Warm Places to Visit in December
Top pick: Cancún & Riviera Maya, MexicoDecember splits the world in two: grey drizzle at home, and a belt of places sitting at a perfect 28°C with the year's best weather just beginning. The catch is that everyone knows it - Christmas week is the most expensive travel of the year - so winning December is about picking the right place AND the right two weeks. Here are the ten best warm escapes, ranked, with honest prices.
Where is warm to visit in December?
The warmest reliable December destinations are Cancun and the Riviera Maya (28°C, dry season), Aruba (29°C, outside the hurricane belt), Los Cabos (26°C and rain-free), Hawaii (26°C), Puerto Rico and the wider Caribbean, and Thailand (31°C, its best month). Early December - roughly the 1st to the 15th - delivers the same weather as Christmas week at close to half the price, making it the single smartest window of winter.
All 10 picks at a glance
Every destination compared - jump to the one that fits your group, budget and dates.
| Destination | Why it wins | December weather | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cancún & Riviera Maya | The winter-sun default, at full strength | 27-29°C, dry and sunny - high season begins. | $$ |
| Aruba | The most weather-proof island in the Caribbean | 28-30°C, dry, breezy - near-zero weather risk. | $$$ |
| Los Cabos | Desert-dry sun and whale season's start | 24-27°C, bone dry - whale season starts mid-month. | $$ |
| Oahu, Hawaii | Warm ocean, big-wave season, no passport (for Americans) | 24-27°C, occasional passing showers - North Shore waves peak. | $$$ |
| Puerto Rico | Caribbean ease, US logistics | 27-29°C, drying out - the easy-logistics Caribbean. | $$ |
| Bangkok & the Thai islands | The best month of Thailand's whole year | 30-32°C, dry and clear - Thailand's prime time. | $ |
| Costa Rica (Pacific coast) | Green season ends, everything opens | 29-32°C on the Pacific - dry season begins, landscapes still green. | $$ |
| Punta Cana | The all-inclusive value play | 27-29°C, mostly dry - high season with the region's best rates. | $$ |
| Marrakech | Winter sun a short hop from Europe | 18-21°C sunny days, cold nights - pack layers. | $$ |
| Miami Beach | Warm city-beach weekend, Art Basel energy | 24-27°C, low humidity - Miami's most pleasant stretch. | $$$ |
The picks, ranked
1.Cancún & Riviera MayaMexico
$$The winter-sun default, at full strength
December opens the Yucatan's dry season: 28°C days, low humidity, a 27°C sea, and every beach club, cenote and Mayan site in full swing. It's the easiest warm December from most of North America - direct flights everywhere, huge hotel choice, and infrastructure built exactly for this.
When to go: 27-29°C, dry and sunny - high season begins.
See Cancún & Riviera Maya hotelsCompare stays for your dates2.ArubaCaribbean
$$$The most weather-proof island in the Caribbean
Aruba sits south of the hurricane belt with under 20 rainy days a year, constant trade winds and a December that's simply guaranteed: 29°C, sunny, done. Eagle Beach's white sand and calm water do the rest. If your one winter week cannot fail, this is the island built for it.
When to go: 28-30°C, dry, breezy - near-zero weather risk.
See Aruba hotelsCompare stays for your dates3.Los CabosMexico
$$Desert-dry sun and whale season's start
Cabo's December is rain-proof in a way the Caribbean can't quite promise - it's a desert coastline, so the 26°C days come with essentially zero rain risk. Mid-December adds the arrival of humpback and gray whales, and the marina, beaches and Todos Santos day trips are all in season.
When to go: 24-27°C, bone dry - whale season starts mid-month.
See Los Cabos hotelsCompare stays for your dates4.Oahu, HawaiiUSA
$$$Warm ocean, big-wave season, no passport (for Americans)
Hawaii's December runs 26°C with a swimmable 24-25°C ocean, and the North Shore's big-wave surf season is in full roar - watching pros drop into Pipeline is free December theatre. Waikiki stays calm and family-friendly on the island's other coast. Book early; Christmas in Hawaii is beloved.
When to go: 24-27°C, occasional passing showers - North Shore waves peak.
See Oahu, Hawaii hotelsCompare stays for your dates5.Puerto RicoCaribbean
$$Caribbean ease, US logistics
San Juan's December sits at 28°C with the wet season fading, and for US travelers it's the friction-free Caribbean: no passport, no currency exchange, direct flights everywhere. Old San Juan's blue cobblestones, El Yunque rainforest and the bio bays fill a week without a resort ever feeling required.
When to go: 27-29°C, drying out - the easy-logistics Caribbean.
See Puerto Rico hotelsCompare stays for your dates6.Bangkok & the Thai islandsThailand
$The best month of Thailand's whole year
December is the month Thailand is famous for: the monsoon is gone, humidity is at its annual low, and Bangkok, Chiang Mai and the Andaman islands (Phuket, Krabi, Phi Phi) all hit 31°C and clear. It's the longest flight on this list and still often the cheapest week-for-week once you land.
When to go: 30-32°C, dry and clear - Thailand's prime time.
See Bangkok & the Thai islands hotelsCompare stays for your dates7.Costa Rica (Pacific coast)Costa Rica
$$Green season ends, everything opens
December flips Costa Rica to its dry season: the Guanacaste beaches dry out at 31°C, the cloud forests clear, and the whole adventure circuit - volcanoes, zip lines, surf breaks - runs at full tilt. Early December catches the country still green from the rains but with the sun switched on.
When to go: 29-32°C on the Pacific - dry season begins, landscapes still green.
See Costa Rica (Pacific coast) hotelsCompare stays for your dates8.Punta CanaDominican Republic
$$The all-inclusive value play
Punta Cana delivers the Caribbean's best price-per-palm-tree: 28°C December days, 30 km of coconut-lined beach, and the region's deepest all-inclusive inventory, which keeps rates competitive even in high season. It's the pick when the brief is maximum warm beach for minimum spend.
When to go: 27-29°C, mostly dry - high season with the region's best rates.
See Punta Cana hotelsCompare stays for your dates9.MarrakechMorocco
$$Winter sun a short hop from Europe
For Europeans who want warmth without a long-haul flight, Marrakech in December runs 18-21°C and sunny - t-shirt afternoons in the souks and gardens, with the snow-capped Atlas as a backdrop. Nights drop near 5°C, which riad fireplaces turn into a feature. Prices outside Christmas week are excellent.
When to go: 18-21°C sunny days, cold nights - pack layers.
See Marrakech hotelsCompare stays for your dates10.Miami BeachUSA
$$$Warm city-beach weekend, Art Basel energy
Miami's December sits at a dependable 25-27°C - warm enough for the beach, cool enough for Ocean Drive walking - and early December brings Art Basel, when the whole city turns into a gallery. It's the best warm long-weekend on this list: no time zone shock, endless flights, instant beach.
When to go: 24-27°C, low humidity - Miami's most pleasant stretch.
See Miami Beach hotelsCompare stays for your dates
How to choose
The two-week trick that beats Christmas pricing
December 1-15 has the same weather as December 22-31 at 40-60% lower hotel rates in most of this list. If your dates are flexible, go early, come home for the holidays, and let someone else pay the peak. If you must travel Christmas week, book flights and rooms months out - it's the year's most demanded week.
Rank by weather certainty, not just temperature
Aruba and Los Cabos are the near-zero-risk picks (outside the hurricane belt, desert-dry). Cancun, Punta Cana and Puerto Rico are excellent but carry a small chance of a passing front early in the month. Thailand is superb but a long flight; Hawaii trades a little shower risk for epic surf. Match your tolerance to the pick.
Short trip or long haul?
Under 5 nights: Miami, Cancun or Puerto Rico (short flights, no jet lag). A full week: Cabo, Aruba, Costa Rica or Hawaii. Ten nights or more: Thailand rewards the flight like nowhere else, with the lowest on-the-ground costs on this list.
Traveling with kids at Christmas?
Punta Cana and Cancun's all-inclusive zones are engineered for exactly this - kids' clubs, calm beaches, one price. Hawaii and Costa Rica trade a little convenience for genuinely memorable nature (whales, volcanoes, turtles). Book family rooms first; they're the inventory that sells out earliest in December.
Warm in December: FAQ
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