EN Français

Laos in December

Our take: ideal

The coolest month: 16 °C at dawn in Luang Prabang, 26 °C in the afternoon, almost no rain. The river is falling. It's also the busiest month for long-haul visitors.

By Pierre-Marie Coupry · updated · sources

A boat on the river at sunset in Luang Prabang

Photo by Andrey Zvyagintsev on Unsplash

Laos weather in December, city by city

Luang Prabang in December

By day
26°
At night
16°
Rain
20 mm
Rainy days
3
The Mekong
Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Luang Prabang, month by month
Month J F M A M J J A S O N D (current month)
Airhigh / low
Rainmm
20
10
35
82
142
179
288
313
195
71
23
20
Daysof rain 3261220232628231253
Mekonglevel Low Low Low Low Low Rising Rising High High Falling Low Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Luang Prabang, month by month
Month Low – high mm River
Jan 20 Low
Feb 10 Low
Mar 35 Low
Apr 82 Low
May 142 Low
Jun 179 Rising
Jul 288 Rising
Aug 313 High
Sep 195 High
Oct 71 Falling
Nov 23 Low
Dec (current month) 20 Low

Vientiane in December

By day
27°
At night
17°
Rain
8 mm
Rainy days
1
The Mekong
Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Vientiane, month by month
Month J F M A M J J A S O N D (current month)
Airhigh / low
Rainmm
11
14
38
76
254
312
372
409
310
102
22
8
Daysof rain 2261223252728251231
Mekonglevel Low Low Low Low Low Rising Rising High High High Falling Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Vientiane, month by month
Month Low – high mm River
Jan 11 Low
Feb 14 Low
Mar 38 Low
Apr 76 Low
May 254 Low
Jun 312 Rising
Jul 372 Rising
Aug 409 High
Sep 310 High
Oct 102 High
Nov 22 Falling
Dec (current month) 8 Low

Pakse in December

By day
30°
At night
19°
Rain
6 mm
Rainy days
1
The Mekong
Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Pakse, month by month
Month J F M A M J J A S O N D (current month)
Airhigh / low
Rainmm
2
4
25
54
191
315
446
451
343
138
36
6
Daysof rain 1151123272929271751
Mekonglevel Low Low Low Low Low Rising Rising High High High Falling Low
Climate and Mekong water level in Pakse, month by month
Month Low – high mm River
Jan 2 Low
Feb 4 Low
Mar 25 Low
Apr 54 Low
May 191 Low
Jun 315 Rising
Jul 446 Rising
Aug 451 High
Sep 343 High
Oct 138 High
Nov 36 Falling
Dec (current month) 6 Low
Air and rain: Open-Meteo, archive ERA5, 1991-2020 averages (retrieved October 11, 2026). Mekong level: Mekong River Commission, Pakse station, median of 2020-2025, 6.7 m between the lowest and highest months. The current month is outlined.

The Mekong in Laos in December

The dry season began on November 1, according to the Mekong River Commission, and the river is falling. Rocks come closer to the surface: on December 18, 2025, a slow boat from Pakbeng hit a submerged rock near the Pak Ou caves and sank; three passengers died.

The slow boat in high season →
A long boat pulled up on a sandy Mekong beach in the 4,000 Islands, under a cloudy sunset sky

Photo by Basile Morin on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Things to do in Laos in December

Buddha statues in a Pak Ou cave, open onto the Mekong

Photo by Shutterstock

The Pak Ou Caves by boat

Two hours upriver on the Mekong, thousands of statues in the cliff; a sweater for the morning on the water.

Luang Prabang

Planning for Laos in December

Crowds
The peak of the year: 103,993 long-haul arrivals in December 2024. Book hotels and the slow boat ahead.
Public holidays
National Day on December 2 is a public holiday. Hmong New Year is celebrated in the north between late November and January, on dates set by each community.
Boats
Choose a boat with life jackets that isn't overloaded, as the UK government advises.

Sources: climate, Open-Meteo (ERA5 archive, 1991-2020 averages); river levels, Mekong River Commission and KPL (December 2025); public holidays, Vientiane Times (December 2025); visitor numbers, 2024 statistics of the Lao tourism ministry; safety and roads, FCDO; sights, Lonely Planet. Updated October 13, 2026 by Pierre-Marie Coupry.