Mexico weather in December
| Avg. temperature: 15.0°C / 59.0°F | Sun: 236 hours a month |
| Rain: 8.2 mm per month | Avg. Humidity: 54% |
Visiting Mexico in December
December in Mexico is a great time to experience the holiday festivities in the country. If you’re tired of the snow and ice at home, Mexico is the best place to spend your holiday season with you and your family. You can go to Mexico City and watch this vibrant city shine with religious candor, or you can go kick back in Los Cabo and end your year with a snorkel or windsurf! The possibilities are endless in this country and no time is better to take up these opportunities than to go to Mexico in December!
Mexico is in a cusp region where it is split between two types of climate timelines. In the North, you will experience more of a seasonal climate where it is more in line with the North American seasonal timeline. In the South of Mexico, you will find that the climate mirrors the rest of Central America with a semi-equatorial two season climate. This will mean that in December, southern regions like Yucatan and southern Baja California will be pleasant and warm, while the interior climate in places like Chihuahua and Mexico City will experience a milder daytime climate with chilly nights.
It is worth noting that the Pacific Coast in Mexico is one of the best places to visit during the Christmas season as the weather is one of the warmest in December and there will be no rain at all with the sun beaming on you as you catch the waved or just sit by the beach!
Things to do in Mexico in December
Wildlife Watching
For our Animal-lovers, Baja California shines through in December if you want to explore the sheer diversity of the region in terms of its biome. This unique geographical region is formed as a peninsula with either side hosting completely different types of animals. You can spot sea lions sunbathing on Isla Espiritu Santo and whale sharks lurking in the Sea of Cortez waters around the island. Unique birds also tend to migrate to this area from the Galapagos islands, where you can marvel at their almost alien features. Near the city of La Paz, you will be able to take opportunities to go dolphin-watching, you can swim with turtles and you can even see orca whales passing through from the cold waters of Canada! Baja California has a very unique affinity to its natural surroundings, and they make a very big investment in animal conservation, so this is the perfect place to learn about sustainability and preservation!
Christmas Cheer!
Mexico is a very conservative Roman Catholic country. If this means anything, it definitely means that Mexicans go big on Christmas. The Christmas season typically starts from December 12 to early January. The first thing that will pop up in any Mexican city will be the street markets that will be dedicated to selling gifts and decorations to adorn the streets. They will also be selling traditional Christmas plants, as well as small to huge Nativity scenes. These markets actually tend to start popping up around mid-November. As early as December begins, residential buildings and main streets become completely overrun by beautiful Christmas lights and other decorations, with contests of the grandest display occurring perfect for your viewing pleasure. You will find that many Mexican cities will host a lot of the similar activities that you may have in your home country. For instance, in Mexico City, the main plaza will have towering Christmas trees and an ice rink. On December 12, you can walk around any city in Mexico and find the streets lined with different variations of the Nativity scene created by the residents and marvel at the creativity. There are many feast days where people will go to church and soon after congregate at the many restaurants or in their homes for a delicious feast. You can take advantage of the Christmas fare by exploring the culinary culture on these feast days. From mid-December until Christmas-eve is when the main events occur. There is a series of parties and celebrations called Las Posadas, which there are pinatas and food and lively music! After Christmas, on December 28, is the Day of the Innocents, which is Mexico’s answer to April Fool’s Day! This is a day where people will play pranks on each other, but also give out refreshments and sweets to passersby on the streets. If you want to experience a unique and beautiful facet of Mexican culture, then Christmastime is the time for you and your family!
Tropico Festival
If you want to take a nice beachside vacation, while also indulging in your love for music, visit the beautiful Pacific coastal city of Acapulco! Once a glitzy holiday destination for the Hollywood elite, it is now a glitzy holiday destination for everyone! At the beginning of the second week of December, the Tropico Music Festival descends upon the city for a great three day beachfront extravaganza. This festival takes place in the Hotel Pierre Mundo Imperial and is jampacked with music and dancing, fashions shows, art exhibitions and forums for artists. So put on your dancing shoes and make your way to beautiful Acapulco!
Best Places to Visit in Mexico in December
La Paz
Situated in the Baja California region, the city of La Paz has become one of the leading tourist destinations in the Pacific coast of Mexico. What may seem like a sleepy municipal centre, it is actually the main city for the country’s burgeoning eco-tourism sector. There are 900 islands off the coast of La Paz, and 244 of them are protected by UNESCO. The north-east portion of the Bay of La Paz serves these adventures where you can paddle about and explore the mangroves and the unique rock formations of Balandra beach. You can also stroll along the beautiful waterfront of the city. The Malecon in La Paz is filled with restaurants, bars and shops and it trails across the waterfront until you reach the pearl sculpture monument, which pays homage to the city’s history as a major world pearling centre. If you’re an enthusiast of the arts, the downtown core houses many pieces of gorgeous street art by local artists adorning the city with their creative expressions. If you really just want a sunny getaway, then lay back at the Playa Pichilingue. A beautiful beach just a short journey out! La Paz is an up-and-coming tourist destination, and what better way to beat the incoming tourist boom than to go now!
Mexico City
It goes without saying that Mexico City is worth visiting. An impressively massive capital city, Mexico City is teeming with activity. The colonial historic centre has been declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, as did the floating gardens of Xochimilco. If you are a lover of the arts, then you have to visit the Palacio de Bellas Artes, where you will be able to get a feeling of why Mexico City was the richest viceroyalty in the Spanish Empire. Beautiful expressions of art adorn the inside and the exterior of the building with beautiful pieces and a lovely timeline of Mexico City’s rich history of artistic trends through the passing eras. You can visit the famous Frida Kahlo museum and find out about the private universe of Latin America’s most celebrated artistic figure. Have a taste of contemporary Mexican cuisine that is prepared by the many migrants who moved to the capital from all over Mexico! The street food culture here is amazing, and you can taste the fusion of all parts of the country with their gorditas, tacos and pozole. Take a gander at the Plaza de La Constitucion with the main plaza and the Spanish Colonial buildings. Explore the ancient Aztec temple in what was once the Aztec metropolis of Tenochtitlan, and a walk down the Paseo de la Reforma, an avenue built after the Champs-Elysees. It is worth noting that the Christmas season in Mexico City attracts millions from all over the country and the world! There is much to do and much to see during Christmas. The vibrant nightlife and the busy days will be a firestorm of activity for travelers who want the quintessential Mexican urban experience!
Campeche
The city of Campeche, located in the Yucatan Peninsula, is a city rich with Spanish Colonial history. Discovered by the conquistadors in 1540, this city became a centre of the Spaniard colonists. Once a walled city, the Spaniards developed the city into a European-style centre, while the indigenous population lived outside the city walls. Walking through the city, you will see how well preserved the Baroque-style facades of the colonial buildings are, which is partly what granted the city its UNESCO world heritage status! The aligned streets of the city makes it accessible to take a walking tour around the historical centre to get a full view on remarkably well preserved this city has been kept! You can still see the old city walls that once separated the colonists from the indigenous, and you can learn about the cultures of both by visiting the old Mayan ruins nearby. Visit the Mayan necropolis of Jaina with more than a thousand human burials can be viewed. Campeche has seen a wide variety of eras in its time, and it really reflects just by taking a trip to this lively city!
Accommodations in Mexico
December will be a busy month in Mexico. You will not only be contending with foreign tourists wanting to ring in the New Year in a tropical getaway, but you will also be contending with local vacationers seeing family or just wanting to sit back. Christmas season tends to have less domestic tourism as everyone is with their family and the beaches in Yucatan tend to just have international tourism. Make sure you book earlier as you will find better deals for airfare and hotels as opposed to booking closer to departure.
Best time to visit Mexico • Jan • Feb • Mar • Apr • May • Jun • Jul • Aug • Sep • Oct • Nov • Dec