Mild weather
The North Rhine-Westphalia region enjoys mild climatic conditions - temperate, according to Köppen's classification. This translates into mild winters compared with other regions of Germany, and moderately warm summers, although these figures are tending to change with climate change. Precipitation can occur throughout all four seasons, with the summer season not being particularly dry on the banks of the Rhine. As for the mercury, winter temperatures fluctuate between 1 and 5 degrees Celsius on average, with a few rare snowfalls, while summer temperatures rarely exceed 24 degrees Celsius. Only a few heat spikes push temperatures up to 30 degrees, prompting locals to take advantage of the Eifel's open-air swimming pools and lakes. Variations are limited on the plains, along the Rhine and in the region's major cities. They are more pronounced in the mid-mountain regions of the Eifel and Sauerland.
Short showers and snowflakes
Average rainfall in the region is between 1,000 and 1,300 millimetres per year. By way of comparison, the average is twice as high as in the Île-de-France region, and much higher than in the Brussels area. They mainly take the form of intense but short-lived showers. Sun worshippers won't necessarily find an Eldorado in North Rhine-Westphalia, since the number of hours of sunshine does not exceed 1,700 per year. This average is comparable to that of northern France or Belgium, with little more than 5 hours of sunshine per day over the year. The area around Bonn is statistically the sunniest in the region. Finally, on harsh winter days, snow can fall with varying degrees of intensity: in large cities like Cologne or Düsseldorf, snow is infrequent, while in mountainous areas, precipitation can reach 30 to 40 days a year in the highest zones. The Hochsauerland region is very popular for skiing, with snowfalls lasting from November to February.
Climate features in North Rhine-Westphalia
The region's climate has a number of special characteristics: especially in autumn, morning mists and fog are very common. The effects of climate change are also being felt: Severe heatwaves and extreme precipitation are on the increase, with dramatic consequences such as the floods of July 2021. Cologne, Düsseldorf and Bonn, however, still enjoy pleasant climates. Summer thundershowers are episodic and will not prevent us from enjoying mild summer evenings. Winter, however, is rather gloomy in all three cities, with an average of only one or two hours of sunshine a day.
