Best ski resorts in December for sunshine & bluebird

Ranked on what actually fell, not on marketing copy. Alpe d'Huez comes out on top for sunshine and bluebird days in December: 5.9 bluebird days and 5.9 hours of sun a day.

  1. 1

    Alpe d'Huez

    Isère, France · 1100m to 3330m

    100
    match score

    Alpe d'Huez in December: 5.9 bluebird days and 5.9 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    5.9 in December
    Sunshine
    5.9h a day
    Rain days
    1.5 in the month
    Snow history3 off-piste zones
  2. 2

    Les Deux Alpes

    Isère, France · 1300m to 3600m

    100
    match score

    Les Deux Alpes in December: 5.9 bluebird days and 5.9 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    5.9 in December
    Sunshine
    5.9h a day
    Rain days
    1.5 in the month
    Snow history4 off-piste zones
  3. 3

    Chamonix

    Haute-Savoie, France · 1035m to 3842m

    93
    match score

    Chamonix in December: 5 bluebird days and 5.7 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    5 in December
    Sunshine
    5.7h a day
    Rain days
    1 in the month
    Snow history9 off-piste zones
  4. 4

    Tignes

    Savoie, France · 1550m to 3456m

    93
    match score

    Tignes in December: 4.8 bluebird days and 5.7 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4.8 in December
    Sunshine
    5.7h a day
    Rain days
    0.6 in the month
    Snow history4 off-piste zones
  5. 5

    Val d'Isère

    Savoie, France · 1850m to 3456m

    93
    match score

    Val d'Isère in December: 4.8 bluebird days and 5.7 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4.8 in December
    Sunshine
    5.7h a day
    Rain days
    0.6 in the month
    Snow history7 off-piste zones
  6. 6

    Mürren

    Bern, Switzerland · 1650m to 2970m

    91
    match score

    Mürren in December: 4.7 bluebird days and 5.5 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4.7 in December
    Sunshine
    5.5h a day
    Rain days
    0.7 in the month
    Snow history
  7. 7

    Verbier

    Valais, Switzerland · 1500m to 3330m

    88
    match score

    Verbier in December: 4.3 bluebird days and 5.5 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4.3 in December
    Sunshine
    5.5h a day
    Rain days
    0.3 in the month
    Snow history8 off-piste zones
  8. 8

    La Plagne

    Savoie, France · 1250m to 3250m

    85
    match score

    La Plagne in December: 4.3 bluebird days and 5.6 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4.3 in December
    Sunshine
    5.6h a day
    Rain days
    1.4 in the month
    Snow history5 off-piste zones
  9. 9

    Serre Chevalier

    Hautes-Alpes, France · 1200m to 2800m

    85
    match score

    Serre Chevalier in December: 3.8 bluebird days and 6.1 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    3.8 in December
    Sunshine
    6.1h a day
    Rain days
    0.9 in the month
    Snow history
  10. 10

    Val Thorens

    Savoie, France · 2300m to 3230m

    84
    match score

    Val Thorens in December: 4 bluebird days and 5.5 hours of sun a day.

    Bluebird days
    4 in December
    Sunshine
    5.5h a day
    Rain days
    0.9 in the month
    Snow history4 off-piste zones

Other months and trip styles

Sunshine & bluebird in another month

NovemberJanuaryFebruaryMarchApril

A different kind of trip in December

Off-piste & powderFamilyAprès & nightlifeSnow-sureFirst-timers

How this ranking is built

Bluebird days and sunshine hours in your month, penalised for rain.

Snow figures come from the same ten-year ERA5 record shown on each resort's snow history page, measured at mid-mountain height. Terrain splits come from each resort's own piste breakdown. Scores are relative to the other resorts searched, not absolute quality marks.

We ranked 48 resorts with a full climate record, out of 253 on the site, against a benchmark of 40 resorts across 18 countries. A resort without a record is left out rather than guessed at. Search it yourself.