Visiting Amalfi in December

Visiting Amalfi in December

Weather in December: Average high 13.8°C, 113mm rainfall.

# Amalfi in December: Beautiful, Quiet, and Genuinely Wet

Let me be straight with you: December on the Amalfi Coast is not the postcard version. The light is softer, the towns are quieter, and the weather is legitimately unpredictable. At 13.8°C you’re not cold exactly, but you’re not warm either. Pack layers and accept that 113mm of rainfall across the month means you will get rained on. Probably more than once. Probably on a day when you’d planned a scenic walk along a cliffside path that turns out to be slippery and slightly terrifying in the wet.

That said, there’s something genuinely lovely about Amalfi in December that summer visitors simply don’t get. The town belongs to actual people again. Locals are shopping, arguing, drinking coffee at bars that aren’t charging tourist prices. You can walk through the cathedral square without navigating a wall of selfie sticks. The drive along the SS163 coastal road is still jaw-dropping, and you’ll share it with a fraction of the summer traffic.

What’s open is the honest question. The cathedral and historic centre stay open. A reasonable selection of restaurants and cafes keep going, particularly closer to Christmas when Italian towns come alive with modest, unpretentious decorations. Some hotels close for winter maintenance, so book ahead and confirm. Boat trips are largely cancelled depending on sea conditions, which in December can be rough.

**Is it worth it?** That depends entirely on who you are. If you need sun, a beach, and the full Mediterranean holiday experience, genuinely no. Go in May or October instead. But if you’re a slow traveller who wants atmosphere over activity, enjoys empty medieval streets, and finds something romantic about eating pasta while rain hammers a restaurant window overlooking a grey sea, December can be quietly wonderful.

It’s also significantly cheaper, which matters.

**Practical tip:** Book accommodation in the town of Amalfi itself rather than a hillside villa. When the rain arrives, you want to be somewhere you can walk somewhere. Being car-dependent in December weather gets old very quickly.

Plan Your Trip

• Hotels: Search accommodation in Amalfi on Booking.com
• Tours & Activities: Browse Amalfi experiences on GetYourGuide
• Day Trips: Find Amalfi tours on Viator