Climate - Lucerne (Switzerland)

The climate of Lucerne is moderately continental, with cold winters and warm summers.
Lucerne is the capital of the canton of the same name and is located in the center of Switzerland, on the shores of the Lake of the Four Cantons, which are located at 435 meters (1,430 feet). Zurich is located about 40 km (25 mi) to the north-east.
In autumn and spring, and sometimes even in winter, a foehn-type wind can blow from the south, ie from the Alps. In summer, on the other hand, there can be wind gusts during thunderstorms.
The winter is cold and gray. There may be relatively mild periods, when Atlantic currents prevail, and other colder periods, when the temperature drops below freezing.
Sometimes, there can be cold spells, in which temperatures can drop as low as -10 °C (14 °F) or even below. Over the past thirty years, the temperature dropped to -10 °C (14 °F) in February 1991, to -16 °C (3 °F) in December 2009, to -14 °C (7 °F) in February 2012, and to -10.5 °C (13 °F) in February 2018.
In summer, 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 36 °C (97 °F) in August 2003, and 35 °C (95 °F) in July 2013 and in July 2015.
The average temperature of the coldest month (January) is of 0.6 °C (33 °F), that of the warmest month (July) is of 19.5 °C (67 °F). Here are the average temperatures.

Precipitation amounts to 1,175 millimeters (46.3 inches) per year. It ranges from 50 mm (2 in) in the driest month (January) to 155 mm (6.1 in) in the wettest (June). In late spring and in summer, the rains are more abundant because they often occur in the form of thunderstorm. On average, 66 cm (26 in) of snow fall per year. Here is the average precipitation.

On average, there are around 1,420 sunshine hours per year. So, the sun doesn't shine often. Here are the average sunshine hours per day.

Best Time

The best time to visit Lucerne is from mid-May to mid-September, since it is the warmest and sunniest of the year. However, we cannot exclude some rain, or a bit of cool weather, or even cold, especially in May and early June.