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WEATHER

Traffic jams, sun and storms: What to expect in France over Pentecost weekend

The last of May’s long weekends starts on Friday - here’s what you can expect on the roads, and from the late spring weather over the Pentecost weekend.

Traffic jams, sun and storms: What to expect in France over Pentecost weekend
Many are expected to take advantage of the long weekend and warm late spring weather. (Photo by GAIZKA IROZ / AFP)

Monday is Pentecost, the last jour ferie of a holiday-heavy May – and the last one before the Fête nationale on July 14th. And plenty of people plan to make the most of it, with the weather set mostly fair.

READ ALSO Why do many in France work for free on Pentecost public holiday?

Warm, sunny and a bit stormy

According to national weather forecaster Météo-France, we’re set to enjoy some early summer heat over the weekend, with temperatures, especially in the north of the country, closer to July than the end of May – thanks to an anticyclone hovering over Ireland.

While morning temperatures are expected to remain around normal for the the time of year, afternoon temperatures of between 20C to 25C are forecast for the afternoons in the northern half of the country , and 24C to 28C in the southern half – rising as high as 30C in areas such as the Gard, Vaucluse and Var.

Image: Meteo France

Scattered storms and showers, particularly in the south, may punctuate the conditions on Saturday and Sunday, notably in Nouvelle Aquitaine, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and the interior of Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur.

Image : Meteo France

The good news is the situation is not expected to change much in the first part of next week, as May turns to June. 

The weather will remain very sunny in the northern half of France, and slightly more unstable in the south, with sometimes stormy showers. Temperatures will remain at high levels, especially in the northern half where the maximums will often be close to the normal values ​​of early July.

Roads watch

Friday is the big travel day for the long weekend with many expected to make an early getaway, roads watchdog Bison Futé forecasts.

It has issued a nationwide red travel alert – indicating very difficult conditions on the roads – for Friday for travel away from major cities and in the direction of popular resorts, and a yellow alert – indicating difficult road conditions – heading to major cities.

It specifically recommends that, on Friday, motorists should:

  • travel in the Île-de-France region and major cities before 12noon;
  • avoid the A1 between Paris and Lille from 5pm to 9pm;
  • avoid the A13 between Paris and Rouen from 12noon to 10pm, between Rouen and Caen from 3pm to 9pm, and between Caen and Paris from 10am to 9pm;
  • avoid the A10 between Orléans and Tours from 4pm to 7pm, and between Bordeaux and Paris, from 11am to 12midnight;
  • avoid the A7 between Lyon and Orange from 2pm to 10pm, and between Marseille and Lyon, from 9am to 12midnight;
  • avoid the A50 between Marseille and Toulon from 5pm to 7pm;
  • avoid the A9 between Orange and Narbonne from 4pm to 7pm, between Spain and Orange from 4pm to 7pm, and between Montpellier and Orange, from 9am to 11pm;
  • avoid the A61 between Toulouse and Narbonne, from 5pm to 10pm, and between Narbonne and Toulouse from 11am to 12midnight;
  • avoid the N12 Rennes and Morlaix from 5pm to 7pm.
  • avoid the A11 between Nantes and Paris, from 9am to 12midnight;
  • avoid the N165 between Quimper and Nantes, from 10am to 7pm;
  • avoid the Mont-Blanc tunnel (N205), between Italy and France, from 11am to midnight.

A yellow travel warning for Saturday is in force, with motorists advised to:

  • restrict travel in the Île-de-France region to before 8am;
  • avoid the A13 between Paris and Caen from 10am to 5pm;
  • avoid the A10 between Orleans and Tours from 11am to 2pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Lyon and Orange from 11am to 5pm;
  • avoid the A9 between Montpellier and Narbonne from 10am to 12pm;
  • avoid the A75 between Clermont-Ferrand and Montpellier from 11am to 1pm;
  • avoid the A62 between Bordeaux and Toulouse from 10am to 12pm;
  • avoid the A61 between Toulouse and Narbonne from 10am to 2pm.

One final yellow warning has been issued for the northwest quarter on Monday, on roads away from resorts returning to major cities.

Anyone travelling on France’s main arterial routes on Monday should: 

  • restrict travel in the Île-de-France region to before 2pm;
  • avoid the A11 between Le Mans and Paris from 4pm to 7pm;
  • avoid the A13 between Caen and Paris from 10am to 8pm;
  • avoid the A7 between Marseille and Lyon from 12pm to 6pm;
  • avoid the A9 between Montpellier and Orange from 11am to 1pm;
  • avoid the A62 between Toulouse and Bordeaux from 4pm to 6pm;
  • avoid the A61 between Narbonne and Toulouse from 3 pm to 7 pm;
  • avoid the N165 between Quimper and Nantes from 10am to 7pm.

Rail and airports

Airports are reported to be running as expected, but expect some delays on rail networks, as maintenance works are routinely scheduled for the holiday weekend.

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STRIKES

Which French airports will be hit by cancellations during Tuesday’s strike?

Tuesday marks the latest pension strike in France and flight cancellations and delays should be expected as air traffic controllers walk out. Here's which airports will be affected and when.

Which French airports will be hit by cancellations during Tuesday's strike?

Tuesday, June 6th, is the latest one-day strike in the ongoing battle over French pension reform.

Although the strike will hit several sectors including public transport and schools, the worst affected services will be flights.

Find the full list of Tuesday strikes HERE

When

Although the strike only lasts for 24 hours, France’s civil aviation authority said to expect that flight disruption would run from the evening of Monday, June 5th until 6am on Wednesday, June 7th.

It’s also possible that some flights will experience knock-on disruption later in the week if, for example, planes end up in the wrong place after the strike.

Where

The disruption will be concentrated on certain airports.

The Direction générale de l’aviation civile (DGAC) has requested that airlines cancel 33 percent of flights in and out of Paris Orly airport.

It has also requested that 20 percent of flights in and out of the following airports be cancelled;

  • Lyon
  • Marseille
  • Nice
  • Toulouse
  • Bordeaux
  • Nantes

Other airports – including Paris Charles de Gaulle airport – should be unaffected by the air traffic controllers’ strike.

The choice of which flights to cancel is left up to airlines, and most airlines try to protect long-haul flights to minimise disruption.

Anyone with a flight booked is advised to contact their airline.

Overflights 

Flights which are merely passing over French airspace – known as overflights – may also be affected by the air traffic control strike.

Around half of all flights in French airspace at any one time are passing over the country, rather than taking off or landing in France, but are still controlled by French air traffic control.

If you have a flight passing over France on Tuesday, it may be delayed or have to take a longer route to avoid France. There could also be some cancellations – again, passengers are advised to contact their airlines.

Other disruption

The flight cancellations are caused by air traffic controllers striking.

So far, other airport staff such as baggage handlers and security staff have not indicated that they will be taking strike action on Tuesday, so most airports should be functioning as normal.

However, previous pension strike days have seen some ‘surprise’ actions such as blockades at Paris airports. 

Rail services are also expected to be lightly disrupted on Tuesday, although most city public transport is expected to run as normal – the advice is to leave plenty of time for your journey to and from the airport. Taxi drivers will not strike. 

Towns and cities across France will see marches and demonstrations on Tuesday. 

You can find the latest strike announcements in our strike section HERE.

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