In December 2023, Keflavík Airport (KEF) experienced high visitor numbers, with 519,239 visitors passing through the airport, making it one of the busiest Christmas months, surpassed only by 2017 and 2018. The airport saw a total of 7,750,091 visitors in 2023, marking the third-largest travel year at KEF. This represented a significant increase of 26.5% compared to 2022, where there were 6,126,000 visitors.
The busiest day of the year was July 30, with 35,000 visitors welcomed. In 2023, there were 28 airlines operating flights to 95 destinations. Copenhagen and London were the most popular destinations, with London having the highest frequency of flights from seven airlines.
Foreign departures from Keflavík Airport in 2023 totalled around 2.2 million, with Americans being the most numerous at 28.3%, followed by the British at 12.5%. The number of foreign tourists increased by 31.1% compared to 2022, reaching almost half a million more. Icelandic departures in 2023 were around 591,000, showing a slight increase of 0.8% from the previous year.
August 3 had the most passenger flights, with 215 planes landing or taking off at Keflavík Airport. The passenger forecast for 2024 anticipates nearly 8.5 million visitors, making it the second-largest year in the history of Keflavík Airport and the largest in terms of foreign tourist arrivals to Iceland.