Heatwave hits first holiday getaway weekend

The first big getaway of France's grandes vacances will take place amid scorching temperatures in parts of the east of the country.

National forecaster Meteo France has warned that Ain, Allier, Isère, Jura, Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Rhône and Saône-et-Loire can expect temperatures into the high 30s until Sunday afternoon - and in some areas could even reach 40C-plus. Night-time temperatures in the area affected by the canicule are expected to dip no lower than 21C.

Meanwhile, roads watchdog Bison Futé has warned that the roads will be especially busy this weekend, as it is the first weekend of the school holidays. It has classed all the country's major routes as 'red' on Saturday – meaning travelling on roads out of all major French cities will be “very difficult”.

The A6 and other major routes heading south to the Mediterranean are expected to be particularly problematic on Friday evening and all day Saturday. The motorways A6, A7, A40, A41 et A43 could be problematic for drivers throughout the weekend.

It has urged people to avoid travelling until Sunday, if possible, when it expects the roads to be clearer.