── the numbers
Rome's winter weather, month by month
Average daily high / low, the days with at least 1 mm of rain, monthly rainfall and sunshine (WMO climate normals 1991-2020, Roma Ciampino), and roughly when the sun sets on the 15th of the month:
- November: 16.9°C / 8.5°C (62°F / 47°F); rain on 9 days; 108 mm; 153 hours of sun; sunset about 4.50pm
- December: 12.7°C / 4.7°C (55°F / 40°F); rain on 9 days; 98 mm; 147 hours; sunset about 4.40pm
- January: 12.0°C / 3.4°C (54°F / 38°F); rain on 7 days; 66 mm; 156 hours; sunset about 5pm
- February: 13.0°C / 3.4°C (55°F / 38°F); rain on 7 days; 63 mm; 172 hours; sunset about 5.45pm
November is the wettest month of the year and December the second wettest; January is the coldest, but frost comes on only about 5 nights. So the realistic Roman winter is cool, bright days between spells of rain, not snow. The clocks went back on 25 October 2026 and go forward on 28 March 2027. Sunset times are for central Rome and rounded.
── november
Rome in November
November is wet (108 mm on about 9 days) and cooler, at 16.9°C (62°F), but it's usually quieter and cheaper than the months either side, and still mild enough for lunch outside on a sunny day. 1 November, All Saints' Day, is a national holiday, and 4 November is a free day at state museums and sites, including the Colosseum and Castel Sant'Angelo. The Colosseum moves to winter hours on 25 October: 8.30am to 4.30pm, last admission 3.30pm, until 28 February. It's a good month for museums and churches, and the opera season opens on 27 November.
── december
Rome in December and at Christmas
December averages 12.7°C (55°F) with rain on about 9 days. 8 December, the Immaculate Conception, is a national holiday that opens the Christmas season, which runs to Epiphany on 6 January. The set pieces: Piazza Navona's market, the Vatican's tree and nativity scene, the Pope's Christmas Masses, the lights along Via del Corso and the streets around the Spanish Steps, and the nativity scenes (presepi) in Rome's churches. Roma Capitale's notice sets the Navona market from 1 December to 6 January, but this year's opening day and the street-light dates haven't been announced; last season Rome's tourist board listed the Via del Corso lights from 26 November 2025 to 6 January 2026.
6 December 2026 is the first Sunday of the month, so state museums and sites are free; at the Colosseum, free tickets are handed out at the ticket office on the day, first come, first served. 27 December is the Vatican Museums' free last Sunday. Christmas and New Year are a popular time to visit, so book hotels and Christmas lunch early.
── the holidays
What shuts over Christmas and New Year (2026-27)
Italy's public holidays this winter are 8 December, 25 and 26 December, 1 January and 6 January. From each site's own published calendar:
- Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine: closed 25 December 2026 and 1 January 2027.
- Vatican Museums: closed 8, 25 and 26 December and 1 and 6 January, plus Sundays except the last of the month.
- Castel Sant'Angelo: closed 25 December and 1 January (and on Mondays).
- Pantheon: closed 25 December and 1 January.
- St Peter's Square: open; on Christmas Day it fills for the Urbi et Orbi at noon.
- Buses and Metro: a holiday timetable, which ATAC publishes in December.
If you want a restaurant for Christmas lunch, check its own holiday hours and book ahead.
── new year's eve
New Year's Eve in Rome
2026-27: not announced yet. For the last four New Year's Eves Roma Capitale has staged a free concert at the Circus Maximus, the grassy valley below the Palatine where ancient Rome raced chariots (Metro: Circo Massimo, line B); the 2025-26 line-up was Alessandra Amoroso, Fabri Fibra and Tananai. Whether there's a 2026-27 concert hasn't been announced; last year's was announced in December.
Two things are fixed: the Prefecture of the Papal Household lists First Vespers and the Te Deum in St Peter's Basilica at 6pm on 31 December, and the Teatro dell'Opera has a 6pm Swan Lake on New Year's Eve. On 1 January the Colosseum and the Vatican Museums are closed.
── 6 january
Epiphany and the Befana
6 January is Epiphany, a public holiday and the official end of the Christmas season. Italian children get presents from the Befana, a kindly old witch on a broomstick who fills stockings with sweets (or coal), and Rome celebrates her in Piazza Navona: the Christmas market's last day, with her arrival in the square as the finale (at 2pm in 2025-26). The 2027 programme hasn't been announced yet. The Vatican Museums are closed on 6 January. The day after, Rome goes quiet.
── rome in january
Rome in January
January is Rome's coldest month, 12.0°C / 3.4°C (54°F / 38°F) on average, but mild by northern European standards and fairly sunny, with 156 hours of sunshine in the month and rain on about 7 days. Sunset moves from about 4.50pm at the start of the month to about 5.20pm at the end.
Why go: once Epiphany is over, January is usually one of the quietest months for visitors, so queues at the big sights are usually shorter, and hotel prices tend to be at their lowest. The sales are on, the opera season has Andrea Chénier from 17 to 26 January, and Sunday 3 January is the first free Sunday of the year at state museums.
Know before you go: the first week is still holiday time (1 and 6 January are public holidays, with closures above), and some restaurants close for a week or two after the holidays, so check before you set your heart on one. Days are short, so start sightseeing at opening time and save the museums and churches for late afternoon.
── the sales
The January sales
Lazio's winter sales (saldi) start on the first working day before Epiphany, the rule set by the Italian regions' agreement of 24 March 2011; in 2025 that was Saturday 4 January. January 2027: not announced yet. The Lazio region hadn't published its date by 3 November 2026. In 2022 the region set the sales at six weeks, with no promotional sales allowed in the 30 days before. Non-EU visitors can claim the VAT back on invoices over €70.
── february
Rome in February
February is similar to January, 13.0°C (55°F) on average with rain on about 7 days, but the days are noticeably longer: sunset is about 5.45pm by mid-month, and there are 172 hours of sunshine. It's usually still low season, and a good month for the Vatican Museums and the Borghese Gallery. 7 February 2027 is the free first Sunday at state museums. The Vatican Museums close on 11 February.
Carnival falls in February in 2027: Shrove Tuesday (Martedì Grasso) is 9 February, the day before Ash Wednesday. Rome's Carnival programme for 2027 isn't announced yet.
── crowds and prices
Crowds and prices: which winter to pick
November (outside the 1 November holiday) and January and February (after Epiphany) are usually Rome's quietest and cheapest months, with shorter queues at the big sights and the lowest hotel prices of the year. The Christmas weeks, from the 8 December holiday to 6 January, are the exception: busy, festive and more expensive, so book early. Rome's city tax is charged per person per night all year, from €3.50 in a hostel to €10 in a 5-star hotel, for up to 10 nights; where to stay in Rome has the rates.
For a first trip, our 3-day Rome itinerary works in winter with one change: the Colosseum and the Forum close at 4.30pm, so put them in the morning. For budgets, see what a trip to Rome costs.
── what to pack
What to pack for Rome in winter
A warm jacket and a waterproof layer, with a small umbrella: it rarely freezes, but November and December are the wettest months. Shoes with grip for wet cobbles. Layers for going in and out of heated museums and churches. And something to cover your shoulders and knees for St Peter's, the Vatican Museums and Rome's churches, which is easy in winter.
Planning a winter trip? Save these places to your itinerary with Tourli, the app that turns travel guides into day-by-day plans.
