When to go · Bucharest
Bucharest in December
Good month. Cold; Christmas market and lights.
Key facts
- Verdict
- Good
- Temperature
- 4° / -2°
- average high / low
- Rain days
- 10
- Crowds
- Medium
- Romania overall
- Prices
- Medium
- Romania overall
Verdict
Cold; Christmas market and lights.
Weather in December
- BucharestHighs around 4 °C, lows around -2 °C, rain on about 10 days
- Bucharest and the southern plain, Romania · Bucharest, Wallachia, Craiova, the Danube townscool
Continental: summers regularly reach 35–40 °C and winters bring snow and –10 °C cold snaps. May–June and September–October are the comfortable windows.
Winter season
The Christmas market in Piața Constituției and festive lights along Calea Victoriei.
Watch: Genuinely cold, sometimes well below freezing; short daylight hours.
Festivals and holidays
Dates as our data lists them. Moving holidays (lunar and Islamic calendars, Easter) shift every year: check the date for your year before you build a trip on it.
National Day
1 December · Arcul de Triumf and central boulevards
Military parade; road closures near the Arc and museums are busy.
Christmas market
Late November to late December · Piața Constituției, other squares
Stalls, mulled wine and lights; crowded Old Town restaurants in the evenings.
Revolution anniversary
21–22 December · Revolution Square
Ceremonies and road closures around the square.
Christmas and New Year
25 December – 1 January · Citywide
Many restaurants and some museums close for part of the period; hotel prices rise.
St Andrew's Day and Great Union Day (National Day)
30 Nov – 1 Dec · Romania
Two-day holiday; military parade in Bucharest at the Arc de Triumf on 1 December; mountain resorts busy.
Christmas big impact
25–26 Dec · Romania
Family days; most shops and many restaurants close. Carol singers go house to house on Christmas Eve.
Crowds and prices
- Crowds · Romania overall
- Medium
- Prices · Romania overall
- Medium
Romania overall: Christmas markets in Sibiu, Brașov and Bucharest; carol singing and village customs; ski season starts mid-month.
What to pack
- A warm coat, hat and gloves for mornings and evenings
- A rain jacket or umbrella and shoes that dry fast
- Layers: a fleece or light jacket