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Where to go in December / Germany in December / Braunschweig & the Harz (west) / December

Germany · Countryside

Braunschweig & the Harz (west)
in December.

Illustration of Goetheweg boardwalk across Torfhausmoor toward the Brocken
Torfhausmoor and the BrockenDestination view, not month-specific.

Is December a good time?

Temperature unit

Cold days.
A steady visitor season.

December averages 44°F afternoons, with about 14 rain days.

Afternoons
44°F
Rain days
14
Visitor demand
68%of August peak

Historical Braunschweig regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day. Covers Braunschweig and Goslar; conditions vary within the region.

Overall match

5.2/10 · scores & priorities

What matters most?

Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%

#11 of 12 months here · Balanced mix

Weather4.1/10Fair
CrowdsSteady all yearsimilar all year; overnight stays do not measure queuesFor its size, typical for Europe this month
CostPriceyfor Europe; Germany-wide price level

Overall combines weather, overnight demand and cost. It does not include sea temperature.

Plan your December

What to expect.

What should I pack?

Afternoons around 44°F (6°C): a warm coat; nights around 34°F (1°C): a winter coat, hat and gloves. Bring rain gear: about 14 days with at least 1 mm of rain. About 8 hours of daylight.

A typical day: temperatures & daylightAfternoons, nights & daylight Show detailsHide details

About 8 hours of daylight.

Sunrise 08:20Sunset 16:0734°F44°F00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00

The sun rises about 08:20 and sets about 16:07 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 34°F (1°C); afternoons reach about 44°F (6°C). Expect rain on about 14 days in a typical December.

Typical afternoon
44°F (6°C)
average daily high, 15 recent Decembers
Night low
34°F (1°C)
average daily minimum
Daylight
7h 47m
on the 15th, computed from latitude

Early, middle or late?

Early or late December?

Early and late December have similar afternoon averages. The afternoon high averages 43°F on the 1st, versus 44°F on the 31st. Historical wet-day frequency rises from 40% to 51% between those dates.

Early December 1 December

43°F

Typical afternoon high

40% historical wet-day frequency

Mid December 15 December

44°F

Typical afternoon high

45% historical wet-day frequency

Late December 31 December

44°F

Typical afternoon high

51% historical wet-day frequency

Historical daily averages from 2011–2025, smoothed over two weeks. A seasonal pattern, not a forecast. This does not establish which week has the lowest prices or fewest visitors.

Public holidays · 2026: 25 Dec Christmas Day; 26 Dec 2nd Day of Christmas.

Daily calendar & holiday datesDecember 2026 · historical weather & dated holidays Show calendarHide calendar

December 2026 calendar

Weather shows historical patterns, not a forecast. Holidays and events use the dates shown for 2026.

MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
143°242°342°442°542°642°
742°842°942°1043°1143°1243°1344°
1444°1544°1644°1744°1844°1945°2045°
2145°2245°2345°2445°2545°2645°2745°
2844°2944°3044°3144°

Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event

Afternoons warm from about 42°F (6°C) in the first week to 44°F (7°C) in the last. The chance of a wet day runs 40–53%. Local schools are out 23–31 December 2026. Christmas markets: typically 20 November – 23 December 2026.

Schools here are off 23–31 December 2026 (Christmas holidays). Public holidays: 25 Dec Christmas Day; 26 Dec 2nd Day of Christmas. Elsewhere in December 2026, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: France 39%, Italy 35%, Spain 32%, Netherlands 42%. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL.)

Crowds and cost

Visitor season

Will it be busy?

Steady all year. December averages 68% of August's overnight stays per day. Overnight demand varies little across the year.

Overnight stays across Braunschweig do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights. For its size, typical for Europe this month.

Hotel price season

Will it be cheaper?

About usual. Estimated from national hotel prices and local visitor demand; no measured regional room rate is available.

Fewer overnight stays do not automatically mean cheaper rooms. Check actual quotes for your trip.

What's on Christmas markets, typically 20 November – 23 December 2026: evenings and weekends are crowded; city hotels fill on December weekends. Official site.

Germany as a whole
Above EU average
2024 restaurants and hotels price level: 112 where the EU average is 100. A relative index, not a room rate.

Year-to-year variation

How much does December vary?

Across the recorded years

In the 15 years from 2011 to 2025, the month's afternoons averaged between 40°F (5°C) and 51°F (10°C); in 12 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 44°F (6°C). Rain days ranged from 6 to 22; half the years had 11–17.

Rain days in each December

Historical rain days; exact figures in the table below. 2011: 22 rain days2220112012: 18 rain days182013: 12 rain days122014: 16 rain days162015: 9 rain days92016: 8 rain days82017: 15 rain days152018: 16 rain days162019: 14 rain days142020: 11 rain days112021: 12 rain days122022: 17 rain days172023: 21 rain days212024: 13 rain days132025: 6 rain days62025
Rain days
14
at least 1 mm, typical year; about 20 in a wet year
Mostly sunny days
1 of 31
cloud cover under 30%
Years with a 95°F+ day
0 of 15
no December in the last 15 years had a day at or above 95°F (35°C)
Good weather days
1 of 31
rated very good or better
See every recorded DecemberHistorical monthly averages, year by year Show detailsHide details
Historical monthly averages, not daily extremes.
YearAfternoon highRain days
201144°F22
201240°F18
201345°F12
201441°F16
201551°F9
201643°F8
201742°F15
201844°F16
201945°F14
202044°F11
202142°F12
202241°F17
202344°F21
202443°F13
202544°F6

Checked against 11 local weather stations. How we check

Compare dates

November, December
or January?

Historical regional averages. Overnight demand vs August peak, measured as average stays per day.
Typical conditionsNovDecJan
Afternoons48°F44°F41°F
Rain days111415
Overnight demand71%68%53%

November: Warmer afternoons and fewer rain days than December. November guide →

January: Cooler afternoons than December. January guide →

Overnight demand measures accommodation stays, not queues.

Compare any of the 12 monthsChoose another month and compare it with December Show comparisonHide comparison

Yellow marks the top three months on the Balanced mix. December stays as your reference.

Hotel stays vary little through the year. March to October have a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than December.

Your comparison

December or November?

Overnight stays vary little through the year.

National hotel prices and local visitor demand suggest about usual. No measured regional room rate is available.

Read the November guide →
December compared with another month
Typical conditionsDecemberNovember
Afternoons44°F48°F
Nights34°F37°F
Rain days1411
Visitor seasonSteady all yearSteady all year
Overall / 105.25.6
Month rank#11#9
Every month, in detail Show detailsHide details
All 12 months. Scores and ranks follow your priorities. Explore the whole year.
MonthOverallRankHighLowRain daysWeatherVisitor season
January5.2#1241°F30°F153.9Steady all year
February5.4#1044°F30°F94.5Steady all year
March6.1#851°F33°F95.7Steady all year
April6.7#659°F39°F87.1Steady all year
May7.2#567°F46°F78.1Steady all year
June7.6#274°F53°F98.8Steady all year
July7.6#376°F55°F108.8Steady all year
August7.7#176°F56°F89.0Steady all year
September7.4#469°F49°F98.6Steady all year
October6.4#759°F44°F116.5Steady all year
November5.6#948°F37°F115.0Steady all year
December5.2#1144°F34°F144.1Steady all year

Near here

Nearby places in December

Nearby regions, nearest first. Distances are centre to centre, as the crow flies; they are not road distances or journey times.

Elsewhere in Europe

Better December weather than Braunschweig & the Harz (west)

Braunschweig & the Harz (west)'s weather ranks 85 of 117 countryside regions this month. These countryside regions outside Germany have clearly better weather on your dates, nearest first, each compared with Braunschweig & the Harz (west).

All of Germany in December · Everywhere in December

How we knowSources, regional scope & scoring method Show detailsHide details

Hotel stays are steady all year here: this month is 68% of the busiest and 16% below average. That counts overnight stays, not how busy the sights are. That means about 15,000 overnight visitors on a typical December night across the region, 90% of them from Germany itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 4,600 more: 31 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.

Climate suitability (HCI:Urban, 0–100)55
How our weather was checked11 open weather stations in this region, January and July: afternoon highs typically within 1°F (0.2°C), night lows within 1°F (0.4°C).
Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day9
Busiest month hereAugust · 14
Visitors as share of people present0.9%
Rank among Europe's regions this month60th percentile
Domestic share of nights90%
Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights31
Visitor share if every platform night were extra1.2%
National hotel-price seasonGermany historical 2024–2025 index: About usual (−1% vs its average month). Not a local room quote.
Population used1.6 million
Statistical regionDE91 · Braunschweig

Crowds: Eurostat nights spent at tourist accommodation, by month and NUTS 2 region, 2024–2025 average. Overnight visitors per night is the month's nights divided by its days; the per-1,000 figure is Eurostat's, against each year's population. Platform rentals: Eurostat nights booked via Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor, 2024–2025 average, shown separately because some properties are in both counts. Weather: Holiday Climate Index computed from ERA5 reanalysis with daily highs, night lows and rain days corrected from open national weather-service station records, 2011–2025, population-weighted to the region; day-by-day figures are the same data averaged by date. Heat and rain odds are counted across those years. Sunrise and sunset: NOAA solar equations, local time. Prices: Eurostat price level index and HICP, national. Full method · this region's data.