Where to Go in December 2026: 18 Best Places to Travel

For December 2026, go to Vienna, Nuremberg or Strasbourg for Christmas markets, to Tromsø or Rovaniemi for snow and the polar night, and to Phuket, Tulum or Dubai for winter sun. The 18 places below are grouped by the trip you want, and each comes with its December weather, a mid-range daily budget, whether December is its peak season, and the dates of what is on, read off each organizer's own site in October 2026.

• Christmas markets: Vienna's runs longest, November 13 to December 26; Nuremberg's and Strasbourg's close on December 24.
• Winter sun: Phuket, the Maldives, Tulum, Galle and Dubai all average 27.9 °C (82 °F) or warmer by day.
• Snow and northern lights: Tromsø's polar night runs from about November 27 to January 15.
• Busiest in December: Rovaniemi sees 2.2 times its average month's hotel nights, the highest of the 18.
• Lowest daily cost: Sri Lanka at $56 and El Calafate at $57 a person, mid-range.

December 2026 at a glance

Highs are December averages for 2013 to 2022; budgets are Budget Your Trip's mid-range daily costs per person, updated September 2026; the season compares December with an average month in official tourism statistics. How each was built is at the end.

Christmas markets and winter cities

Five cities put on their best show in December: three of Europe's Christmas markets, New York's tree and Old Québec under snow. All five sit near or below freezing at night. For 17 markets with their Christmas Eve and Christmas Day hours, see the best Christmas markets in Europe.

Vienna, Austria

Best for a Christmas that stays open past the 25th

Vienna turns its City Hall square into the Christkindlmarkt, lit with stalls and an ice rink, and it keeps going after the German markets shut: the market's site gives November 13 to December 26, 2026, daily from 10 am to 10 pm, and 6:30 pm on December 24. On January 1 the Vienna Philharmonic plays its New Year's Concert at the Musikverein.

December brings highs of 5.8 °C (42 °F), lows of 1.1 °C (34 °F) and 43 mm (1.7 in) of rain, the driest of the European cities here. The 3-day Vienna itinerary fits a market weekend and the 7-day itinerary a longer stay.

• Things to do: Klimt's The Kiss at the Upper Belvedere; a standing-room ticket, from €13, at the Vienna State Opera, sold from 10 am online or 80 minutes before the start at the standing-room box office; the Riesenrad, the 64.75 m Ferris wheel at the entrance to the Prater.
• Season: peak. December 2025 brought 2.19 million overnight stays, the only month above 2 million and 1.31 times the average month (Vienna Tourist Board).
• Daily budget: about $199 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: it is the city's busiest month, so book rooms early; in return the market and the Kunsthistorisches Museum stay open on December 25 and 26.
• Eat: Punsch, the hot punch of the markets; Sachertorte; Wiener schnitzel.
• Buy: a snow globe from the Original Wiener Schneekugelmanufaktur, Schumanngasse 87, where they have been made since about 1900.

C.Stadler/Bwag (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Christkindlmarkt in front of City Hall, Vienna

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Nuremberg, Germany

Best for the classic German market and a medieval old town

Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt calls itself one of the oldest Christmas markets in the world, and it fills the Hauptmarkt below the Frauenkirche from an opening ceremony on November 27 at 5:30 pm to December 24, 2026, daily 10 am to 9 pm (market site). Above the old town stands the Imperial Castle, where the medieval kings and emperors stayed.

December averages highs of 5.7 °C (42 °F), lows of 0.1 °C (32 °F) and 75 mm (2.9 in) of rain. For a longer trip, the 10-day Germany, Austria and Czech Republic itinerary links Munich, Salzburg and Prague.

• Things to do: the Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Germany's largest museum of cultural history; the Memorium Nuremberg Trials, above Courtroom 600, where the trials were held; Albrecht Dürer's House, with printmaking demonstrations in a re-created workshop.
• Season: peak. December 2025 had 400,578 overnight stays, 1.24 times the average month (Nuremberg tourism, December 2025 statistics).
• Daily budget: about $146 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: the market ends on December 24, so a Christmas Day visit finds it gone.
• Eat: Nürnberger Lebkuchen, baked in the city since at least 1395; Nürnberger Rostbratwurst, three in a roll ("Drei im Weggla"); Glühwein.
• Buy: Elisenlebkuchen from Lebkuchen-Schmidt, Plobenhofstraße 6, or Wicklein at Hauptmarkt 7.

Magnus Gertkemper (CC BY-SA 2.0 de)

The Frauenkirche above the Christkindlesmarkt, Nuremberg

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Strasbourg, France

Best for a market held since 1570 and half-timbered lanes

Strasbourg has held its Christkindelsmärik around the cathedral since 1570, and its market runs Friday, November 27 to Thursday, December 24, 2026, across the old town (Strasbourg's Christmas site). A 30-meter tree stands on Place Kléber, and the cathedral, the world's tallest building from 1647 to 1874, rises over the stalls.

December averages highs of 7.4 °C (45 °F), lows of 2.2 °C (36 °F) and 84 mm (3.3 in) of rain. The France guide covers the rest of the country.

• Things to do: the three museums of the Palais Rohan, by the cathedral; the canals and half-timbered alleys of La Petite France; the roof terrace of the Barrage Vauban, over the covered bridges.
• Season: peak. The Bas-Rhin department's hotels sold 1.47 times their average month's nights in December 2025 (INSEE tourism data).
• Daily budget: about $197 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: cars are banned from the center and bikes from the market squares during market hours, and the official advice is to come on a weekday morning; on December 24 the stalls close at 6 pm, and none open from December 25 to January 1.
• Eat: vin chaud, traditionally the only alcohol at Alsace's markets; bredele, small Christmas biscuits; choucroute garnie.

mangMangW from Paris, France (CC BY 2.0)

The tree on Place Kléber, Strasbourg

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New York, USA

Best for the tree, the lights and New Year's Eve in Times Square

New York's December starts with the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree, a tradition since 1933, which arrives on November 7 and is lit on Wednesday, December 2, 2026 (Rockefeller Center), and ends with the Times Square ball, which starts its 60-second drop at 11:59 pm on December 31 (Times Square).

December averages highs of 8.0 °C (46 °F), lows of 0.3 °C (33 °F) and 104 mm (4.1 in) of rain. The 3-day New York itinerary covers the city.

• Things to do: the Christmas light displays of Dyker Heights in Brooklyn; the Rockettes' 90-minute Christmas Spectacular at Radio City, staged since 1933; skating at Wollman Rink in Central Park, open from late October to early April.
• Season: no official monthly figure; the city's hotels ran at 84.1% occupancy across 2025 (New York State Comptroller).
• Daily budget: about $363 a person, mid-range, the highest here (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: on December 31 the police close Times Square from 43rd Street northward as it fills, and the ball goes up about 6 pm, so the crowd stands for hours.
• Eat: hot pastrami on rye, as at Katz's (since 1888); a bagel with lox, as at Russ & Daughters (since 1914); New York cheesecake.
• Buy: a book or tote from the Strand, 828 Broadway.

Anthony Quintano from Mount Laurel, United States (CC BY 2.0)

The tree and the rink at Rockefeller Center, New York

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Quebec City, Canada

Best for a snowy UNESCO old town before Christmas

Old Québec, a UNESCO site of upper and lower towns under the Château Frontenac, looks its part in December, with snow on the roofs and the German Christmas Market from November 19 to December 23, 2026, open Thursday to Sunday plus December 21 to 23 (Québec City tourism).

December is the coldest of the market cities, at highs of −1.7 °C (29 °F), lows of −9.5 °C (15 °F), with 116 mm (4.5 in) of rain and snow.

• Things to do: the Musée de la civilisation in Old Québec; the boutiques of Rue du Petit-Champlain, in what is claimed to be North America's oldest commercial district; Montmorency Falls, 83 m high and 30 m higher than Niagara.
• Season: shoulder. Region-wide hotel occupancy in December 2025 matched the yearly 67.7%, though the holiday fortnight of December 19 to January 3 hit a record 80.4% (Destination Québec cité).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure ($152) is left out: its mid-range double room sits below 90% of the same page's off-season hotel price.
• Trade-off: the market is closed Monday to Wednesday until December 21 and ends on December 23, before Christmas Eve.
• Eat: tourtière, the meat pie of the Christmas réveillon; tire sur la neige, maple syrup poured on snow; pouding chômeur.
• Buy: ornaments from La Boutique de Noël, 47 rue de Buade.

Bernard Gagnon (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Old Québec above the frozen St. Lawrence, Quebec City

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December festivals and New Year

Lyon, France

Best for a festival of lights and a food city

For four nights each December, the Fête des Lumières covers Lyon's buildings in light, and on December 8 homes put candles in their windows: the 2026 festival runs Saturday, December 5 to Tuesday, December 8 (festival site). The rest of the trip is food: the critic Curnonsky called Lyon the capital of gastronomy in the 1930s, and Vieux Lyon is one of Europe's largest Renaissance districts.

December averages highs of 8.9 °C (48 °F), lows of 2.8 °C (37 °F) and 89 mm (3.5 in) of rain. The France guide covers the region.

• Things to do: the Roman theater on the hill of Fourvière, the Ancient Theatre of Fourvière; the Musée des Confluences, where the Rhône meets the Saône; the silk weavers' traboules of Croix-Rousse, such as the Cour des Voraces.
• Season: shoulder. The Rhône department's hotel nights in December 2025 matched an average month (INSEE tourism data).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure ($180) is left out: its mid-range double room sits below 90% of the same page's off-season hotel price.
• Trade-off: the festival is four nights; outside them, December Lyon is a quiet food city with the wettest weather of the French picks.
• Eat: quenelles de brochet; cervelle de canut, the silk weavers' herbed cheese; rosette de Lyon.
• Buy: rosette from the charcutiers at Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse.

AlSepPhoenix (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Fourvière basilica during the Fête des Lumières, Lyon

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Edinburgh, UK

Best for Hogmanay and a castle city at New Year

Edinburgh's Hogmanay opens with a torchlight procession of about 15,000 people on December 29, 2026 at 6:30 pm and ends with the street party on December 31 from 8 pm (Edinburgh's Hogmanay). The Old and New Towns below the castle are a UNESCO site.

December averages highs of 8.0 °C (46 °F), lows of 2.3 °C (36 °F) with 92 mm (3.6 in) of rain over about 13 wet days. The 3-day Edinburgh itinerary and the Scotland guide cover the city and beyond.

• Things to do: the climb up Arthur's Seat, 250.5 m and relatively easy, for views over the city; the free National Museum of Scotland; the Royal Yacht Britannia, berthed at Ocean Terminal in Leith.
• Season: shoulder. December 2024 hotel and serviced-apartment occupancy was about 80%, against 84.1% for the year (City of Edinburgh Council).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure ($226) is left out: its mid-range double room sits below 90% of the same page's off-season hotel price.
• Trade-off: Edinburgh Castle closes at 4 pm on December 24 and stays shut on December 25 and 26 (Edinburgh Castle).
• Eat: haggis, neeps and tatties; cullen skink, a smoked haddock soup.
• Buy: a single malt from Cadenhead's, 172 Canongate, an independent bottler since 1842.

Alasdair (CC BY 2.0)

The Christmas market and big wheel in Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh

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Snow, northern lights and skiing

Rovaniemi, Finland

Best for Santa, snow and the blue light of the polar night

Rovaniemi sits on the Arctic Circle, which runs through Santa Claus Village about 8 km northeast of the center, where the Santa Claus Office is open daily from 8 am to 8 pm from November 30, 2026 to January 3, 2027 (Santa Claus Village). In late December the sun does not rise, and midday is a few hours of blue twilight (Visit Rovaniemi).

December averages highs of −3.3 °C (26 °F), lows of −9.6 °C (15 °F).

• Things to do: the Arktikum, a museum of Arctic culture and life; a reindeer sleigh ride through the snowy forest; the Ounasvaara ski center, across the river from town.
• Season: peak, the busiest of all 18. December 2025 had 2.2 times the average month's hotel nights (Statistics Finland).
• Daily budget: about $234 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: it is the year's peak, so rooms go first; in return the Santa Claus Office stays open through Christmas.
• Eat: poronkäristys, sautéed reindeer with lingonberries; leipäjuusto, a squeaky baked cheese with cloudberry jam; glögi.
• Buy: Christmas decorations from the Christmas House Shop in Santa Claus Village.

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Santa Claus Village in snow, Rovaniemi

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Tromsø, Norway

Best for northern lights in the polar night

Tromsø is at its darkest in December: the polar night lasts from about November 27 to January 15, so northern lights can show whenever the sky clears, and the aurora season runs from late August to early April (Visit Tromsø). The Arctic Cathedral, the Fjellheisen cable car and whale watching from November to January fill the short days.

December averages highs of 3.5 °C (38 °F), lows of −0.1 °C (32 °F) with 109 mm (4.3 in) of rain and snow over about 14 days. The Norway guide covers the rest of the country.

• Things to do: the bearded seals at Polaria, the Arctic aquarium; the Polar Museum, in an 1837 wharf house, on Arctic hunting and expeditions; a husky tour at Tromsø Villmarkssenter, a kennel on Kvaløya.
• Season: peak. December 2025 was the year's top month for hotel guest nights, 1.53 times the average (Statistics Norway).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure for Tromsø ($85) sits below its own hotel prices, so it is left out; plan on Norwegian city prices.
• Trade-off: northern lights need clear skies, and December brings about 14 days of precipitation.
• Eat: pinnekjøtt, salted and dried lamb ribs for Christmas; lutefisk; a beer at Ølhallen, open since 1928.

Andi Gentsch (CC BY-SA 2.0)

Northern lights over the mountains, Tromsø

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Zermatt, Switzerland

Best for early-season skiing below the Matterhorn

Zermatt opens the ski season in the shadow of the 4,478-meter Matterhorn, with Winter Opening Weeks from November 1 to December 6, 2026 that take 10% off stays of four nights or more and off the Flex Ski Pass (Zermatt tourism). The Gornergrat rack railway climbs from the car-free village to the views above it.

December averages highs of 0.8 °C (33 °F), lows of −6.2 °C (21 °F). The Swiss Alps itinerary and the Switzerland guide cover the region.

• Things to do: the cable car to Klein Matterhorn, at 3,883 m the highest point in Europe reachable by lift; the Matterhorn Museum, a rebuilt mountain village of 14 houses; the Sunnegga funicular, running since 1980.
• Season: peak. December 2025 had 1.22 times the average month's hotel stays (Swiss Federal Statistical Office).
• Daily budget: about $292 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: the opening-week discount ends on December 6, before the holiday weeks.
• Eat: cheese fondue; raclette du Valais; cholera, a Valais pie of potato, apple, leek and cheese.

JoachimKohler-HB (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The Matterhorn in winter, Zermatt

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Warm places to go in December

Eight places here are warm or mild in December, from El Calafate at 18.3 °C (65 °F) by day to Phuket at 32.2 °C (90 °F). Rain varies far more than heat: Dubai gets 5 mm (0.2 in) in the month, Galle 203 mm (8.0 in).

Dubai, UAE

Best for dry winter sun and the Shopping Festival

Dubai is the driest beach trip on this list in December, with about 5 mm (0.2 in) of rain, highs of 27.9 °C (82 °F), lows of 16.3 °C (61 °F) and a 25.6 °C (78 °F) sea. The Dubai Shopping Festival runs from December 4, 2026 to January 17, 2027 (Visit Dubai), and the Burj Khalifa and the Dubai Fountain on its lake are the city's set pieces.

• Things to do: the lanes of the Al Fahidi district, built from the 1890s; a wooden abra across Dubai Creek; the Museum of the Future, in its ring-shaped building lettered with an Arabic poem.
• Season: peak. December 2025 brought 2.04 million international overnight visitors, the first month above 2 million and 1.25 times the average (Dubai Media Office).
• Daily budget: about $289 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: record demand in December; rooms cost more than in the summer.
• Eat: luqaimat, fried dough with date syrup; machboos, spiced rice with meat or fish; karak chai.
• Buy: 22-karat gold at the Gold Souk in Deira.

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Dubai Marina, Dubai

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Cape Town, South Africa

Best for summer days on the peninsula

December is Cape Town's summer, with highs of 24.4 °C (76 °F), lows of 15.1 °C (59 °F) and 20 mm (0.8 in) of rain, and the city opens up: the Table Mountain cableway climbs to the top in about five minutes, the penguins at Boulders Beach are a drive away, and the HSBC SVNS rugby sevens play on December 5 and 6, 2026 at DHL Stadium (Cape Town tourism). The 5-day Cape Town itinerary lays out the peninsula.

• Things to do: Robben Island, the prison island and UNESCO site; a Sunday evening Summer Sunset Concert at Kirstenbosch; the hour-long walk up Lion's Head, popular at full moon.
• Season: peak. International passengers at Cape Town airport in December 2023 were 1.36 times the average month, the nearest official measure (Wesgro).
• Daily budget: about $187 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: the Atlantic stays cool at 16.8 °C (62 °F), so the beaches are for looking more than swimming.
• Eat: bobotie, spiced baked mince; a gatsby, the giant sandwich invented in Athlone in 1976; malva pudding.
• Buy: beaded wire art at the Greenmarket Square market.

Matthias Bethke (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Camps Bay, Cape Town

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Phuket, Thailand

Best for dry-season beaches and island boat trips

December starts Phuket's dry season, which runs to March, and brings highs of 32.2 °C (90 °F), lows of 23.5 °C (74 °F) with a 29.0 °C (84 °F) sea. The King's Cup Regatta sails from December 5 to 12, 2026 (King's Cup), Phuket Old Town keeps its Sino-Portuguese shophouses, and the island's food culture earned it a UNESCO City of Gastronomy title in 2015. The Thailand islands itinerary and the Thailand guide cover the coast.

• Things to do: Wat Chalong, one of Phuket's 29 Buddhist temples; a boat among the limestone islands and caves of Phang Nga Bay; a day on the Similan Islands, with boats from mid-October to mid-May.
• Season: peak. The province's accommodation guests in December 2025 were 1.15 times the average month (Thailand's Ministry of Tourism and Sports).
• Daily budget: about $134 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: the ten-year December average still holds 122 mm (4.8 in) of rain over about 12 wet days, so the early weeks can bring showers.
• Eat: moo hong, braised pork belly; khanom chin, rice noodles with curry; oh tao, a fried oyster and taro omelette.

Anton Zelenov (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Banana Beach, Phuket

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Tulum, Mexico

Best for Maya ruins and the warm Caribbean

Tulum's Maya walled city stands on cliffs above the Caribbean, and inland lies Sistema Sac Actun, one of the longest known underwater cave systems. December brings highs of 30.2 °C (86 °F), lows of 19.6 °C (67 °F), a 27.9 °C (82 °F) sea and 67 mm (2.6 in) of rain, and the Zamna festival marks its tenth year with a New Year's Eve show (Zamna).

• Things to do: the 42 m Nohoch Mul pyramid at Cobá; the wetlands and lagoons of Sian Ka'an, a UNESCO site since 1987; snorkeling with green sea turtles at Akumal.
• Season: shoulder, just under peak. Hotel occupancy in December 2025 was 75.1% against a 69.1% average (Quintana Roo tourism).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure ($144) is left out: its mid-range double room sits below 90% of the same page's off-season hotel price.
• Trade-off: January to March run busier than December, so December is the cheaper end of the dry season.
• Eat: cochinita pibil, slow-roasted pork; sopa de lima; marquesitas, crisp rolled crêpes with cheese, all from the Yucatán peninsula.

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The ruins above the beach, Tulum

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Maldives

Best for reefs and overwater villas

The Maldives is 26 atolls across the equator, and December brings highs of 30.9 °C (88 °F), lows of 26.5 °C (80 °F) and a 28.9 °C (84 °F) sea as the northeast monsoon sets in. It is a trip for water: reefs, sandbanks and overwater villas.

• Things to do: the coral-stone Malé Friday Mosque, completed in 1658; the National Museum in Sultan Park, on the old royal palace grounds; snorkeling with the whale sharks that live all year in South Ari Atoll.
• Season: peak. December 2025 was the highest month for arrivals ever recorded, about 1.2 times the average month (Visit Maldives).
• Daily budget: $350 a person, mid-range, at guesthouse level (Budget Your Trip); resort islands cost far more, plus seaplane or speedboat transfers.
• Trade-off: the ten-year December average at Malé still holds 183 mm (7.2 in) of rain over about 16 wet days.
• Eat: mas huni, tuna and coconut for breakfast; garudhiya, a clear tuna broth; hedhikaa, short eats.

Matheenfaiz (CC BY-SA 4.0)

A resort island from the air, Maldives

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Galle, Sri Lanka

Best for a Dutch fort town on a warm sea

Galle Fort, built by the Portuguese in 1588 and fortified by the Dutch from 1649, is a UNESCO site of ramparts, a lighthouse and lanes of old houses on the south coast. December brings highs of 29.9 °C (86 °F), lows of 23.7 °C (75 °F) and a 28.8 °C (84 °F) sea. The 10-day Sri Lanka itinerary covers the island.

• Things to do: the Groote Kerk, the Dutch church of 1755 inside the fort; the Peace Pagoda on the headland between Unawatuna and Galle; a whale-watching boat from Mirissa, one of Sri Lanka's main whale-watching ports.
• Season: peak for the country. Sri Lanka's December 2025 arrivals were 1.32 times the average month (Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority).
• Daily budget: about $56 a person, mid-range, the national figure (Budget Your Trip).
• Trade-off: the wettest of the 18: 203 mm (8.0 in) over about 18 wet days in an average December.
• Eat: lamprais, rice and curries baked in banana leaf by the Dutch Burghers; kottu roti; hoppers.
• Buy: a handloom sarong from Barefoot, 41 Pedlar Street, inside the fort.

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Galle Fort's lighthouse, Galle

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Jaipur, India

Best for forts and palaces in mild, dry weather

Jaipur is mild and dry in December, with highs of 24.1 °C (75 °F), lows of 9.1 °C (48 °F) and 5 mm (0.2 in) of rain, good weather for the 953 windows of Hawa Mahal and the Amber Fort, part of the UNESCO-listed Hill Forts of Rajasthan. The Jaipur Literature Festival follows in January, from January 14 to 18, 2027 (festival site).

• Things to do: the 19 stone instruments of Jantar Mantar; the City Palace museum, still home to the royal family; sunset from Nahargarh Fort, on the ridge above the city.
• Season: peak for the country. India's December 2024 foreign arrivals were 1.28 times the average month (Ministry of Tourism, India Tourism Statistics 2025).
• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's figure for Jaipur ($20) sits below its own hotel prices, so it is left out.
• Trade-off: nights fall to 9.1 °C (48 °F), so pack a layer for early starts.
• Eat: dal baati churma; laal maas, a red chili mutton curry.
• Buy: hand-block-printed cotton from Anokhi, a Jaipur maker since 1970.

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Hawa Mahal, Jaipur

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El Calafate, Argentina

Best for Patagonian summer and glacier days

December is summer in Patagonia, and El Calafate is the gateway to Los Glaciares National Park, a UNESCO site, and the Perito Moreno Glacier, which periodically dams a lake arm and ruptures. December brings highs of 18.3 °C (65 °F), lows of 6.4 °C (44 °F) and 76 mm (3.0 in) of rain. The Patagonia guide and the 10-day Patagonia itinerary cover the region.

• Things to do: the Glaciarium, a museum of glaciers and the Southern Patagonian Ice Field; birdwatching at the Laguna Nimez nature reserve; a day at a sheep estancia, with shearing, riding and an asado.
• Season: peak. December was 1.51 times the average month's hotel stays over the latest twelve months published (INDEC via Argentina's tourism ministry).
• Daily budget: about $57 a person, mid-range (Budget Your Trip); prices move with Argentina's inflation.
• Trade-off: the far south is a long way from anywhere, and a December day can turn from sun to rain.
• Eat: cordero patagónico al palo, lamb roasted on a stake; calafate berry ice cream.

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The face of the Perito Moreno Glacier, El Calafate

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Where to spend Christmas

For a Christmas that is still open on December 25, Vienna and Rovaniemi are the picks: Vienna's City Hall market runs until December 26 and its Kunsthistorisches Museum opens on December 25 and 26 (museum), and Rovaniemi's Santa Claus Office keeps its daily hours through Christmas. The warm places carry on as usual.

Most of the market cities close early:

For New Year's Eve, Edinburgh's Hogmanay and the Times Square ball are the two big crowds; Zamna holds its New Year's Eve show in Tulum.

Where should you go in December with kids?

For a beach week with kids, Phuket, Tulum and Dubai pair warm sea, 25.6 °C (78 °F) to 29.0 °C (84 °F); Dubai is the driest. For a Christmas trip, Rovaniemi's Santa Claus Village is open daily from November 30, and Vienna's market runs past Christmas Day.

How the places were chosen

The 18 places come from the destinations most often recommended for December in the top search results checked in October 2026, kept where measured weather and dated events back them up. Highs, lows and rain are monthly averages for 2013 to 2022 from MonkeyEatingMango's city climate records, with temperatures from TerraClimate, rain from the ERA5 reanalysis and sea temperatures from ERA5. Grid averages can differ from a single weather station, and coastal rain in particular can read high.

• Daily budget: Budget Your Trip's mid-range average per person per day, from traveler-reported costs (room shared by two, food, local transport and entertainment; flights and alcohol excluded), pages updated September 2026. Where its mid-range double room fell below 90% of the same page's off-season hotel price (Quebec City, Lyon, Edinburgh, Tulum, Tromsø, Jaipur), the figure is left out.
• Season: December divided by the average month in the latest full year of official tourism statistics, from city figures where they exist and regional or national ones where not, as each entry states. Peak is 1.10 or more, shoulder 0.90 to 1.10, low below 0.90.
• Dates: each event date was read off the organizer's or tourism board's own site on October 23 and 24, 2026.
• Food and shopping: checked against the place's tourism board, the shop's own site or an encyclopedia entry.
• Photos: from Wikimedia Commons, taken in the season where possible, with the photographer and license on each.

The same climate records feed the weather section of every MonkeyEatingMango trip plan, and the free packing list generator uses them to pick the weather gear for a destination's month. For the next month, see where to go in January.

Pick a place and a week, and the planner writes the days, with a time and a cost on every stop: plan a December trip.

Last updated October 2026.