What is Orlando like in December? Weather, Christmas, crowds and prices

December in Orlando is really two different trips. For the first three weeks the decorations are up, the holiday parties are running and most American kids are still in school. From Christmas week on, winter break arrives and the pace changes completely.

What is the weather like in Orlando in December?

Mild by day, cool at night. NOAA climate normals (the 1991 to 2020 average, measured at Orlando International Airport) give December an average high of 74 °F (23 °C) and an average low of 53 °F (12 °C). The monthly mean, day and night combined, is 63 °F (17 °C).

The month cools as it goes. According to the daily normals from the National Weather Service office in Melbourne, which covers Orlando, December 1 has a normal high of 76 °F (24 °C) and a low of 56 °F (13 °C). By December 31 those are down to 72 °F (22 °C) and 50 °F (10 °C). Late December feels a lot like January.

Cold fronts make the temperature swing. Per NOAA data, a typical December has:

• about 2 or 3 nights below 40 °F (4 °C);
• about 9 days above 80 °F (27 °C).

A freeze is rare, less than one night per December on average. The record low for Christmas Day, per the National Weather Service, is 21 °F (-6 °C), set in 1983. That is an outlier, but it is why one warm layer belongs in the suitcase.

Rain is light: about 2.5 inches (63 mm) for the month, with only around 4 days of at least a tenth of an inch.

Month	Average high	Average low	Monthly rain
November	78 °F (26 °C)	58 °F (15 °C)	1.8 in (45 mm)
December	74 °F (23 °C)	53 °F (12 °C)	2.5 in (63 mm)
January	72 °F (22 °C)	50 °F (10 °C)	2.5 in (63 mm)

Source: NOAA (NCEI) 1991 to 2020 climate normals, Orlando International Airport.

December also has the shortest days of the year. Winter starts with the solstice on December 21, 2026, per the U.S. Naval Observatory, and the same agency’s data puts sunset in Orlando around 5:30 p.m. all month. Long evenings suit the holiday lights, but it gets cool early. If you are coming from the Northeast, the Midwest, Canada or the UK, 53 °F will feel like a break. If you are coming from South Florida or South Texas, pack more layers than you think.

If the pool is a big part of the plan, book a home with pool heat. With lows near 53 °F (12 °C), unheated water is too cold for most people. We cover how it works in how pool heat works in Orlando vacation homes. Other months are in Orlando weather by month.

When is Disney World decorated for Christmas?

Well before December. Disney’s holiday season in the parks starts November 13, 2026, Universal’s on November 14 and EPCOT’s Festival of the Holidays on November 27, according to the official sites. By December 1 everything is up and running. The month before, warmer and quieter, is covered in Orlando in November.

Is Christmas week the busiest time at Orlando theme parks?

It is one of the busiest stretches of the year, and Disney’s own rules treat it as peak season. Early December is a different story.

Early December: decorations up, school still in

Through mid December, American schools are in session. In Orange County, where Orlando is, the last day of class before the break is Friday, December 18, 2026. Families who can travel between the start of the month and the 18th see the decorations and the parties without competing with winter break crowds.

Christmas to New Year’s

Orange County public school winter break runs December 21, 2026 to January 1, 2027, the same weeks when a lot of families from other states are off too. In 2026 Christmas falls on a Friday, and so does New Year’s Day, January 1, 2027. Both are federal holidays, which gives a lot of working parents two long weekends in a row.

Disney is direct about demand in this period. Its lower priced annual passes have blockout dates during peak and holiday periods. The ticket terms say a ticket does not guarantee park entry and name holidays among the most in demand dates. The annual pass rules also note that visiting a second park the same day depends on that park’s capacity.

In practice that means arriving early, buying date based tickets before the trip and not counting on hopping parks in the afternoon. What changes on December 25 is in Christmas in Orlando, and the countdown is in New Year’s Eve in Orlando.

Home prices follow this calendar. The table on this page shows the median nightly rate of our homes month by month. How the seasons compare is in Orlando peak and off season.

In practice: if your dates allow it, do the busiest parks by December 18. If the trip has to be Christmas week, buy tickets early, be at the gate before opening and leave rest days at the house between park days.

Should you drive or fly to Orlando for the holidays?

Both work, and the answer usually comes down to distance and group size.

Driving. Families from Georgia and the Carolinas often drive down on I-95 or I-75, and for a big group that can change the budget math. From farther north, Amtrak’s Auto Train runs daily between Lorton, Virginia (near Washington, D.C.) and Sanford, Florida, north of Orlando. The trip takes about 17 and a half hours, and your car rides in an enclosed carrier on the same train.

Flying. Orlando International Airport (MCO) lists nonstop service from Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Halifax, Calgary and Winnipeg, among other Canadian cities, and from London Gatwick, London Heathrow, Manchester, Edinburgh and Dublin. Routes change by season, so confirm with the airline.

What to pack for Orlando in December

Light clothes for the day and a warm layer for the night. Afternoons usually call for a T-shirt and, some days, shorts. Once the sun sets around 5:30 p.m., the temperature drops and the jacket comes back.

• A light jacket or hoodie in the backpack every day.
• A warmer jacket for cold front nights, especially late in the month.
• Long pants and shorts. The same week can bring both.
• Comfortable closed sneakers for park days.
• A light rain jacket, in case a front brings showers.
• Sunscreen and sunglasses, even on cool days.
• Swimsuits, if your home has a heated pool.

Disney’s holiday parties are at night. Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party runs 7 p.m. to midnight, and Disney Jollywood Nights 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. Pack a warm layer for everyone, especially kids.

What is there to do in Orlando in December?

Every major park runs holiday programming in December. These are the dates published by the official sites for the 2026 season.

Event	Where	2026 season dates
Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party	Magic Kingdom	December 1, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 18, 20 and 22 (season starts November 8)
Disney Jollywood Nights	Hollywood Studios	December 5, 7, 12, 14, 19, 21 and 23 (plus January 3 and 5, 2027)
EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays	EPCOT	November 27 to December 30
Holidays at Universal	Universal Studios Florida, Islands of Adventure and Epic Universe	November 14, 2026 to January 3, 2027
Christmas Celebration	SeaWorld Orlando	Select dates, November 6, 2026 to January 4, 2027

Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. Magic Kingdom’s separately ticketed Christmas party. Per Disney, tickets cost $189 to $229 per person plus tax depending on the date, with $10 off for kids ages 3 to 9. It runs 7 p.m. to midnight, and party guests can enter from 4 p.m. No regular park ticket is needed that day. The last night is December 22, so a Christmas week trip misses it.

Disney Jollywood Nights. Hollywood Studios’ evening event, also separately ticketed, at $169 to $199 per person plus tax depending on the date. It runs 7:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., with entry from 5:30 p.m. Of Disney’s two holiday parties, it is the only one with dates after Christmas, in early January.

EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays. Holiday traditions from around the world line the World Showcase, with food booths called Holiday Kitchens, storytellers and the Candlelight Processional, a retelling of the Christmas story with a guest narrator, choir and orchestra. It runs November 27 to December 30, 2026.

Holidays at Universal. Per Universal’s official announcement, the season runs November 14, 2026 to January 3, 2027. It includes Christmas in the Wizarding World across all three areas (Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley and the Ministry of Magic), Grinchmas at Islands of Adventure and Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s, an evening parade with giant balloons at Universal Studios Florida. At Epic Universe, decorations reach Super Nintendo World and the How to Train Your Dragon land, and Celestial Park becomes a winter scene. The Universal Holiday Tour, a guided tour sold separately, starts at $69.99 per person plus tax.

SeaWorld Christmas Celebration. SeaWorld Orlando puts up lights, Christmas shows and fireworks on select nights from November 6, 2026 to January 4, 2027. Per the park, it is included with admission.

Outside the parks, Disney Springs, Disney’s shopping and dining district, has the Christmas Tree Stroll, a walk past themed Christmas trees, and visits with Santa.

If you are still choosing where to stay, browse vacation homes for large groups, vacation homes near Disney and vacation homes near Universal.