Rome in December is one of the most popular tourist destinations because as the heart of the Catholic world, it is the center of celebrations for Catholic Christmas.
In December, your evening walks through Rome will be filled with magic and anticipation.
Why?
Because the city squares are decorated with Christmas trees and nativity scenes, the streets sparkle with holiday lights, and various historical palaces and churches host Christmas concerts.
Table of Contents:
1. What’s the Weather in Rome in December?
2. How to Dress in Rome in December?
3. Holidays in Rome in December
4. Concerts and Exhibitions in Rome in December
5. What to Do in Rome in December?
1. What’s the Weather in Rome in December?
Winter in southern Italy is quite mild, but with a lot of precipitation in the form of rain. December in Rome resembles late fall in countries with cooler climates. The weather is autumnal and changeable. What that means is that the sun can shine brightly in the morning and rain in the afternoon, accompanied by a rather unpleasant chilly wind.
However, some Rome days will still delight you with really warm sunny weather, bringing you back to the carefree days of Indian summer. Snow falls in Rome in December in extremely rare cases (if it does, it’s in January-February), but it’s likely to melt rather quickly, so you won’t be able to see picturesque snowdrifts and make snowmen.
- Average daily temperature in Rome in December +10°C/50°F
- Maximum daytime temperature in Rome in December is +15°C/59°F
- Minimum daytime temperature in Rome in December +4°C/39°F
In December, the daylight hours in Rome get shorter and shorter (winter solstice day, the shortest day of the year, is December 21). Don’t be disappointed that you’ll see fewer sights by daylight, as Rome’s streets and squares look more colorful in the run-up to Christmas, thanks to the festive illuminations. In December, your evening walks around the Eternal City will be filled with magic and a special pre-holiday mood.
Keep in mind that after dark the temperature drops significantly (sometimes dropping to 0°C/32°F or even lower), the nights are quite cold, so if you plan to walk after dark, it is better to be properly dressed.
Pro Tip: When you get cold, look for a bar where you can get a drink before you continue exploring Rome.
2. How to Dress in Rome in December?
Imagine that you are traveling in a time machine from December back to early November. The grass is still green but the leaves on the trees have withered and fallen in some places.
Before your trip, pack for fall weather: unless you’re traveling from a northern climate, leave the fur coat at home and bring a warm jacket or coat instead.
Rome’s weather in December can shift between sunny warmth to rainy days with biting winds. Pack an umbrella, a couple sweaters, a hat, gloves, and a scarf in case temperatures drop. Comfortable waterproof shoes are a must to keep your feet dry.
In winter, chestnut vendors roam Rome selling charcoal-roasted chestnuts in paper cones. The taste, honestly reminiscent of potatoes, may not suit everyone. But holding the hot snacks can warm up frozen fingers on blustery days!
3. Holidays in Rome in December
December 8, 25 and 26 are public holidays and official days off in Italy. Some organizations and businesses that may be closed are post offices, banks, schools, offices of public services, museums and archaeological areas, many stores and restaurants.
It is better to check the opening hours in advance on the official website of the museum or institution that you plan to visit. Also, most stores and museums have reduced opening hours on Christmas Eve (December 24).
December 8 – Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary (L’Immacolata Concezione)
According to Catholic doctrine, not supported by Orthodox and Protestants, the Virgin Mary was conceived by ordinary parents (not to be confused with the Immaculate Conception of Jesus Christ), but God freed her from original sin.
The main celebrations occur in Rome’s Piazza España at the 12-meter column of the Immaculate Conception. Since 1857, Roman firefighters have traditionally been the first to praise the Virgin Mary. A firefighter climbs an extension ladder placed by a fire engine to the bronze statue atop the column and places a wreath of flowers in her hand. Later, delegations from the Roman police, public transit, medical institutions and commercial companies arrive to lay floral wreaths with logos at the column’s base.
The head of the Catholic Church also participates, delivering a message to the assembled delegations before going to pray at the Basilica of Sant’Andrea delle Fratte, home of the Madonna del Miracolo (Madonna of the Miracle).
December 25 is Catholic Christmas (Natale)
December 25th marks the birthday of Jesus Christ and is the second most important holiday in Italy after Easter. Preparations begin in November, with festive lights decorating Rome’s streets. Christmas trees and nativity scenes (presepe) recreating the biblical story of Christ’s birth appear in squares and landmarks like the Colosseum, St. Peter’s Square, and Piazza Venezia.
On Christmas Eve, December 24th, Rome’s churches hold masses into the early hours of the 25th. The main midnight service occurs in St. Peter’s Basilica. Seating 15,000 people, tickets require applying months in advance.
For those unable to attend, the mass broadcasts on large screens in St. Peter’s Square. The next day, December 25th, the Pope addresses the faithful with the traditional Christmas message and blessing “Urbi et Orbi” (“To the City and the World”) from the basilica’s central balcony.
Christmas for Italians centers around celebrating in close family circles gathered around ample, delicious food. The holidays themselves are usually celebrated at home socializing with loved ones and attending church services (while New Year’s Eve involves more outdoor festivities and parties). For Italians, Christmas is the more important holiday.
On December 25th, all of Italy quiets down with most institutions, stores and museums closed for the holiday. Regardless of religion, tourists can spend the day walking peacefully around a crowd-free Rome and admiring its iconic sights.
December 26 – Feast of St. Stephen
December 26th is the Feast of St. Stephen, extending the Christmas celebrations and giving Italians another day off to spend time with family, stroll around, and visit Christmas markets. As a public holiday, most businesses are closed but many museums (like the Colosseum) reopen.
Pro Tip: December 26th is a great time to visit Rome’s museums since they’ll be nearly empty.
December 13 – Saint Lucy’s Day
Saint Lucy’s Day honors the early Christian martyr and patron saint of the blind, Saint Lucy. The feast is widely celebrated in Syracuse, Sicily, the saint’s birth and death place, as well as in parts of northern Italy, Sweden, Finland and other northern nations. There, St. Lucy plays the gift-giving role over Babbo Natale (Italian Santa Claus).
In Rome, the Swedish Embassy organizes festive Saint Lucy Day parades and concerts featuring children dressed in white robes singing Swedish Christmas carols. A young girl with a candle-topped wreath on her head embodies the saint. Attendees can also sample spiced Swedish drinks and holiday pastries like lussekatt – an S-shaped bun dotted with raisins.
New Years Eve
On the night of December 31st, Italy rings in the New Year, though on a smaller scale than post-Soviet nations. While New Year’s Eve itself (St. Sylvester’s Day) is a working day, January 1st (Capodanno, literally “head of the year”) is a national public holiday.
Unlike Christmas, many Italians celebrate New Year’s Eve outdoors – attending public festivities, watching light and music shows, going to concerts and parties, setting off fireworks.
Rome’s main New Year’s Eve venues are the Colosseum (Via dei Fori Imperiali) and Piazza del Popolo, home to open-air light and music performances with fireworks.
Most Roman restaurants stay open on New Year’s Eve with special menus for the cenone, the celebratory New Year’s Eve dinner. Traditionally featuring lentil dishes, intended to bring prosperity in the coming year.
4. Concerts and Exhibitions in Rome in December
Websites for ordering concert tickets:
Rome Opera (Teatro dell’Opera di Roma)
The Nutcracker
The Nutcracker is a New Year’s ballet in two acts with music by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky based on Hoffmann’s fairy tale “The Nutcracker and the Mouse King”. Familiar to everyone since childhood, “Waltz of the Flowers” and “Dance of the Dragee Fairy” will guarantee an instant New Year’s mood at any age!
Dates: December 21-24, 27-31, 2023.
Tosca
Tosca is Giacomo Puccini’s immortal work, first performed in 1900. Set in Rome during the Napoleonic Wars, the opera is a dramatic story of love, betrayal and political intrigue.
The plot of Tosca revolves around the passionate and turbulent relationship between the famous singer Floria Tosca and the painter Mario Cavaradossi.
The opera is known for its outstanding arias, including Tosca’s touching “Vissi d’arte” and Cavaradossi’s sublime “E lucevan le stelle,” making it a timeless classic in the opera repertoire.
Dates: December 9, 12, 14, 2023.
St. Paul’s Cathedral in the Walls (Chiesa di San Paolo dentro le Mura)
La Traviata
Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata is an immortal masterpiece performed in the unique atmosphere of St. Paul’s Cathedral in the Walls (American Church in Rome). Singers perform accompanied by string, wind instruments and piano.
Dates: December 1, 2023.
Concert of the Three Tenors
Accompanied by an orchestra of Neapolitan mandalines and piano, the three tenors will perform “Torna A Surriento”, “O’ sole mio” and “Funiculì funiculà” and other famous opera arias.
Date: December 2, 2023 at 8:30 pm.
New Year’s Concert
A traditional New Year’s Eve concert performed by the I Virtuosi Dell’opera di Roma orchestra. For many years now the program of the event consists of a selection of the most famous opera arias, Viennese waltzes and Christmas songs. Guests: soprano S. Leone, mezzo-soprano I. Bottaro and tenor A. Gentili.
Date: December 31, 2023 at 20:00.
Crypt of the Capuchin Church (Via Vittorio Veneto, 27)
Baroque Music Concert
In the Capuchin Church on Via Veneto dolce vita, surrounded by magnificent sculptures and frescoes, you can enjoy the beautiful works of renowned Baroque composers such as Palestrina, Arcadelt, Moras and Pitoni, performed by the Schola Romana Ensemble.
You can also visit the mysterious Capuchin crypt!
Dates: December 7, 14, 21, 2023.
Palazzo Pamphili in Piazza Navona
Dinner/Aperitif and Opera
This will be one of the most wonderful memories you will take back with you from Rome. You will be treated to an exquisite candlelit dinner accompanied by the finest works of Italian opera. This exclusive event takes place in the Innocent X Hall in the Palazzo Pamphili, with a magnificent view of Piazza Navona.
Dates: all of December.
St. Peter’s Square
Rome traditionally hosts the international exhibition “100 Nativity Scenes at the Vatican” featuring over one hundred Christmas creches (skits on the theme of the birth of Jesus Christ). Using three-dimensional figures, each creche recreates the biblical nativity story with Jesus Christ’s birth. The pieces utilize the most varied and unexpected array of materials in their designs.
The exhibition was first held in 1976 as a tribute to the true Italian Christmas tradition (as opposed to the tradition of setting up and dressing up trees, historically common in northern European countries but not Italy).
Dates: December 8, 2023 – January 7, 2024.
5. What to Do in Rome in December?
There are plenty of options for things to do when visiting Rome in December, given the abundance of various holidays that are celebrated in Italy in the first winter month.
St. Peter’s Square, Colosseum, Piazza Venezia
The biggest and best-looking Christmas trees in the Italian capital are located in St. Peter’s Square and near the Colosseum, as well as on the Capitoline Hill.
This year, contrary to a long-standing tradition, the main Christmas tree of the country will be installed not in Piazza Venezia, but in Piazza del Popolo. The reason for this is the work on the construction of the subway.
The tree decorating St. Peter’s Square is donated to the Vatican by a northern Italian region or by Catholics from other countries. The Christmas tree, as well as a life-size crèche with the baby Jesus, will remain in St. Peter’s Square until January 7, the Feast of the Epiphany.
Piazza Navona
Christmas markets and festively decorated trees are not Italian traditions, instead originating in countries like Germany, Austria and northern Italian regions bordering Austria.
Rome has limited Christmas markets, the most famous being in Piazza Navona selling toys, jewelry, sweets, pastries and local crafts. Visitors can have photos taken with La Befana (the good witch who brings children gifts) and Babbo Natale (Italian Santa Claus), or ride the carousel. Opening on December 8th, the market remains open through January 6th for the full holiday season.
Christmas Markets in Rome
- Campo de’ Fiori: November 26, 2023 – January 6, 2024
- Piazza Mazzini: December 8 – December 24, 2023
- Giftland: via Tuscolana 179 (December 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 16, 17, 2023)
- Christmas Worldvilla BorgheseDates: December 1, 2023 – January 6, 2024
- Magia del Natale: Cinecittà World amusement park, Via Irina AlbertiDates: November 11, 2023 – January 7, 2024
Christmas Stores in Rome
It is possible to buy really beautiful Christmas decorations in Rome for yourself and as a gift. Not far from Piazza Navona, there is a store called Sempre Natale (Via della Scrofa, 93) called Always Christmas.
“Sempre Natale” is the only store in Rome and in Italy open all year round and entirely dedicated to Christmas decorations.
Next to the Spanish Steps, there is another store that usually sells stationery and, at Christmas time, jewelry, decorations and creche figures: Vertecchi Stationery (Via della Croce, 70).
Near the church of Santa Maria Maggiore and Nero’s Golden House is the weekend market Mercato Monti (Via Leonina, 46), where you can buy handicrafts, designer clothes and shoes, antiques and jewelry. In December, the theme of the market is Christmas.
I hope this article has provided useful insight into visiting Rome during the festive month of December, with its Christmas spirit and seasonal traditions on display among the timeless sights. Feel free to reach out if you have any other questions as you plan your upcoming trip!
