We have purchased air tickets to Paris the last wk in Sept & are considering heading for Provence (Avignon, Arles, Marseille, Lyon) but have read about the "mistral winds" and wonder if we should consider Normandy instead. Does anyone have recent experience in Provence in late Oct & early Nov? Thank you.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
11055 posts
I haven't been in that region in late October and early November, but did stay there from December to July one year. From what other posters have written here, the mistrals are not strong in October and November the way they are from January to April. On the other hand, I was in Normandy this past July. It was an unusually cold July this year in most of France. Normandy was in the 50s and 60s, cold, gray and drizzling every day. This week they are having a heat wave. Nothing is predictable.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
I have very limited experience in Provence that time of year, but, theoretically, you're too early for anything significant. I've never heard of them affecting Lyon since the direction is slighly off, but I guess maybe they could. I have been up on the channel in October and November the last couple of years and it's been absolutely miserable.
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
The one Oct-Nov we were in Provence the weather was perfect. Biggest issues were, less daylight, buses not running, and sites on limited hours, which can be planned around. So it can be very nice. I assume the same is true of Normandy, but that it is less likely there.
Posted by
Sachse, Texas, USA
53 posts
We have been in Provence in late September/early October and the weather can be very changeable. Usually it is beautiful but we encountered the mistral. Very similar to what we Texans call a "blue norther". The temperature drops very quickly. We were also in Normandy in late September - the first day was beautiful, warm and sunny. The next two days were cold and rainy.
So if you are going to be there in late October I think your chances for good weather are probably better in Provence.
Posted by
Atlanta, Ga, USA
2023 posts
We were in Provence in early June and experienced the mistral winds for a twenty four hour period. This was the day we chose to visit Pont du Gard and Les Baux. It was also market day in Remy where we based ourselves. Just my opinion, but the cities that you mention are fair sized places and the charm is in the cute villages. Don't miss out on those. Lots of traffic and tough parking in the bigger towns.