Jamaica · Jamaica
December
Peak season returns — dry trade winds, festive energy, and Christmas on Seven Mile Beach.
Strong option
#8 of 12 months
There are better months for Jamaica — see the full ranking below.
See when to go instead →Climate
High
30°C
Low
22°C
Rain
36mm
Sun
8hrs/day
30-year climate normals · Open Meteo ERA5
How December scores in Jamaica
Weather
Excellent
Value
Average
Crowds
Average
Events
Good
Atmosphere
Excellent
What you gain in December
- ↑December marks the full return of the dry season: 36mm of rainfall (dropping sharply from November's 71mm) and 8.0 sunshine hours re-establish the classic Caribbean beach conditions that make Jamaica's winter season its most popular; the trade wind breezes cool the 30°C heat to a comfortable beach temperature
- ↑Christmas at Negril is a genuinely unique experience — the Seven Mile Beach at sunset on Christmas Eve, with impromptu sound systems, jerk drums set up between the trees, and rum punch flowing from every beach bar, is a Caribbean Christmas that has nothing to do with the cold-weather version; the evening atmosphere is one of the most convivial in the Caribbean
- ↑The Grand Jamaica Run (Kingston road race, early December) and the Jamaica International Invitational track meet (National Stadium, late December–early January) reflect Jamaica's status as the world's most successful sprinting nation; attending a track event at the National Stadium with a full Jamaican crowd is a sporting experience unlike anything in the UK or North America
What you sacrifice
- ↓Christmas week (December 22–January 2) is the most expensive period in Jamaica: villa rentals at Negril, cliff-top boutique hotels, and all-inclusive resort packages are at annual peak prices, and quality properties require booking 4–6 months in advance; last-minute Christmas travel is either extremely expensive or involves significant compromise on quality
- ↓New Year's Eve events at the beach resort properties charge entrance premiums and can feel more like a packaged event than a spontaneous celebration; Jamaicans themselves celebrate New Year loudly and energetically in domestic ways that often feel more genuine than the tourist-resort version
- ↓Early December (December 1–15) can still see residual rain from the November wet season — the dry season transition is gradual, and the first two weeks of December are wetter than peak January–February
How December compares to July (best month)
| Factor | December | July ★ |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | 8 | 8 |
| Value | 4 | 6 |
| Crowds | 4 | 6 |
December in other destinations
Lisbon (14.4°C)Barcelona (13.8°C)Tokyo (12°C)Bali (30.3°C)Santorini (14.5°C)Paris (6.9°C)New York (5.1°C)Marrakech (18.1°C)Amsterdam (6.4°C)Maldives (30°C)Rome (11.7°C)Bangkok (30.4°C)Istanbul (9.4°C)Vienna (3°C)Seoul (3.7°C)Dubrovnik (11.6°C)Rio de Janeiro (29.5°C)Kyoto (11.3°C)Phuket (31.8°C)Cape Town (25.6°C)Prague (3°C)Amalfi Coast (13°C)Mexico City (21°C)Medellín (28°C)Fiji (30°C)London (8°C)Sydney (26°C)Iceland (2°C)Tulum (28°C)Dubai (25°C)Singapore (30°C)Hoi An (24°C)Chiang Mai (27.5°C)Miami (25.6°C)Florence (9.8°C)Queenstown (21°C)Madrid (9.5°C)Porto (14°C)Edinburgh (7°C)Copenhagen (5°C)Budapest (5°C)Kraków (2°C)Tbilisi (7°C)Palawan (29°C)Hanoi (20°C)Osaka (11°C)Goa (32°C)Cusco (20°C)Buenos Aires (29°C)Mykonos (14°C)Zanzibar (31°C)Sri Lanka (30°C)Costa Rica (25°C)Cancun (28°C)Krabi (32°C)Athens (14°C)Seville (15°C)Cartagena (31°C)Siem Reap (28°C)Havana (26°C)Split (11°C)Taipei (20°C)Kuala Lumpur (32°C)Valletta (16°C)Ho Chi Minh City (31°C)Hawaii (27°C)Cappadocia (6°C)Dominican Republic (28°C)Tanzania (27°C)Seychelles (30°C)Nepal (17°C)Jordan (14°C)Azores (18°C)Bora Bora (30°C)Los Angeles (20.4°C)Cairo (20.8°C)Kenya (26°C)Jaipur (22.8°C)Las Vegas (14.7°C)San Francisco (13.8°C)Madeira (20°C)Vancouver (7.1°C)Muscat (27.8°C)Lima (24.2°C)Cinque Terre (12°C)Kotor (11°C)Tel Aviv (19°C)Santiago (29°C)Bogotá (18°C)Bruges (6.8°C)Penang (30.9°C)Lombok (30.9°C)Cape Verde (26.8°C)Fez (15.2°C)Kerala (31°C)Kigali (26°C)Hong Kong (19°C)Oslo (2°C)Auckland (22°C)
Climate data: 30-year normals (1991–2020) from Open Meteo ERA5 reanalysis. Scores compare months within Jamaica, not across destinations. Methodology →