Machu Picchu weather in December

In December, Machu Picchu sees average daytime highs of 14°C and overnight lows near 6°C, with 240 mm of precipitation across 30.7 wet days and about 12.8 hours of daylight. It is the 2nd-warmest and 3rd-wettest month of the year here.

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 14°C through the month. The sky is clear or mostly clear about 0% of the time in December, and the air most often feels dry.

Daylight stretches from about 12 h 42 min at the start of December to 12 h 48 min by month's end. Set against the rest of the year, December is Machu Picchu's 9th-clearest and 6th-windiest month. For the whole year in context, see Machu Picchu's year-round climate.

Daytime high: 14°; 2nd warmest
Overnight low: 6°; 12th coldest
Precipitation: 240 mm; 30.7 wet days
Daylight: 12 h 48 min; 5:23 AM – 6:09 PM
Cloud cover: 94%; 9th clearest
Wind: 3 km/h; 6th windiest
Solar energy: 5.01 kWh/m²
Travel score: 2.0; out of 10

← November Machu Picchu year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Temperature in December

Average highAverage lowShaded bands: 10–90% of days

Day-to-day highs hold fairly steady near 14°C through the month.

A typical December day in Machu Picchu reaches about 14°C in the afternoon and slips back to 6°C overnight — a 8°C spread between the day's warmth and the night's chill. On most days the high lands between 12°C and 15°C. Set against its neighbours, December runs on par with November and on par with January.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Avg high (°C)	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14	14
Avg low (°C)	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	14	6
2	14	6
3	14	6
4	14	6
5	14	6
6	14	6
7	14	6
8	14	6
9	14	6
10	14	6
11	14	6
12	14	6
13	14	6
14	14	6
15	14	6
16	14	6
17	14	6
18	14	6
19	14	6
20	14	6
21	14	6
22	14	6
23	14	6
24	14	6
25	14	6
26	14	6
27	14	6
28	14	6
29	14	6
30	14	6
31	14	6

Machu Picchu weather by month

How December compares with the rest of the year at a glance. December is the 2nd-warmest and 3rd-wettest month here — the current month is highlighted below.

Month	High / Low (°C)	Rainfall (mm)	Wet days	Snow days	Daylight (hours)	Travel score
Jan	14° / 6°	268	30.9	0.1	12.7	1.9
Feb	13° / 6°	246	27.9	0.1	12.4	1.9
Mar	14° / 6°	239	30.9	0	12.1	1.9
Apr	14° / 5°	142	28.1	0	11.7	2.2
May	13° / 4°	61	19.5	0	11.4	3.0
Jun	13° / 3°	37	13.2	0	11.2	3.3
Jul	12° / 2°	39	13.2	0.5	11.3	3.2
Aug	13° / 2°	57	19.3	0.4	11.6	2.8
Sep	13° / 4°	89	26.1	0	11.9	2.2
Oct	14° / 5°	149	30.3	0	12.3	2.1
Nov	14° / 6°	174	29.2	0.1	12.6	2.1
Dec	14° / 6°	240	30.7	0.1	12.8	2.0

Cloud cover in December

ClearMostly clearPartly cloudyMostly cloudyOvercast

The sky is clear or mostly clear about 0% of the time in December.

Beyond those clear spells, partly cloudy skies cover about 1% of December, with mostly cloudy or overcast conditions the remaining 99%.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Clearer (%)	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Cloudier (%)	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	100	100	100	100	100

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	1	99
2	1	99
3	1	99
4	1	99
5	1	99
6	1	99
7	1	99
8	1	99
9	1	99
10	1	99
11	1	99
12	1	99
13	1	99
14	1	99
15	1	99
16	1	99
17	1	99
18	1	99
19	1	99
20	1	99
21	1	99
22	1	99
23	1	99
24	1	99
25	1	99
26	1	99
27	0	100
28	0	100
29	0	100
30	0	100
31	0	100

Chance of precipitation in December

Any precipitation

Machu Picchu gets around 240 mm of rain and snow over 30.7 wet days in December. The line is the day-by-day chance of measurable precipitation.

Day to day, the chance of measurable precipitation averages around 99% and peaks near 100% on the wettest days, and about 0 day brings snow.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Rain chance (%)	98	98	98	98	98	98	98	98	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	99	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Rain chance (%)
1	98
2	98
3	98
4	98
5	98
6	98
7	98
8	98
9	99
10	99
11	99
12	99
13	99
14	99
15	99
16	99
17	99
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Humidity in December

DryComfortableHumidMuggyOppressiveMiserable

Most of December feels dry — the stacked bands show each day's mix of comfort levels, read off the dew point.

By dew point, December lands in the dry band about 100% of days. It rarely turns muggy — the humid and sticky bands barely register.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Dry (%)	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

Wind in December

Winds average 3 km/h in December.

Across December, daily wind ranges from about 3 km/h on the calmest days to 3 km/h at its breeziest. It stays fairly steady from day to day.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Wind speed (km/h)	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Feels	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm	calm

	Wind speed (km/h)	Feels
1	3	calm
2	3	calm
3	3	calm
4	3	calm
5	3	calm
6	3	calm
7	3	calm
8	3	calm
9	3	calm
10	3	calm
11	3	calm
12	3	calm
13	3	calm
14	3	calm
15	3	calm
16	3	calm
17	3	calm
18	3	calm
19	3	calm
20	3	calm
21	3	calm
22	3	calm
23	3	calm
24	3	calm
25	3	calm
26	3	calm
27	3	calm
28	3	calm
29	3	calm
30	3	calm
31	3	calm

Sunrise & sunset in December

DaylightNight

Daylight runs from about 12 h 42 min at the start of December to 12 h 48 min by month's end. The lit band spans sunrise to sunset each day.

Days grow by about 6 minutes over December. Sunrise moves from 5:18 AM to 5:30 AM, and sunset from 6:01 PM to 6:16 PM.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Daylight (h)	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.7	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8	12.8
Sunrise (AM)	5:18	5:18	5:19	5:19	5:19	5:20	5:20	5:20	5:20	5:21	5:21	5:22	5:22	5:22	5:23	5:23	5:24	5:24	5:24	5:25	5:25	5:26	5:26	5:27	5:27	5:28	5:28	5:29	5:29	5:30	5:30
Sunset (PM)	6:01	6:02	6:03	6:03	6:04	6:04	6:05	6:05	6:06	6:06	6:07	6:07	6:08	6:08	6:09	6:09	6:10	6:10	6:11	6:11	6:12	6:12	6:13	6:13	6:14	6:14	6:15	6:15	6:15	6:16	6:16

	Daylight (h)	Sunrise (AM)	Sunset (PM)
1	12.7	5:18	6:01
2	12.7	5:18	6:02
3	12.7	5:19	6:03
4	12.7	5:19	6:03
5	12.7	5:19	6:04
6	12.7	5:20	6:04
7	12.7	5:20	6:05
8	12.8	5:20	6:05
9	12.8	5:20	6:06
10	12.8	5:21	6:06
11	12.8	5:21	6:07
12	12.8	5:22	6:07
13	12.8	5:22	6:08
14	12.8	5:22	6:08
15	12.8	5:23	6:09
16	12.8	5:23	6:09
17	12.8	5:24	6:10
18	12.8	5:24	6:10
19	12.8	5:24	6:11
20	12.8	5:25	6:11
21	12.8	5:25	6:12
22	12.8	5:26	6:12
23	12.8	5:26	6:13
24	12.8	5:27	6:13
25	12.8	5:27	6:14
26	12.8	5:28	6:14
27	12.8	5:28	6:15
28	12.8	5:29	6:15
29	12.8	5:29	6:15
30	12.8	5:30	6:16
31	12.8	5:30	6:16

Solar energy in December

Daily solar energy (kWh/m²)

Average shortwave solar energy reaching the ground each day in December, about 5.01 kWh/m².

For context, solar energy here swings from a low near 4.56 kWh/m² to a high of 5.71 kWh/m² in October across the year — December's 5.01 kWh/m² falls in the middle.

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31
Solar energy (kWh/m²)	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.2	5.1	5.1	5.1	5.1	5.1	5.1	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	5.0	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.9	4.9
Level	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright	Bright

	Solar energy (kWh/m²)	Level
1	5.2	Bright
2	5.2	Bright
3	5.2	Bright
4	5.2	Bright
5	5.2	Bright
6	5.1	Bright
7	5.1	Bright
8	5.1	Bright
9	5.1	Bright
10	5.1	Bright
11	5.1	Bright
12	5.0	Bright
13	5.0	Bright
14	5.0	Bright
15	5.0	Bright
16	5.0	Bright
17	5.0	Bright
18	5.0	Bright
19	5.0	Bright
20	5.0	Bright
21	5.0	Bright
22	5.0	Bright
23	5.0	Bright
24	4.9	Bright
25	4.9	Bright
26	4.9	Bright
27	4.9	Bright
28	4.9	Bright
29	4.9	Bright
30	4.9	Bright
31	4.9	Bright

Planning a trip in December

Hazard calendar for Machu Picchu

In seasonPeak

In December, Machu Picchu sits inside its rainy season season. The full year is below, with each hazard's peak months called out.

Machu Picchu's rainy season runs October–April, when most of the year's rain falls.

Rainy season

Jan

Feb

Mar

Apr

May

Jun

Jul

Aug

Sep

Oct

Nov

Dec

Is December a good time to visit Machu Picchu?

Our two travel scores rate December for general sightseeing and for beach or pool weather — 0 (poor) to 10 (ideal).

2.0

Sightseeing

9th-best month of the year

—

Beach & pool

never really warm enough

December is a weaker month for outdoor sightseeing in Machu Picchu.

What to pack for Machu Picchu in December

From December's temperature range, rain chance, sun and wind — what's worth putting in the bag.

In December, Machu Picchu sees daytime highs around 14°C and nights near 6°C. Pack rain gear. Worth having: a warm layer and sun protection. About 31 days see rain.

rain geara warm layersun protection

UV index in Machu Picchu in December

LowModerateHighVery highExtreme

Clear-sky midday UV in December peaks around 16 (very high — sun protection essential). The full-year curve, shaded by WHO exposure level, is below.

Under clear skies, the midday UV index in Machu Picchu peaks around January 23 at about 18 (extreme) — sunscreen, a hat and midday shade are essential. It bottoms out near July 9 at about 10 (very high).

The index reaches 3 or more — the level where the WHO recommends sun protection — every month of the year.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
UV index (midday)	19	18	17	15	12	10	10	13	13	16	16	16
Level	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Very high	Very high	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme	Extreme

	UV index (midday)	Level
Jan	19	Extreme
Feb	18	Extreme
Mar	17	Extreme
Apr	15	Extreme
May	12	Extreme
Jun	10	Very high
Jul	10	Very high
Aug	13	Extreme
Sep	13	Extreme
Oct	16	Extreme
Nov	16	Extreme
Dec	16	Extreme

Air quality in Machu Picchu in December

GoodModeratePoorUnhealthyVery unhealthy

Average fine-particle pollution (PM2.5) through the year — so you can see where December falls, not just the annual average.

Air quality in Machu Picchu is worst in September — around 16 µg/m³ PM2.5 (moderate), about 2.8× the cleanest month (January, 6 µg/m³).

Modeled monthly averages (CAMS reanalysis, 2015–2024).

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
PM2.5 (µg/m³)	6	7	8	7	7	6	8	13	16	13	11	6
Level	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Good	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate	Good	Good

	PM2.5 (µg/m³)	Level
Jan	6	Good
Feb	7	Good
Mar	8	Good
Apr	7	Good
May	7	Good
Jun	6	Good
Jul	8	Good
Aug	13	Moderate
Sep	16	Moderate
Oct	13	Moderate
Nov	11	Good
Dec	6	Good

Location & terrain

Where is Machu Picchu?

Machu Picchu sits at 13.2°S, 72.5°W, 0 m above sea level, in Peru. The nearest listed city is Aguas Calientes, 0.0 km away.

Topography around Machu Picchu

How much the land rises and falls, and what covers it, within 3, 16 and 80 km of Machu Picchu.

Within 3 km, the terrain around Machu Picchu has very significant variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 1,986 m around an average of 2,576 m above sea level; within 16 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 4,049 m; within 80 km, extreme variations in elevation — a maximum elevation change of 5,619 m.

The land around Machu Picchu is covered by trees (93%) within 3 km, trees (61%) and grassland (31%) within 16 km, and grassland (50%) and trees (44%) within 80 km.

3 km

1,986 m

trees 93%

16 km

4,049 m

trees 61%

80 km

5,619 m

grassland 50%

treesshrubsgrasslandcroplandbare terrainsnow and ice

← November Machu Picchu year-round climate January →Best places to visit in December

December weather nearby: Aguas Calientes 0.0 km · Quillabamba 37 km · Santa Ana 38 km · Abancay 66 km · Santiago 72 km · Wanchaq 73 km · Cusco 73 km · Andahuaylas 109 km

Peru travel facts

Travel advisory: Level 2; Exercise Increased Caution
Power plugs: Type A / B / C; 220 V · 60 Hz
Prices: ≈ 51% of US; price level, 2025
GDP per capita: $9,684; 2025
Happiness: 6.0 / 10; World Happiness, 2025
Safe drinking water: 49%; of population, 2024
Homicide rate: 8.6; per 100k, 2021
Road deaths: 13.6; per 100k/yr, 2019
Income group: Upper middle; World Bank
English: Moderate; EF EPI 519
Religion

Sources: World Bank, US State Department, World Happiness Report, WHO/UNICEF, EF EPI, CIA World Factbook.

Data sources

Temperature, precipitation, cloud, humidity, wind and solar figures are a 1991–2020 climatology for Machu Picchu (-13.1555°, -72.5242°, elevation 0 m), computed from hourly ERA5 reanalysis — contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information. Sun figures are astronomical calculations, not observations. City data © GeoNames, CC BY 4.0. Map outlines from Natural Earth (public domain); interactive map © Google. UV index is derived from CAMS (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service) clear-sky UV data — contains modified Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service information. Monthly air-quality (PM2.5) seasonality is from the CAMS EAC4 reanalysis (Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service), scaled to the WHO annual mean where available. Topography is sampled from the Copernicus DEM GLO-90 elevation model (© ESA/Airbus) and ESA WorldCover 2021 land cover (CC BY 4.0).

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	14	6
2	14	6
3	14	6
4	14	6
5	14	6
6	14	6
7	14	6
8	14	6
9	14	6
10	14	6
11	14	6
12	14	6
13	14	6
14	14	6
15	14	6
16	14	6
17	14	6
18	14	6
19	14	6
20	14	6
21	14	6
22	14	6
23	14	6
24	14	6
25	14	6
26	14	6
27	14	6
28	14	6
29	14	6
30	14	6
31	14	6

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	1	99
2	1	99
3	1	99
4	1	99
5	1	99
6	1	99
7	1	99
8	1	99
9	1	99
10	1	99
11	1	99
12	1	99
13	1	99
14	1	99
15	1	99
16	1	99
17	1	99
18	1	99
19	1	99
20	1	99
21	1	99
22	1	99
23	1	99
24	1	99
25	1	99
26	1	99
27	0	100
28	0	100
29	0	100
30	0	100
31	0	100

	Rain chance (%)
1	98
2	98
3	98
4	98
5	98
6	98
7	98
8	98
9	99
10	99
11	99
12	99
13	99
14	99
15	99
16	99
17	99
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	14	6
2	14	6
3	14	6
4	14	6
5	14	6
6	14	6
7	14	6
8	14	6
9	14	6
10	14	6
11	14	6
12	14	6
13	14	6
14	14	6
15	14	6
16	14	6
17	14	6
18	14	6
19	14	6
20	14	6
21	14	6
22	14	6
23	14	6
24	14	6
25	14	6
26	14	6
27	14	6
28	14	6
29	14	6
30	14	6
31	14	6

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	1	99
2	1	99
3	1	99
4	1	99
5	1	99
6	1	99
7	1	99
8	1	99
9	1	99
10	1	99
11	1	99
12	1	99
13	1	99
14	1	99
15	1	99
16	1	99
17	1	99
18	1	99
19	1	99
20	1	99
21	1	99
22	1	99
23	1	99
24	1	99
25	1	99
26	1	99
27	0	100
28	0	100
29	0	100
30	0	100
31	0	100

	Rain chance (%)
1	98
2	98
3	98
4	98
5	98
6	98
7	98
8	98
9	99
10	99
11	99
12	99
13	99
14	99
15	99
16	99
17	99
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Avg high (°C)	Avg low (°C)
1	14	6
2	14	6
3	14	6
4	14	6
5	14	6
6	14	6
7	14	6
8	14	6
9	14	6
10	14	6
11	14	6
12	14	6
13	14	6
14	14	6
15	14	6
16	14	6
17	14	6
18	14	6
19	14	6
20	14	6
21	14	6
22	14	6
23	14	6
24	14	6
25	14	6
26	14	6
27	14	6
28	14	6
29	14	6
30	14	6
31	14	6

	Clearer (%)	Cloudier (%)
1	1	99
2	1	99
3	1	99
4	1	99
5	1	99
6	1	99
7	1	99
8	1	99
9	1	99
10	1	99
11	1	99
12	1	99
13	1	99
14	1	99
15	1	99
16	1	99
17	1	99
18	1	99
19	1	99
20	1	99
21	1	99
22	1	99
23	1	99
24	1	99
25	1	99
26	1	99
27	0	100
28	0	100
29	0	100
30	0	100
31	0	100

	Rain chance (%)
1	98
2	98
3	98
4	98
5	98
6	98
7	98
8	98
9	99
10	99
11	99
12	99
13	99
14	99
15	99
16	99
17	99
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100

	Dry (%)
1	100
2	100
3	100
4	100
5	100
6	100
7	100
8	100
9	100
10	100
11	100
12	100
13	100
14	100
15	100
16	100
17	100
18	100
19	100
20	100
21	100
22	100
23	100
24	100
25	100
26	100
27	100
28	100
29	100
30	100
31	100