The biggest weeks for Philippine short-term rentals are Holy Week, the summer months, and Christmas to New Year, plus your own town's fiesta. Price those weeks higher, set them up months ahead, and add minimum-stay rules so one-night bookings do not break up your best dates.
The weeks to plan for
- Holy Week. The dates move every year with Easter. In 2027, Maundy Thursday is March 25 and Good Friday is March 26, and many families travel for the whole long weekend.
- Summer. March to May, when schools are out. Beach and mountain areas stay busy for weeks at a time.
- Christmas and New Year. From mid-December through the first days of January, when families come home and gather.
- Long weekends. Holidays that fall next to a weekend fill up quickly. Check the official holiday list each year, because some dates are only announced a few months ahead.
- Local festivals. These bring the most demand to one place. Cebu's Sinulog and Kalibo's Ati-Atihan are in January, Baguio's Panagbenga in February, Davao's Kadayawan in August, and Bacolod's MassKara in October. Confirm each year's dates with the city or organizers, since they shift.
Set peak prices months ahead
Guests book popular weeks early. If your Christmas rates are still at normal prices in September, the first people to book get a bargain and you lose the difference for the season. Set peak rates for the whole year once, then adjust as dates fill.
Two ways to price a season:
- A fixed nightly price, for example ₱4,500 a night during Holy Week.
- A percentage uplift on your normal rate, for example 30% more. This keeps your peak prices in step if you change your normal rate later.
Use stay rules, not just price
On the busiest dates, price alone is not enough. A one-night booking in the middle of Christmas week can leave empty nights on either side that nobody wants.
- Minimum stay. Require three or four nights over Holy Week or New Year.
- No arrivals on certain days. Stop guests arriving on a day that would leave an unsellable gap.
- No departures on certain days. Useful when a turnover on that day would be hard to staff.
- Close dates entirely for repairs, a family visit, or your own holiday.
How to set it up in UpaKwarto
In Rates, open a unit and add a season for each peak period. Each season can have a fixed price or a percentage uplift, its own minimum stay, and rules that close it to arrivals or departures, or close it completely. A season's price replaces both your normal and your weekend price for the nights it covers, so set it to what you want every night of that season to cost. Prices on your direct booking page are calculated from these rules, so they are always current.
Booking sites keep their own prices. UpaKwarto's calendar links carry dates, not prices, so set the same seasons on Airbnb, Booking.com and Agoda too.
Before peak season starts
- Set next year's seasons now, while dates are still open.
- Make sure every booking site's calendar is connected; peak weeks are when double bookings happen most.
- Line up extra cleaning help for back-to-back turnovers; a simple checklist with photos keeps standards up when you are busy.