12 Things to Do in Miami in December

Miami in December is characterized by a pleasant warm weather, so it is possible to do any kind of outdoor and water activities. An ideal destination to have fun and escape from the low temperatures of your city.

In addition, with the beginning of the Christmas holidays you will find various activities to share with the family such as attending the lighting of the Christmas tree at City Hall, take a tour of the nearby natural areas, enjoy art exhibits or go shopping, among others.

Miami's warm weather in December allows you to do any water activity or cruise the waters of its coastline by yacht, boat, speedboat or even banana boat. Here are the most popular activities:

• Book a water banana ride, from $30.
• Book aspeedboat ride, from $45.
• Book akayak tour in North Miami Beach, from $72.
• Book a catamaran cruise with jet ski, from $153.
• Book a private boat tour, from $80.
• Book ayacht tour, from $263.

As you can see, there are options for all tastes and ages, and a wide variety of schedules so you can adjust it to your vacation schedule. Which one do you prefer?

Practical information

• Location: The starting point is usually Bayside Marketplace.
• Hours: There are different schedules to suit all tastes.

In December, after dark, the streets of Miami are illuminated with Christmas lights and seasonal decorations, offering a vibrant sight that every tourist should enjoy during this month. All you have to do is get on board one of the Miami sightseeing buses and, thus, visit the city accompanied by a guide.

If you book the Miami sightseeing bus, you should know that it lasts 90 minutes, during which you will be comfortably seated. Meanwhile, you will listen to the comments of the person in charge of guiding you, who will teach you a little about the history of the city, main streets and buildings.

You will walk around downtown Miami, you will visit the famous Brickell and Ocean Drive avenues. The bus will also take you to the financial district of Brickell and cross the famous Key Biscayne Bridge, from where you will have a glimpse of the city's skyline.

Practical information about Brickell

• Location: This type of tour usually starts in front of the Bayside Marketplace at 401 Biscayne Blvd, although it may vary.
• Hours: The tour starts at 8 p.m. and ends between 9-9:30 p.m. in the evening.

If you love shopping and you are in Miami during the month of December, you should take advantage of discounts of up to 70%. Stroll around the different malls in the city and be surprised with all the products that are on sale.

As the month goes by, you will get better prices. Therefore, it is best that you start taking a look in the stores after Christmas Eve. That's when the most tempting deals start to appear.

Without a doubt, shopping during your trip is an activity you should incorporate among the things to see and do in Miami in a week.

And if you want to enjoy your trip to the fullest, don't hesitate to book your Miami Heat ticket. Going to an NBA game is an activity that you have to experience at least once in your life if you travel to the USA.

Choose your seat well and go in advance the day of the game to immerse yourself in the atmosphere, buy some souvenirs, feel the music, and don't miss the cheerleaders' dances and the players' entrance to the court.

For your schedule, keep in mind that an NBA game is divided into four quarters and has a total duration of 48 minutes, but between timeouts and halftime it can take up to two hours.

If you want to get the best views of the city of Miami, don't hesitate to book a helicopter tour, from where you will have the opportunity to capture the best snapshots of the celebrities' mansions, Wiliams Island or the Indian Creek.

Also, if you want to surprise that special someone, you can choose to book a private champagne airplane tour of Miami. The private experience has an approximate cost from 286 €.

If you are in Miami on December 15, you should make a trip to Fort Lauderdale in the state of Florida, where the annual Winterfest Boat Parade takes place. It is a Christmas-themed boat parade, considered a traditional activity, which gathers locals and tourists from all over the state of Florida.

You can get to Fort Lauderdale through the best tours and excursions from Miami. In addition, you have the option to drive yourself or take a cab in a maximum time of 40 minutes, while by bus or train it will take you an hour. And there you can book your water cab pass.

Already in downtown Fort Lauderdale from 6 p.m. in the evening you will enjoy a display of amazing boats and yachts, moving one after the other. All of them, fully decorated and illuminated to capture even more the attention of the spectators. In addition, if you pay a ticket from $ 35, you will have the opportunity to access the interior of one of the boats and enjoy delicious cocktails.

Practical information

• Place: The boat parade takes place in Fort Lauder, Miami County.
• Hours: This event starts at 6 pm and ends at 8:30 pm.

If you arrive in Miami during the first days of December you cannot miss Art Basel Miami. It is one of the most complete exhibitions of contemporary art, which annually brings together the works of approximately 4,000 artists from 35 countries around the world.

To enjoy this international art show, you only have to go to the Miami Beach Convention Center. There, during the first days of the month, you will be able to carefully tour the 250 galleries that make up Art Basel Miami and, thus, appreciate the strokes, colors and concepts handled by each artist.

During the tour you will be surrounded by a magical atmosphere: the works on the walls, a soft musical background according to the occasion and the presence of hundreds of people who, like you, are willing to have a good time in the company of art. And if you still want to delve deeper into the art, book an art deco tour in Miami.

Practical information

• Place: The event is usually held at the Miami Beach Convention Center.
• Schedule: The activities usually start around 11 am and end between 18-19 pm approximately. In any case, it is advisable to check both the dates and the schedule on the event's website.

Since December 2015, Miami has been hosting the Art Gaydel, an art exhibition fully identified with the LGBTQIA+ community, where you can appreciate the works of approximately 30 local and international artists.

If you are in Miami the first week of December, you can head to the Gaythering Hotel located on Lincoln Road. You will enjoy innovative artistic proposals inspired by the queer world, collages, paintings, photography, among others.

During your visit to the Art Gaydel you will visit 23 rooms of the hotel. All of them previously prepared by the art exhibitors themselves to look like small galleries and workshops. Also, you will notice an exquisite musical atmosphere that will allow you to connect with each of the works.

Practical information

• Venue: This event is usually held at the Gaythering Hotel on Lincoln Road.
• Hours: The Gaydel galleries are open from 5pm to 11pm.

If you have decided to spend the last day of the year in Miami and want to have a great time, you don't have to worry, since the city has a great variety of options for you. You can celebrate New Year's Eve until dawn at a massive party, go on a cruise or spend it with your family.

Things to do on New Year's Eve

Prices for New Year's Eve parties tend to vary depending on the type of celebration:

• For less than $100 you can enjoy famous international DJs until the early hours of January 1. For example, on Seventh and Ninth Streets in Miami Beach, you will find an outdoor party, stages for the presentation of artists, food stands and alcoholic beverages.
• With a budget of $200 or more, you will have the opportunity to join a dinner cruise, happy hour, live DJ and 3 a.m. turnaround. If you want to enjoy this activity, you can go to Hyatt Regency right in the Brickell district or at the Port of Miami.
• If you're interested in celebrating with your family at an amusement park, you'll need at least $100 per person. So, if a family plan to welcome the year is your thing , but you don't know what to see and do in Miami at night, you can head to Santa's Enchanted Forest Park.

Celebrate on the street

• Place: This event takes place at Seventh and Ninth Streets in Miami Beach.
• Hours: The celebration starts on December 30 after 6 p.m. and ends in the wee hours of January 1.

Celebration on a cruise ship

• Location: The event takes place at the Hyatt Regency in the Brickell District or at the Port of Miami.
• Time: You will be able to board the cruise ship from 9 p.m. onwards and disembark at 3 a.m.

Family Celebration

• Place: The activity takes place at Santa's Enchanted Forest Park, located at 3100 4th Avenue East Miami.
• Hours: The site can be visited from 5 p.m. to midnight.

Every first Saturday of December, Miami welcomes Christmas, in a public event that over time has become the most important event of the season. It is the lighting of the lights of the city's Christmas tree, installed in the City Hall plaza. Join this celebration and enjoy an atmosphere full of joy, sounds and color.

Also, if you are on vacation with the little ones at home, you will have the opportunity to give them a fun time they will not forget. They will be able to see Santa Claus and even take a picture. So, don't think about what to do in Miami with kids and go to the aforementioned square starting at 6 p.m.

When you get to City Hall you will have to wait with the crowd for a few minutes until the lighting ceremony begins. You will be dazzled by the imposing Christmas tree, which has been covered with hundreds of lights and beautiful ornaments. Afterwards, the celebration continues with the parade show.

Practical information

• Place: This event is usually held at Miami City Hall.
• Schedule: You can arrive from 6:00 p.m. and between 7:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. the lighting and the parade will take place.

December is usually a warm season in the coastal city of Miami, so seeing snow naturally is completely impossible. However, annually, some malls, such as CocoWalk, take the initiative to place artificial snow on the streets surrounding them. Thus, both children and adults can have fun all afternoon.

Do not miss the opportunity to take pictures and, if you are traveling with your children, make fun snowmen. To do this, you only have to come on Saturdays in December.

You can also take advantage of your visit to Coconut Grove to stroll through its tree-lined streets, visit its historic parks, taste its gastronomy, visit its famous cafes or stores. These are definitely activities that you should include in your list of 10 things to see and do in Miami at Christmas.

Practical information

• Location: This activity takes place at the CocoWalk mall, in the Coconut Grove neighborhood.
• Hours: You will enjoy an afternoon of artificial snow every Saturday of the month of December from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m.

For more than 30 years the streets of Coconut Grove in Miami have been filled with color with the funniest and most satirical parade of all. It is the King Mango Strut, which takes place annually during the last week of December and brings together hundreds of people of all ages.

To get to the historic neighborhood of Coconut Grove you must take a bus, whose approximate route can take up to two hours, depending on where you are in the city. It may seem like a long time, but from the moment you get off the bus you will know it was worth the trip.

During the parade you will see a great display of creativity, which will quickly bring a smile to your face. In front of you will march people whose costumes are intended to make an appeal about environmental damage, price inflation, animal abuse caused by pharmaceuticals and other laboratories, among other issues.

Practical information

• Place: The annual King Mango Strut parade takes place in the Coconut Grove neighborhood.
• Hours: This parade starts at 2:00 p.m. and lasts until approximately 6:00 p.m.

Miami in December usually has pleasant warm weather, with little rain, low humidity and moderate winds. Temperatures in December reach as low as 24°C, which is the sunniest time of the day. At night it is usually no lower than 17°C, so you will enjoy a fairly cool environment during your nightlife.

For these reasons, if you are fleeing from the winter cold, you will find in this city the best option to spend your vacation during the last month of the year and enjoy all the things to see and do in Miami. You can wear your bathing suit on the beach or walk the streets with light mid-season clothes.

However, it is best to check the weather forecast before traveling through a specialized weather website.

If you go to Miami in December you should be prepared for large crowds, as this month is high season. Therefore, when you head to the beach, walk the streets, enter a cafe, attend an event or any available attraction, you will get a large influx of tourists.

Due to the high traffic of people in Miami during December, you will have to take some precautions when it comes to lodging. You should make sure to make reservations days in advance at the hotel of your choice to avoid any inconveniences. Also, check your itinerary of activities and verify which of them require reservations.