Markets and audience

Focus markets

With team members based in key regions, we stay close to cultural trends, consumer behaviour and what’s inspiring future travellers right now. Here you’ll find updates on our key markets.

Missing current insights about your region? Get in touch with your local Travel Trade Manager—we’ll make sure you have the latest.

Meet the Global Traveller

Our target audience is the Global Traveller—curious, well-travelled and always on the lookout for new destinations and experiences.

Typically urban, educated and with a high disposable income, these travellers are motivated by different things. That’s why we group them into three categories:

• Everyday people enjoying life – seeking ease, beauty and connection.
• Active nature lovers – drawn to outdoor adventure and sustainability.
• Curious explorers – inspired by culture, heritage and learning new things.

Despite different interests, they all want to discover new places, explore cities, and get the most out of their travels.

Visitor statistics

We regularly monitor how domestic and international travellers move through Sweden—when they visit, where they stay, and what trends are emerging.

Our main data source is Tillväxtverkets publication of guest nights, though these numbers don’t include Airbnb bookings. Some hotel chains also paused nationality reporting in 2024 due to booking system changes, so take this into account when reviewing the figures.

Curious about how your market is developing? Scroll down to explore key insights.

For deeper data (in Swedish), visit Kunskapsbanken. If you’re a local DMC or incoming operator, it’s a valuable resource.

For more insights on the German market (in German), please see Märkte und Zielgruppen

Your input helps shape Sweden as a travel destination

Did you know that 80 million global travellers are interested in visiting Sweden? Many of them actively look for the types of experiences that Sweden is known for—nature, culture, food and lifestyle. And a large number prefer to book their trip through a travel professional.

To better understand how we can support you, we regularly gather feedback from the travel trade.

In early 2025, we interviewed 88 tour operators across Germany, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, Belgium, China, the UK and the USA—all of whom offer packaged trips to Sweden. This research helps us improve our trade activities and strengthen Sweden’s global positioning.

What travellers want: top themes and activities

Across all markets, some themes continue to stand out. Here are the top five interests among your customers:

• Winter experiences – including Northern Lights, dog sledding and snowmobiling
• Culture – a rich and varied mix of cultural content
• History – from Vikings and the Middle Ages to castles and heritage sites
• Nature encounters – guided activities like wildlife watching (bears, moose, wolves)
• Hiking – both guided and independent options

For market-specific insights, please refer to the document below highlighting top interests by key market.

If you are interested in more findings of this survey or other statistics that might be useful for you in your profession, please contact your travel trade manager. 

Food, Culture & Nature are of interest to your customers!

In Spring 2024, we also ran a customer survey targeting international travellers who want help from tour operators or agents when booking a Sweden trip. We asked them what they’d most like to learn or experience while here.

Here are the top five things they want to explore:

• Swedish food & beverage culture (52%)
• Cultural heritage & historical buildings (48%)
• Swedish lifestyle, close to nature (41%)
• Accessible nature (41%)
• Healthy, active lifestyle (37%)

Want more insights?

If you’d like access to more survey results or tailored statistics for your market, just reach out to your Visit Sweden Travel Trade Manager. We’re here to help you craft the perfect Sweden experience for your customers.