February weather

You can see historical weather any location on wunderground.com.

It's cold here, tends to be a bit wet, and the sun sets around 5pm (getting later towards the end of the month). It's a good time to visit if you mostly want to do indoor activities.

It is also a good time to visit if you want to do outdoors activities! Just wear a coat! Bring some gloves! You will be in London, where an indoor space is almost always available within 20 feet or so.

And sun-chasing tourists are thinner on the ground in February, so you won't have to hack through as many oblivious, shambling crowds. I cannot recommend winter in London highly enough. Just, you know, DRESS FOR THE WEATHER. No one is forcing you to take off your coat and stand outside in the breeze. :-)

You could have everything from snow and ice to warm sunny days....

Do be aware that some tourist attractions and stately homes etc don’t open until close to Easter. or, they may not open on some days of the week. This is probably more of an issue outside of London itself, but If you have some key things you want to see, check opening times.

Impossible to say other than it won’t be hot! :-)
There is a reason why the British talk about the weather a lot, it is unpredictable and changeable.
How you feel about the weather will probably depend on what weather you are use too.The UK has a maritime (read damp) climate so cold temperatures can feel more chilling.

The thing to do is wear the right clothes. You will be in and out of buildings and off and on transport so layers that can be easily removed and adjusted is the way to go. Warm socks, a hat , scarf and gloves can do wonders as can waterproof footwear.

It’s usually very grey and damp in February. Visitors do seem to find the damp cold weather to be quite uncomfortably chilly so I definitely agree with the need for layers, a scarf, gloves etc.

I am arriving Feb 2 for two weeks and chose this time to learn another perspective of life in London. My itinerary includes:
- taking in a football game, I am a huge fan and look forward to being bundled amongst the fans rabidly cheering in the cold for their teams
- Taking in four plays during the evenings
- Attending two music concerts
- Investing time in museums, particularly looking forward to a lengthy time within the British Museum and the V&A storage annex. Using RS guidebook and this forum I have identified lessor known museums to have as a menu of choice should I desire to spend more time on this endeavor.
- Walking…..my favorite mode of transport in London is walking with so much to discover at street level. History, food, retail, alleys with hidden delights, parks and so much more. Need to warm up? A pub is always at hand. Feeling a bit tired, the underground or bus is also close at hand.
- Food. I am not typically a “foodie”, but have identified a number of restaurant's to consider. Have already selected location for a Sunday roast and look forward to pubs known for their food offerings.

Note: I am staying in an apart-hotel for access to a larger space and a kitchen. Odds are there maybe days where extra adverse weather and my energy require re-charging with some British comfort foods, hot cocoa and long naps. To me this is part of the experience of a February journey.

I can't stand February in England. Cold, grey, damp, often snowy and a month that really drags winter on. In fact there are no redeeming features about it despite it being my birth month. The only saving grace is that spring is on the horizon.

Fortunately, spending February in London means that any inclement weather needn't be of much concern because there is so much to do that isn't weather dependant. Consequently I wouldn't dress as warm as I would if I were spending more time outdoors.

I agree JC. January is awful as well but by February I’ve really had enough of the endless dark grey skies and cold weather. I read last week that Britain gets the 2nd lowest amount of sunlight hours in the world with lucky Ireland beating us to last place.

It's likely to be a lot warmer than Chicago. Most likely to be above freezing during the day, close to freezing overnight, grey skies and short spells of rain. There is a chance of extreme weather, snow and sub zero days, it could also be sunny. We don't have a climate, just weather.
However, London and England in general is geared up to cater for inclement weather with lots of indoor activities.

Keep in mind the mental difference between living in England and having to deal with winter weather in contrast to visiting for a short time and knowing there is a limit to the “pain”. For example I live on the SW coast of Florida and can endure a winter blast while looking forward to a return to sunny skies and mid-70 daily temps.
I write this reply from a screened in lanai watching the sun set, 68 degrees, sundowner in hand and an alligator sitting on the opposite bank of the pond. 😘🤣🌞

Just booked my February flight. Excited.

It’s London. Weather is weather. Been there enough to pack accordingly. One bag traveler.

Good friend flying in from Budapest for a 72 hour meet up. After their departure visiting Nigel and Carol. Also other friends I’ve made over the years.

Have a big grin on my face, knowing flight and accommodations are settled!

Like my last trip I intend to share a daily journal.

Love Claudia’s positive energetic spirit and the support of so many wonderful forum members. We truly comprise a community!

As has been mentioned, due to the maritime climate, cold hits differently in the UK compared to much of the US. That moisture carries heat away from the body. Add in thick cloud cover, a little wind and shorter days, and it’s noticeable. I find I dress for about 10F cooler in the UK winter than I do for that same temperature in Michigan or the Rockies.

As I’ve mentioned before 365 days of sunshine here in the Land of La bores me. It’s chilly today
( in the 50’s ) and I’m loving it.

Each to their own. Traveling because I can, meeting up with good friends because I can and want to.

Count my blessings because I must.

My husband and I had our honeymoon in London in January 2004. We had a great time! It's London!

My daughter and I will be visiting in February. We are ready for bad weather. Just happy we will be in London. We're from Louisiana, so it will be nice to get some real winter weather. Of course, when we visit there will probably be a hot spell.

I love London in the winter as we can just walk into any pub and there are places to sit. It’s not shoulder to shoulder or we’re waiting an hour for a seat. Only a few places I make reservations. We just spend alot of time doing indoor things. But if you are bundles up enough, it’s still nice to walk around. The only thing I don’t like is nit really getting to see the pretty parks and foliage in all its glory.

Since this thread has come back up again, it might be worth reporting on the actual February weather in London. It's been raining nearly every day since xmas and we've had about five minutes of sunshine in the past month. Even for London this is worse than usual. Looks like Saturday will be lovely but other than that just more rain in the forecast! So advise anyone visiting to come prepared!

Kat is no doubt right about the weather in London for the start of 2026, but actually the picture across the UK as a whole shows a lot of variation, as it does nearly all the time. Where I am in Preston we have had less than average rainfall this year so far and that goes for the North West as a whole, as well as North Wales and most of Scotland apart from the north east.

This mainly demonstrates that trying to get specific advice about what the weather will be like at any given time in the UK is impossible. You can be confident that it will be cool in February and it will be quite likely that there will be some rain and not much sunshine but any particular dates could be very different.

Lincolnshire has been wet - very wet.... I live in North Lincolnshire and can count the days of sunshine since the start of January on one hand. Everywhere is sodden, although we have avoided any snow...

Hopefully the reservoirs have filled up after the very dry start to last year.

where I am which on the border between the Midlands and the east of England there has not been a day since the middle of December that it has not rained. Granted there have been two or three days when we've had a few minutes of sunshine in between but it has been constant nonstop rain otherwise.

today I have had everything from drizzle to heavy rain but all in single digits celsius. The big freeze comes back this weekend and we may see sun all day on saturday with no rain. That will make a change.

Fields are lakes and ponds and animals have been moved to higher ground all around here,

Most houses in my neighbourhood still have not taken down Christmas lights - the gardens are too muddy to do that safely.

So, vbfan2222 how was your trip? I see this was your one and only post - would you like to circle back and let us know how it went?

I'll be in London this coming week. I won't mind the dreariness too much. I'd rather be dreary in London that dreary at home!

You can get a live satellite view of what the weather is like in the British Isles by clicking the following link. To see precipitation - you must click RADAR and you will also see a choice for temperature.

Friday 13 Feb will see rain in the south and this might even turn to snow. Cold clear Arctic air will move south to hopefully give the entire country sunshine on Saturday.
https://www.meteoblue.com/en/country/weather/satellite/united-kingdom_united-kingdom_2635167

Mary, me too!

leaving today. It's been so very cold and snowy at home, I won't mind mid-40's and some rain. although I don't enjoy walking around in the rain....but I'm ready to visit London!

Back last night. It was so cold and some rain. So now it looks the coming week is in the mid to high 50’s! Even 60! Figures.

@vbfan2222 how was the trip?

And did you enjoy your trip lulu?

I do think it’s the damp cold that gets to people who aren’t used it. I don’t think people living here would consider the weather to have been very cold this past week as it’s been around 10C in London.

We had a nice time. It’s actually colder where I live, but I’m not outside touring around for hours so that’s difference I think. It felt like 28 degrees Fahrenheit with wind chill for seceral days.

But, it was nice to do all the things we enjoy and some new ones. Next time I’d like to go early May.