Rain in Europe

I hear it is nice in Europe -- most the time but it does rain now and then. Weather is weather. Generally changes daily.

Where do you get your Europe weather from? I use timeanddate but I’m hoping there are others to use?

The world changes by the minute. Just pack a rain coat and maybe an umbrella and go traveling. As for the time of year and destinations, I would expect it to be warm to hot. So lots of light clothes that can be layered.

I have traveled to Europe only in May, June and July for almost 300 days over several years. I have experienced rain maybe 4 days during the day. Two summers I experienced record setting heat in France, Italy and Germany.

One of the first things I do when I reach my first hotel in a new country is ask the desk staff which weather website they use. Meteorologists are not perfect anywhere (and precipitation forecasts are not terribly precise), but I'd rather not rely on a US-based source when I'm in Europe.

I usually look at Weatherchannel or Accuweather. I know there are many more sites. Yes…I am expecting very hot weather for July. Just prefer not the record breaking heat of recent! July the only time our whole family can go for a couple weeks. We will take our coolest clothing. A light rain coat as always….umbrellas. We all wear hats for sun protection.
Part of our trip is a Med cruise. Husband and I have also done river cruises we’ve loved. With drought issues the last couple years…river cruising can be problematic. We haven’t experienced that and now thankfully won’t on the ocean. We predict Barcelona, Naples (Pompeii tour) and Rome to be our most challenging heat. Our goal is to make the best of it…and be flexible and prepared.

Ooops just saw your post Acraven. Yes….I would not use these US weather sites while there. Good to check with hotel. I have done that there…

There are a couple of products that can be useful during hot-weather trips. You might want to try one of them:

The Kool Tie contains water-absorbing beads. You tie it around your neck and it cools you as the water evaporates. I'm sure lots of people find having a sausage tied around their necks annoying, but it does keep me cooler. The Kool Tie generally stays wet enough to work all day. There are knock-offs readily available, probably at a lower cost.

Cooling towels are made of special fabric that feels quite cool if you wet it and wave it around. You can then wipe your face, etc. I think many folks might prefer this approach, though I suspect you need to re-wet the towel from time to time.

In both cases you need to take care not to pack the article away while it's still wet.

One thing to be aware of with US based weather sites is that they often use the US GFS model to base their predictions on. This model is not that suitable for Europe, and especially where it comes to mountainous areas is about as useful as throwing dice.

So better use a local site.

Anyway. It has been raining a lot recently. It's about time that stopped. We have enough water now...

instead of an umbrella I pack a light hooded jacket

I love your responses! Yes I have the cooling towels. Even from Amazon purchased a mini mister and small hand held fan. I thought a couple umbrellas when at hot unshaded areas….like Pompeii? Got the kids all a water bottle waist pouch. My goal is to keep them from melting.

As others have said weather is weather. 9 out of my 13 day European trip it rained, hard. Was it a bummer not having nice weather and getting wet? Yes. But I still enjoyed my time in Europe. Just grab an umbrella and head out.

So what is the general seasonal forecast for this summer? Hot and dry, cold and rainy? There's usually some indication of what to expect.

I understand saying weather is mostly always unpredictable. So don’t even try. I love the great outdoors no matter what…live in Ohio where we have seasons and those can be out of whack. We just go on and be prepared. Told you I am a weather geek…so I find it oddly interesting. Unnecessary discussion for many. I get that.
Our fam did Alaska last year July and had everything`(but hot) while there. Just kept going in the rain etc. Was truly wonderful!!

It does rain in Europe. Also it gets hot sometimes. The roads get black ice when it's cold. It can get cold and windy in Europe. Some days it's nice. Umbrellas are fun in crowds because you get to whack people and pretend it's an accident.

I am in Italy now, arrived on the 26th of April in Venice to light/intermittent rain. Traveled to Florence and then Rome for more of the same. Now in Sorrento and it has been pouring for the majority of the time we have been here. Yesterday schools were cancelled due to poor weather. The locals say that this is so unusual. I choose end of April and May to get good weather without the heat and that was just not the case.

I have been in Spain, France, Italy, and Germany in July. It is typically warm and sunny with Germany having the most mild temperatures. But this year, who knows what the weather will hold.

There is so, so much luck involved in the weather you get for a particular span of days. I spend more time outdoors than the typical non-adventure-traveler because I like looking at the architecture. So I care a lot about the range of weather I may encounter, not just averages. I've found timeanddate.com very helpful, because I can see ten years' worth of day-by-day temperature statistics at various times of the day. That pretty much tells the story of how hot or cold it can get, whether it reliably cools off so much at night that I can opt for a hotel without air conditioning, etc.

Here's an example: Madrid weather July 2022. (Bad, but Seville's usually a lot worse.)

Sorry for all your rain in Italy SandyO! Bummer. The only day we had in Sorrento years ago it poured. Rather dissapointing. We could hardly see the lovely coast there! Makes one want to return! Sounds like the now locals are saying…enough…? Hope you get some dry days!

Acraven…we are also outside walking in Europe more than most. The streets, buildings, gardens, shops, landscapes…etc truly interest us most! So one puts up with whatever kind of day you get! But oh when we get those blue skies that inspired artists we take notice often! And yes….AC. I made sure all our hotels have it. They are all in older historic buildings though and hoping for “some” cooling! Travel is always an adventure!

Just now seeing on RS Italy forum all the flooding in Northern Italy from a resident and a BBC report. Looks terrible! When it rains…sometimes it pours! Sad for them all! Check it out….