French weekly weather forecast November 17 - 21: temperatures to plummet, some snow
Polar winds to bring national average temperatures down to around 5C below average
The drop in temperatures comes after several weeks of above-average autumn recordings
Robsonphoto/Shutterstock
Winter conditions are set to hit France hard in the coming days, after several weeks of unseasonably warm temperatures.
National average temperatures will plummet to well below seasonal norms, and by the end of the week will be around 5C cooler than usual for the season. It comes after temperatures were around 10C warmer than standard for November less than two weeks ago.
From Thursday, there is the possibility of snow in the east, including at lower altitudes.
Monday November 17
The week will start calm, with the only rain expected to be light showers north of Paris and in the Alps and Pyrénées foothills.
Skies will be cloudy in the centre and north, although there will be more sunshine in the south.
Several winds will blow strongly, giving a cooler feel than temperatures allow for (temperature measurements exclude the effects of phenomena such as winds and sun, meaning the ‘real’ temperature can often be different to what is recorded).
This includes the Mistral and Tramontane in the south, and several cold winds in the north, influenced by the polar air covering most of France.
Highs of around 7C in the east, 8C/9C in the north, 11C in the west, 12C in central areas and up to 14C in the south are expected. The south-east, which is just recovering from heavy weekend storms, will see highs of up to 16C.
Tuesday November 18
Morning frosts will be seen across most of the country, as chilly overnight temperatures of around 0C are likely in the centre, east, and in rural areas.
The day will remain mostly dry, although incoming rain from the British Isles will reach Normandy in the evening. However, skies will be sunnier in most areas except north of Paris.
Temperatures will drop further, as low as a maximum 5C in the east and failing to reach double digits anywhere except the Mediterranean and pockets of the south-west.
The Riviera and Corsica again remain outliers, reaching up to 16C, with the next highest temperatures around 13C in Perpignan.
Wednesday November 19
A fierce turn in weather is expected as a low-pressure system moves across France from the English Channel.
It will bring rainfall to most of the country, moving progressively south throughout the day, and will also bring cold winds.
Temperatures will drop by a further 1C or 2C, with most areas of the country seeing highs of 6C to 8C.
Thursday November 20
A new influx of bitter polar winds immediately after the rain will bring a chill to the air, as well as potentially snow, to several regions.
Alongside predicted snowfall in the Pyrénées and Alps, the hills of Vosges, Jura, Ardèche, as well as the Ardennes forests and Lorraine basin are all likely to see snowfall.
In the latter two areas, this will be the first ‘lowland’ snowfall of the year.
Elsewhere, potentially stormy weather around Biarritz is possible, but most other areas will remain dry albeit cold.
Highs of around 2C in the east, 4C in the centre, 6C in the north are all indicative of the further drop in temperatures.
In the south, highs of around 7C in Toulouse and 10C in Bordeaux are slightly warmer, and increase to around 10C in Marseille and 13C in Nice.
Friday November 21
A cold overnight period means most of the country will wake up to frost and ice and drivers should be aware of the risk of black ice if out early.
Patches of rain in the north and centre of France are likely, but heavy downpours are not expected. Outside of this central belt, dry conditions are expected, although sunshine will be limited to the western coastline and Mediterranean.
Temperatures will again drop, with some areas unlikely to go above 1C for the day, and in the north highs of only 4C/5C.
Highs of around 7C in Brittany and the south-west, and only around 8C along the Mediterranean show just how widespread the cold conditions are.
Only Nice is expected to see a double-digit high, potentially reaching 11C.
Nationally, average temperatures will drop to around 2.8C, about 5C cooler than expected for the season.
They will drop further on Saturday before climbing at the start of next week, but are likely to remain below average until the start of December.
