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If you have the choice, and are looking for a revitalising break, we recommend you do your hiking in France outside of the main tourist season. Access is quick and easy by Low-Cost airline, with increased comfort by high-speed train/TGV. More and more Enlightened Travellers are hiking in France both mid-week or at weekends throughout the year. For annual holidays, your own car, or maybe even coach travel, comes to the fore. French motorways and ‘A’ roads are a real joy to drive on, with none of the frustrations of choked traffic that you get in the UK, except for the summer holiday peak periods, which are quite honestly best avoided.
Hiking in France in July and August is best avoided unless you head for the cooler mountain reaches. French walking associations in the South of France stop walking in the summer months. Furthermore, for the experienced and novice alike, long walks in the dry and intense heat of lowland Southern France in mid-summer is not advisable. This is why many of our France hiking tours are designed to be half-day activities, best enjoyed in the mornings, leaving you other or complementary activities to enjoy in the afternoon. Of course, when you experience one of our city or coastal walks, 'watering holes' and water generally abound!
Being British, we walk all-year-round, choosing the higher and cooler regions in summer and the undulating lowland of the Mediterranean Garrigue in autumn and winter. Of course, guaranteeing you have fine weather when you are hiking in France is just about the only factor we cannot control, but the chances are that it will be better here than where you have come from.
The Languedoc and Provence Climate in Essence
- Mediterranean, with hot dry summers, rainy winters (January and February), and moderate springs and autumns.
- 300 days of sunshine a year – northerly, dry winds (the legendary Mistral) tend to blow the clouds away and heavy rains come around the equinoxes.
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France's hottest regions, after Corsica. Nîmes is reputed to be the hottest place in France.
Annual Weather Summary
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Period |
Highlights |
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January and February |
‘Winter months’, with rain and occasional frosts. Any snowfalls are largely confined to the mountains. |
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March and April |
Unpredictable - glorious sun interspersed with cloudy, cool and sometimes rainy days. |
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May and June |
Pleasant, with lots of sunshine and warm temperatures. |
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July and August |
hot and dry, with temperatures around 30° C. |
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September |
Pleasant ans sunny, but can be humid |
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October
November and December |
A beautiful month, with warm and sunny days.
Cooler, but still very pleasant, with lots of sunshine. |
For more information on France, including help choosing a walking tour, see hiking in France.
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