Weather locations in France

France has a remarkably diverse climate for its size, ranging from the Mediterranean coast in the south to the continental interior of the north-east. Ocean currents, mountain barriers and distance from the sea all combine to produce enormous variety in a country only about 1,000 kilometres across.

Main climate types

Three main families are recognised. The oceanic climate of the west and north-west brings mild, wet winters and cool summers, and covers Brittany, Normandy, the Paris basin and the whole Atlantic coast. The Mediterranean climate of the south, from Marseille to the Spanish border, has hot dry summers and autumn rainfall. In between, along the Rhone and Saone valleys and in the deep south-west, a transitional climate with hot summers appears. The Alps, Massif Central and Pyrenees are separate: highland zones with long, heavy snow from late autumn to spring, and smaller, hot, dry areas such as the Vercors and the daytime Rhone valley.

Temperatures

January means run from about 3 degrees along the Channel coast to 7 degrees on the Mediterranean and around 1 degree in the north-east. July means run from about 15 degrees on the Breton coast and in the massifs to 22 to 24 degrees in the Mediterranean lowlands, and around 20 degrees in the Paris region. The Rhone and Meuse valleys regularly record the country's hottest summer afternoons.

Rainfall

Annual precipitation is about 890 millimetres in the Paris region, rising to more than 1,000 millimetres in Normandy, Brittany and the Massif Central and over 2,000 millimetres on exposed Alpine and Pyrenean slopes; the driest places, around Perpignan and the Aude, take under 500 millimetres. Rain is fairly evenly distributed on the coasts, but the Mediterranean and south-west have distinctly wetter autumns and drier summers.

When to go

Because of this variety, choose by region. The Atlantic coast and the Channel ports are best in June and September, when the sea is warm enough to swim and the crowds have gone. The Mediterranean and the Riviera are worth visiting from May to early June or September, avoiding July and August. The Alps and Pyrenees are best for hiking in June, July and September, and for skiing from mid-December to early April.