Weather Best of Europe 21 days

Sunlight is easy: days gets longer (north Canada-style, bear in mind the latitudes) until June 21st and then start getting shorter. But anytime from late March to early September daylight duration is a non-issue (actually, some even find the very long days over June/July to make sleeping more difficult). Hotel fares depends on the area you are travelling to. It is high season from June to September over beach destinations and other places whose allure relates to summer. Big cities, however, especially those not run over by so many million visitors (Milano, Frankfurt, Manchester, Zürich, Geneve, Bruxelles, Bologna, Oslo are examples of that), will often have less business traffic that renders them actually less expensive for lodging over summer (except on very limited ion of hotels on very narrowly defined hypertourist areas). Last week of July and first two weeks of August are the absolute peak season when many European fmailies join visitors from abroad with their school vacations. It is when the longest highway traffic jams occur, it is when you want the most possible advanced purchase of your train tickets and hotel reservations etc. Weather is very diverse, there is no such thing as "European weather" as there isn't an "American weather". This being said, Mid-June to mid-August is a period known for the occasional heat wave when you have 4-7 days of absolutely no clouds on the sky, barely any wind and temperatures approaching 90-100 F. Areas south of the Alps or Pyrenees are consistently hot over July. Do expect heat in Italy, most definitively.

In addition the issues raised by Andre's excellent reply, there is the problem of individual preferences. I love fall travel. But a coworker was in Paris and London this past September, and she was freezing (and they didn't have a cold wave). She's still upset that she had to wear a jacket AND a sweater to feel comfortable; I'm not sure what she expected in September (New York is not Honolulu), but then she explained that she usually goes to Europe in the summer. While she adjusts at home, while traveling she likes it hot. Similarly, she lost all interest in a Baltic cruise when she learned that it would be too cool for her to enjoy laying by the ship's pool. And before I sound like I'm making fun of her, I ran into a similar problem in Amsterdam in April. I wasn't fully prepared for its "English weather" (meaning it's not that cold, but it's so damp that you feel the cold in your bones). I had only one cotton sweater, which I had to wear for ten straight days; I had brought a wool sweater, but that would have been too hot. In the other direction, I liked Rome in September, but a friend who went with me found it too hot. Even I found Naples a bit hot in September. I think you get the point; we can only give approximate advice about when the weather is "best." One additional consideration: coming from Victoria, you're not used to extreme temperatures, so you would probably want to avoid southern European countries (Italy, Spain, Greece) during the hottest parts of summer (and as I said, this can extend into September).

May is nice nearly everywhere. Italy and Spain will likely be hot from end of May through September (July and August are for the masochist only). Before April and after September it may get chilly in Northern Europe. England and Northern French coast (Normandy) has the same weather as in Victoria BC most of the year.

Sheila not sure if that tour starts or ends in Paris, but hotel rates often dip from late july thru August in Paris, but are high in September( September is a busy trade and fashion show season).

Sheila, mid-June to end of July might be a bit hot but would have the longest days and least chance of rain (most places). But, would also be highest hotel rates. Unfortunately when weather is best everyone wants to be there so hotel demand is highest - no surprise. August is nice in Northern Europe but can be brutally hot in Southern locales. I spent the past August in Paris (cheapest hotel rates) and luckily didn't have horribly hot weather so I lucked out, but you never know. I have found the best weather coupled with decent hotel rates in May/June and Sept/Oct (I love the autumn best but the days do get shorter). Good luck making your decision and I'm sure you'll have a great trip/tour no matter when you go.

You can get the stats on weather.com. Keep in mind that a lot of europe does get extremely warm in the summer and air conditioning is not real common and when it is available it is most often marginal when the outside temps get above 80. Aso consider: 1. A lot of theaters are closed in July and August 2. The biggest tourist crush month is August 3. Winter rates usually begin in October through April with some regional variations 4. plan around festivals and events either to participate or avoid.
5. I travel mostly central europe and the all around best weather in that region is September and October.

Hi Sheila! You are going to love this tour! It was our first intro to Europe and we had the best time ever. It's hard to advise as to timing since everyone is so different, but I understand where you are coming from, we were concerned about when to go also. We ended up going mid Sept. through first week of October and it was wonderful. We got rained on only a couple of times and it didn't dampen our travel fun, we were prepared with good light-weight rain coats. When we hit Italy, end of Sept., it was perfect weather, about 70 - 75 and sunny. :0) Was a bit overcast back in Paris at the end (early Oct.) but no rain. The leaves were turning and the scenery was so beautiful! I love Autumn though so for me, nothing better. Weather is pretty unpredictable so I would just pick your favorite time of year and go then. We did have a great experience going in "shoulder" season, lots still happening, still plenty of daylight and crowds not as heavy as summer (so we were told). Have a wonderful time and enjoy!!!

I love September travel. The weather is perfect for my taste, cool at night (usually need a light jacket) and nice enough in the day to go without a jacket but not sweat profusely all day. September is also harvest, so many communities have festivals during this time of year. Second favorite is May. Nice weather, long days, locals not sick of tourists yet. In spring I like to start south and work north. In fall I do the opposite - to try to work with the weather as I go. Rick's itineraries stay the same regardless of season. Both usually offer cheaper flights and lodging (except the ones that cater to business travelers, noted above) - I haven't looked at the prices, is there a discount for going in September? If I'm just laying at a pool or beach, give me hot weather. If I'm walking/touring most of the day - I prefer it a little on the cool side.

It really really really depends. At least in Germany and France, weather isn't predictable at all. My SIL was disappointed that her March trip was extremely cold here - it even snowed. My bff was upset that his mid-July trip in Germany was relatively freezing - daytime highs in the 50s, a ton of rain. All that said, I agree with some other posters that September is one of the nicest months for traveling in Europe. It seems to be one of the warmest and driest months in the "north" (i.e north of Italy), although it could be really hot in the southern countries still. I enjoyed great daytime temps in the high 70s and low 80s all over Central Europe the last two Septembers with very little rain, though. But I like warm weather.