MIAMI · DECEMBER · THE MONTH GUIDE
December is the first month after the Atlantic hurricane season, closed each year on November 30 by the calendar of NOAA’s National Hurricane Center. It opens South Florida’s warm, dry run, the December-to-April stretch when the air sits roughly between 65°F and 80°F. At the airport station, the December normal is a 78.2°F afternoon and a 64.3°F night, with the sea still near 79°F by one daily-maximum measure.
Most trips land at Miami International (MIA), about 12 miles from South Beach and a 20 to 45 minute drive depending on traffic. Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (FLL) is about 25 miles out, 35 to 50 minutes on I-95, and our Florida flights guide weighs the two airports. Three or four nights (est.) fit a beach afternoon, a museum morning and one drive out to the Everglades.
THE MONTH AT A GLANCE · MIAMI · DECEMBER
December gives Miami 78.2°F afternoons, rain on roughly one day in eight and a sea near 79°F, with the hurricane season closed since November 30.
DRY SEASON · HURRICANE SEASON OVER · SUNSET 5:33 P.M. ON THE 15TH
Go for: beach afternoons in the high 70s, Vizcaya’s gardens at the 9:30 a.m. opening without summer heat, and a dry-season day in the Everglades.
Think twice before: booking South Beach blind for early December, when Art Basel Miami Beach is held at the Convention Center, or counting on long evenings: the sun sets at 5:33 p.m. on the 15th.
Climate: NOAA NCEI, Miami International station · Sea: Open-Meteo Marine · full sources at the end
On this page
- Miami weather in December78.2°F highs, 64.3°F lows, 3.7 rain days
- Can you swim in Miami in December?Sea at 79.1°F by daily maxima, 72°F in other tables
- Hotel prices and crowds in DecemberArt Basel week, the 6% county tax, resort fees
- Things to do in Miami in DecemberVizcaya, PAMM, Lummus Park, Crandon Park
- A two-day December itineraryVizcaya at 9:30 a.m., South Pointe at sunset
- December vs November or JanuaryHighs of 81.3°F, 78.2°F and 76.2°F side by side
- Is December a good time to visit Miami?Yes for warm-sea swimmers, January for the driest trip
The places on a December plan sit in three separate cities. South Beach is the southern tip of Miami Beach, a city of 82,890 at the 2020 census, built on barrier islands across Biscayne Bay. Wynwood, Little Havana and Coconut Grove, home of Vizcaya, lie inside the City of Miami, 442,241 residents at the same census. Coral Gables is its own municipality, incorporated on April 29, 1925, with its own police. Our where-to-stay guide weighs the neighborhoods, and our Miami guide covers the city year-round.
Miami weather in December: average highs, lows and rain days
| December figure | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Average high | 78.2°F | NOAA NCEI, MIA station |
| Average low | 64.3°F | NOAA NCEI, MIA station |
| Precipitation | 2.44 in | NOAA NCEI, MIA station |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 3.7 | NOAA NCEI, MIA station |
| Days with 1 in or more | 0.5 | NOAA NCEI, MIA station |
| Daylight on Dec 15 | 10 h 35 min | sunrise-sunset.org |
| Sunrise · sunset, Dec 15 | 6:58 a.m. · 5:33 p.m. EST | sunrise-sunset.org |
Every figure here is a 1991-2020 normal from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, read at station USW00012839: a real thermometer at Miami International Airport, about 12 miles from South Beach. A reanalysis such as ERA5 averages a whole grid cell of land and water, and its numbers can land a few degrees away from the station’s. By the station, an average December afternoon peaks at 78.2°F, the night bottoms out at 64.3°F, and the month collects 2.44 inches of rain.
Measurable rain, 0.10 inch or more, falls on 3.7 days in an average December. That is about one day in eight, so a week in town usually sees one wet day or none. The heavy kind, an inch or more, comes on 0.5 day per December, a real downpour roughly every other year. Keep a museum or a long lunch in reserve for that day and save the beach for the dry ones.
The gap between the 78.2°F afternoon and the 64.3°F night is close to 14 degrees. Pack for both ends of it: shorts, a swimsuit and sunscreen for the afternoon, then long trousers and a light sweater for an outdoor table after dark.
On December 15 the sun rises at 6:58 a.m. and sets at 5:33 p.m. Eastern time, about 10 hours 35 minutes of daylight. Beach time runs out around five, and dinner starts well after dark. Put outdoor sights in the morning: Vizcaya opens at 9:30 a.m., when the sun has been up for two and a half hours.
Can you swim in Miami in December? Sea temperature
Open-Meteo’s marine data puts the sea off Miami at 79.1°F in December, averaged over 2015-2024. That figure is a mean of daily maxima, the warmest reading of each day, so it runs a shade above a 24-hour mean. Other tables disagree: seatemperature.org and Current Results give about 72°F through the winter. We could not settle the gap, so we give both.
At 79.1°F the water is about level with the 78.2°F afternoon air and nearly 15 degrees warmer than the 64.3°F dawn. Go in between noon and four, while the air is near its high. If your week runs closer to the 72°F figure, expect a brisk first minute and a shorter swim. Lummus Park, the beach in front of Ocean Drive, has lifeguards on duty.
We found no wind or swell data for Miami in December, so we give no wave height or wind speed. Ask the lifeguards at Lummus Park about conditions before a long swim, and check the marine forecast the evening before.
How busy is Miami in December? Crowds and prices
Market data relayed by travel guides puts Miami’s lowest hotel rates in August to October and the highest in February to April, a trend rather than an official statistic. December falls between the two, at the start of South Florida’s warm, dry December-to-April run. We found no monthly occupancy series, so we call no December week cheap or dear. Our Florida trip-cost guide prices the rest of the budget.
Art Basel Miami Beach is held at the Miami Beach Convention Center in South Beach in early December. The 2026 dates differ between the sources we read (December 4 to 6 in one, public days December 5 to 7 in another), so confirm them before choosing a South Beach bed for the first week. We found no booking-lead data. For that week we would book at least six weeks ahead (est.). December sits outside the hurricane season, so a non-refundable rate carries no hurricane-season exposure.
Miami-Dade County adds a 6.0% transient rental tax to a room, filed and paid with the 6% state sales tax: 12 points before any city levy, and we could not verify one on top. Miami Beach hotels also commonly add a nightly resort fee to the rate. Published amounts diverge widely, from about $25 on average to $35 to $95 depending on the property, so ask for the all-in nightly price before you book.
Rent a car for one day if the budget allows. Everglades National Park charges $35.00 per private vehicle for seven days, and the statewide dry season runs November through April. The park’s three entrances and the Flamingo Visitor Center are each at least an hour’s drive apart, so pick one entrance rather than all of them. Our Everglades guide names the trails at each.
Things to do in Miami in December
Midday outdoor sights come back in December. With the hurricane season closed and the afternoon at 78.2°F, a garden walk at noon or a beach day until sunset stays comfortable, while summer highs reach about 90°F with humidity of 85 to 90 percent and afternoon thunderstorms. At the airport gauge, June is the wettest month of the year at 10.51 inches, against 2.44 in December.
Vizcaya Museum and Gardens stands in north Coconut Grove over Biscayne Bay, a few minutes’ walk from the Vizcaya Metrorail station. It opens Wednesday to Monday at 9:30 a.m., last admission 4:30 p.m., and closes on Tuesdays. Adults pay $20 during restoration work, down from the usual $25, children 6 to 12 pay $5, and under-6s enter free. Lummus Park, fronting Ocean Drive from 5th to 15th Streets, is free and open 24 hours, with lifeguards, restrooms and picnic tables. Crandon Park on Key Biscayne charges $7 to park on weekdays and $10 at weekends.
The sea cools more slowly than the nights. From November to December it loses 2.6 degrees by the daily-maximum measure, while the average low drops 4.0 degrees. By January the sea sheds another 2.1 degrees and the low another 3.3. In December the water stays well above the dawn air, so swim at Lummus Park or Crandon in the afternoon and walk Vizcaya’s gardens in the cooler morning.
The Perez Art Museum Miami is free from 5 to 9 p.m. every Thursday, a window opening 33 minutes before the 5:33 p.m. sunset on the 15th. It is also free all day on the second Saturday of each month, December 12 in 2026, with art-making from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. South Pointe Park is free to enter, though its lot starts at $2 an hour and switches to a $20 flat rate on weekends and holidays. The Miami Beach trolley runs free on five routes from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m., and the Metromover is free across Downtown and Brickell.
Miami in December: a two-day itinerary
Day one, any day but Tuesday. From Miami Beach, the Route 120 Beach MAX crosses the MacArthur Causeway to the Downtown Bus Terminal for $2.25, then Metrorail runs to Vizcaya station. Fare capping stops at $5.65 a day for unlimited Metrorail and Metrobus. Walk Vizcaya’s gardens from the 9:30 a.m. opening, before the 78.2°F peak. Back on the beach by early afternoon, swim at Lummus Park until about 4 p.m., then head south to South Pointe Park for the 5:33 p.m. sunset. The sweater comes out after that.
Day two. With a rental car, leave after breakfast for Crandon Park on Key Biscayne ($7 to park on a weekday, $10 at weekends), or give the day to one Everglades entrance on the $35.00 seven-day vehicle pass. On a Thursday, end at the Perez Art Museum Miami for the free 5 to 9 p.m. hours. If the day turns wet, as about one December day in eight does, move Vizcaya’s house and the museum onto it and push the beach to the next dry afternoon. Our seven-day Florida itinerary extends the loop.
Miami in December vs November and January
| Normal (NOAA, MIA station) | November | December | January |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average high | 81.3°F | 78.2°F | 76.2°F |
| Average low | 68.3°F | 64.3°F | 61.0°F |
| Precipitation | 3.53 in | 2.44 in | 1.83 in |
| Days with 0.10 in or more | 4.7 | 3.7 | 3.8 |
| Sea, mean of daily maxima | 81.7°F | 79.1°F | 77.0°F |
| Hurricane season | Open until Nov 30 | Closed | Closed |
December sits between its neighbors on almost every line. Its 78.2°F high is 3.1 degrees under November’s 81.3°F and 2.0 above January’s 76.2°F. The low steps the same way, 4.0 degrees cooler than November and 3.3 warmer than January. Rain falls from 3.53 inches in November to 2.44 in December and 1.83 in January, though January logs 3.8 wet days to December’s 3.7. The sea reads 81.7°F, 79.1°F and 77.0°F.
Moving four weeks earlier adds 2.6 degrees of sea and a 68.3°F night, but puts the trip inside the hurricane season, open until November 30, with one more wet day and about an inch more rain. Moving four weeks later trims 0.61 inch of rain and cools the nights to 61.0°F, with the sea at 77.0°F. Our November and January guides go deeper, and the Florida best-time guide covers the full year.
Is December a good time to visit Miami?
Yes, for travelers who want warm afternoons, a swimmable sea and no hurricane-season exposure: 78.2°F highs, water near 79°F by the daily-maximum measure, and rain on about one day in eight. It suits you less if you need long evenings of daylight, with the sun down at 5:33 p.m. mid-month, or an easy last-minute South Beach room during the Art Basel week.
If December misses, pick the month that fixes your particular gap. Swimmers after the warmest water should take November, with the sea at 81.7°F and highs of 81.3°F, and book refundable since the hurricane season runs to November 30. Travelers who want the driest of the three should take January, at 1.83 inches, and pack for 61.0°F nights.
Of the three months, December alone pairs a closed hurricane season with a sea still above 79°F by the daily-maximum measure.
The last word
Settle the week before the hotel: confirm the Art Basel dates, then book the room. Landing at MIA, the Route 150 Miami Beach Airport Express leaves the airport Metrorail station about every 30 minutes, from about 5 a.m. to midnight, and crosses the Julia Tuttle Causeway to Mid Beach for $2.25, with luggage racks on board. Keep the swimsuit at the top of that bag and the sweater right under it.
Sources & data for this guide
- December, November and January normals, rain days · NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 monthly normals, station USW00012839 (Miami International Airport) · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Sea surface temperature, mean of daily maxima 2015-2024 · Open-Meteo Marine API · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Winter sea near 72°F · seatemperature.org and Current Results · the gap with Open-Meteo remains unresolved
- Daylight, sunrise and sunset on December 15 · sunrise-sunset.org, converted from UTC to Eastern time · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Hurricane season dates · NOAA National Hurricane Center · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Transient rental tax · Florida Department of Revenue, form DR-15TDT · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Hotel rate cycle · market data relayed by travel guides, a trend and not an official statistic · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Resort fees · fee comparison sites and local guides · amounts diverge widely, range only
- Art Basel Miami Beach · Art Basel and Miami and Beaches · 2026 dates differ between sources
- Vizcaya hours, admission and location · vizcaya.org · checked Sep 24, 2026
- PAMM free hours · pamm.org · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Lummus Park, South Pointe Park, Crandon Park · City of Miami Beach and Miami-Dade Parks · parking rates change · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Fares, Routes 120 and 150, Metrorail, trolley, Metromover · Miami-Dade Transit and City of Miami Beach · checked Sep 24, 2026 · Metromover hours differ by source (5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. or 5 a.m. to midnight)
- Airport distances and drive times · airport transfer sources · times are indicative · checked Sep 24, 2026
- Everglades vehicle fee · National Park Service · no reading date on file, check nps.gov/ever before you go
- We found no wind, swell, occupancy or booking-lead data for December, so we give none. The six-week booking lead and the three-to-four-night length are our estimates.