Over the coming days and into the start of next week, it’s going to feel significantly colder in the Principality of Monaco and the French Riviera. In some places, temperatures will be as much as half – if not more – of what has been experienced so far in 2024, and Météo France is warning of potential snowfall even at “low altitude”.
Nationally, according to Météo France, temperatures will fall by an average of 10°C over the next few days.
The main driver is that an anticyclone is heading in France’s direction for the weekend, bringing with it generally “dry, sunny but cold” weather with “noticeable wind” for much of the country.
SNOW, ICE AND FROSTS
Down in the southeastern corner of France, however, meteorologists are forecasting more “unsettled conditions”.
A bulletin released by Météo France on Wednesday 3rd January notes, “It will then be necessary to monitor the risk of snow at low altitude, particularly in the PACA region, at the start of [next] week.”
The ski stations of the region are anticipating good snowfall throughout Friday 5th January as well as on-and-off next week.
The coldest weather has been announced from Sunday through to Tuesday, with icy conditions and widespread frost predicted for almost all of the country. Météo France’s forecast indicates that “only a few coastal areas in the northeast and southeast could escape it”.
In Monaco, the coldest day of next week looks to be Wednesday, when the daytime maximum is unlikely to exceed 7°C.
At the start of next week, Météo France is forecasting that maximum daily temperatures will struggle to get above 0°C in a “good half of the country”, however the Mediterranean coast is expected to get off more lightly.
If this does indeed come to pass, the national thermal indicator could fall below the symbolic 0°C mark for the first time since February 2018.
HEAVY RAIN ON FRIDAY
Right across the south of France, which cocoons the Principality of Monaco on three sides, Météo France has forecast considerable rainfall for Friday 5th January.
Given the likelihood of strong winds accompanying the driving rain, the Mairie de Monaco has announced that the events planned in the Village de Noël for that day have been rescheduled. The M.Orange concert has been brought forwards to Thursday 4th January at 6.30pm while the Merveilleuses Princesses parade has been pushed back to the closing day of the Christmas Village, Sunday 7th January, at 6.30pm.
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Photo by Monaco Life