Weather in Paris now?
 

I noticed it's been in the low 70's in Paris lately. Isn't that about 10 or more degrees above normal?

Sue

Sue, check out weather.com and type in Paris...click on the monthly view and you'll see what the averages have been and are expected to be for the entire month.

And yes, I think it has been rather warm...it has definitely been coming out above the average high for this time of year (I've been monitoring for my upcoming trip!)~

Christina

Christina

Why worry about it. It will be what it is when you are there.

Temperatures have been above "normal" in Paris for years, presumably due to global warming. The last decade has seen a huge jump in temperatures and heat waves.

The normal daily average for Paris in May over the past century or so has been 58° F. The normal high is 65° F, and the normal overnight low is 50° F.

However, this month, like most of the past decade, has been warmer than average. The high thus far for May 2006 has been 81° F (almost 20 degrees above normal), the low has been 48° F (two degrees below normal, oddly enough), and the average has been 61° F, three degrees above normal.

The major change, as you can see, is more heat waves of greater severity. The normal weather is warmer than historical averages, but there are many spikes of very warm weather. There also seems to be an increase in occasional cold spikes (but much less frequently than heat waves), which is to be expected with a warmer and more active atmosphere.

So overall, yes, it's hotter than it used to be. And unfortunately there's no sign that the heating trend will abate any time soon.

As for specific days, predictions are useless until about 24 hours in advance, and even then they are often wrong.

Anthony - where are you getting your weather info from? I've been checking weatherunderground.com for Paris temps recently as we are preparing for a 2-week trip in July. They report similar averages as you over the past 10 years for May, but for May temps so far this year they appear different than what you mention here - 66 for the average high, 59 for the daily average, and 56 for the average low, based on May 1-13 temps (I calculated the averages myself from the daily temps). I'm just wondering, with these reported temps at this site so different from what you mention, if they are perhaps reporting an airport temp rather than a temp downtown? They do show a lot of variability in the daily temp, and several streaks of over 70 temps, but nothing in the 80s. I'd really like to know if there is a better web source for Paris weather info. The page I was looking at is http://www.wunderground.com/history/...q_statename=NA I got this link from the site we are renting our apartment from.

I was reporting the overall high and low for the first days of this month, not the average daily high and low ("the high thus far").

I look at data for the weather stations in the most urban locations, because they are closer to what one really experiences in the city. It's somewhat cooler in the shaded enclosure in the middle of the Montsouris park that the French weather service uses, but you won't be staying in that enclosure, you'll be out on the streets.

Often when the official weather report says 86° F, it will be closer to 100° F on many city streets. And if you are standing in direct sunlight, you are receiving a thousand watts of extra heat—equivalent to standing in the blast of a hair dryer.

Given all this, it's actually much hotter in Paris (or in any real-world location under normal conditions) than the weather reports say. Weather services need consistency, so they measure temperatures in carefully controlled locations and they exclude influences like sunlight, radiated heat from structures, and humidity; but people feel all these things.

Anyway, you need air conditioning in summer in Paris. The exact period during which you need it depends on how sensitive you are to heat, and on the random variations in the weather. But it is no longer safe to assume that you can get by without it.

Sue,

We just came back from Paris 2 weeks ago today. It was chilly in the mornings--definitely in the 50's but would warm up in the afternoon when the sun came out.

To be honest, we've been to Paris many times but we had never been in the Spring. This is by far the most beautiful I've ever seen it. It's simply gorgeous with the Spring flowers & trees in bloom all over Paris. I'm not really a garden person but Giverny was one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen!! Apparently there really is something about "April in Paris".