Weather
 

We will be in London, Paris, and Rome in mid-August. It is set in stone as we have booked non-ref hotels. I am now discovering that Rome is "hotter than hell" than so I'm a bit worried but we also are spending the least amount of time there so hopefully we'll be ok. Can someone tell me what to expect in London and Paris for weather? Should we bring umbrellas or rain coats at that time? How hot will it be, should we still bring pants and a sweater for evenings?

No, I don't think anyone can tell you that, or even whether it will be all that hot in Rome. It was downright cold in Paris last year mid-August, but I've been there when it was sweltering, too. Just check weather sites before your trip.

I don't think you rely on the weather sites.

Click on the cities you're going to on this page for temperature averages:

http://goeurope.about.com/od/histori...c_Averages.htm

Your guess for this summer is as good as anyone's... as St Cirq said, last August Paris was cooler than normal. We slept with our windows open with no AC needed.

Summer of 2007 we had no trouble sleeping without air either.

I never bother w/ a raincoat in summer. Even if it rains torrents, an umbrella is usually all you need. If you are very unlucky w/ the wet - you can pick up basically disposable ponchos just about anywhere.

As for temps - there is absolutely no way to tell. London could be hot and humid or cold -- or both. Same w/ Paris. The odds are Rome will be HOT, but there could be a cool snap too.

The main thing is - when it is hot it can seem even hotter since there is much less a/c in Europe, and what there is, tends to be a lot less effective than in the US. Plus buses and the tube can feel REALLY hot even on semi-mild days.

I used to have to holiday in August and went to several 'hot' cities. I'm a perxon who wilts in the heat but we managed. We would return to the hotel after lunch for a couple of hours to rest, cool down, and avoid the worst of the heat. Siestas were invented for a reason.

London - if hot - will be a stickier more humid place than Rome so more uncomfortable. It's only the travel between locations though that it an issue, so plan sensibly.

Forget all those weather sites - they just have averages which do not help at all.

We Europeans have those super-small, super-light umbrellas for travelling. One brand is "Mybrella"

<<Forget all those weather sites - they just have averages which do not help at all.>>

There are plenty of weather sites that give you far more than averages. When I'm traveling to Paris, for example, I always check out Météo France, which gives you weather predictions for the next few days, not just averages. It's certainly better than guessing.

No one can give you exact details.

Expect Rome to be high 90's and humid - and realize many places do NOT have air conditioning. (Make sure your hotel does and that you have control of the unit.) Have plenty of water to keep hydrated and consider a hat to keep the sun off.

Paris will also be hot but probably not as bad - probably upper 80's or so daytime and cooler at night. Ditto on checkng out the hotel AC.

London will typically be somewhat cooler -more like high 70's - but you can easily get days reaching 90.

You do not need a raincoat but I would have one of those tissue weight rain jackets with hood and a sturdy foling umbrella. Also be sure your walking shoes are waterproof. You will most probably get some rain somewhere.

You might want to bring a light cotton sweater for cooler nights. You definitely want to bring patns (lighweight) since shorts can't be worn in Italian churches - nor are they welcome in many restaurants (but OK in cafes or sandwich shops and for touring outdoor areas.)