Will France's unseasonably warm weather last into October?

This week is set to see temperatures several degrees above seasonal norms, say forecasters, but they will probably not reach the expected highs of 32C.

After intense rainfall last week and a sharp drop on Saturday (September 23), the mercury has climbed once again, Météo France said.

Sunny skies and a lack of strong wind should see temperatures between 20C and 25C throughout most of the country today and tomorrow, reaching up to 27C in Occitanie and along the Mediterranean coast.

Nationally, average temperatures are around 3C warmer than average.

In the far south around Perpignan, temperatures could reach up to 29C today (September 25) and tomorrow.

Whilst it is not the 32C predicted last week, the temperatures are still higher than average for now and helping to keep September 2023 stay on course to be one of the hottest ever recorded in France.

Clear skies until Wednesday

Weather conditions on Monday and Tuesday are set to be roughly the same all across France, save for sporadic cloudy skies in the north of France and Brittany.

On Wednesday, scattered showers in the north (close to the Belgian border) will swing in from the coast, followed by longer spells of rainfall on Thursday in Normandy and Brittany.

Friday will see grey skies across most of the country – as well as more rain – particularly in Normandy, although parts of the south will be unaffected.

Temperatures could climb up to 28C in the southern half of France (Toulouse and Lyon), and even 29C once more in Perpignan, with these temperatures staying in place throughout the weekend and into October.

An Indian summer for parts of France?

Going into the start of next week – and the beginning of October – “temperatures should remain above seasonal norms,” said Météo France, although more precise predictions are not yet available.

The warmer than usual weather is expected to stay until the second weekend of the month (October 7 and 8), after which it will “fall permanently’ and settle into seasonal Autumn averages.

There are early indications a powerful storm could hit much of the country that weekend as well.

In the south east, however, the warmer-than-usual weather is set to persist even longer into October – in Nice, daily highs of around 25C are expected well into the latter half of the month.

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