Rio de Janeiro in December

When to go

December is a warm, wet month in the weather normals that the WMO relays from Brazil's national weather service, and the Alerta Rio site run by the city government shows the current rain situation if you want to check conditions closer to your dates. Christmas Day is a national holiday under Brazilian law, so check opening hours and transport schedules around it. New Year's Eve is a large celebration that the city government runs through Riotur, and last year's edition drew crowds counted in the millions, so look at Riotur's program for this year before you plan around that night.

Trip facts

• The Brazilian Consulate General in New York says that, effective April 10, 2025, Brazil requires visitor visas for citizens of Australia, Canada and the United States, offered as a 100% online e-Visa, and that only those traveling for tourism, business, transit, or sports or artistic activities, for up to 90 days of stay, can apply for an e-Visa (page updated August 26, 2026). (www.gov.br, checked 2026-10-15)
• The airport operator RIOgaleão says its Transcarioca Parador BRT line connects Terminal Alvorada, in Barra da Tijuca, and Madureira Station to RIOgaleão Airport, operating Mondays through Sundays from 4am to 12am, and that BRTs from both stops go through Vicente de Carvalho Station, where there is integration with Metro Line 2. (www.riogaleao.com, checked 2026-10-15)
• The city's transport secretariat (SMTR) says Jaé is the Rio city government's ticketing system, exclusive on municipal transport (BRT, VLT, municipal buses, municipal vans and 'cabritinhos'), and that with Jaé it is also possible to board the MetrôRio. (transportes.prefeitura.rio, checked 2026-10-15)
• The MetrôRio operator's 'Sua Viagem' page says lines 1, 2 and 4 operate Monday to Saturday from 5 a.m. to midnight and on Sundays and holidays from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m., and its station list includes stops labeled Copacabana, Ipanema, Leblon, Botafogo, Flamengo and Barra da Tijuca. (www.metrorio.com.br, checked 2026-10-15)
• Brazil's Law 12,876 of October 30, 2013 amends the national time-zone decree so that the second zone, characterized by Greenwich time minus three hours, comprises the Federal District and a list of states that includes Rio de Janeiro. (www.planalto.gov.br, checked 2026-10-15)
• The Rio city government's Alerta Rio system site invites visitors to see the current situation of rain and landslides ('chuva e escorregamento') in the municipality of Rio. (alertario.rio.rj.gov.br, checked 2026-10-15)
• The World Meteorological Organization's World Weather Information Service lists, for Rio de Janeiro, 1961–1990 climate normals from Brazil's Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia, with a mean daily maximum temperature of 28.6 °C (83.5 °F) and a mean daily minimum temperature of 22.4 °C (72.3 °F) in December. (worldweather.wmo.int, checked 2026-10-15)
• The World Meteorological Organization's World Weather Information Service lists, for Rio de Janeiro, a mean total rainfall of 169.0 mm in December and a mean of 13.0 rainfall days (days with at least 0.1 mm), from Brazil's Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia and based on monthly averages for 1961–1990. (worldweather.wmo.int, checked 2026-10-15)
• Brazil's Law 662 of April 6, 1949 lists December 25 among the national holidays. (www.planalto.gov.br, checked 2026-10-15)
• Riotur's Réveillon site said on January 1, 2026 that the New Year's celebration held by the Rio city government through Riotur brought together more than 5.1 million people on 13 stages across the city, including 2.6 million on Copacabana beach. (reveillon.rio, checked 2026-10-15)