Feb. 27, 2013--The main vacation period in Costa Rica, between December and January, showed low income for hotels in the country.

A survey by the National Chamber of Tourism (CANATUR) of 152 hosting companies across the country found that 40 percent deemed hotel occupancy during that period as "regular," while 30 percent considered it "poor," 12 percent said it was "good," and only 7.3 percent said it was "very good."

The research also found that most Ticos who traveled during this period opted for one- and two-star hotels.

Establishments with fewer than 100 rooms were occupied at a rate of 62.9 percent, while hotels with more than 200 rooms had occupation rates of 15.6 percent.

The Pacific provinces of Guanacaste and Puntarenas were the regions with the highest percentage of local tourism, while the Northern Region, the Central Valley and the Caribbean were the least visited.

The beach is the preferred destination of Ticos, and hotels in these areas reported 41 percent occupancy during the period surveyed.

The CANATUR study was conducted during the first and second week of February.

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