Where is hot in December? Temperatures and entry rules for 9 places

Where is hot in December? Of the nine warm places we checked, Denpasar in Bali is the hottest, with an average daytime high of 33.0°C, ahead of Bangkok (31.3°C) and the Maldives (30.1°C). Luxor is almost rainless but reaches only 24.3°C, according to national weather services.

Heat and dry weather rarely come together in December. Bangkok has 10.0 mm of rain in the month and Bali has 276 mm, so the hottest place on our list is also one of the wettest. The table below puts the highs, the nights and the rain side by side, and a second table sets out what a British passport holder needs for each place.

Flight times are not given here: they change with the airline, the airport and the season, so check the timetable of your own departure airport. For other months and for trips that are not about heat, see our holiday ideas from the UK, or the Christmas markets in Europe if a cold-weather break suits you better.

Only three of the nine places average 30°C or more by day in December: Denpasar, Bangkok and Malé in the Maldives. The other six sit between 24.3°C (Luxor) and 29.2°C (Plaisance, Mauritius), which is still shirt-sleeve weather for a British December.

The reference periods differ by up to 30 years, from 1951 to 1980 for Montego Bay to 1986 to 2009 for Muscat, so treat gaps of a degree or two as noise. The ranking at the top is not noise: Denpasar's high is 1.7 degrees above Bangkok's and 2.9 above Malé's.

Bangkok, Muscat and Luxor are the dry ones. Bangkok averages 10.0 mm of rain and 1.0 rain day in December, Muscat 16.5 mm and 1.4 days, and Luxor 0.1 mm. All three are far from the wet group: Malé has 216.8 mm over 12 days, Plaisance 172.0 mm over 12 days, and Denpasar 276 mm over 22 days.

Three places change sharply from one month to the next. At Plaisance in Mauritius, December brings 172.0 mm against 77.0 mm in November. In the Maldives, December's 216.8 mm falls to 114.2 mm in January. Cancún goes the other way: 95.7 mm in December against 131.6 mm in November and 136.4 mm in January, so December is its driest month of the three.

Warmth also fades in the dry places as the year ends. Muscat's average high drops from 30.3°C in November to 26.8°C in December, and Luxor's from 29.0°C to 24.3°C. If you want a dry week and still want beach weather, Bangkok keeps its heat (31.6°C in November, 31.3°C in December), but it is a city, not a beach.

Luxor, by a long way. Its December days average 24.3°C but its nights fall to 7.8°C, a gap of 16.5 degrees, so you need a jumper for the evenings and the early starts at the temples. Muscat is milder at night (18.3°C) and Cancún stays at 21.2°C.

The warmest nights of the nine are in the Maldives, at 25.4°C, and in Bali, at 23.5°C. In the Caribbean, Punta Cana (22.3°C), Montego Bay (21.9°C) and Cancún (21.2°C) are close to one another.

Six of the nine need no visa for a short tourist stay: Mauritius, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Jamaica, Oman and Thailand. The Maldives and Indonesia give a 30-day visa on arrival (Indonesia's is a paid visa), and Egypt normally requires one, which you can get online or on arrival. Passport rules vary more than visa rules, from one month's validity for the Maldives to six months for Oman, Egypt, Thailand and Indonesia.

For more on three of these, see our guides to the Egypt visa, the Thailand entry rules and the Bali visa on arrival, and our entry requirements hub for other destinations.

Read the warnings before you choose a region. On 1 November 2026 the GOV.UK pages for Egypt, Mexico and Thailand each advise against all but essential travel to parts of the country, and the Egypt page also advises against all travel to some areas: see the FCDO advice for Egypt, Mexico and Thailand. Mexico's page also says that the country may bring in temporary border measures for travellers arriving from countries affected by the Ebola outbreak.

• Which country is the hottest in December?

  Among the nine places we checked, Indonesia: Denpasar in Bali averages a daytime high of 33.0°C in December, ahead of Bangkok in Thailand (31.3°C) and Malé in the Maldives (30.1°C), according to national weather services.

• What are the hot countries in December?

  At the places we checked, Indonesia, Thailand, the Maldives, Mauritius, Jamaica, Mexico and the Dominican Republic all average a daytime high of 28.1°C or more. Oman (26.8°C) and Egypt (24.3°C at Luxor) are warm rather than hot.

• Where is hot and dry in December?

  Bangkok averages 10.0 mm of rain in December, Muscat in Oman 16.5 mm and Luxor in Egypt 0.1 mm. Bangkok is the hottest of the three, at 31.3°C by day.

• Is Bali hot in December?

  Yes, 33.0°C by day on average at Denpasar, but it is wet: 276 mm of rain over 22 days in December, against 345 mm in January.

• Is the Maldives hot in December?

  Yes. Malé averages 30.1°C by day and 25.4°C at night, the warmest nights of our nine places, but it has 216.8 mm of rain over 12 days in December, against 114.2 mm in January.

• Is Luxor warm at night in December?

  No. Luxor’s days average 24.3°C but its nights drop to 7.8°C, so bring warm clothes for the evenings.

• Do I need a visa for the Maldives?

  Not in advance: GOV.UK says tourists get a 30-day visa on arrival. You must also complete a traveller declaration form within 96 hours before your flight arrives, and your passport must expire at least one month after you arrive.

• Do I need a visa for Mexico?

  Not for tourism, GOV.UK says. You get a stamp showing how many days you may stay, and your passport must be valid for the whole stay.

• How long can I stay in Jamaica without a visa?

  Usually up to 90 days, according to GOV.UK. The date you must leave is stamped in your passport, and the passport needs 2 blank pages.