Lima · Peru
December
Lima's summer returns — 24°C sunshine, beach culture reactivating, Christmas energy in Miraflores.
Best match
#5 of 12 months
There are better months for Lima — see the full ranking below.
See when to go instead →Climate
High
24.2°C
Low
18.5°C
Rain
1mm
Sun
6.8hrs/day
30-year climate normals · Open Meteo ERA5
How December scores in Lima
Weather
Excellent
Value
Above average
Crowds
Above average
Events
Very good
Atmosphere
Excellent
What you gain in December
- ↑December is when the Lima that visitors imagined when they booked finally arrives — 24°C, 6.8 sunshine hours, and the Pacific clifftop in its most photogenic state. The Miraflores Malecón is beautiful again, the beach clubs reopen (La Punta in Callao, La Herradura, the beaches south toward Lurín), and the general outdoor culture of the city clicks back into the summer mode that disappeared in May.
- ↑Lima's Christmas celebrations are significant — the city's Roman Catholic culture produces genuine civic warmth in December, with Parque Kennedy and the Miraflores parks illuminated, restaurants offering special Christmas menus (the classic Peruvian Noche Buena dinner features lechón — roast suckling pig), and the New Year's Eve fireworks over the Pacific from the Miraflores clifftop.
- ↑The restaurant booking window relaxes slightly in December as the full international tourism surge of January hasn't yet materialised — Central, Maido, and Astrid y Gastón are still fully booked but with shorter lead times than January and February require.
What you sacrifice
- ↓December prices begin the climb back toward January peak levels — hotel rates in Miraflores increase 15–25% from November as the holiday season demand arrives. Christmas week and New Year's Eve specifically command premium pricing, and restaurants on December 31 require reservations made weeks in advance.
- ↓The domestic travel surge from Andean regions to Lima's coast for the summer holidays begins in late December — beaches south of Lima and the Miraflores waterfront see noticeably higher Peruvian domestic visitor numbers in the final weeks of the month.
How December compares to February (best month)
| Factor | December | February ★ |
|---|---|---|
| Weather | 8 | 9 |
| Value | 5 | 5 |
| Crowds | 5 | 5 |
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)Jamaica (30°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)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 Lima, not across destinations. Methodology →