Normandy Weather by Month

Normandy weather is mild and damp all year. Afternoons at Caen average 8.3 °C in January and 23.2 °C in August, and rain of 1 mm or more falls on 8 to 14 days a month. June to September brings the warmest afternoons and the most sunshine, and October to December are the wettest months.

Figures in the text are in degrees Celsius and millimeters. They are 1991-2020 averages, calculated from Météo-France’s open monthly station records at two weather stations: Caen-Carpiquet, just west of Caen in Calvados, and Rouen-Boos, south-east of Rouen in Seine-Maritime.

Caen and the Calvados coast

Caen-Carpiquet is the nearer of the two stations to the Calvados coast. It is the better guide for Bayeux and the D-Day beaches. “Rainy days” counts days with 1 mm of rain or more.

Over a whole year, Caen-Carpiquet averages a mean temperature of 11.5 °C, 740.3 mm of rain on 126.1 rainy days, and 1,745.9 hours of sunshine.

Rouen and the Seine valley

Rouen-Boos sits inland at 156 m and is the closer station for Rouen and the Seine valley. It gets more Normandy rain than Caen, less sun, and slightly colder winters.

Rouen-Boos sunshine records in this dataset stop in June 2019. Its sunshine averages therefore cover 1991-2019 for January to May and 1991-2018 for June to December. Its temperature and rain figures cover the full 30 years.

Over a year, Rouen-Boos averages 847.5 mm of rain on 134.0 rainy days, against 740.3 mm on 126.1 days at Caen. In winter, Caen’s afternoons are milder: 8.3 °C against 6.9 °C in January. In July, Rouen is slightly warmer, at 23.4 °C against 22.9 °C.

Winter: December to February

Winter is cool, gray and wet, but rarely bitter. December is the wettest month at both stations. At Caen, rain falls on 14.2 days in December, the most of the year. December also has the least sunshine, with 67.2 hours at Caen and 48.9 at Rouen.

January has the coldest afternoons at Caen, averaging 8.3 °C. February has the coldest nights, averaging 2.8 °C. If you visit museums such as the Caen Memorial Museum, the weather matters less than it does on the open beaches.

Spring: March to May

Spring is when the rain eases and the sun returns. March is the driest month at Caen, with 49.7 mm, and April is the driest at Rouen, with 55.9 mm. Sunshine at Caen climbs from 130.0 hours in March to 203.3 hours in May.

Temperatures rise steadily. Afternoons at Caen go from 11.7 °C in March to 17.4 °C in May, but nights stay cool, at 4.2 °C to 8.5 °C. Spring is a good season for gardens such as Monet’s House and Gardens, Giverny. Check the official site for the seasonal opening dates.

Summer: June to August

From June to September, the average daily maximum at Caen is 20 °C or more. August is the warmest month, at 23.2 °C by day and 13.3 °C at night, with July close behind. July has the fewest rainy days at Caen (8.0) and the most sunshine (218.5 hours).

Summer still brings some rain. August averages 59.6 mm at Caen, so it pays to pack a light rain layer even in high summer. This is the season for walking Omaha Beach, Pointe du Hoc and the cliffs at Étretat. If you are going for the June anniversary, see D-Day Anniversary: June 6 in Normandy.

Autumn: September to November

September still feels like summer at Caen, with afternoons around 20.4 °C and 9.1 rainy days. October brings a clear turn. Rain at Caen jumps to 78.9 mm, and the sunshine drops to 117.1 hours.

October, November and December each average 12 or more rainy days at Caen. By November, afternoons are down to 11.8 °C. Plan indoor backups, such as Rouen Cathedral or the Juno Beach Centre, for wet days.

Daylight through the year

Day length swings widely at Normandy’s latitude. Around Caen, the sun is up for about 16 hours 14 minutes at the June solstice. At the December solstice it is up for about 8 hours 12 minutes.

Long June evenings give you time to fit a lot of stops into a one-day tour of the D-Day beaches. In December, plan to finish outdoor sites well before dark.

Using the weather to plan your trip

For the full picture of seasons, crowds and events, read Best Time to Visit Normandy. If the tide at the abbey shapes your day, use the Mont-Saint-Michel tide calendar. Note that neither weather station on this page is near Mont-Saint-Michel.

For route ideas, see Three Days in Normandy or Normandy Without a Car. Prices and opening hours are on each attraction page and the official sites.

About these figures

These averages are calculated from Météo-France’s open dataset of monthly station records, published under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0. They are not Météo-France’s official climate normals. A month counts toward an average only when every day in it has a value and no value is flagged as doubtful. At Caen-Carpiquet, all 30 years qualify for every month and every measure.