Early December 1 December
57°F
Typical afternoon high
42% historical wet-day frequency
Spain · Beach
Galicia
in December.
Is December a good time?
Cool days.
Fewer overnight stays than November.
December averages 57°F afternoons and 58°F seas, with about 14 rain days.
- Afternoons
- 57°F
- Sea
- 58°F
- Visitor demand
- 21%of August peak
Historical Galicia regional averages, not a forecast or a measure of queues. Overnight demand compares average stays per day. Covers Santiago de Compostela and A Coruña; conditions vary within the region.
Overall match
4.1/10 · scores & prioritiesPlanning to sightsee in Santiago de Compostela? The weather score rates beach conditions. Sightseeing rates good (5.3/10).
What matters most?
Weather 50% · Crowds 30% · Cost 20%
#11 of 12 months here · Balanced mix
Weather2.1/10Poor
CrowdsLow seasonvs its own year; overnight stays do not measure queuesFor its size, typical for 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 57°F (14°C): a sweater and a light jacket; nights around 45°F (7°C): a warm coat. Bring rain gear: about 14 days with at least 1 mm of rain. About 9 hours of daylight.
Can I swim in December?
The sea averages 58°F. Our swimming guide: cold: short dips, or a wetsuit. Your comfort will vary. This is open water near the coast, not a beach-specific reading.
Monthly coastal averages from NOAA, 2011–2025. Sea temperature is separate from the weather and Overall scores.
A typical day: temperatures & daylightAfternoons, nights, sea temperature & daylight Show detailsHide details
About 9 hours of daylight.
The sun rises about 08:55 and sets about 17:59 (local time, mid-month). Mornings start around 45°F (7°C); afternoons reach about 57°F (14°C). Expect rain on about 14 days in a typical December.
Typical afternoon
57°F (14°C)
average daily high, 15 recent Decembers
Night low
45°F (7°C)
average daily minimum
Sea
58°F (15°C)
cold; open water near the coast, NOAA satellite record 2011–2025
Daylight
9h 04m
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 57°F on the 1st, versus 57°F on the 31st.
Mid December 15 December
57°F
Typical afternoon high
50% historical wet-day frequency
Late December 31 December
57°F
Typical afternoon high
40% 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: 6 Dec Constitution Day; 8 Dec Immaculate Conception; 25 Dec Christmas Day.
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.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 157° | 257° | 357° | 457° | 557° | 657° | |
| 757° | 857° | 957° | 1057° | 1157° | 1257° | 1357° |
| 1457° | 1557° | 1657° | 1757° | 1857° | 1957° | 2057° |
| 2157° | 2257° | 2357° | 2457° | 2557° | 2657° | 2757° |
| 2857° | 2957° | 3057° | 3157° |
Afternoon high rain likely (25%+) local school holidays public holiday event
Afternoons hold at about 57°F (14°C) all month. The chance of a wet day runs 40–51%. Local schools are out 5–31 December 2026.
Schools here are off 5–31 December 2026 (Christmas holidays and teaching day). Public holidays: 6 Dec Constitution Day; 8 Dec Immaculate Conception; 25 Dec Christmas Day. Elsewhere in December 2026, the share of people living where schools are out on a typical day: France 39%, Germany 29%, Italy 35%, Netherlands 42%. (School holidays: official calendar, compiled by Bigfoot Wanders; other countries from OpenHolidays, ODbL.)
Crowds and cost
Visitor season
Will it be busy?
Low season. December averages 21% of August's overnight stays per day. Fewer overnight stays than November.
Overnight stays across Galicia 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. Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €71 per occupied room-night. An average, not a booking quote.
Fewer overnight stays do not automatically mean cheaper rooms. Check actual quotes for your trip.
Historical hotel average
€71
2024–2025 monthly average; hotel revenue per occupied room-night; not a current booking quote. −1% vs this region's usual month.
Spain as a whole
Below EU average
2024 restaurants and hotels price level: 84 where the EU average is 100. A relative index, not a room rate.
The historical regional amount comes from INE Spain, EOH/IRSH table 2059: hotel average daily rate per occupied room; 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 55°F (13°C) and 60°F (16°C); in 13 of them they were within 3°F (1.5°C) of the typical 57°F (14°C). Rain days ranged from 4 to 24; half the years had 12–18.
Rain days in each December
Rain days
14
at least 1 mm, typical year; about 18 in a wet year
Mostly sunny days
5 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
| Year | Afternoon high | Rain days |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 56°F | 12 |
| 2012 | 56°F | 18 |
| 2013 | 56°F | 13 |
| 2014 | 55°F | 8 |
| 2015 | 60°F | 13 |
| 2016 | 60°F | 4 |
| 2017 | 56°F | 15 |
| 2018 | 59°F | 12 |
| 2019 | 57°F | 15 |
| 2020 | 55°F | 24 |
| 2021 | 59°F | 17 |
| 2022 | 59°F | 18 |
| 2023 | 57°F | 14 |
| 2024 | 57°F | 7 |
| 2025 | 56°F | 18 |
Checked against 50 local weather stations. How we check
Compare dates
November, December
or January?
| Typical conditions | Nov | Dec | Jan |
|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 60°F | 57°F | 56°F |
| Sea | 61°F | 58°F | 57°F |
| Rain days | 16 | 14 | 13 |
| Overnight demand | 25% | 21% | 14% |
November: Warmer afternoons, warmer sea and more rain days than December. More overnight demand. November guide →
January: Less overnight demand. January guide →
Overnight demand measures accommodation stays, not queues. Sea temperatures are monthly coastal averages.
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 has 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 25% of the busiest month.
Historical regional hotel revenue (2024–2025 monthly average): €65 per occupied room-night. An average, not a booking quote.
Read the November guide →| Typical conditions | December | November |
|---|---|---|
| Afternoons | 57°F | 60°F |
| Nights | 45°F | 48°F |
| Sea | 58°F | 61°F |
| Rain days | 14 | 16 |
| Visitor season | Low season | Low season |
| Overall / 10 | 4.1 | 4.8 |
| Month rank | #11 | #9 |
Every month, in detail Show detailsHide details
| Month | Overall | Rank | High | Low | Sea | Rain days | Weather | Visitor season |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3.5 | #12 | 56°F | 43°F | 57°F | 13 | 1.5 | Low season |
| February | 4.2 | #10 | 57°F | 43°F | 56°F | 12 | 2.2 | Low season |
| March | 5.4 | #8 | 61°F | 44°F | 56°F | 12 | 3.4 | Low season |
| April | 6.6 | #7 | 65°F | 47°F | 57°F | 12 | 4.7 | Moderate season |
| May | 7.2 | #5 | 69°F | 50°F | 59°F | 8 | 6.4 | Moderate season |
| June | 7.5 | #3 | 74°F | 54°F | 62°F | 7 | 7.4 | Moderate season |
| July | 7.9 | #1 | 79°F | 57°F | 64°F | 4 | 9.3 | Busy season |
| August | 7.3 | #4 | 79°F | 57°F | 65°F | 4 | 9.2 | Peak season |
| September | 7.7 | #2 | 75°F | 56°F | 64°F | 6 | 8.1 | Moderate season |
| October | 7.0 | #6 | 69°F | 53°F | 63°F | 13 | 5.7 | Moderate season |
| November | 4.8 | #9 | 60°F | 48°F | 61°F | 16 | 2.8 | Low season |
| December | 4.1 | #11 | 57°F | 45°F | 58°F | 14 | 2.1 | Low 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.
Porto & northern Portugalabout 90 miles
Balanced Overall 4.7 · Poor weather, 58°F (14°C) · Moderate season · Cost cheap
AsturiasSpain · about 100 miles
Balanced Overall 4.5 · Poor weather, 58°F (14°C) · Low season · Cost cheap
Central Portugalabout 170 miles
Balanced Overall 5.5 · Fair weather, 59°F (15°C) · Low season · Cost cheap
Castile and LeónSpain · about 170 miles
Balanced Overall 7.1 · Good weather, 51°F (10°C) · Moderate season · Cost cheap
Elsewhere in Europe
Better December weather than Galicia
Galicia's weather ranks 45 of 77 beach regions this month. These beach regions outside Spain have clearly better weather on your dates, nearest first, each compared with Galicia.
Central Portugalabout 170 miles
Fair weather (3.5): about as warm, 4 fewer rain days
Óbidos, Nazaré & the Tagus ValleyPortugal · about 240 miles
Fair weather (4.8): 4°F warmer afternoons, 6 fewer rain days, cheaper
Setúbal PeninsulaPortugal · about 290 miles
Good weather (5.4): 5°F warmer afternoons, 8 fewer rain days, cheaper
The AlgarvePortugal · about 380 miles
Good weather (6.3): 7°F warmer afternoons, 10 fewer rain days, cheaper
French Riviera & ProvenceFrance · about 710 miles
Fair weather (3.8): 2°F cooler afternoons, 7 fewer rain days, pricier
How we knowSources, regional scope & scoring method Show detailsHide details
It's low season, 21% of the busiest month and 50% below its average month. That means about 18,000 overnight visitors on a typical December night across the region, 79% of them from Spain itself. Rentals booked through Airbnb, Booking, Expedia and Tripadvisor add up to 9,900 more: 54 for every 100 counted above. Some are the same properties counted twice.
| Climate suitability (HCI:Beach, 0–100) | 45 |
| How our weather was checked | 50 open weather stations in this region, January and July: afternoon highs typically within 1°F (0.1°C), night lows within 1°F (0.8°C). |
| Tourist nights per 1,000 residents per day | 7 |
| Busiest month here | August · 32 |
| Visitors as share of people present | 0.7% |
| Rank among Europe's regions this month | 40th percentile |
| Domestic share of nights | 79% |
| Platform rental nights per 100 counted nights | 54 |
| Visitor share if every platform night were extra | 1.0% |
| Population used | 2.7 million |
| Statistical region | ES11 · Galicia |
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 (INE Spain, EOH/IRSH table 2059: hotel average daily rate per occupied room). Full method · this region's data.