Décembre · Practical guide
Short days, long evenings, and the city at its most festive. What the weather is really like, what closes on the holidays, and what to book before you go.
Updated October 19, 2026 · Prices checked October 19, 2026 · Tour prices refresh daily
Photo: Pierre Blaché / Unsplash
December is the month Paris lights up and slows down. The days are short, with the sun setting around 5pm all month and less than nine hours of daylight, and the weather is reliably gray, cold, and damp. In exchange you get the Christmas lights, the department-store windows, markets on the squares, and evenings that start early and run long.
The practical traps are the holidays. December 25, 2026 and January 1, 2027 both fall on a Friday, and most of the big museums close on Christmas Day, while the Eiffel Tower stays open. Here is what the weather really looks like, what is open when, and what we would book.
N° 01Short on time
1erPrivateBest Christmas evening
With Love From Paris Tours
A private guide picks you up at your hotel around 5pm and takes you on foot and by taxi through the Christmas lights of the Champs-Élysées, Opéra, and Place Vendôme, the Galeries Lafayette displays, and a market stop for mulled wine. It runs rain or shine.
Free cancellation
From$343.30
lowest listed option
2eLunch includedBest on Christmas itself
Bateaux Parisiens
Christmas Eve dinner, or Christmas Day lunch or dinner, on a glass-roofed Bateaux Parisiens boat from the Eiffel Tower, with Champagne, wine, and a live singer. All sales are final, so book only once your plans are fixed.
From$154.44
per person
3eSmall groupBest winter day trip
Blue Fox Travel
A small group of up to eight to Reims Cathedral, Hautvillers, a big Champagne house, and a family grower, with six tastings. Most of the day is spent in cellars and the cathedral, so December weather barely matters.
Free cancellation
From$263.20
per person
We may earn a commission when you book through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. It never decides our picks. Tour prices are Viator’s US-dollar from-prices, refreshed with ratings every day; they change by date, and Viator may show your local currency. How we make money.
N° 02Le temps
Météo-France climate normals for Paris-Montsouris (1991–2020), and sunrise and sunset times for central Paris in December 2026.
| Measure | December |
|---|---|
| Average high | 8.0°C (46°F) |
| Average low | 3.8°C (39°F) |
| Rain | 62 mm (2.4 in), with 11.4 days of rain |
| Sunshine | About 57 hours in the whole month |
| Frost | About 5 days with a low at or below 0°C |
| December 1 | Sunrise 8:21am · sunset 4:58pm |
| December 15 | Sunrise 8:35am · sunset 4:56pm |
| December 21 (solstice) | Sunrise 8:39am · sunset 4:58pm · 8 hr 19 min of daylight |
| December 31 | Sunrise 8:42am · sunset 5:05pm |
December has more rainy days than any other month in Paris, though May gets more rain in total. Sun times are calculated for central Paris. Source: Météo-France climate sheet, Paris-Montsouris.
N° 03Jours fériés
December 24 and 31, 2026 are Thursdays; December 25 and January 1 are Fridays. Many venues shorten their hours on the 24th and 31st and have not all published them yet, so check the day before.
| Sight | Dec 24 | Dec 25 | Dec 31 | Jan 1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louvre | Open | Closed | Open | Closed |
| Musée d’Orsay | Open (last year 9:30am–5pm) | Closed | Open (last year 9:30am–5pm) | Not a regular closure (open last year) |
| Versailles (palace and estate) | Open | Closed | Open | Closed |
| Eiffel Tower | Open | Open | Open, closes early (time TBC) | Open |
| Catacombs | Open | Closed | Open | Closed |
| Sainte-Chapelle | Open | Closed | Open | Closed |
| Arc de Triomphe | Closes at 4pm | TBC (opened last year) | Closes at 4pm | TBC (opened last year) |
Checked October 19, 2026 on each venue’s official site. “Open” means no closure is announced for that day; holiday hours may be shorter. The Catacombs are also closed every Monday (including December 28), and the Louvre every Tuesday. The Arc de Triomphe lift is out of service until 2027, so the roof is stairs-only (284 steps). Source: louvre.fr, hours and admission.
N° 04Noël
Paris spreads its Christmas across the city rather than one big market. The highlights for 2026:
The lights are best seen on foot, after dark, with something warm in hand. This small-group walk caps groups at six:
Small groupDayin
Free cancellation
From$78.96
per person
N° 05Le 24 et le 25
In France the big celebration is the dinner on Christmas Eve, the réveillon, so if you want a special meal on the 24th or 25th, book well ahead. Christmas Day itself is quiet: the Louvre, Orsay, Versailles, the Catacombs, and Sainte-Chapelle are all closed, while the Eiffel Tower is open as usual. It is a good day for a long walk along the Seine and for the city’s lights after dark.
The one way to spend the holiday on the river is Bateaux Parisiens’ Christmas cruise from the foot of the Eiffel Tower. The Christmas Eve and Christmas Day dinners board at 8pm, leave at 8:30pm, and return at 11pm; the Christmas Day lunch leaves at 12:45pm and returns at 2:45pm. Dress is smart casual, and all sales are final.
Lunch includedBateaux Parisiens
From$154.44
per person
For a fuller list of what opens and closes, read our guide to what is open in Paris over Christmas.
N° 06La Saint-Sylvestre
The city’s free celebration is on the Champs-Élysées. Last year the avenue opened to the public from 7pm, with the main access via Concorde, and the evening ended with a video show projected on the Arc de Triomphe from 11:50pm and fireworks from midnight to 12:10am. The tourist office lists a similar free evening for December 31, 2026, but the City of Paris has not published the programme yet. Do not plan around fireworks from the Eiffel Tower: there were none last year.
Two things close early on the 31st: the Arc de Triomphe at 4pm, and the Eiffel Tower, at a time not yet confirmed for 2026.
If you would rather be on the water, Bateaux Mouches runs a New Year’s Eve dinner cruise with a party on board. We list it because it is the best-supported option we found, not because it is a sure thing: it has few reviews and middling scores, all sales are final, and the listing contradicts itself on the cruise length and the drinks allowance, so read the option you book carefully.
DinnerBateaux Mouches
From$549.29
per person
N° 07À réserver
Seasonal tours run for a few weeks a year and carry few reviews; the two day trips are year-round products with far more. Both holiday cruises are non-refundable. Prices shown are the lowest listed option.
| Tour | Format | Length | Reviews | From | Book |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private Christmas Illuminations Tour with Hotel PickupWith Love From Paris ToursCouples and families wanting a door-to-door private Christmas lights evening Free cancellation | Mixed · private | 3-4 hours | 5.0047 reviews | $343.30lowest listed option | Check |
| Christmas Lights Small-Group Walk with Hot Chocolate or Mulled WineDayinTravelers wanting an affordable small-group Christmas lights walk Free cancellation | Walking · small group | 2 hours | 4.7919 reviews | $78.96 | Check |
| Champs-Élysées Christmas Lights Walk with TastingsParis Fun ToursTravelers wanting a short, low-cost festive walk with treats Free cancellation | Walking · small group | 1.5 hours | 5.0015 reviews | $67.52 | Check |
| Bateaux Parisiens Christmas Eve & Christmas Day CruiseBateaux ParisiensCouples and families wanting a classic Seine cruise on Christmas itself | Boat · group | 3–4 hours | 4.3132 reviews | $154.44 | Check |
| Bateaux Mouches New Year’s Eve Dinner CruiseBateaux MouchesAdults who want to ring in the New Year on the Seine | Boat · group | 5 hours | 3.8323 reviews | $549.29 | Check |
| Champagne Day Trip: Reims, a Family Winery & 6 TastingsBlue Fox TravelFirst-timers who want a well-reviewed small group mixing a big house and a grower Free cancellation | Minivan · small group | 11 hours | 4.831,032 reviews | $263.20 | Check |
| Normandy D-Day Beaches & American Cemetery, with LunchCity WondersValue seekers who want the core American D-Day sites with lunch handled Free cancellation | Coach · group | 14 hours | 4.8310,410 reviews | $123.59 | Check |
N° 08Hors de Paris
Short days rule out some day trips and favor others. Giverny is closed for the season (Monet’s house and gardens close after November 1), but these work well in December:
The TGV from Gare de l’Est reaches Reims in about 46 minutes, and a Champagne day is spent mostly underground in the cellars or inside the cathedral, so the weather barely matters. It is our pick for a gray December day. See every option in our Champagne day trip guide.
Winter is low season at Versailles: the Passport ticket drops to €25, the gardens are free every day from November to March, and the crowds thin out. The palace opens 9am–5:30pm and is closed on Mondays, December 25, and January 1. The first Sunday of December (December 6, 2026) is a free day for all visitors, though you still need a timed slot. The A13 motorway is closed toward Versailles from November 16, 2026, so take the train. Our Versailles guide has the details.
The D-Day beaches, listed by UNESCO in July 2026, still make a strong winter day, but plan for the light: the tours run about 14 hours, and the sun is up only from roughly 8:30am to 5pm. The Normandy American Cemetery is open 9am–5pm and closed on December 25 and January 1. Two current changes to know: since a July 2026 notice, the cemetery’s grave plot areas have been closed (the visitor center, memorial, and chapel stay open), and the Pointe du Hoc visitor center has been closed since March 2026. Check both before you go.
Lunch includedCity Wonders
Free cancellation
From$123.59
per person
The abbey is closed on December 25 and January 1, free on the first Sunday of December, and access to the island is disrupted from December 25 to 27, when visitors enter through the rocks passage. See our Mont Saint-Michel guide.
N° 09Bon à savoir
01
Highs average 8°C (46°F) and it rains on about 11 days of the month. Waterproof shoes, layers, a hat, and a compact umbrella will serve you better than a heavy coat.
02
With sunrise around 8:30am and sunset around 5pm, do museums and day trips in daylight, and save the lights, markets, and cruises for the evening.
03
The tower is open every day in December. One official guide says it stays open until 12:45am in the last two weeks of the month. The summit usually closes for maintenance in January (January 5 to February 6 in 2026; 2027 dates TBC). See our Eiffel Tower ticket guide.
04
The small-group Christmas walks cap groups at six to eight people, and both holiday cruises are non-refundable. If you want a restaurant for the 24th or 25th, book ahead.
05
A Métro-Train-RER ticket costs €2.55 and a bus-tram ticket €2.05 until December 31, 2026. New fares are expected from January 1, 2027. Load tickets on a Navigo Easy card (€2) or your phone.
06
By the national rule, the 2027 winter sales should run from 8am on Wednesday, January 6 to Tuesday, February 2. The official decree for 2027 has not been published yet.
N° 10Good to know
Yes, if you come for the atmosphere rather than the weather. The Christmas lights, windows, and markets make the evenings special, and winter is low season at Versailles, with cheaper tickets and free gardens. The trade-off is short, gray, damp days, and holiday closures on December 25 and January 1.
Météo-France’s averages are a high of 8°C (46°F) and a low of 3.8°C (39°F), with rain on about 11 days of the month and around five days of frost. Expect damp cold rather than deep cold.
The sun sets between about 4:56pm and 5:05pm all month and rises between 8:21am and 8:42am, giving you under nine hours of daylight. The shortest day, December 21, has 8 hours 19 minutes.
The Eiffel Tower is open every day of the year, including December 25. The Louvre, Musée d’Orsay, Versailles, the Catacombs, and Sainte-Chapelle are closed. A Bateaux Parisiens Christmas cruise runs on December 24 and 25. Read our guide to what is open over Christmas.
Yes, but it closes early on December 31, and the 2026 closing time has not been confirmed. The Arc de Triomphe closes at 4pm on December 24 and 31.
Last year the free celebration on the Champs-Élysées ended with a video show on the Arc de Triomphe and fireworks from midnight. The City has not published the 2026 programme yet, and there were no fireworks from the Eiffel Tower last year, so do not plan around them.
Under the national rule, the 2027 winter sales should start at 8am on Wednesday, January 6 and run four weeks, to February 2. The official decree had not been published when we checked.
N° 11Booking.com
Search live prices for the areas that make this trip easiest.
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