Sweden has long been associated with summer holidays, lakes, archipelagos and endless daylight. However, new figures from Visit Sweden reveal that the strongest growth in tourism is now taking place outside the traditional summer season.
While summer remains the country’s largest tourism period, overnight stays during spring, autumn and winter are increasing at a significantly faster pace. For tour operators, this development creates new opportunities to diversify products and attract travellers throughout the year.
Between January and May and again from September to December, commercial overnight stays in Sweden increased by 3.6% in 2025 compared to the previous year. Compared with 2015, this represents growth of 23.5%.
Summer remains Sweden’s busiest tourism season, accounting for more than 30 million overnight stays between June and August. However, growth during the summer months reached just 1.1%, highlighting the increasing importance of travel outside the peak season.
According to Visit Sweden, the trend is being driven by several factors, including rising international demand, growing interest in city breaks, stronger demand for winter experiences and changing travel habits, with travellers taking more frequent short trips throughout the year.
The trend is particularly visible in northern Sweden. During the winter season from December to April, Sweden recorded approximately 21.6 million commercial overnight stays, representing an increase of 3% compared to the previous year.
International overnight stays grew even faster, rising by 12%. The regions of Dalarna, Jämtland, Norrbotten, Värmland and Västerbotten together accounted for 7.4 million winter overnight stays. In Norrbotten, international visitors represented around 41% of all winter guest nights.
The figures underline the growing appeal of Northern Sweden’s winter experiences, including outdoor activities, nature-based travel, Northern Lights tourism and authentic local experiences.
Sweden’s metropolitan areas continue to play a major role in overall tourism performance. Greater Stockholm, Greater Gothenburg and Greater Malmö together account for around 35% of all guest nights in the country.
City breaks, business travel, events and year-round cultural experiences continue to support strong demand in urban destinations. At the same time, Visit Sweden notes that several international markets are currently growing faster outside the major cities than within them.
This includes visitors from France, the United States and Belgium, highlighting increasing interest in regional and nature-based travel experiences.
The latest figures suggest that Sweden is increasingly evolving into a year-round destination rather than a predominantly summer-focused market. For tour operators, this creates opportunities to develop programs beyond the traditional peak season, combining winter experiences, nature-based activities, regional destinations and shorter thematic trips throughout the year.
As travelers continue to seek authentic experiences and spread their travel across multiple seasons, destinations that can offer compelling products outside the summer months are likely to benefit most.
Growing demand beyond the peak season is reshaping tourism across the Nordic region. Sweden’s latest figures provide valuable insight into changing travel patterns and future opportunities for product development and sales.
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