Climate study · 10 years of data · 2026-2027

Where to go in December

Tuesday 1 December 2026 to Thursday 31 December 2026, 31 days.

Ranked day by day over 2016-2025 where daily records exist, otherwise on monthly averages.

Your dates
31 days
Shortcuts:
Type of trip
Afternoon temperature
Budget on the ground

Cost of living, by country (Numbeo 2026 index). Flights are not included.

Safety

Country level (the stricter of the French and German foreign ministries). Some regions may be rated more severely: check before booking.

Safest bet
Luxor
Nearly dry 10 years out of 10, 24.4 °C, ≈ 5h25 flight.
Closest dry option
Merzouga
≈ 3h25 flight from London, 18.0 °C, ≈ 0.9 rainy days out of 31.
Cheapest dry option
Jodhpur
Cost of living: 💚 budget, 25.5 °C, nearly dry 10 years out of 10.
Great place, wrong dates
Darwin
Excellent in July (9.5/10), but 14.9 rainy days out of 31 on these dates.

Top 25 · General weather · December

636 of 686 destinations analysed match your criteria.
1
PerthAustralia · 14,479 km
🟢 Normal🟠 Expensive
28.0 °CSea 23.5 °C · ≈ 17h45 flight
≈ 1.9 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.7/10Guide
2
SantiagoChile · 11,673 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
29.0 °C≈ 14h30 flight
Less than one rainy day out of 31 (monthly average)
9.7/10Guide
3
DakarSenegal · 4,376 km
🟢 Normal🟡 Moderate
28.0 °CSea 25.5 °C · ≈ 5h55 flight
Less than one rainy day out of 31 (monthly average)
9.3/10Guide
4
JodhpurIndia · 6,610 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
25.5 °C≈ 8h30 flight
Nearly dry 10 years out of 10 · 0.3 rainy days out of 31
9.3/10Guide
5
Chiang MaiThailand · 8,991 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
27.4 °C≈ 11h20 flight
Nearly dry 9 years out of 10 · 1.2 rainy days out of 31
9.2/10Guide
6
DjiboutiDjibouti · 5,899 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
28.0 °C≈ 7h40 flight
≈ 0.9 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.2/10Guide
7
KarachiPakistan · 6,309 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
26.0 °C≈ 8h10 flight
≈ 0.6 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.2/10Guide
8
MendozaArgentina · 11,520 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
29.9 °C≈ 14h20 flight
Nearly dry 7 years out of 10 · 2.8 rainy days out of 31
9.2/10Guide
9
AswanEgypt · 4,144 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
24.0 °C≈ 5h40 flight
Less than one rainy day out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
10
Cabo San LucasMexico · 9,303 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
27.0 °CSea 25.9 °C · ≈ 11h40 flight
≈ 0.9 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
11
Koh ChangThailand · 9,801 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
28.0 °CSea 29.3 °C · ≈ 12h15 flight
≈ 2.5 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
12
Marsa AlamEgypt · 4,171 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
24.4 °CSea 24.2 °C · ≈ 5h40 flight
Nearly dry 10 years out of 10 · 0.3 rainy days out of 31
9.1/10Guide
13
MysoreIndia · 8,028 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
28.0 °C≈ 10h10 flight
≈ 2.5 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
14
OaxacaMexico · 8,976 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
26.0 °C≈ 11h20 flight
≈ 0.6 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
15
VientianeLaos · 9,299 km
🟢 Normal💚 Budget
28.0 °C≈ 11h40 flight
≈ 0.9 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.1/10Guide
16
LuxorEgypt · 3,982 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
24.4 °C≈ 5h25 flight
Nearly dry 10 years out of 10 · 0.0 rainy days out of 31
9.0/10Guide
17
NouakchottMauritania · 3,970 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
30.0 °C≈ 5h25 flight
Less than one rainy day out of 31 (monthly average)
9.0/10Guide
18
Puerto VallartaMexico · 9,213 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
27.0 °CSea 26.8 °C · ≈ 11h35 flight
≈ 1.6 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
9.0/10Guide
19
Chiang RaiThailand · 8,949 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
26.0 °C≈ 11h15 flight
≈ 1.9 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
8.9/10Guide
20
GondarEthiopia · 5,483 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
24.0 °C≈ 7h10 flight
≈ 0.6 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
8.9/10Guide
21
HampiIndia · 7,756 km
🟡 High vigilance💚 Budget
29.8 °C≈ 9h50 flight
Nearly dry 10 years out of 10 · 1.6 rainy days out of 31
8.9/10Guide
22
Hua HinThailand · 9,600 km
🟡 High vigilance💛 Affordable
29.0 °CSea 28.3 °C · ≈ 12h05 flight
≈ 1.2 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
8.9/10Guide
23
Cape TownSouth Africa · 9,671 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
24.0 °CSea 14.2 °C · ≈ 12h10 flight
Nearly dry 6 years out of 10 · 3.7 rainy days out of 31
8.9/10Guide
24
AdelaideAustralia · 16,265 km
🟢 Normal🟠 Expensive
25.0 °CSea 22.9 °C · ≈ 19h55 flight
≈ 4.3 rainy days out of 31 (monthly average)
8.8/10Guide
25
Antigua GuatemalaGuatemala · 8,787 km
🟢 Normal💛 Affordable
23.6 °C≈ 11h05 flight
Nearly dry 9 years out of 10 · 1.9 rainy days out of 31
8.8/10Guide
Nearly dry (at most 4 rainy days)5 to 8 daysMore than 8 daysOne square per year (2016 to 2025)No squares: monthly average (daily records still being collected)

Christmas and New Year: where to go for sunshine?

Saturday 19 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027. The best scores at 20 °C and above, with at most 15% rainy days on these dates (safety: up to high vigilance).

  1. 1Santiago ChileLess than one rainy day out of 16 · 29.2 °C · 9.7/10
  2. 2Perth Australia≈ 0.9 rainy days out of 16 · 28.4 °C · 9.7/10
  3. 3Dakar SenegalLess than one rainy day out of 16 · 27.8 °C · 9.3/10
  4. 4Jodhpur IndiaNearly dry 9 years out of 9 · 24.5 °C · 9.3/10
  5. 5Chiang Mai ThailandNearly dry 9 years out of 9 · 27.0 °C · 9.2/10
  6. 6Djibouti Djibouti≈ 0.5 rainy days out of 16 · 27.8 °C · 9.2/10
  7. 7Mendoza ArgentinaNearly dry 8 years out of 9 · 30.9 °C · 9.1/10
  8. 8Karachi PakistanLess than one rainy day out of 16 · 25.6 °C · 9.1/10

See the full ranking for these dates →

Depending on your plans

The best destinations for these dates, by type of trip (departure city, flight, budget and safety taken into account).

🏖️ Beach

⛷️ Skiing

🥾 Hiking

By region · December

The best destinations in each region for these dates (budget and safety taken into account, no flight limit).

Europe

North Africa

Africa and Indian Ocean

Atlantic islands

North America

Caribbean

South America

Asia

Middle East

Oceania

Best avoided · December

The least favourable destinations for these dates, out of 686 analysed (mountain resorts excluded: see the skiing ranking).

Other rankings

← Where to go in NovemberWhere to go in January →📅 All year🌍 World ranking 2026🗺️ Climate map

How this ranking is calculated

  • BestDateWeather score (general, beach, skiing or hiking): the score of the months concerned, weighted by the number of days of your trip in each month.
  • Rain: where daily records exist, your exact dates are replayed on each year from 2016 to 2025 (ERA5 reanalysis, threshold adjusted to 318 weather stations). Otherwise, the calculation uses the share of rainy days in the month.
  • "Nearly dry": at most one rainy day per week of travel, on average.

Good to know

  • Ten seasons is a short record: "8 years out of 10" means "most of the time", not "guaranteed".
  • Flight time estimated from distance (45 min + distance at 850 km/h) for a direct flight. With a stopover, allow longer.
  • Temperatures come from the ERA5 reanalysis: on small islands they can be 1 to 2 °C below coastal station readings.