CASE STUDY
67% occupancy in its first month on Airbnb
Professional Airbnb Photography in San José: The Secrt Escalante Case Study
67% occupancy in its first month on the market
This apartment at Secrt Escalante launched as a brand-new rental in the portfolio of Cool Experience, a company that specializes in Airbnb management. With no reviews, no booking history and no ranking on Airbnb yet, it was essential to present the property professionally from day one.
To support its launch, we did a professional Airbnb photography shoot focused on clearly communicating the apartment’s design, layout and guest experience. We leaned heavily on the views: the social area has floor-to-ceiling windows with an amazing view of San José, which is one of this Airbnb’s biggest selling points. In its first month live with the new photos, the apartment got 9 bookings, 20 booked nights and 67% occupancy.
Case summary
| Metric | First-month result |
|---|---|
| Bookings received | 9 |
| Nights booked | 20 |
| Occupancy | 67% |
| Period analyzed | June 2026 |
| Listing status | Brand-new property |
| Management | Cool Experience |
| Location | Secrt Escalante, San José |
The big question: is 67% good or not?
It’s a fair question. For experienced Airbnb owners and property managers, these numbers are part of everyday life, but new hosts often want a benchmark to measure against.
According to Airbtics, a company that specializes in short-term rental analytics, its report on Airbnb revenue and occupancy in San José, Costa Rica puts the city’s median occupancy at around 57%.
That’s a useful point of comparison for seeing the impact of professional photography in this case study, which shows 67% in the first month.
The challenge: launching a new Airbnb with no reviews or history
A new property faces a real hurdle on Airbnb: it doesn’t have guest reviews, a reputation or any track record to build trust yet. At that stage, photos play an especially important role. Potential guests use the images to answer questions like:
- What’s the apartment’s actual layout?
- Does it feel comfortable and well kept?
- Does the space match the price?
- Is it a good fit for the kind of trip I’m planning?
- Does it look as appealing as other options in the area?
The goal wasn’t just to photograph rooms. It was to build a visual presentation that could communicate the apartment’s value from the very first moment.
Explore the photography services and process designed for property managers (page in Spanish)
Goals of the photo shoot
The professional photo shoot for this Airbnb at Secrt Escalante was designed around three main goals.
1. Present the property clearly
Every space had to be easy to understand. The photos needed to show the layout, the sense of size, the furniture and how the different areas of the apartment connect.
2. Convey the guest experience
An Airbnb listing doesn’t just sell square footage. It sells the experience of cooking in the kitchen, resting in the bedroom, enjoying the social areas and staying in a specific location, and of course showing off the views, which are this Airbnb’s strongest asset for attracting new guests.
That’s why the gallery needed to feel cohesive and help guests imagine what their stay would be like.
3. Deliver a gallery ready for marketing
Cool Experience needed professional visuals it could use from the moment the listing went live, both on Airbnb and on other channels, since many owners also promote their apartments on social media to get more exposure.
The Airbnb photography strategy behind Secrt Escalante
The visual strategy focused on creating a gallery that’s clear, appealing and built to sell.
Full coverage of every space
We photographed everything a potential guest needs to understand the property without running into any major gaps in the listing.
An effective gallery should help people understand:
- Which spaces the rental includes.
- How the areas connect.
- What level of comfort to expect.
- What the property’s main features are.
- What sets the apartment apart from other available options.
Composition built around the guest
The images were shot with the way people evaluate a rental on Airbnb in mind. That means prioritizing photos that explain the space, instead of producing purely decorative or architectural images with no selling purpose.
Visual consistency
Lighting, framing, editing and the overall order of the photos were all handled to keep the presentation consistent. That consistency helps the listing look more polished and professional.
Explore the photography services and process designed for property managers (page in Spanish)
First-month results on Airbnb
In June 2026, the apartment achieved the following results:
9 confirmed bookings
The rental received nine bookings in its first month on the market. That matters because a new property doesn’t have a long track record on the platform to back it up yet.
20 booked nights
Of the thirty nights available in June, twenty were booked.
67% occupancy
The apartment reached 67% occupancy in its first month of operation. For a brand-new property, that’s a strong start and shows the listing gained traction right from launch.
Compared with an apartment without professional photos
For context, let’s compare it with an apartment in the Sabana area, in the Babylon tower, another property managed by the same company that, according to the client, doesn’t have a comparable professional photo shoot yet. This isn’t about which Airbnb is better. It’s a look at how differently an apartment performs with and without professional Airbnb photography, and why it’s a smart investment for owners.
In the same month, Babylon recorded:
- 5 bookings.
- 16 booked nights.
- 53% occupancy.
Here’s how they compare:
| Metric | Secrt Escalante | Babylon | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bookings | 9 | 5 | 80% more |
| Booked nights | 20 | 16 | 25% more |
| Occupancy | 67% | 53% | 14 percentage points higher |
The Secrt Escalante apartment got four more bookings, filled four more nights and reached higher occupancy over the same period.
Were the photos the only reason for these results?
No. It would be wrong to say the difference came only from professional photography. An Airbnb’s performance also depends on factors like:
- Location.
- Nightly rate.
- Launch promotions.
- Amenities.
- Guest capacity.
- Availability.
- Quality of management.
- Response time.
- Booking rules.
- Existing competition.
- The guest experience after booking.
On top of that, Secrt Escalante and Babylon are in different buildings and different areas. That’s why this comparison should be read as a business benchmark, not as a controlled experiment.
The responsible conclusion is this:
The Secrt Escalante apartment had a strong launch, backed by professional photography, active management and the right business strategy.
Photography was part of the system that allowed the property to be presented properly from the start, but it shouldn’t be seen as the only factor behind its occupancy.
Why is professional photography so important for a new Airbnb?
When you list a new property, you don’t have reviews to back up a guest’s decision yet. At that point, photos become one of the main things people use to evaluate your rental.
A professional shoot can help you:
- Present every space properly.
- Show that the place is well cared for.
- Reduce doubts about the property.
- Better show the layout.
- Stand out in search results.
- Create content for Airbnb, social media and websites.
- Support pricing that matches the level of the property.
- Launch with a consistent visual identity.
Photography can’t fix a bad location, the wrong rate or poor management. But it can keep a good property from being presented poorly. It’s also worth saying that photography has many benefits, and one of the biggest for Airbnb as a business is that it helps you compete and gives your property an edge. As the saying goes, «perception is reality,» and the first thing a potential guest sees before they know anything else about an Airbnb is the photos. That’s where the connection starts, and if your photos don’t show the property well, you’re at a disadvantage. In other words, it’s money left on the table.
Why is professional photography so important for a new Airbnb?
When you list a new property, you don’t have reviews to back up a guest’s decision yet. At that point, photos become one of the main things people use to evaluate your rental.
A professional shoot can help you:
- Present every space properly.
- Show that the place is well cared for.
- Reduce doubts about the property.
- Better show the layout.
- Stand out in search results.
- Create content for Airbnb, social media and websites.
- Support pricing that matches the level of the property.
- Launch with a consistent visual identity.
Photography can’t fix a bad location, the wrong rate or poor management. But it can keep a good property from being presented poorly. It’s also worth saying that photography has many benefits, and one of the biggest for Airbnb as a business is that it helps you compete and gives your property an edge. As the saying goes, «perception is reality,» and the first thing a potential guest sees before they know anything else about an Airbnb is the photos. That’s where the connection starts, and if your photos don’t show the property well, you’re at a disadvantage. In other words, it’s money left on the table.
Why photo curation (editing) matters
A key part of any professional Airbnb photography service is curating every image. It’s not just about taking the photo; it’s about taking care of the details so the property looks clear, appealing and true to life.
Without the right technical know-how and equipment, important things can get lost, for example:
- Outdoor views that are too bright or “blown out.”
- Lamp and furniture details you can’t make out.
- Distracting reflections on windows and glass.
- Spaces that look darker or flatter than they really are.
- Crooked vertical and horizontal lines.
Fixing these things helps the image feel more orderly, calm and high quality. When walls, windows or furniture look tilted, a photo can feel sloppy even if the property is in great shape. Photo curation lets you show off the views, control reflections, recover detail and present every space in a cleaner, more professional way.
Project results
The Secrt Escalante apartment shows that a brand-new property can enter the market strong when good management is combined with professional visual presentation.
In its first month on Airbnb, the rental achieved:
- 9 bookings.
- 20 booked nights.
- 67% occupancy.
These results show the apartment was able to capture demand from launch and start building its track record on the platform. For Cool Experience, the shoot also meant adding the property to its portfolio with a professional gallery ready to use in its marketing.
Getting a new property ready for Airbnb?
Launching a rental is an important stage. Posting temporary, incomplete or unappealing photos can hurt how your property is perceived right from the start. A professional Airbnb photo shoot lets you present your rental with more clarity, consistency and perceived value. Learn more about my professional Airbnb photography in Costa Rica and get your property ready to compete from day one.
What should an Airbnb photo shoot include?
Coverage depends on the type of property, but it should usually include:
- Bedrooms.
- Bathrooms.
- Living room.
- Kitchen.
- Dining area.
- Balconies or terraces.
- Views.
- Amenities.
- Outdoor areas.
- Relevant shared spaces.
It can also include drone photos, vertical content, lifestyle images or sessions at different times of day.
Is professional photography only useful for Airbnb?
No. The images can also be used on websites, social media, sales presentations and promotional campaigns, depending on the usage rights agreed upon.
Explore the photography services and process designed for property managers (page in Spanish)
