Very cold spell ending: French weekend weather outlook January 18 - 19

The brunt of this week’s cold snap is now ending and temperatures are expected to return to seasonal norms for the weekend. Most areas should remain free of rain. 

Friday January 17 

Friday sets the tone for the weekend with the morning being misty and foggy for most of the north as well as parts of the south-west along the Garonne river. 

Most of the clouds should disappear by the afternoon but skies may remain grey.

The rest of the south will be sunny, particularly in the south-east. Sparse rain may fall in the eastern Pyrénées around Perpignan. 

Morning temperatures – still as cold as -5C in some parts of the east – will gradually turn into highs of around 1C.

Highs of around 13C are expected in the south. 

Tier-two yellow warnings for snowy and icy roads (neige-verglas) persist in some eastern departments, but these are not expected to increase in severity over the weekend.

Read more: 4 tips to stay safe and check icy roads in real-time in France

At least three motorists died this week after accidents on icy roads. 

Read more: Three deaths and several accidents amid icy road conditions in France

You can keep up with the official weather warnings through state forecaster Météo France. 

Saturday January 18 

Saturday will see similar conditions, with the morning being foggy and misty in the north and much of the centre of France, leading into a cloudy afternoon.

Roads may again be icy in the morning. 

In the south, conditions will be better, although it is only in the south-east around Nice where the sun will shine undisturbed. 

Corsica is expected to be hit by a small storm although not severe. 

Rain is also expected in the afternoon along parts of the western Mediterranean coast. 

Temperatures in the north will remain cold, with highs hovering around 0C in parts of Brittany, Normandy, and the east. 

In the south, it may reach up to 18C in Nice, and 15C elsewhere on the Mediterranean coastline. 

Temperatures in the south-west may shoot from -2C in the morning into double figures in the afternoon. 

Sunday January 19 

There will be less fog in the morning, however cloudy skies will remain across the northern half of France. 

In the south, skies will be considerably less sunny than on Saturday, as Mediterranean storms bring disturbances. Corsica is set to see more rain and wind on this day. 

Frost will still affect the northern half of the country, with morning temperatures hitting -4C, rising to only around 1C or 2C in the afternoon. 

Temperatures in the south will be cooler due to the lack of sun, between 10C and 15C in the south-east. 

Cloudy conditions are set to last into next week before a period of heavy rain begins around Wednesday (January 22).