Tourism in Costa Rica Records Its First Broad-Based Decline of 2026

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Costa Rica recorded its first generalized decline in international arrivals of 2026 in August, marking a change from the growth pattern seen during the first months of the year.

According to the latest analysis by the Centro de Estudios del Turismo (CET), 171,602 international visitors arrived by air in August 2026, 5.9% fewer than in August 2025. When all entry points are included, total arrivals reached 189,772, representing a year-on-year decline of 5.1%.

Despite the August result, cumulative air arrivals from January through August still reached 2,025,032 visitors, 5.8% above the same period in 2025. Much of this accumulated growth reflects the strong performance recorded during the first quarter of the year.

The U.S. market explains most of the decline

The most significant change came from the United States, Costa Rica’s largest international source market.

Arrivals from the United States fell 13.7% in August, to 90,560 visitors across all entry points. Because U.S. travelers accounted for close to half of arrivals during the month, this decline was large enough to explain the overall contraction.

Other markets performed differently. Canada grew 17.9%, Mexico 9.2%, South America 8.8%, and Europe 2.9%. Central America declined 3.2%.

This mixed performance is important. August was not characterized by a generalized decline across all international markets. Instead, the result was heavily influenced by the performance of the U.S. market, while several other source regions continued to grow.

Both main airports declined for the first time this year

August was also the first month of 2026 in which both of Costa Rica’s main international airports registered year-on-year declines.

Juan Santamaría International Airport received 124,723 international visitors, 6.1% fewer than in August 2025. This was its fifth consecutive month of negative year-on-year growth.

Daniel Oduber Quirós International Airport in Liberia received 46,836 visitors, a decline of 5.3%. This ended a seven-month period of growth, during which most monthly increases had been in double digits.

The change in Liberia is particularly relevant because the airport had been one of the main drivers of national growth during the first part of the year.

Are Americans simply traveling less?

One of the questions examined in CET Technical Note 14 is whether the reduction in U.S. arrivals reflects a broader decline in international travel by Americans or a change that is more specific to Costa Rica.

Data from the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office show that outbound air travel by U.S. citizens declined 3.3% in August 2026 compared with the same month a year earlier. It was the third consecutive month of year-on-year decline in U.S. international air departures.

However, the reduction in U.S. arrivals to Costa Rica was considerably larger at 13.7%.

This difference suggests that weaker U.S. outbound travel is part of the context, but it does not fully explain Costa Rica’s August result. The performance also varied across destinations: some countries in the region continued to increase their U.S. arrivals while others recorded declines.

A change that requires continued monitoring

The August figures should not be interpreted in isolation.

Costa Rica continues to show positive cumulative growth for the year, but recent monthly results point to a slower pace than at the beginning of 2026. The combination of weaker arrivals from the United States and simultaneous declines at both major airports makes the performance of the coming months especially relevant.

CET Technical Note 14 also identifies another signal that may help explain what is happening: changes in the international air capacity scheduled for Costa Rica. That analysis, together with the CET’s updated outlook for the coming months, forms part of the full report.