December weather: cold nights, bright days
December is winter in Las Vegas, in the desert sense. Typical highs average about 57–59°F (14–15°C), lows around 38–41°F (3–5°C), and the sun still shows up for roughly seven to eight hours a day. Rain falls on two to four days in a typical December, sometimes as a slow winter system that lingers for a day, and the surrounding mountains, especially Mount Charleston to the northwest, are often snow-capped by mid-month. A dusting of snow on the Strip happens once every few years and stops the city in its tracks.
Nights are the coldest of the year. Standing on Las Vegas Boulevard for the New Year's Eve fireworks at 40°F with a breeze is a real test of your coat, and the walk between resorts at midnight any night of the month calls for proper winter layers. Days, by contrast, are pleasant in the sun; a 58°F afternoon at the Bellagio fountains in a sweater is comfortable. Wind is moderate, with occasional cold fronts. The desert day trips are crisp and clear, and the Grand Canyon South Rim is frequently snowy, which is spectacular if you are dressed for it.
National Finals Rodeo: the first ten days
The National Finals Rodeo typically runs for ten consecutive nights in the first half of December at the Thomas & Mack Center, and it remakes the city. Hundreds of thousands of rodeo fans arrive, cowboy hats and boots fill every casino, the sportsbooks and ballrooms host nightly viewing parties, the country music calendar goes into overdrive with concerts and residencies at the arenas and theaters, and the Cowboy Christmas gift show fills the convention center. Rates rise across the Strip for the duration, particularly at the resorts that lean into the event, and the weekends inside NFR are peak-priced.
It is one of the friendliest big events on the calendar and the city is genuinely fun during it, even if you never see a bronc. The two weekends inside the rodeo dates are the expensive nights; the midweek nights are elevated but manageable, and the moment NFR ends the city goes quiet. See our NFR guide for tickets, viewing parties and where to stay.
The quiet week: mid-December value
Between the end of NFR and roughly December 26, Las Vegas has its quietest and one of its cheapest stretches of the entire year. Conventions are finished, leisure travelers are at home preparing for the holidays, and the resorts drop rates hard to fill rooms: luxury properties midweek can cost what a mid-range hotel costs in spring, and weekend rates are soft too. Restaurants take walk-ins, shows have their best availability of the winter, and the Strip sidewalks are calm even at 9pm on a Saturday. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are among the quietest days of the year on the casino floors, though holiday dinners and buffets book solid.
This window is the insider's December. The holiday decorations are fully up, the Bellagio Conservatory's winter display is running, the ice rink at the Cosmopolitan is open and the weather is crisp and sunny. If you can travel in the week or so before Christmas, it is one of the best-value trips of the year. See how to get a hotel deal and holidays in Las Vegas.
New Year's Eve: the most expensive night of the year
Everything changes from about December 27. The city fills for New Year's Eve, the biggest single night of the year, when the Strip closes to traffic in the evening, fireworks fire from the rooftops of several resorts at midnight, Fremont Street runs a ticketed party under the canopy and several hundred thousand people stand on Las Vegas Boulevard. Nightclubs sell their most expensive tickets and tables of the year, restaurants run premium prix-fixe menus, and rooms at Strip resorts for December 30 and 31 cost more than any other night, usually with a three- or four-night minimum. Rates for the nights around it climb too, so the whole final week is peak season.
New Year's Day itself is quieter, and January 2 onward drops rapidly. The night requires real planning: pedestrian bridges close or become one-way, rideshare pickup is chaotic, the cold is serious and the crowd is dense. A room with a Strip view on the fireworks side, a show or dinner with a view, or a spot on Fremont Street are the common strategies. Our New Year's Eve guide covers the closure, the vantage points and the survival rules.
Crowds and hotel prices through the month
December has three distinct price regimes. NFR in the first half brings elevated rates with peak weekends; the mid-December week is near the annual low; and December 27 through January 1 is the most expensive stretch of the entire year. The weekday-to-weekend swing is normal during NFR, flattened during the quiet week because everything is cheap, and irrelevant at New Year's because everything is expensive. A handful of small conventions and a few holiday concerts sit inside this pattern without changing it.
Crowds follow the same shape: cowboy-hat busy, then calm, then the densest crowd of the year. Families arrive for the school holidays from around December 20 and are a large part of the final week; couples dominate the quiet week; NFR brings a multi-generational, country-music crowd. Casino floors are decorated and the resort lobbies, especially Bellagio, Wynn, Venetian and the Cosmopolitan, are at their most photogenic. For where the value lives, see cheap Las Vegas hotels.
Pool status in December
Pools are closed for the season, with the exception of the year-round heated pool that a handful of resorts keep open, usually one pool with limited hours and no drink service to speak of; historically that list has included Aria, Bellagio, Cosmopolitan, Wynn, Encore and a few others, but check with the resort. In practice December is hot-tub and spa season. The big resort spas run holiday promotions and are quiet midweek, and a spa day pass is the natural December replacement for a pool day. Dayclubs are closed until spring.
If your trip depends on swimming, December is the wrong month; if it depends on a warm hotel room with a view of the decorated Strip, it is one of the best. The Cosmopolitan's ice rink, on the Boulevard Pool deck, is the closest thing to a December pool party. See the best pools for which resorts keep a heated pool open in winter.
What to pack for December
Winter clothes, with something dressy.
- A proper coat; nights are near 40°F and New Year's Eve is spent outdoors
- Sweaters, a warm layer for under the coat and closed shoes
- Hat, gloves and a scarf if you are doing the New Year's Eve Strip or Fremont Street party, or any Grand Canyon or Red Rock trip
- Sunglasses and sunscreen for the bright, low-angle winter sun
- Dressy outfits; December dining and the holiday parties lean formal, and New Year's Eve clubs enforce dress codes
- Comfortable shoes you can stand in for hours on the 31st
- Portable charger, because phones die fast in the cold and the network is jammed at midnight
- Swimsuit only if your resort confirms a heated winter pool
The full checklist is at our packing list.
Best things to do and who December suits
December is about the decorations, the shows and the desert. The Bellagio Conservatory's holiday display is the centerpiece, the resort lobbies are lavishly decorated, the Cosmopolitan ice rink and the holiday light drives around the valley suit families, and the Neon Museum and Fremont Street are lovely on a cold clear night. Red Rock, Valley of Fire and Hoover Dam are comfortable all day, and a snowy Grand Canyon South Rim is a genuine highlight. Country fans have NFR; everyone else has the residencies and Cirque at full holiday strength.
Budget travelers: the mid-December week is a gift; NFR weekends and New Year's are the opposite. Couples: the quiet week before Christmas is one of the most romantic windows of the year; see romantic things to do. Families: good for the holiday atmosphere and day trips, with no pools; the final week is crowded and expensive. Party groups: New Year's Eve is the ultimate version, at the ultimate price. Conventions: minimal.
