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How to Get More Weekday Bookings at Your Property

Weekdays can be a tough sell for many short-term rental hosts. While weekends tend to fill up quickly, Mondays through Thursdays often remain underbooked. These empty nights mean missed income—but they don’t have to. With a few smart adjustments, you can boost your weekday booking rates and improve your property’s overall performance.

This guide offers simple, effective strategies designed to help hosts like you attract more weekday guests and keep your calendar consistently full.

Why Weekday Bookings Matter

Weekday bookings are often the key to achieving consistent cash flow and higher occupancy throughout the month. While weekends bring predictable peaks, it's the midweek nights that typically remain underutilized. Each unbooked weekday represents a missed opportunity to earn, especially if your fixed costs—like cleaning, utilities, or mortgage payments—remain the same regardless of how many nights are booked.

By increasing weekday reservations, you create more stable income, reduce calendar gaps, and improve your property’s overall performance metrics. Consistently high occupancy, including during the week, can also improve your visibility on platforms like Airbnb and Booking.com, making it easier to attract even more guests over time.

How to get more weekday bookings

Want to make your weekdays as profitable as your weekends? These practical tips can help you turn midweek gaps into consistent bookings.

1. Target Longer-Term Bookings by Adjusting Minimum Stay Rules

Flexible minimum stay requirements can significantly increase weekday occupancy. Guests traveling for work, relocation, or study often need places for just a few nights—or longer stays during the week.

What you can do:

Allow one- or two-night bookings on weekdays
Offer discounts for 5+ night stays to attract digital nomads or traveling professionals
Open availability for shoulder days like Monday or Thursday to extend weekend stays

These small adjustments make your property more appealing to a broader range of guests who travel midweek.

2. Promote Nearby Events and Conferences

Weekday travel often centers around scheduled events—conferences, trade shows, training programs, or even concerts.

To capture this demand:

Research local weekday events and update your listing with relevant keywords (e.g. “Close to Convention Center”)
Mention flexible check-in/check-out options for business or event travelers
Add calendar notes or titles like “Ideal for [this] Conference Attendees” to highlight relevance

Even adding a sentence about event proximity can push your listing to the top of search results for targeted guests.

3. Offer Last-Minute Discounts to Fill Gaps

If you’re facing empty weekdays just days ahead, last-minute discounts can help fill the space and generate income instead of letting nights go unbooked.

Ideas to try:

Enable automatic last-minute discounts on Airbnb or Booking.com
Promote same-week availability on social media or local travel forums
Use your listing title to highlight urgency, e.g. “Last-Minute Deal: Midweek Rate Drop!”

Make sure to balance price drops with your base rate to protect profitability while increasing occupancy.

4. Create Special Weekday Rates and Packages

Weekday guests often need a reason to book, especially if your property is not in a tourist-heavy area. Offering value-driven packages can make your listing more attractive than others with standard nightly pricing.

Consider options like:

“Stay 3 Nights, Get 1 Free” weekday-only deals
Complimentary perks (e.g., free breakfast basket, extended checkout, parking)
Midweek staycation packages for locals

Make sure to update your listing description to reflect the deal clearly so guests can see it immediately when browsing.

5. Optimize Your Calendar and Availability

A well-maintained calendar plays a big role in getting weekday reservations. Some hosts miss out on bookings simply because their calendar isn't up to date or is blocked unintentionally.

Best practices:

Keep your calendar open at least 3–6 months in advance
Remove strict weekend-only settings (e.g., Friday-only check-in)
Use tools like channel managers to sync availability across platforms
Make small, regular updates to your listing to keep it active in the algorithm

An active and flexible calendar improves search visibility and increases chances of being booked.

6. Target the Right Audience with Tailored Messaging

Weekday guests aren’t always tourists. Your listing should appeal to groups more likely to travel during the week.

Some common weekday traveler types:

Remote workers looking for quiet, functional spaces with strong WiFi
Business travelers needing short-term, weekday stays close to offices
Locals seeking quiet staycations or work-from-home alternatives

Update your listing to reflect these benefits. Mention a desk or workspace, walkable restaurants, or relaxing weekday vibes. Use phrases like “perfect for remote work” or “ideal midweek stay.”

7. Collect Reviews from Weekday Guests

Social proof works. When potential guests see others enjoying weekday stays at your property, they feel more confident booking their own.

How to get better reviews:

Ask weekday guests to mention their purpose of stay in reviews
Highlight reviews that speak to work trips, midweek peace, or local convenience
Respond to weekday reviews with appreciation and a few keywords to boost visibility

These testimonials help future guests feel reassured your place suits weekday needs.

8. Track Results and Improve Over Time

To keep improving weekday performance, monitor your metrics and be willing to test new approaches.

What to track:

Weekday vs. weekend occupancy rate
Success of midweek promotions or rate changes
Guest types and how they find your property

Make regular adjustments based on trends. Even minor changes—like updating your description or shifting prices—can lead to better results over time.

Conclusion

Filling your calendar during the week doesn’t require a complete strategy overhaul. Instead, focus on refining your offering, promoting flexibility, and speaking directly to weekday travelers. Whether it's remote workers, conference attendees, or locals looking for a midweek break, your property has value to offer.

With the right adjustments—like flexible minimum stays, targeted promotions, and optimized listings—you’ll start seeing more weekday reservations and stronger overall performance.