jane08

We're going there this coming middle Jan-middle Feb. I know it's winter, of course it could get cold and snowy. But can it hinder the vacation? Like are some tourist spots closed or most of the time we will just be indoors? Were visiting Paris, Barcelona,Madrid, Bern and Rome, by the way. Can we still visit the Eiffel or will it be very snowy? I wish some locals or those who have been there during winter can shed some light. What can we expect on the vacation due to the weather? Is it better to go during March? Thanks

zeppole

The biggest challenge you face is transportation coming to a halt because of bad weather. How are you planning to get to all these destinations? There are many days in winter when flights are cancelled because it is too icy or stormy for planes to take off. If you are traveling for a month, waiting a day or two for transportation to return to normal isn't that big a problem. If you are trying to see 5 cities in two weeks, your entire trip will be thrown out of whack.

The other problem is how much time you want to spend outside in the cold. Normally tourists spend many, many hours each day outside, looking at historic architecture or being inside unheated churches and monuments. Again, if you have 30 days, you can take the touristing in small bites. If you have 10 days, you will miss a lot.

Sights like the Eiffel Tower don't close because of snow -- but a boat ride along Seine will be pretty miserable.

March is better, although you still run the risk of transportation disruptions because of storms.

bilboburgler

I think thats a bit worng zeppole, there are not many days when transportation just stops each winter, but it does happen.

I think the critical issues will be the differences between coastal and central cities, so Madrid and Bern are going to be cold (check local city advice) while the others are more likely to be in the chilly to mild (Barcelona can be 10 to 15C). Secondly the days are short so you need to get out and about rather than wait for a rain shower to go through. Cafes wil tend to be indoors so everything gets a bit more crowded. But I agree that all the key sites will be open and there is more likely to be warm wine for sale on the streets with hot nibbles (chestnuts etc)

Walking to evening restuarants gets to be a bit unpleasant and the gentle leaning on a Paris bridge at 10pm becomes less attractive

Nikki

I have been to Paris, Rome, and Barcelona in February. In Rome and Barcelona, the locals were dressed in coats and scarves while I felt comfortable in a light jacket because it just doesn't get as cold there as it does where I live (in Massachusetts). In Paris, it can get cold but there is seldom any snow that sticks around long enough to be messy. One time it snowed when I was there, and it was clearly a novelty for people. We passed some young police officers who were scooping up snow from the cars and making snowballs. But the snow was all gone by the next day.

No major tourist sites in those cities were closed.

March is certainly somewhat warmer, but I would not hesitate to go in January or February if that is the time you can go, as long as you do not mind the cold so much.

travelgourmet

Well, the weather will range from cold to very cold. Also, some of these cities, such as Paris, see a fair number of days with precipitation. Whether it is rain, sleet, or snow, winter precipitation means pretty much any time outdoors will be unpleasant.

It really all comes down to how much you dislike cold and potentially wet weather. If it is something that negatively impacts your day-to-day activities at home, then it will almost certainly impact your vacation enjoyment.

In short, everything will be open, but getting between them will be cold, possibly wet, and in the dark (don't underestimate how short the days are).

One last thing to remember. The cold temperatures will have you reaching for your favorite winter clothing. The problem, however, is that many European public spaces tend to get overheated (esp. restaurants), and that warm sweater or jacket turns into a heavy load indoors.

March will be better, though you still run a very real risk of foul weather.

mamcalice

We normally do not travel to Europe on vacation at that time of year but I have travelled for business during the winter. The weather wasn't a problem in any case but during the weekends, when I did some sightseeing, the early darkness was noticable. You'll need a warm coat, scarf and gloves and a good plan for visiting indoor sights on bad weather days. I did not find that tourist sights were closed in the winter.

Mimar

What really shuts down in winter is seaside and lake resorts and country sights. Since you're sticking to cities, you should be all right, barring any great storm that messes up transportation. March might be a little better for that.

Michel_Paris

I've been to Paris in January. On my trip, there was no snow, but it was cool, around -5C. I did not need to modify my plans at all, so was able to walk everywhere I wanted to, went to a farmer's market, took a car ride to Auvers sur Oise to see Van Gogh's town,etc..

I've also been in December, and at that time it sprinkled a bit every day, so I bought an umbrella.

The early sundown is not an issue, since Paris is appealing to me at night. One good reason for going is that the tourists are more scarce, so access to sites and restaurants is easier.

xyz123

The further north you are, the later the sun comes up and the earlier the sun goes down...in London and Paris it's dark by about 1630 and doesn't get really light till about 0830. As noted can be cold but usually not brutally cold. No crowds at the museums and many of the restaurants (of course you don't sit outside watching the world go by)...many of the fountains say in Rome are off (but not Trevi)...the sites are the same (when you're inside the Vatican Museum does it really matter how cold it is outside, all the masterpieces are still there).

zeppole

bilboburgler,

I think the chance of going two weeks between Jan 15 and Feb 15 without a winter storm severe enough to cancel and significantly delay flights within Europe and Transatlantic is less than 50-50.

If Jane08 is hoping to make it to five destinations in addition to her transatlantic crossing in a time frame of 14 days between Jan 15 and Feb, I think her chances of making all five destinations as planned are less than 50-50 is she flies to some of those destinations (and I don't see how she can possibly see all five unless she flies to some.)

If she has a month, no biggie.

As noted twice already, March can also be stormy, but seldom as icy in the more southern locations.

zeppole

Sorry for my typos -- I should have written:

"If Jane08 is hoping to make it to five destinations in Europe in addition to her transatlantic crossing in a time frame of 14 days between Jan 15 and Feb 15, I think her chances of making all five destinations as planned are less than 50-50 if she flies to some of those destinations..."

travelgourmet

FWIW, I don't find restaurants appreciably emptier during the winter months. Perhaps tourist restaurants, but the better restaurants can be just as full during the winter.

Celticharper

We love to have our "Winter getaway" in February in a European city. So far we have been to Amsterdam, London and this past February Paris. We enjoy this time of year so much each trip has been longer than the last, with our Paris trip this year being a full week.

We find that hotels are much cheaper, we were able to get a discount on our apartment in Paris because it was low season.
The museums and restaurants are not crowded, we waited about one hour to climb the stairs of Notre Dame, but that was the longest line we encountered, outside of the Eiffel tower, most of the other museums were no more than 5 minutes. At the Louvre, we just walked in with only the security line to pass through, which was less than 5 minutes. We love the luxury of walking through museums without feeling driven along with a large crowd. The Eiffel Tower had long lines so we didn't go to the top, but we walked under it each day on the way back to our apartment in the 7th on Rue St. Dominique.

The weather was cool, but as Nikki says it depends on where you live and what you are used to. I think the temps ranges from the high 30's high 40's during our stay with a few showers off and on a few days, so not uncomfortably cold. I live in New Hampshire so I was coming from temps of teens to low 20's.

I wore a wool walking coat with a stylish wool hat and was very comfortable walking miles around the city each day, I put on the gloves I brought only once while waiting in the line for Notre Dame. Just make sure you have warm comfortable footwear, If my feet get cold I am miserable.

We do miss the beautiful gardens of the spring and summer, but the costs are so much cheaper and the lack of crowds mackes up for that for us.

hetismij

It can't be dark by 16.30 in London and Paris - there is an hour's time difference between them

The days are getting longer again by the second half of January and are noticeably longer in February, but it still gets dark early. That shouldn't be a problem in the cities though. The further south you go the longer the days.

Weather in January/February can be anything from cool to cold, dry to snow.
It just depends on the type of winter we get. Last winter we had quite a bit of snow, but that was unusual. No way of knowing yet what is in store this winter. Madrid may well be very cold, due to it's inland situation, and Bern will probably be snowy. It can be cold in Barcelona too, and it can snow there as well, though it doesn't normally.

Transport wise - snow can interrupt things for all forms of transport, but not usually for any great length of time unless we get a real dumping of snow (which most Americans would regard as a sprinkling ), but as I said that is unusual.

March can be better, or not. A very variable month. It is lighter, but it is also busier.

By the Eiffel I assume you mean the tower, not the mountains? Good langlaufing in the Eiffel mountains.

BigRuss

One of the things you should expect is many of the tourist sites close earlier.