The Swell Show

Edition 3 · Saturday, October 17, 2026

The weekend fills up; Monday empties out.

Half the area is booked for Saturday, same as today. On Monday it drops to 4 in 10 places and almost no hotel fills up. Week-long stays are what’s selling best.

Morning, line-up.

Tide alerts

  • Emptying

    Monday empties out. On Monday 4 in 10 places will have guests and almost no hotel will be full (8%). Saturday, by contrast, has guests in half. Set your Sunday-to-Wednesday rate and shifts now.

Today’s story

People are coming to stay the week

For the first time since we started measuring, there are more bookings for a full week than for a three-night getaway: 52% against 49%. Until yesterday they were tied.

There are 42 houses you can rent for the weekend but not for the whole week, because someone is already arriving on Tuesday or Wednesday. In other words: people are coming to stay several days. Monday looks slow, but those guests will keep eating, shopping and taking lessons all week.

What to do today

Lodging
If you still have room for Saturday, don’t slash it: people keep booking until the last minute. Where a lower rate makes sense is Sunday to Wednesday, with a full-week discount. If you charge US$201 to 260 a night, check your price and photos: it’s the range filling up the least.
Restaurants
Saturday is the big day; on Monday half the team is enough. More groups of 4 and 6 are coming: set up big tables and sharing plates.
Shops and services
More people are staying the whole week: put together multi-day packages, like lessons, board rental or tours.

The numbers

29%of hotels have no rooms left for Saturday. On Monday it’s just 8%: hotels only fill up on weekends.
US$90is the typical nightly rate of what’s still free for Monday. For Saturday, US$56. What’s left after the weekend is the pricier stuff: if yours is one of them, a Monday deal could fill it.
54%of houses for 6 are already booked for Saturday, against 49% of places for couples. More groups and families are coming.

By price

Places from US$121 up fill; US$201 to 260 lags behind

Almost half of what’s booked for Saturday costs more than US$150 a night. Places at US$121 to 150 are 63% booked; those at US$201 to 260, only 42%. For restaurants and shops: well-made, quality offerings have buyers; cheap and mass-market is a harder sell.

Budgetup to US$60
35%
Mid-rangeUS$61 to 150
49%
UpscaleUS$151 to 350
51%
Luxuryover US$350
60%

Share of places booked for tomorrow at each nightly rate. Every place in the area, classified one by one.

What the tide brings in

  1. In Costa Rica

    September fell again

    102,474 tourists arrived by air in September, 1.7% fewer than a year ago, with the United States at −3.3%; Canada rose 18.9% and Europe held flat. For the year, the country is still up 4.8%.

    Source: The Tico Times

  2. Around the world

    Canada pushes the season

    Air Canada is offering up to four times the frequent-flyer points on flights to San José and Liberia: book by October 26 to travel between October 20 and April 30.

    Source: Rus Tourism News

See you in the water.

How we measure · Occupancy = 1 − places free for 3 nights ÷ total inventory. It’s a ceiling: some places block dates without being booked. Sources: the main booking platforms, Open-Meteo and the Central Bank of Costa Rica. Measured October 16 at 6:00.