The Swell Show

Edition 15 · Thursday, October 29, 2026

The weekend woke up.

Tomorrow, Thursday, more than half of the rentals have guests, about 2,000 people. It's the busiest day of the week, tied with Friday. In the last six days, about 100 more rentals were booked for Thursday.

Morning, line-up.

Tide alerts

  • Heads up

    Gas could go up in November. A hike of up to ₡89 per liter of regular and ₡23 for diesel is still under review and could take effect in early November. If you rely on transfers or suppliers who charge freight, stock up before. Source

  • Heads up

    The drought red alert is still on. Cóbano and Paquera remain under a red alert for El Niño, declared on October 22. Check for leaks and save water: the dry season may arrive with lower reserves. Source

Today’s story

The weekend took off all at once

Today, Wednesday the 28th: half of the rentals have guests, about 1,900 people, and almost 1 in 3 hotels is full. 1.3 m waves and a dry day.

Tomorrow, Thursday the 29th: yesterday we said the weekend was filling slowly. Today it sped up: in a single day, about 70 more rentals were booked for Friday and Saturday. On Tuesday it had been about 30.

Friday and Saturday already have guests in more than half of the area. Sunday the 1st drops to 4 in 10: about 120 fewer rentals with guests than Saturday. For your business: Thursday to Saturday, work like on a full weekend; on Sunday, like a normal week.

What to do today

Lodging
Don't lower your Friday or Saturday rate: they're booking twice as fast as on Tuesday. If you want to move something, make it Sunday the 1st or Monday the 2nd.
Restaurants
Thursday to Saturday, full staff and extra stock: these are the busiest days of the week. For Sunday the 1st, order the usual, nothing extra.
Shops and services
The weekend brings waves of almost 1.5 m with a good period and little rain through Saturday. Have boards, lessons and tours on display from Thursday.

The numbers

35%of hotels are full for Thursday. A week ago, for the same Thursday, it was 18%: about 30 more hotels without a room in seven days.
US$80is the typical nightly price of what's still free for Thursday. Yesterday, for Wednesday, it was US$81. For Saturday, US$107: what's left for the weekend costs more.
50rentals, more or less, are free on Thursday but already have guests later in the week. Yesterday, for Wednesday, it was about 90: fewer new guests arrive after the weekend.

By price

Rentals over US$350 are the fullest

For Thursday, 6 in 10 rentals over US$350 already have guests. Among those up to US$60, 4 in 10.

Budgetup to US$60
40%
Mid-rangeUS$61 to 150
55%
UpscaleUS$151 to 350
57%
Luxuryover US$350
61%

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. Around here

    Cóbano declares surfing of high interest

    The district council approved a motion asking that waves and surf breaks be considered in coastal zoning plans. It also seeks support for beach cleanups and monitoring in Santa Teresa, Mal País, Playa Carmen and Playa Hermosa.

    Source: CRC 891

  2. In Costa Rica

    Steep fines for taking tourists into closed park areas

    SINAC launched the Ruta Responsable program with tourism transport companies. Since April, an operator or guide who sells or leads trips to unauthorized sites faces fines of ₡3.2 to ₡4.6 million.

    Source: The Tico Times

  3. Around the world

    London–San José, now year-round

    British Airways moved its flight to Heathrow and is keeping it all year for the first time: five weekly flights through March and three from April to September. A steadier gateway for European travelers.

    Source: The Tico Times

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 28 at 6:00.