Early December 1 December
45°F
Typical afternoon high
47% historical wet-day frequency
Germany · Countryside
Is December a good time?
December averages 46°F afternoons, with about 15 rain days.
Historical Münster regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day.
What matters most?
Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%
#11 of 12 months here · Balanced mix
Overall combines weather, overnight demand and cost. It does not include sea temperature.
Plan your December
Afternoons around 46°F (8°C): a warm coat; nights around 36°F (2°C): a winter coat, hat and gloves. Bring rain gear: about 15 days with at least 1 mm of rain. About 8 hours of daylight.
The sun rises about 08:31 and sets about 16:19 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 36°F (2°C); afternoons reach about 46°F (8°C). Expect rain on about 15 days in a typical December.
Early, middle or late?
Early and late December have similar afternoon averages. The afternoon high averages 45°F on the 1st, versus 46°F on the 31st. Historical wet-day frequency rises from 47% to 53% between those dates.
45°F
Typical afternoon high
47% historical wet-day frequency
46°F
Typical afternoon high
47% historical wet-day frequency
46°F
Typical afternoon high
53% 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.
Weather shows historical patterns, not a forecast. Holidays and events use the dates shown for 2026.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 145° | 245° | 345° | 444° | 544° | 644° | |
| 744° | 844° | 945° | 1045° | 1145° | 1246° | 1346° |
| 1446° | 1546° | 1646° | 1747° | 1847° | 1947° | 2047° |
| 2147° | 2247° | 2347° | 2447° | 2547° | 2647° | 2747° |
| 2846° | 2946° | 3046° | 3146° |
Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event
Afternoons warm from about 45°F (7°C) in the first week to 46°F (8°C) in the last. The chance of a wet day runs 46–55%. 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.)
Visitor season
Steady all year. December averages 61% of May's overnight stays per day. Overnight demand varies little across the year.
Overnight stays across Münster do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights. For its size, quieter than most of Europe this month.
Hotel price season
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.
Year-to-year variation
In the 15 years from 2011 to 2025, the month's afternoons averaged between 43°F (6°C) and 53°F (12°C); in 13 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 46°F (8°C). Rain days ranged from 6 to 23; half the years had 12–18.
Rain days in each December
| Year | Afternoon high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 46°F | 23 |
| 2012 | 43°F | 20 |
| 2013 | 47°F | 10 |
| 2014 | 44°F | 15 |
| 2015 | 53°F | 12 |
| 2016 | 45°F | 6 |
| 2017 | 44°F | 18 |
| 2018 | 46°F | 16 |
| 2019 | 47°F | 15 |
| 2020 | 46°F | 17 |
| 2021 | 45°F | 15 |
| 2022 | 43°F | 14 |
| 2023 | 47°F | 21 |
| 2024 | 45°F | 13 |
| 2025 | 47°F | 7 |
Checked against 6 local weather stations. How we check
Compare dates
| Typical conditions | Nov | Dec | Jan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 50°F | 46°F | 43°F |
| Rain days | 12 | 15 | 16 |
| Overnight demand | 75% | 61% | 50% |
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.
Yellow marks the top three months on the Balanced mix. December stays as your reference.
Hotel stays vary little through the year. March to November have a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than December.
Your comparison
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 →| Typical conditions | December | November |
|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 46°F | 50°F |
| Nights | 36°F | 39°F |
| Rain days | 15 | 12 |
| Visitor season | Steady all year | Steady all year |
| Overall / 10 | 5.2 | 5.7 |
| Month rank | #11 | #9 |
| Month | Overall | Rank | High | Low | Rain days | Weather | Visitor season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 5.2 | #12 | 43°F | 33°F | 16 | 4.0 | Steady all year |
| February | 5.5 | #10 | 46°F | 33°F | 12 | 4.6 | Steady all year |
| March | 6.1 | #8 | 53°F | 35°F | 11 | 5.8 | Steady all year |
| April | 6.7 | #6 | 60°F | 40°F | 9 | 7.1 | Steady all year |
| May | 7.2 | #5 | 68°F | 47°F | 8 | 8.1 | Steady all year |
| June | 7.5 | #3 | 74°F | 54°F | 10 | 8.7 | Steady all year |
| July | 7.6 | #2 | 76°F | 56°F | 12 | 8.7 | Steady all year |
| August | 7.6 | #1 | 76°F | 56°F | 10 | 8.8 | Steady all year |
| September | 7.4 | #4 | 69°F | 50°F | 8 | 8.6 | Steady all year |
| October | 6.4 | #7 | 60°F | 46°F | 12 | 6.6 | Steady all year |
| November | 5.7 | #9 | 50°F | 39°F | 12 | 5.2 | Steady all year |
| December | 5.2 | #11 | 46°F | 36°F | 15 | 4.1 | Steady all year |
Near here
Nearby regions, nearest first. Distances are centre to centre, as the crow flies; they are not road distances or journey times.
DüsseldorfGermany · about 50 miles
Balanced Overall 5.0 · Fair weather, 46°F (8°C) · Steady all year · Cost pricey
Dortmund & the SauerlandGermany · about 50 miles
Balanced Overall 4.8 · Fair weather, 45°F (7°C) · Steady all year · Cost pricey
Amsterdam & North HollandNetherlands · about 110 miles
Balanced Overall 5.3 · Fair weather, 48°F (9°C) · Moderate season · Cost pricey
Frankfurt & southern HesseGermany · about 140 miles
Balanced Overall 5.2 · Fair weather, 45°F (7°C) · Steady all year · Cost pricey
Schleswig-HolsteinGermany · about 180 miles
Balanced Overall 3.0 · Poor weather, 44°F (7°C) · Low season · Cost pricey
Elsewhere in Europe
Münster's weather ranks 87 of 117 countryside regions this month. These countryside regions outside Germany have clearly better weather on your dates, nearest first, each compared with Münster.
PiedmontItaly · about 480 miles
Good weather (5.9): 3°F warmer afternoons, 9 fewer rain days
TuscanyFlorence, Siena · Italy · about 610 miles
Good weather (5.9): 9°F warmer afternoons, 4 fewer rain days, cheaper
Toulouse & the PyreneesMidi-Pyrénées · France · about 630 miles
Good weather (5.7): 8°F warmer afternoons, 4 fewer rain days
UmbriaItaly · about 660 miles
Good weather (6.0): 7°F warmer afternoons, 6 fewer rain days
Novi Sad & VojvodinaSerbia · about 730 miles
Good weather (5.1): about as warm, 6 fewer rain days, cheaper
Hotel stays are steady all year here: this month is 61% of the busiest and 24% below average. That counts overnight stays, not how busy the sights are. That means about 9,800 overnight visitors on a typical December night across the region, 82% of them from Germany itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 1,700 more: 17 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.
| Climate suitability (HCI:Urban, 0–100) | 55 |
| How our weather was checked | 6 open weather stations in this region, January and July: afternoon highs typically within 1°F (0.3°C), night lows within 1°F (0.5°C). |
| Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day | 4 |
| Busiest month here | May · 6 |
| Visitors as share of people present | 0.4% |
| Rank among Europe's regions this month | 16th percentile |
| Domestic share of nights | 82% |
| Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights | 17 |
| Visitor share if every platform night were extra | 0.4% |
| National hotel-price season | Germany historical 2024–2025 index: About usual (−1% vs its average month). Not a local room quote. |
| Population used | 2.7 million |
| Statistical region | DEA3 · Münster |
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.