remain Crucial
Summer’s major crowd-pullers contributed to occupancy rates exceeding 90 percent multiple times:
- June: A combination of large conferences and events like Wheels Nationals Norr and Komatsu Days resulted in a 19 percent occupancy increase compared to last year. During Wheels Saturday, hotels reached 93 percent occupancy.
- July: A true folk festival featuring Umeå Football Festival, RIX FM Festival, and Diggiloo. The Football Festival broke records with over 6,400 players, and the weekend peaked at 98 percent occupancy. The month overall had an average occupancy of 71 percent.
- August: The trend continued with an average occupancy of 72 percent – a 20 percent increase compared to last year. Events like Hov1 concert, Nolia Fair, Load up North, Skateboard Cup, and conferences like Vattenfall Championships contributed to peak occupancy reaching up to 100 percent on several days.
Urban Experiences Attract Visitors
Results from a recent survey by Visit Umeå show that urban experiences particularly attract visitors from nearby markets in Norway, Finland, and along the Norrland coast.
”It will be exciting to delve deeper into the results, but we already see that Umeå’s food and beverage offerings are a strong travel motivation, followed by cultural life and shopping opportunities. Many describe Umeå as the perfect city for city breaks, with short distances between experiences and urban nature just around the corner,” says Hanna Sondell, Marketing and Communications Manager at Visit Umeå.
Source: Hotel key figures for August through Benchmarking Alliance
