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Where to go in December / Hungary in December / Around Budapest / December

Hungary · Countryside

Around Budapest
in December.

Illustration of Danube Bend near Visegrád
The Danube Bend near VisegrádDestination view, not month-specific.

Is December a good time?

Temperature unit

Cold days.
Similar overnight stays to November.

December averages 43°F afternoons, with about 9 rain days.

Afternoons
43°F
Rain days
9
Visitor demand
52%of August peak

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

Overall match

6.6/10 · scores & priorities

What matters most?

Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%

#12 of 12 months here · Balanced mix

Weather4.7/10Fair
CrowdsModerate seasonvs its own year; overnight stays do not measure queuesFor its size, quieter than most of Europe this month
CostCheapfor Europe

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 43°F (6°C): a warm coat; nights around 30°F (−1°C): a winter coat, hat and gloves. Bring rain gear: about 9 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 07:23Sunset 15:5230°F43°F00:0006:0012:0018:0024:00

The sun rises about 07:23 and sets about 15:52 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 30°F (−1°C); afternoons reach about 43°F (6°C). Expect rain on about 9 days in a typical December.

Typical afternoon
43°F (6°C)
average daily high, 15 recent Decembers
Night low
30°F (−1°C)
average daily minimum
Daylight
8h 29m
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 43°F on the 31st. Historical wet-day frequency falls from 29% to 22% between those dates.

Early December 1 December

43°F

Typical afternoon high

29% historical wet-day frequency

Mid December 15 December

42°F

Typical afternoon high

24% historical wet-day frequency

Late December 31 December

43°F

Typical afternoon high

22% 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 Second 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°243°343°443°543°642°
742°842°942°1042°1142°1242°1342°
1442°1542°1642°1742°1843°1943°2043°
2143°2243°2343°2443°2543°2643°2743°
2843°2943°3043°3143°

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

Afternoons hold at about 43°F (6°C) all month. The chance of a wet day runs 20–30%.

School-holiday dates for December 2026 aren't available in our data yet. A day without a school marker doesn't mean schools are open. Public holidays: 25 Dec Christmas Day; 26 Dec Second Day of Christmas. Elsewhere in December 2026, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: France 39%, Germany 29%, Italy 35%, Spain 32%. (School holidays: OpenHolidays, ODbL.)

Crowds and cost

Visitor season

Will it be busy?

Moderate season. December averages 52% of August's overnight stays per day. Similar overnight stays to November.

Overnight stays across Pest do not measure queues, day visitors or congestion at individual sights. For its size, quieter than most of Europe this month.

Hotel price season

Will it be cheaper?

About usual. Historical regional hotel revenue (2024 annual level, adjusted by the 2024–2025 national hotel index): €39 per guest-night. A seasonal estimate, not a booking quote.

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

Historical hotel average
€39
2024 annual level, adjusted by the 2024–2025 national hotel index; hotel revenue per guest-night; not a current booking quote. 0% vs this region's usual month.
Hungary as a whole
Well below EU average
2024 restaurants and hotels price level: 72 where the EU average is 100. A relative index, not a room rate.

The historical regional amount comes from KSH/Hungarian Tourism Agency: accommodation-fee revenue per tourism night, 2024 (yearly, moved by the national hotel price swing); the country price level is national. Hotel averages are not live booking quotes.

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 38°F (4°C) and 45°F (7°C); in 13 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 43°F (6°C). Rain days ranged from 1 to 12; half the years had 4–11.

Rain days in each December

Historical rain days; exact figures in the table below. 2011: 11 rain days1120112012: 10 rain days102013: 1 rain days12014: 7 rain days72015: 2 rain days22016: 1 rain days12017: 11 rain days112018: 12 rain days122019: 10 rain days102020: 8 rain days82021: 10 rain days102022: 8 rain days82023: 12 rain days122024: 9 rain days92025: 4 rain days42025
Rain days
9
at least 1 mm, typical year; about 12 in a wet year
Mostly sunny days
4 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
3 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
201143°F11
201238°F10
201343°F1
201444°F7
201544°F2
201639°F1
201744°F11
201841°F12
201945°F10
202044°F8
202141°F10
202243°F8
202344°F12
202443°F9
202544°F4

No local weather-station check here: our corrections are learned from stations elsewhere in Europe. 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
Afternoons51°F43°F41°F
Rain days899
Overnight demand54%52%41%

November: Warmer afternoons than December. November guide →

January: Less overnight demand. 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.

March to April have a Weather score at least 1.0 point higher than December, without a substantially busier visitor season.

Your comparison

December or November?

Overnight stays are 54% of the busiest month.

Historical regional hotel revenue (2024 annual level, adjusted by the 2024–2025 national hotel index): €38 per guest-night. A seasonal estimate, not a booking quote.

Read the November guide →
December compared with another month
Typical conditionsDecemberNovember
Afternoons43°F51°F
Nights30°F36°F
Rain days98
Visitor seasonModerate seasonModerate season
Overall / 106.67.1
Month rank#12#7
Every month, in detail Show detailsHide details
All 12 months. Scores and ranks follow your priorities. Explore the whole year.
MonthOverallRankHighLowRain daysWeatherVisitor season
January6.8#1141°F27°F94.8Moderate season
February7.1#846°F29°F65.2Moderate season
March7.8#655°F35°F76.6Moderate season
April8.4#265°F43°F68.4Moderate season
May8.3#373°F50°F99.0Busy season
June7.9#482°F59°F88.6Busy season
July6.9#1085°F62°F78.0Peak season
August6.9#985°F61°F68.2Peak season
September8.4#175°F54°F69.0Busy season
October7.9#563°F44°F67.9Busy season
November7.1#751°F36°F85.6Moderate season
December6.6#1243°F30°F94.7Moderate season

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 Around Budapest

Around Budapest's weather ranks 37 of 117 countryside regions this month. These countryside regions outside Hungary have clearly better weather on your dates, nearest first, each compared with Around Budapest.

All of Hungary in December · Everywhere in December

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

It's moderate season, 52% of the busiest month and 18% below its average month. That means about 3,300 overnight visitors on a typical December night across the region, 66% of them from Hungary itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 470 more: 14 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.

Climate suitability (HCI:Urban, 0–100)59
How our weather was checkedNot checked here: no open station data or official averages to compare with yet. Where we could check, afternoon highs came within 1°F (0.6°C) of local stations and 2°F (1.0°C) of official averages in countries without open data.
Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day2
Busiest month hereAugust · 5
Visitors as share of people present0.2%
Rank among Europe's regions this month5th percentile
Domestic share of nights66%
Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights14
Visitor share if every platform night were extra0.3%
Population used1.3 million
Statistical regionHU12 · Pest

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; the first figure is regional (KSH/Hungarian Tourism Agency: accommodation-fee revenue per tourism night, 2024 (yearly, moved by the national hotel price swing)). Full method · this region's data.