Weather in Madeira in December
Averages, what the month actually feels like, and what is on while you are here.
December averages
| Measurement | Funchal, south coast | Santana, north coast | Pico do ArieiroModel grid cell at 1,758 m |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average high | 19 °C | 16 °C | 8 °C |
| Average low | 15 °C | 12 °C | 3 °C |
| Daylight | 10.0 h | 10.0 h | 10.0 h |
| Sea temperature | 21 °C | – | – |
Temperature and daylight, averaged over the ten years from 2016 to 2025 and recomputed from the Open-Meteo archive rather than typed in by hand. The model works in cells roughly ten kilometres across, so each column describes an area rather than one thermometer. Checked against IPMA's Funchal normal, the temperatures land within about a degree and a half. Sea temperature averages the years 2022 to 2025. The marine record is shorter than the air record, so it rests on fewer years.
Rain in December
Funchal averages 115 mm of rain in December, on 10 days with a millimetre or more.
The north coast around Santana and the mountains above a thousand metres are wetter than the seafront in every month of the year, often several times over. IPMA publishes no station normal for Santana or Pico do Arieiro, so this page puts no millimetre figure on them rather than one it cannot check.
Rainfall: the IPMA climate normal for the Funchal observatory (station 522, 58 m), averaged over the 30 years from 1981 to 2010. The ten-year reanalysis behind the table above is not used for rain. Its grid cell is about ten kilometres across, so it averages the Funchal seafront with the slopes that climb steeply behind the city, where most of the island's summer rain falls. Measured against this normal it runs roughly ten times high in June, July and August.
What December feels like
December is mild and often wet, with the shortest days of the year and Funchal at its most festive. The south coast rarely drops below the mid-teens even overnight.
What to pack
Layers, a waterproof, and one smart thing if you are out for New Year. Warm clothing for anything above the tree line.
What to do in December
The Christmas lights, the market on Avenida Arriaga and the New Year fireworks over the bay are why many people come at all. Between them the trails are empty.
Worth knowing before you book
It is the wettest month by total and the fronts arrive in sequence. New Year is the single busiest night of the year for hotels and flights, and the airport is at its windiest.
Cruise ships in December
57 ship calls at Funchal in December, which is what fills the old town and the cable car on a weekday morning.
Busiest days: Thursday, December 31, Monday, December 28, Wednesday, December 23
Quick answers
- How warm is Madeira in December?
- In Funchal an average December day reaches 19 °C and falls to 15 °C overnight. Pico do Arieiro averages 8 °C in the same month, so the mountains need their own layer.
- Does it rain in Madeira in December?
- Funchal records about 115 mm across December, on 10 days with a millimetre or more of rain. The north coast and the mountains take several times as much in the same weeks, which is why the two halves of the island can look like different holidays.
- Can you swim in the sea in December?
- The sea off Funchal averages 21 °C in December. Madeira has no shallow shelf to warm it, so the water stays close to that figure all month.
- How long are the days in December?
- About 10.0 hours between sunrise and sunset, which sets how much of a long levada walk you can fit in before dark.