Weather locations in United Kindom

The United Kingdom is an island country off the north-west coast of Europe, made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland together with many smaller islands. Its climate is a mild temperate maritime one, shaped by the North Atlantic Current. London averages about 6 °C in January and around 19 °C in July; Edinburgh is a couple of degrees cooler. Annual rainfall of roughly 600 millimetres is spread evenly through the year, with very little temperature extremes.

Main climate types

Almost all of the United Kingdom has a temperate maritime climate. The west and north-west, including Wales, western Scotland and the Lake District, is the wettest and cloudiest part of the country, receiving more than 1,000 millimetres at higher ground. The east and south-east, including London, is drier and sunnier. A band of harsher conditions covers the Scottish Highlands and the northern islands, where winters are colder and snow lies longer.

Temperatures

Monthly means in London run from about 6 °C in January to about 19 °C in July, with only a few days a year above 30 °C. Further north, Edinburgh averages about 5 °C in January and 18 °C in July, and Glasgow and Belfast are similar or slightly warmer. The Scottish Highlands can average below 0 °C in January. Heat waves above 35 °C occur occasionally in England but are rare.

Rainfall

Rain falls on more days than almost anywhere else in Europe's temperate latitudes, although the amounts are modest. Annual totals are around 550 to 700 millimetres over much of England and Wales and exceed 1,000 millimetres in the western highlands and the northern isles. Autumn and winter are wettest in the north, while summer is driest in the south-east. Snow is common in the north but an occasional event in the capital.

When to go

Because the weather changes constantly, there is no bad month, but the most reliable conditions are usually between May and September, when days are long and rain is often lateral rather than continuous. Late spring covers the wildflower season and much of the festival calendar. Winter in the north brings short days and storms off the Atlantic; although temperatures rarely fall far below freezing, the wind and rain can be severe on the western coasts.