Weather in France September 2 – September 6: Forecast by area this week

September begins with a period of unstable weather, affecting all regions. 

The country will be trapped between two stormy weather patterns – one in the Atlantic, and one in Central Europe – that will affect both sides of the country. 

It means storms are likely to traverse into France over the course of the week, and the chance of storms is high, particularly from Wednesday onwards.

Monday September 2 

The week begins with rain in Normandy, Brittany, and along the west coast, but should not move inland into the south-west, where it will remain warm and summery. 

Stormy weather will pick up in the east and north-east throughout the afternoon, although temperatures will remain high, reaching nearly 30C near Strasbourg. 

The entire eastern flank of France, as well as the Pyrénées, are facing lower level storm warnings.

Temperatures in Provence and along the Mediterranean will be slightly above 30C, although it will cool down at night. 

In the Alpes-Maritimes department, a heatwave warning will end tonight September 9) as overnight temperatures drop and storms are set to roll in. 

It will almost certainly be the final heatwave warning declared in France in 2024 – however, previous years have seen heatwaves declared in late September. 

Tuesday September 3 

Storms will continue in the east, including in the Rhône valley, and there is a chance of storms along parts of the Mediterranean coastline, around the gulf of Lion and near Marseille. 

Rainfall will hit the south-west in the morning, but mostly clear by the afternoon. 

Conversely, in the north-west rain is not forecast, although skies will be cloudy. 

Wednesday September 4 

Wednesday will see storms continue to hit the south-east and Mediterranean, and there are risks of a Cévenol episode. 

This phenomena, caused by warm clouds rolling into the Massif Central and colliding wit the Cévennes (or Alpine) mountains, can see multiple weeks worth of rain hit parts of central/southern France in only a few hours, potentially leading to flooding. 

Previously, it only happened a couple of times a year but it is becoming increasingly common.

Elsewhere, rain is forecast once more in the south-west. Normandy will be sunny, but elsewhere in the north cloudy weather will dominate, and around Paris and the Belgian border, showers are likely. 

Read more: Storms in France: what to do if at home, out walking or in car

Thursday September 5 

Forecasts are for Atlantic storms to roll across France, from the south-west to the German border, hitting the Mediterranean and parts of central France along the way. 

The storms will be fairly powerful, and heightened warnings are expected (warnings are given 24 hours in advance, so are not yet available today). 

You can find official warnings via the website of state forecaster Météo France.

North of the Loire, showers and clouds will again dominate the skies, but rain is not expected.

Temperatures will drop by around 5C across the board between Monday and Thursday, ushering in a period of early autumnal weather. 

Friday September 6 

Similar conditions are expected on Friday, however rainfall is also expected in the north, particularly in Normandy. 

Storms are set to be less powerful overall, mostly turning into general rainfall, although in the Rhône Valley they may be accompanied by thunder and lightning. 

In parts of the Cévennes, over 100 mm of rainfall is expected throughout the week.

Early predictions for the coming weekend see rain continue across the entirety of France, with no area receiving respite from an already-wet week.