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High temperatures: what to expect this weekend in France
Seven departments have been placed on orange heatwave alert for this weekend
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Heatwave alerts have been extended in southern France with temperatures expected to reach 40C in some parts of the country this weekend.
For this weekend, Météo-France has placed seven departments under orange heatwave alert: Ardèche, Aude, Drôme, Gard, Hérault, Pyrénées-Orientales and Vaucluse
A further 10 departments are under yellow heatwave alert on Saturday: Ariège, Bouches-du-Rhône, Haute-Garonne, Gers, Isère, Landes, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Hautes-Pyrénées, Rhône and Var.
On Sunday, the yellow alert extends to 13 departments, with Aveyron, Tarn and Tarn-et-Garonne also affected.
The four-level weather warning system ranges from green, meaning no particular vigilance, to yellow (be alert), orange (be very vigilant) and red (absolute vigilance).
Temperatures up to 40C
The highest temperatures this weekend will be concentrated in Languedoc and the Rhône valley.
On Saturday, maximum temperatures of 36C to 38C are expected across much of the region, with 39C to 40C possible in inland Languedoc.
Perpignan could reach 38C and Marseille 36C, while temperatures will be lower on the Riviera, with around 29C expected in Nice.
Further west, temperatures will remain high but will be slightly lower than on Friday. Toulouse could reach 35C, Bordeaux 34C and Limoges 33C.
Northern France will be much cooler, with highs of around 23C in Lille, 25C in Brest and 26C in Paris.
Heat to spread north on Sunday
The heat will continue on Sunday. Maximum temperatures are expected to reach 27C to 33C across northern France, with around 25C possible near the Channel.
In the south, temperatures will remain between 32C and 37C, with local highs of 36C to 38C in parts of Midi-Pyrénées and the lower Rhône valley.
The west of France could see more unsettled weather. Showers and isolated thunderstorms are possible from parts of Poitou-Charentes and Limousin towards the Pays de la Loire, Centre-Val de Loire, Normandy and Brittany.
The current heat comes after Météo-France confirmed that summer 2026 was the hottest summer recorded in France since measurements began in 1900.
The average temperature for June, July and August reached 24C, almost 1C above the previous record set in 2003.
