Las Vegas in December 2026, Week by Week

November ends with Thanksgiving crowds thinning out; December opens with 170,000 rodeo fans arriving. That is the shape of the month: a loud, expensive first half built around the National Finals Rodeo, a quiet and cheap middle, and a New Year's Eve finale that closes the Strip to cars. The weather barely moves: highs around 57°F, lows near 40°F with some nights at freezing, almost no rain, and the earliest sunsets of the year at roughly 4:30 p.m. Everything dated below comes from our concert, event and attraction pages as of September 27, 2026; dates announced after that will appear on the December 2026 calendar.

The short list

• December 3 to 12: NFR week. Rodeo at Thomas & Mack nightly, free Cowboy Christmas at the Convention Center, country concerts everywhere, hotel rates up.
• December 13 to 23: the cheapest hotel stretch of the year, with the lights already on.
• Sphere: Eagles December 4, 5, 11 and 12; Backstreet Boys December 26, 27 and a 10 p.m. New Year's Eve show.
• Sports: Raiders home games December 13, 20 and 27; Golden Knights home December 3, 5, 16, 18, 21 and a noon game on December 31.
• Weather: about 57°F by day, 40°F at night, sunset around 4:30 p.m.; pools are closed.

December weather in Las Vegas

December is the coldest month: roughly 57°F for a daytime high and 39 to 40°F overnight, with some nights dipping to freezing, per the climate normals our what to wear guide uses. Afternoons in the sun are pleasant in a jacket; the walk back from a show at 11 p.m. is genuinely cold, and the wind on the pedestrian bridges makes it worse. Rain is rare but not impossible. The bigger adjustment is light: sunset lands around 4:30 p.m. all month, so a 3 p.m. matinee ends in daylight and a 5 p.m. dinner reservation is already after dark. Pools are closed at nearly every resort; the exceptions and the heated options are in pools and dayclubs, and Lee Canyon, 45 minutes northwest, opens for skiing when the snow allows.

Hotel prices and the three dates that set them

NFR week, December 3 to 12, fills the city with rodeo fans and pushes rates well above the seasonal norm, worst on the two weekends and on the south Strip near Thomas & Mack; if the rodeo is not your reason for coming, avoid those ten nights. December 13 to 23 is the cheapest stretch of the year for Strip rooms, and the Christmas guide covers why the week before Christmas is the sweet spot: displays lit, crowds thin, restaurants bookable. Christmas week climbs again, and December 30 and 31 carry the highest rates and minimum-stay rules of the year; the numbers, the fireworks-view rooms and the road closures are in the New Year's Eve guide. Resort fees do not take a holiday: the per-property amounts are in resort fees by hotel.

NFR week, December 3 to 12

The National Finals Rodeo runs ten nights at Thomas & Mack Center on the UNLV campus, and the whole city dresses for it: Cowboy Christmas, the free western marketplace at the Las Vegas Convention Center, viewing parties in the casino ballrooms, and a run of country headliners timed to the crowd. On our calendar for that week: Dierks Bentley at Fontainebleau December 4 and 5, Gary Allan December 4, Bailey Zimmerman, Chris Young and Clay Walker all on December 5, Casey Donahew and Josh Abbott Band December 9, Gavin Adcock December 10, Thomas Rhett at The Colosseum December 10 and 12, Creed at Fontainebleau December 11 and 12 and Sam Barber closing his tour on December 12. Dwight Yoakam plays Resorts World on December 3. The comedy block follows the same crowd: Steve Treviño December 10 to 12 and Derrick Stroup December 6 at MGM Grand's Aces of Comedy, both $39 at the box office, Matt Rife at Dolby Live and Mark Normand at the Palazzo Theatre on December 4, Kathleen Madigan December 5, and Jeff Foxworthy with Larry the Cable Guy at PH Live on December 4.

Sphere and the residencies

The Eagles play Sphere on December 4, 5, 11 and 12 at 8:30 p.m., the last of their 2026 dates before the run resumes in January. The Backstreet Boys return to the dome on December 26 and 27 and then play a 10 p.m. show on December 31 that ends the year under the screen; the New Year's Eve guide explains why the 10 p.m. curtain matters for the fireworks. Barry Manilow plays the Westgate December 3 to 5, 10 to 12 and 17 to 19, Donny Osmond runs at Harrah's through December 12, Jeezy plays PH Live December 18 to 20 and December 30 and 31, and Debbie Gibson brings a holiday show to The STRAT December 17 to 20. Trans-Siberian Orchestra plays Michelob Ultra Arena on December 4, and Taylor Dayne closes the year at Harrah's on December 29, 30 and 31. The Rat Pack Is Back at Tuscany is the show that plays Christmas Day itself, 7:30 p.m. weeknights all month. For who is announced beyond these, see residencies by month.

Games

The Raiders have three December home games at Allegiant Stadium: December 13 against the Chargers, then December 20 and 27, all early-afternoon kickoffs. The Golden Knights are at T-Mobile Arena on December 3, 5, 16, 18 and 21, plus a noon puck drop on December 31, the one game that ends before the Strip closes to traffic. The Las Vegas Bowl fills Allegiant Stadium on the afternoon of December 31 as well.

Holiday lights and displays

Most of what the Christmas guide covers is up for the whole month: the Bellagio Conservatory holiday display (the fall garden closes November 7 and the room reopens after about six days of rebuild), the Venetian tree and the Wynn atrium, and Fremont Street's canopy shows. Off the Strip, Ethel M's Holiday Cactus Garden Lights run November 5 to January 3, nightly 5 to 10 p.m., ticketed and closed on Christmas Day; Enchant returns to Las Vegas Ballpark in Summerlin November 20 to December 27; the Oasis Ice Rink at Fontainebleau is free to watch from the firepits and about $30 to $35 to skate; and Sunset Stampede at Sam's Town goes hourly in the evenings for the season. Dates, prices and the Glittering Lights drive-through are in Christmas in Las Vegas, along with what is open on Christmas Day.

What to pack for Las Vegas in December

A real coat for the evenings, not a hoodie: 40°F on a windy pedestrian bridge feels colder than the number. Layers for the days, since a sunny 57°F afternoon on the Strip is jacket-off weather. Closed shoes for the miles of walking, and the show dress codes do not change with the season; the full list is in what to wear in Las Vegas. Leave the swimsuit unless your hotel keeps a heated pool open.

The honest downsides

• Short days. Sunset near 4:30 p.m. cuts outdoor time, and day trips to the Grand Canyon or Valley of Fire need an early start; the rims are cold and the West Rim sees occasional snow.
• NFR week is expensive and packed if you are not there for the rodeo, and the south Strip near Thomas & Mack is the busiest stretch.
• Pools closed almost everywhere, which removes the free daytime activity that carries the rest of the year.
• New Year's Eve shuts Las Vegas Boulevard to cars on the evening of December 31 until morning and locks hotel entrances to key holders late in the evening; the timeline is in the NYE guide.
• Christmas Day closes some restaurants and attractions; check before planning the dinner.

For the month before, see Las Vegas in November; for the cheapest way through the whole trip, Las Vegas on a budget.