Climate & Weather in Italy

The country's climate is variable, due to its geographical location and the fact that it is largely mountainous. In the Alps, temperatures are lower and winters can be long and severe. Summer tends to be the rainiest season and thunderstorms are frequent in spring, summer, and autumn. Sunshine averages from three to four hours a day in winter and up to nine hours in summer.

The Po Valley and North Italian Plain regions that extend from Turin to Venice and Trieste has a distinctive climate with rain around the year. The summers are hot and winters are cold for about three months.

The weather in the Italian peninsula also varies - the higher areas in the Appennines are cold, wet, and often snowy. The coastal regions have a typical Mediterranean climate with mild winters and hot and generally dry summers. The least number of rainy days and the highest number of hours of sunshine occur in the south of the peninsula and in Sicily and Sardinia. Here sunshine averages from four to five hours a day in winter and up to ten or eleven hours in summer.

Weather Averages in Italy

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