Paris weather

The best months to visit Paris are May, June, July, August. Late May-early June marronnier chestnut blossoms peak in Luxembourg and Tuileries; Fete de la Musique on June 21 fills every arrondissement with free street music.

July runs the highest averages in Paris, with typical daytime highs of 26°C (79°F). August canicule heat waves hit 40C with zero AC in apartments; locals flee to countryside, Paris Plages puts sand on Seine banks, and Buttes-Chaumont shade fills.

January brings the lowest averages, with daytime highs near 7°C (45°F). January drops to -2C nights; museum passes cheap, Louvre queues gone, marchande de marrons chestnut vendors on street, and gluhwein at hidden Christmas markets.

May typically records the highest monthly rainfall — around 77mm on average. Autumn Seine floods regularly; the January 2018 flood shut Musee d'Orsay basement and metro line 10 flooded, and umbrellas invert on Pont Neuf gusts.

Paris, France has mild summers, cold winters. Paris is 20 arrondissements arranged like escargot and locals identify tribally: 11eme is Republique cool, 20eme is Belleville working-class multicultural, 6eme is bourgeois old money. Boulangerie baguette is a state-protected recipe; Poilane and Du Pain et Des Idees are exceptions worth queuing. Aperitif is 7pm sharp on cafe terraces, and lunch menu formule at any bistro is a third the price of dinner. Bonjour before asking anything or receive attitude forever. You can read the detailed month-by-month breakdown on this page.