Europe in November - December

[JiveTurkey]

Hola all,

I'm looking at heading over to Europe for soom good ol BP action.. However, due to work, I will not be able to make it over until November 9th till the 30th.. How is the weather during that time? It it nasty cold? or is it just cold? Does anyone know the avarage temp for that time of year in A'Dam, Berlin, Paris, etc??

What is the pro vs the con of going in November??


Thanks!

[omisan]

I don't know what kind of weather you're used to, but as a Californian who spent good chunks of November and December in Europe, I'll tell you - it's cold! (But not overly so, save for a couple of freezing nights in Dublin and Paris) You can check weather.com for almanac-type data on the weather throughout the year.

There are many things on the plus-side of traveling in the winter months: flights are cheaper, the sights aren't necessarily packed with tourists, acommodations can be cheaper, and the pubs seem like that much warmer a refuge.

Pack a decent coat, a scarf and some good socks and you'll have little to complain about! Cloakrooms are usually plentiful and cheap. And I like to use the word "cloakroom."

One bonus I experienced is missing Thanksgiving and thus not having to put up with all those annoying relatives - instead, I found other displaced yanks and celebrated turkey-day properly - with many many pints of beer The other was celebrating my birthday (the 30th) in London - Best. Birthday. EVER.

The only con of going to Europe in winter - those topless beaches will be awfully empty.

[tumblezweedz]

Wear polar fleece and long underwear, as well as a good wind/waterproof outer layer (and possibly some trousers...) and you should be fine most places. Don't forget a HAT!!!

A'dam is warmer because of the ocean, inland a few degrees cooler. If you're from anywhere south or east of southern BC/Pacific NW, you may not like the grey weather, so if you like your sun, you might want to spend more time in southern Europe. It won't be tropical, but you may catch a glimpse of the sun during your month. Not a guarantee in the grey, dark north!

[skidrage]

I have been in Amsterdam the last two years in January, so the weather is probably the same as December at least and maybe November. On the worst days, the temperature gets in the high 20's, low 30's with snow and rain. The better days see the weather creep into the low 40's with maybe some sunshine. Since I am used to worse climate conditions during this time period, this is not bad at all. Just be prepared for a lot of rain and wind in Amsterdam, which they always have no matter what month it is.

[transfiguration]

not to hijack this thread - but i have a similar question...

i'm going to be heading over to europe, and it looks like i'll be leaving here in november and stay over there til the beginning of summer.
i'm used to coolish weather in the winter [i live in seattle] but i'm in no way used to cooooooold winters like back east.

so - with this in mind - i've been thinking that i'd spend the jan/feb months as far south as possible, mostly in spain.

i've read what the temp's like in germany and france during winter - but what's it actually like to be in it? i'm basically trying to find out if it's just completely miserable to be outside or if it's not so bad as long as you've got a good jacket and plenty of fleece.

thanks for any help - just trying to get my skeleton itenerary together.

[omisan]

Transfiguration - a jacket and/or fleece should do you fine. Just remember that if you're in points northward, it tends to rain. A LOT. So you probably want to make sure your jacket is water resistant. A beanie also goes a long way when the wind picks up.

Usually, I opt for my snowboarding shell - it's rain & snow proof, and thin enough so I can layer underneath accordingly. (Also works in the other seasons without being too hot!)

Oh, and even if you've never worn one before, I highly recommend picking up a scarf. You may feel doofy, but there's a good reason you see so many people in Europe scampering around with 'em. I think I've bought one each trip, since they're so cheap. In fact, you can pick up all sorts of cold-weather stuff on the cheap there, since they seem to be essential - you won't be heartbroken if you dump 'em when the weather warms up.

[skidrage]

Transfiguration

If you are planning to go to Spain for those months, I have some bad news for you. It gets mucho frio there. I believe that Spain matches up longitude with New York (don't quote me on this) and they have do get bad weather. Imagine my surprise this past February when a blizzard broke out there and then one week of constant rain. The temperature was in the 40's most of the time with a few days in the low 50's. Southern Spain was around 60 degrees when I was there, so that would be your best bet for that area. Also try Southern Italy, as that should be pretty warm. Any place south of Naples or so.
I lived last winter in The Netherlands and traveled The Netherlands, Germany, and Scandanavia this winter. While it does get bad, it is no worse than the condition I am used to here in Detroit. Being from Seattle, I think you should be able to handle this weather.

[space virgin]

hey, another seattle person! Welcome, transfiguration! I'm sure you'll be fine in Europe in the winter. We have a good amount of diverse weather here that I'm sure you're already used to, so it shouldn't be a problem what part of Seattle are you in? I live in the Ravenna area and work downtown/lower queen anne.

[transfiguration]

thanks for all the advice....

while i'm in spain i'll mostly be clinging to the coast in andalucia - i've even looked into what areas of andalucia are the warmest during the winter [in the 60s]. but i'll hold off heading there until i can't take the freezing cold another day longer

spacevirgin - funny thing.... i live in lower queen anne and work in my neighborhood and downtown [2 jobs - saving for the trip. ug.]

[tumblezweedz]

I'm from BC and manage the winters pretty well - we PNWesters do better than a lot of easterners, because we don't mind the grey skies as much. Also, we're used to damp cold, which is harder to dress for than just plain cold - layers of fleece and wind/waterproof shell will be perfect, scarf for sure and absolutely a hat. We were in coastal Andalusia at Easter, and it wasn't especially warm a lot of the time, but if you're down there anyway, you're just a hop, skip and a jump (well, okay, a ferry ride) from Morocco, which adds a couple more degrees to the weather chart, and it's an awesome country.