Climate - Strasbourg (France)

Strasbourg, the seat of the European Parliament and the capital of Alsace, has a semi-continental climate, with cold winters and relatively warm summers. In fact, because of its eastern position, the climate is "German", that is, that of the Rhine Valley, to which it belongs.
The daily average temperature ranges from 2 °C (35.5 °F) in January to 20 °C (68 °F) in July. Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation amounts to 660 millimeters (26 inches) per year, so it's not abundant, but it's well distributed over the seasons, since Atlantic depressions can affect this area all year round. However, the rains are more abundant between May and September because of afternoon thunderstorms, which can erupt in the warm season. Here is the average precipitation.

Winter, from December to February, is cold and gray, with average temperatures near freezing (0 °C or 32 °F). However, there are different weather situations. When the currents come from the Atlantic Ocean, temperatures are fairly mild, and highs can reach or exceed 10 °C (50 °F), in addition, it can rain and there can be a strong wind. When the atmosphere is more stable and the wind is weak, the temperatures are close to the average, and there can be fog and low clouds. On the other hand, when cold winds blow from Eastern Europe, the temperature drops below freezing and it can snow.
At times, there can be cold spells, in which temperatures can drop as low as -10 °C (14 °F) or even below. The temperature dropped to -24 °C (-11 °F) in January 1942, to -22 °C (-7.5 °F) in February 1956, to -23 °C (-9.5 °F) in January 1971, to -18 °C (-0.5 °F) in January 1982, to -17.5 °C (0.5 °F) in January 1985, to -19.5 °C (-3 °F) in February 1986, to -18.5 °C (-1.5 °F) in January 1987, to -17 °C (1.5 °F) in January 1997, to -16.5 °C (2.5 °F) in December 2009, to -18.5 °C (-1.5 °F) in December 2010, and to -15 °C (5 °F) in February 2012.

Spring, from March to May, is cool, unstable and moderately rainy. The season is initially cold, with possible snow and frost in March, and then it gradually becomes milder, but with some chance of cold periods still in April. In May, it can get cold, especially in the first half of the month, with lows close to freezing, but at other times, the first warm days can occur, especially in the second half of the month, when the first afternoon thunderstorms can occur as well.

In summer, from June to August, the temperatures are generally pleasant and lend themselves to outdoor activities, although sometimes there can be rains and thunderstorms.
At times, hot periods can occur, generally of short duration, which in recent years are becoming more frequent due to global warming, and in which the temperature can exceed 32 °C (90 °F). The temperature reached 38.5 °C (101.5 °F) in August 2003, 37 °C (98.5 °F) in June 2014, 38.5 °C (101.5 °F) in July 2015, 39 °C (102 °F) in August 2015, and again, in two separate episodes, in late June and in August 2019.

Autumn, from September to November, is initially mild and not too rainy, and then it gradually becomes more gray, cold and rainy. In November, generally the first snowfalls and night frosts occur, but already in October, it can sometimes get cold.



The amount of sunshine in Strasbourg is scarce in winter, when the days are usually dull and cloudy, while it is acceptable from May to August, when the sun shines for 7 hours per day on average. There are 1,700 hours of sunshine per year. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.

Best Time

The best time to visit Strasbourg is from mid-May to late September. In this period, the weather is generally pleasant, however, there can be some afternoon thunderstorms, some cool and rainy days, and even some hot days (especially from mid-June to mid-August).