Marbella in December 2026: weather, Christmas and things to do

In short: Marbella weather in December means highs of 16 to 18 °C, lows of 8 or 9 °C and five or six hours of sun a day, which is why Christmas in Marbella involves lunch outdoors more often than not. The sea is 16 to 17 °C and too cold for most swimmers, so the beach is for walking. The town runs a Christmas programme across four districts with nativity scenes, markets, zambombas and a Three Kings parade, and Málaga and its Calle Larios light show are 45 minutes up the coast. Christmas week and New Year need booking two to three months ahead.

December is the month Marbella stops being a beach town and becomes an Andalusian one. The lights are already up from the last weekend of November, the nativity scene opens on the Alameda in the first week, and from then until Epiphany the calendar belongs to markets, zambombas and family events rather than to beach clubs and pool parties.

Marbella in December: quick facts

• Average highs: 16–18 °C · lows: 8–9 °C
• Sea temperature: 16–17 °C, too cold for most swimmers
• Sunshine: 5–6 hours a day · rainy days: 5–7
• Rainfall: around 100 mm
• UV index: low (2–3)
• Sunrise and sunset: 08:20 and 17:55 on the 1st; 08:35 and 18:05 on the 31st

Weather in Marbella in December

December here stays mild. Highs settle at 16 to 18 °C and the sun is out for five or six hours on an average day, which in practice means a lot of bright, still afternoons where a jumper is enough. The nights are a different matter, dropping to 8 or 9 °C, and Andalusian houses are built to shed heat rather than hold it.

Rain comes on five to seven days and totals around 100 mm, slightly less than November, and it tends to arrive in short heavy spells and then clear. The sea drops to 16 or 17 °C, swimmable for the hardened and cold for everyone else, so the beaches become somewhere to walk rather than to lie on. Sierra Blanca still keeps the coast a few degrees above the inland villages, where December nights genuinely do get cold.

Can you sunbathe in Marbella in December? On a clear, still day, in a sheltered spot, yes, and people do. It will not be reliable: at 16 to 18 °C with the sun low in the sky, December is a month for walking, lunch on a terrace and sitting out of the wind rather than for a day on a sunbed.

What to pack for Marbella in December

• A proper coat for the evenings. Eight degrees with a sea breeze feels colder than eight degrees inland.
• Layers for the daytime. Midday in the sun can be 18 °C and you will want to take something off.
• A waterproof. Five to seven wet days, usually heavy and short.
• Smart clothes. December is the dressiest month here, between Christmas dinners and New Year’s Eve.
• Swimwear for the spa, not the sea. Heated pools and hammams are the water you will actually use.

Christmas and events in Marbella in December 2026

Marbella runs its Christmas programme across four districts, Marbella town, San Pedro Alcántara, Nueva Andalucía and Las Chapas, and publishes it in full in late November.

Key dates, December 2026

None of the 2026 Christmas dates are confirmed. The council had not published the 2026 programme when this was written, so the table below gives the recurring pattern and the most recent edition’s dates, not a fixture list. Checked on 29 September 2026.

The lights and the nativity scene

The lights go on across roughly 120 streets and 15 squares and stay up until Epiphany, with the old town and Avenida Ricardo Soriano carrying the heaviest decoration. The municipal belén opens on the Paseo de la Alameda in the first week and is the traditional start of the season in town: free, busy at weekends, quiet on weekday mornings, and each district puts up its own.
Programme published each year on the council’s festivities page.

The markets

The main Christmas market runs in the Parque de la Alameda and along Avenida del Mar, with stalls for crafts, decorations, gifts and food plus live performances and workshops. Separately, a large indoor charity bazaar fills the Palacio de Congresos for a few days in aid of Cáritas, with more than a hundred stalls, and it is one of the better wet weather plans of the month.
Bazaar dates announced on the Palacio de Congresos events page.

Zambombas and the family programme

The zambomba is the Andalusian Christmas party: flamenco choirs, carols sung to palmas and churros with chocolate, held in squares and neighbourhood associations rather than in venues. Nueva Andalucía’s, in the Plaza del Pilar, is one of the best known. Alongside it the council usually runs a synthetic ice rink, a Christmas train, inflatables, Santa’s house and puppet theatre, nearly all of it free or a couple of euros a go.

The long weekend, New Year’s Eve and Epiphany

The 6 and 8 December holidays make a long weekend that fills the coast with Spanish visitors, so book restaurants for it and expect the markets at their busiest. On New Year’s Eve the town gathers in the Plaza de los Naranjos for the bells and the twelve grapes, one per chime, and there are usually children’s “minicampanadas” earlier in the day. The whole month builds towards the Three Kings parades on the evening of 5 January, one per district, with sweets thrown from the floats.

“Inhabiting the Roots” at the Museo Ralli

Eleven participatory installations combining natural materials, digital work and sensory experiences, at the Ralli in Coral Beach, with free entry until late December. The museum’s workshops and guided visits run to mid month and need booking on +34 952 85 79 23.
Details on the exhibition page.

Things to do in Marbella in December

Walk the old town after dark

The Christmas lighting turns the old town into the best evening walk of the year, and unlike the summer you can do it at eight without a crowd. Start at the Plaza de los Naranjos and work outwards, as in our guide to what to see and do in Marbella’s old town.

Spend a day in Málaga for the Calle Larios lights

Andalusia’s biggest light show, with music, is 45 minutes up the coast and runs several times an evening through December. Dates, times and parking are in our guide to the Málaga Christmas lights.

Use the beach clubs that stay open

A handful keep going through winter with heaters and fire pits, and a long December lunch by the water with a jumper on is a good way to spend an afternoon. Which ones open is in our guide to the best winter beach clubs in Marbella.

Book the spa you could not get into in August

Between the cold evenings and the Christmas eating, December is spa season, and the hotel spas are still at winter rates until the holiday week. See the best spas in Marbella.

Take the children to the Christmas programme

The ice rink, Santa’s house, the puppet theatre and the district events are most of a week’s entertainment on their own, and nearly all of it is free. Our guide to Christmas in Marbella with children puts it in order.

Have the Christmas dinner you cannot get in summer

Michelin starred kitchens take December bookings that are impossible from June to September, and most run a festive menu. Start with the Michelin star restaurants in Marbella.

Practical tips for visiting Marbella in December

1. Book Christmas week and New Year two to three months ahead. It is the second busiest period of the year here and the one where late booking costs most.
2. Watch the 6 to 8 December long weekend. Two national holidays bring domestic visitors and fill restaurants.
3. Check what heating a property has. December nights are 8 °C and not every rental on this coast is set up for it.
4. Expect shorter days. Sunset is just before six all month, so the lights and the markets are evening plans and the walks are morning ones.
5. Do not count on the sea. At 16 to 17 °C the beach is for walking. Bring swimwear for the spa and the heated pool instead.

Where to stay: Puerto Banús at Christmas

Puerto Banús is lit through December and stays open when much of the coast winds down, with the marina restaurants, the Corte Inglés at the entrance and the boutiques all running through the holidays. Marbella’s old town and its market are fifteen minutes east, San Pedro’s Christmas programme is ten minutes west, and Málaga and its lights are 45 minutes up the AP-7.

From our holiday villas and apartments in Puerto Banús all of it is close, and most properties include private parking, fast wifi and heating. If you would rather be in the middle of Marbella’s own Christmas, we also manage holiday rentals across Marbella.

Check December availability with Banús Rentals

Frequently asked questions about Marbella in December

Can you sunbathe in Marbella in December?

On a clear, still day in a sheltered spot, yes, and plenty of people do at midday. It is not reliable sunbathing weather: with highs of 16 to 18 °C, five or six hours of sun and the sun low in the sky, December suits walking, terraces and lunch outdoors more than a day on a sunbed.

Which part of Spain is warmest in December?

The Canary Islands, comfortably. On the mainland it is the Costa del Sol and the Almería coast, with Marbella among the mildest spots because Sierra Blanca shelters it from the north and keeps it a few degrees above the inland towns.

How warm is Marbella at Christmas?

Christmas week usually runs to highs of 16 to 18 °C and lows of 8 or 9 °C, with a good chance of sun. Lunch outdoors on Christmas Day is normal here. Evenings are cold enough for a coat.

What is the weather like in Marbella during Christmas?

Mild and bright more often than not, with about six hours of sun a day, and five to seven rainy days spread across the month. The rain comes in short heavy spells rather than all day drizzle. The sea is 16 to 17 °C, too cold for most people.

Where is the best place for Christmas in Spain?

It depends what you want from it. For traditional markets and cold weather, the northern cities. For Christmas in shirtsleeves at midday, the Costa del Sol, where Málaga has the biggest light show in Andalusia and Marbella runs a four district programme of nativity scenes, zambombas and markets.

What is there to do in Marbella in December?

The Christmas market and the municipal nativity scene, the lights in the old town, the charity bazaar at the Palacio de Congresos, the zambombas, the family programme with the ice rink and Santa’s house, New Year’s Eve in the Plaza de los Naranjos, and the Three Kings parades on 5 January. Out of season, golf, spas, the winter beach clubs and the flamenco tablaos all run normally.

What is the coldest month in Marbella?

January, with highs around 16 °C and lows near 8 °C. December is barely warmer. Frost on the coast is very rare.