May to October 2023
In the peak travel months of May to October 2023, accommodations operators reported 1,922,000 room nights sold, a decrease of 2% (49,000 fewer room nights sold) compared with 2022 and an increase of 3% (60,000 more room nights sold) compared with 2019.
Compared with 2022, Nova Scotia saw increases in room nights sold in May and June, but room nights sold declined compared with 2022 during each month between July and October. Nova Scotia experienced wildfires in May 2023 and June 2023 and severe flooding in July 2023, which may have affected room sales during this period.
Decreases in room nights sold versus 2022 were observed across several regions. These included:
- Halifax Metro, down 3% (34,000 fewer room nights sold)
- Cape Breton, down 3% (12,000 fewer room nights sold)
- South Shore, down 5% (8,000 fewer room nights sold)
- Northumberland Shore, down 3% (5,000 fewer room nights sold)
- Yarmouth & Acadian Shores, down 6% (3,000 fewer room nights sold)
Two regions, meanwhile, experienced increases in room nights sold:
- Eastern Shore, up 3% (500 more rooms nights sold)
- Bay of Fundy & Annapolis Valley, up 5% (12,000 more rooms nights sold)
Year-to-date October 2023
Nova Scotia accommodations operators report 2.6 million room nights sold from January to October 2023, a 4% increase (94,000 more room nights sold) compared with 2022 and a 7% increase (180,000 more room nights sold) in 2019.
All tourism regions experienced growth from January to October 2023 compared with 2019. However, compared with 2022 which was an exceptional year for recovery in room nights sold, only four tourism regions reported increases in room nights sold, including:
- Halifax Metro, up 5% (61,000 more room nights sold than in 2022)
- Bay of Fundy & Annapolis Valley, up 10% (30,000 more room nights sold than in 2022)
- Northumberland Shore, up 4% (7,000 more room nights sold than in 2022)
- Eastern Shore, up 6% (1,000 more room nights sold than in 2022)
Two regions, meanwhile, experienced decreases in sales compared with January to October 2022:
- South Shore, down 3% (6,000 fewer room nights sold)
- Yarmouth & Acadian Shores, down 1% (1,000 fewer room nights sold)
Cape Breton saw minimal fluctuation in accommodation sales in 2023 compared with 2022 (unchanged) and 2019, up 1% (4,000 more room nights sold).
Nova Scotia Room Nights Sold (TNS Accommodations Database):