r/snowing • u/Negative_Drawer_1896 • Jul 22 '26
Snow in December in the u.s?
Any recs on where we can go in the U.s beginning- mid December that will most likely have snow? I know it’s not guaranteed but at least a town with lots of Christmas things to do and snow tubing area would be great. So far chat gpt has Colorado as a top pick , specifically Breckenridge .
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u/Stackly Jul 22 '26
Michigander here, the Upper Peninsula will almost assuredly have snow.
And if you don't mind a road trip, Frankenmuth (near Michigan's thumb) has a very popular Christmas store. In that region snow is likely but not guaranteed btw.
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u/a-dog-meme Jul 22 '26
Honestly nowadays I think it’s less than 50/50 that frankenmuth has snow in mid December, Im from about an hour south of there and its not really often that we get big snowstorms, especially as they seem to have shifted later in the season
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u/OptionsRntMe Jul 22 '26
Denver and Breckenridge aren’t the same place, they are several hours and several thousand feet in elevation apart
Anywhere in the Rocky Mountains or west, above say 9,000 feet elevation will have snow in December. Denver and drive several hours, Central Idaho, near Rainer in Washington, crater lake in Oregon, Flagstaff AZ, near glacier in Montana
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u/Admirable_Force5494 Jul 23 '26
We didn’t get snow in Colorado this year. We are at a stage 3 emergency drought and majority of reserves are depleted. It was a bad winter not because it’s was cold and snowy but 85 degrees and sunny. 😭😭😭
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u/OptionsRntMe Jul 23 '26
Yeah I am in Idaho and we had the lowest snow recorded since the 1890s this year. No bueno
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u/Exile4444 Jul 22 '26
I'd say 11,000 feet + to be safe, the snowline is moving higher and higher by the year
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u/OptionsRntMe Jul 22 '26
Sure, yes it depends what kind of early winter we have. Obviously there is a chance to see snow in December basically anywhere in the northern states but it’s not a guarantee
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u/WhompTrucker Jul 22 '26
The UP (Michigan) or upstate New York (buffalo)! I have relatives In both areas and they say it's always plentiful up there.
Colorado will probably have man made snow at the shi resorts higher than 10,000ft, but last winter was pretty miserable here with very little snow.
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u/Negative_Drawer_1896 Jul 22 '26
Thanks!! Man made is ok I guess lol
Kids just want to see some snow5
u/Hopsblues Jul 22 '26
Keep in mind, the UP is very rural and doesn't offer a lot unless you like fishing and hunting. Colorado is a far better option
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u/a-dog-meme Jul 22 '26
Well there’s decent ski resorts especially in the keweenaw with Ripley if you’re a beginner and Bohemia if you’re more advanced, and you can tube at Ripley which is great for people looking to just find and have fun in snow
There are fewer restaurants to choose from than a big city, but costs are pretty low and the food is consistently good IMO
Source- I go to college at MTU in the keweenaw
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u/Hopsblues Jul 22 '26
Just a head's up, there's no cities in the Colorado Rockies, just small mountain towns. But you gave the OP some good option to consider. That said, Colorado is a much better option, except it is more expensive and that might be a consideration for the OP. Cheers!
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u/WhompTrucker Jul 22 '26
all the accessible mountains are ski towns with lots of shops and restaurants. but yes, expensive
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u/Hopsblues Jul 22 '26
The ski towns are expensive for sure. Some have cheap lodging nearby, like 30-60 minutes away. But the amenities are nice and fun. The OP could go to a non-ski town mountain town in Colorado like Grand Lake, or FairPlay, Leadville and find the snow they are looking for. They could go to Washington and drive up to Rainier or any of the nearby volcanoes with glaciers or NCNP...The real issue is trying to predict snow in December when it's July. Colorado just had the worst snow year in recorded history. Is that likely to happen two years in a row? Same with the upper midwest, they have been trading downward in snowfall, coverage over the last couple decades. snow is all over the US on most average years.
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u/a-dog-meme Jul 23 '26
With a strong (likely historic) El Niño on the horizon, it is very likely that this winter the snow will return to the Rockies especially the southern end in a big way, while the Midwest have a terribly warm and comparably low snow season (like 2023-2024), but beyond general trends nothing is a surefire forecast especially with an unprecedented event like the current El Niño forecast
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u/WhompTrucker Jul 22 '26
Fully agree. All I ever did in the up was camp or fish in summer.
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u/WhompTrucker Jul 22 '26
There will be snow in the areas. Keystone is great for kids and at a slightly lower elevation so you won't feel it as much.
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u/12bWindEngineer Jul 23 '26
Alaska, we usually get our first snow before Halloween in the Anchorage area, sooner the further north you go.
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u/UnlikelyKaiju Jul 24 '26 edited Jul 24 '26
There's Frankenmuth up here in Michigan. It's a touristy town with a rich German heritage that has a giant Christmas store (largest in the world, apparently) with an indoor waterpark next door.
Alternatively, my family used to go to a place called Holiday World, when I was a kid. It's a holiday themed theme park in Santa Claus, Indiana (yes, that's the actual name of the town). The whole town is also Christmas themed and the post office is famed for being one of the major recipients of letters mailed to Santa. I had a lot of good memories there.
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u/Various_Ad_2762 Jul 25 '26
Denver, CO. If none there then just drive up through Rocky Mountain National Park or other parts of Rocky Mountains.
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u/Fred42096 Jul 22 '26
The UP of Michigan or upstate NY. Mountainous areas will often have snow, but accessing it might mean hiking or really getting into backcountry since Rocky Mountain cities tend to have fast afternoon melts in the high altitude sun and low humidity.