France holiday - heatwave

[Lily27]

Just wondering if anyone is travelling to France this week? We had booked a holiday to Provence with our 9yo and I was so excited but looking at the temps of 37-38 degrees I’m panicking a bit and almost tempted not to go. Not sure how to handle or what to do. DP says it will be fine and we will adapt but I don’t want to be trapped in the Airbnb for most of the day! AIBU?

I know you are so right. Air travel itself is a no no and I plan to cut down quite a bit from now on. Apparently climate change scientists say short haul once every three years and long haul only once in a decade!

I live about an hour east of Provence, I've been here for ages so am used to the summer heat but this is not normal (we've had record breaking temperatures in several places over the past few days. If you've got a/c and a pool you'll be alright, if not open the windows from about 2 am until 8 am and make sure everyone has a fan in their room. Plan trips that don't involve being outdoors (grottes, museums, art galleries, shopping centers etc.). Most big cinema complexes show films in English (VOSTF).

The worst days forecast are Friday and Saturday this week.
Good luck 😅

Apart from them when they attend their climate change conferences...

The carrière de lumières in les Baux de Provence is beautiful and nice and cool (buy tickets online before). I suggest going to Arles and Avignon if you're in St Remy, but you'd be limited by outdoor temperatures (you'd want to park in the town centre car parks which are expensive but the alternative would be a long walk or bus ride which I'd provably avoid at the moment). There are lots of things to do and see, the tourist offices in both towns are brilliant.

Accidentally voted YANBU. YABU. Massively. Why book a holiday to Europe in the height of summer if you don’t want it to be hot?!

Hot yes, suffocatingly hot no. There is a difference between 32-33 and 39-40. Unfortunately we are hitting the heatwave. Otherwise it would be great!

I don't know why people are being rude, there's a big difference between 30-35 degrees (normal) and 40 degrees. We just escaped Lyon it was 41 degrees, that is not the usual summer. Now in the Alps its still 24 degrees, its lovely for us but you talk to locals and they are so worried about the future.

Even here people are needing to adjust and adapt their holidays.

Camp sites are banning BBQing and fires, anyone who puts their kids in a non fully shaded pitch this week are crazy, and there aren't that many shaded pitches usually.

Idoling older campervans in coast road traffic jams is super dangerous in this heat. Vehicles are over heating. Smaller water bodies are too low for good water quality so that needs reassessing too

"Just go" is moronic

Either go with adjustments and caution
or don't & plan B

Do not be an idiot and "just go"

OP it's not just about the accomodation: how are you getting around there? What's the summer traffic like? Etc.

It is not just the temperature

It is how long the temperatures have been up

Prolonged dry 35s can be worse than a spike of 39 in terms of risks like reserve fires, water quality, water availability etc

Not read the whole thread so apologies if this has been mentioned but it certainly used to be the case that men/boys could only use public swimming pools if they had budgie style swimming trunks rather than surf shorts or even close fit longer swim shorts. If there is a pool near by then your DH & any DS might want to buy some before you go.

It’s a nice Airbnb with aircon and an outdoor space but no pool. Have a rented an aircon car from Marseille airport. We had hoped to drive around to some of the lovely countryside and towns nearby but we will likely have to adapt quite a bit to stay indoors during peak heat.

Boat trips are a great idea! Recently went on boat trips too when it was searing heat.
It's lovely as you get the sea breeze.. just make sure you've got hats and suncream.

The boat we were on was quite big and had a small bar and you could sit downstairs for shade if needed.

Although not failsafe, we went as soon as the English school holidays started to northern Spain and it was definitely cooler (and therefore we did much more!) than when we have been in August in previous years.

This is on independent.co.uk.

On Monday, the French national weather authority, Meteo-France, placed 12 departments on red alert, the country's highest heat warning, anticipating exceptional heat stretching from the Atlantic coast to the Mediterranean plains.
Forty-one other departments were under lower-level orange alerts, as was the neighbouring microstate of Andorra, between France and Spain.
"Don't be fooled - this isn't 'normal, it's summer.' It's not normal, it's a nightmare," agricultural climatologist Serge Zaka told broadcaster BFMTV from Montauban in France's Tarn-et-Garonne department, where the blistering heat pressed relentlessly throughout the day.

39-40 is usual in southern Europe.

Full article is here.
https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/madrid-wildfires-spain-greece-heat-b2805971.html

Currently in Marseille and it's 36 on the coast. It doesn't feel too bad although we are very full of icy water and almost sloshing.

It’s terrible. We’re not in the red alert area but still…

You adapt. Up early and get out and about. Back by noon. Relax and chill. Don’t cook indoors!

Always have plenty of water with you and a hat!

Enjoy your holiday.

Hope it goes ok @Lily27

We've just checked in to the hotel. Youngest child has only burst into tears 3 times so all good.

Oh no. Hope it’s uphill from here on …??

Thanks for sharing this- I have never seen any sort of advice or opinion from experts on how much flying is reasonable or desirable so I find that useful. It actually sounds reasonable to me, but I know a LOT of people would think that is outrageous (and would ignore the advice anyway).

I last flew long haul ten years ago and have no plans to do so anytime soon- can’t afford it anyway and hate flying!

Short haul I’m afraid I generally do one return trip most years (very rarely more). Have probably flown short haul 7 out of the last ten years. So I could still do better with that.

I think only you know if you will be ok, some people just get on with it. I would go but also I’m just south of Brittany at the moment with my children, it’s 24 degrees, I chose this Eurocamp site because my 14yr doesn’t really do the heat, he managed Rome at co the start of July because we took taxied everywhere and had air con in the hotel,

We are currently in Embrun - north of Provence. It is slightly cooler here - mid 30s. We are out early and again late afternoon. We are lucky in that our gite has underfloor cooling plus fans and is well insulated. It is hotter than we hoped but we are managing!

I know! I’ve just switched from using my local Super U and nearest Intermarche to driving to LeClerc. Went into our Lidl - where customer service hit new lows - even for France.
On the way home we discussed English and French supermarkets and Waitrose & UK Aldi are my favourites and variety of fruit & veg knocks France into a cocked chapeau.
When I visit the UK I cannot understand why South Coast supermarkets aren’t full of French shoppers. I think UK visitors are seduced by piles of French cheese on the counters - it mostly tastes the bloody same (apart from Beaufort & Roquefort and fresh goats cheese).
A crate of nectarines, peaches, apricots and a few grapes from my local grower €12.

Currently about 38° in the shade - lying by my pool reading a s/h Martine Cole.