Season guide · Rome · Italy
Rome in winter
December–February: weather, crowds, prices and the best things to do this time of year.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Arnaud 25, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Quick answer
Cool and sometimes rainy but rarely freezing, with a festive December, quiet January and February and the lowest hotel prices. Expect highs up to 13°C (55°F) and lows around 3°C (37°F), with about 22 rainy days across December–February.
Key facts
- Months
- December–February
- Temperatures
- 3°C (37°F) to 13°C (55°F)
- Rainy days in the season
- About 22
- Crowds
- Quiet
- Hotel prices
- Low
Weather in winter
| Month | High | Low | Rainy days | Daylight | Crowds |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 12°C (54°F) | 3°C (37°F) | 7 | 9.4 h | 2/5 |
| February | 13°C (55°F) | 4°C (39°F) | 7 | 10.5 h | 2/5 |
| December | 13°C (55°F) | 4°C (39°F) | 8 | 9.1 h | 3/5 |
Compared with the rest of the year: average highs of 13°C (55°F) against a yearly 21°C (70°F), and 22 of the year's roughly 73 rainy days fall in these 3 months. Crowds rate 2/5 and hotel prices 2/5 on average.
What's on in winter
Recurring events; dates move from year to year, so confirm with the organiser.
- January: Epiphany and the Befana fair in Piazza Navona (6 January)
- February: Carnival celebrations and frappe pastries (February or early March)
- December: Christmas market in Piazza Navona (usually early December to 6 January)
- December: Christmas Eve and Christmas Day celebrations at St Peter's
- December: New Year's Eve concerts and celebrations (31 December)
Good choices for winter
Museum · Vatican City
Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel
Book the first entry slot of the day and move briskly to the Raphael Rooms and the Sistine Chapel before tour groups catch up.
- Time needed
- 3–4 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Iconic
- Art
- History
- Rainy day
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Historic site · Centro Storico
Pantheon
Rebuilt under Emperor Hadrian in the 2nd century, the Pantheon still has the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world, about 43 metres across, with an oculus open to the sky at its centre.
- Time needed
- 30–45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- Iconic
- Architecture
- History
- Rainy day
Gallery · Villa Borghese
Borghese Gallery
Start upstairs in the picture gallery while most visitors crowd round the Berninis on the ground floor, then come back down.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- Couples
- Rainy day
- History
Museum · Capitoline Hill
Capitoline Museums
Often called the world's oldest public museum, founded in 1471, the Capitoline Museums face Michelangelo's Piazza del Campidoglio.
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Art
- History
- Views
- Rainy day
Religious site · Celio
Basilica of San Clemente
The upper basilica is free; pay for the excavations below, which are the real reason to come.
- Time needed
- 45 minutes
- Cost
- Low cost
- History
- Off the beaten path
- Rainy day
- Architecture
Day trips in winter
- Florence (About 1 hour 30 minutes by high-speed train) — The Renaissance capital is close enough by fast train for a long day: the Duomo and Brunelleschi's dome, the Uffizi Gallery, Michelangelo's David at the Accademia and the Ponte Vecchio.
- Pompeii via Naples (About 2 hours each way by train) — Pompeii, buried by Vesuvius in AD 79, preserves streets, houses, frescoes and plaster casts of victims across a huge site.
What to pack
- Layers, a warm sweater and a jacket for cool evenings
- A packable rain jacket for showers
- Comfortable walking shoes
Other times of year
Questions travellers ask
+Is winter a good time to visit Rome?
It is a trade-off: Cool and sometimes rainy but rarely freezing, with a festive December, quiet January and February and the lowest hotel prices. The best months overall are April–May and September–October.
+What is the weather like in Rome in winter?
Highs of up to 13°C (55°F) and lows around 3°C (37°F), with about 22 rainy days over the season.