Ah, the weather. In Britain it’s one of the favourite topics, we can talk about it for hours. One day it is utterly bad, the next day the sun shines and everybody’s happy. But did you know that Portuguese are actually the same? That the Lisbon weather is a daily topic of conversation?
Five day weather forecast from Lisbon
You would expect that Lisbon residents don’t have anything to complain about when it comes to the weather. The city has the most hours of sunshine in a year in Europe, in February it can get up to 25 degrees celsius and temperatures below zero basically doesn’t happen here: the winters are the mildest in Europe! Sounds good, right?
Nevertheless, the Lisboetas complain about the weather. Is it “just” 15 degrees for a few days in February? “It’s so cold!”. Windy day? “So much wind!”. Rain? “Epa! All that rain, it’s terrible. Terrible!”. Really!?
The climate in Lisbon
Winter in Lisbon
Lisbon has a warm climate, for European standards. The winters are wonderfully soft between December and March, with an average temperature of around 15 degrees during the daytime. They never see snow in Lisbon, in fact, the locals get really excited when hailstones last longer than 5 minutes!
Summer in Lisbon
In summer it can get pretty hot here: in July and August the daytime temperature regularly exceeds 30 degrees. On average, the temperature during the day between May and October is a comfortable 25 degrees. But even in late autumn and early spring you can have enough days for the thermometer to indicate well over 20 degrees: in both November and February we have regularly been able to enjoy a day at the beach in
Costa da Caparica or Praia das Maçãs. TAdmittedly, the sea water is cold, but lying in the sun on the beach is never a problem!
Rain in Lisbon
And what about all that rain and wind that Portuguese complain about? Yes, it happens in Lisbon and further to the west, near Cascais and especially near Sintra. The Costa de Lisboa The Costa de Lisboa is located near the Atlantic coast, so there is a lot of influence from the sea.
As a result, it frequently rains in late autumn, in winter and early spring. Because of the hilly nature of the west coast you can enjoy the sun at one moment, and a shower a quarter of an hour later.
So, Is that bad? Not really, especially if you have an umbrella at hand. The showers usually don’t last very long. Full days of rain are an exception in Lisbon.
And what about that strong wind? That is something you will definitely experience when you’re discovering the west coast, at Cascais and for example
Cabo da Roca or the Beach of Guincho (where you can surf!). In the city of LIsbon itself it is never that bad.
When to go to Lisbon?
If you want to have a nice time without getting too hot, then late autumn or early to mid spring is the best option to travel to Lisbon.
Autumn in Lisbon
October and November are usually very comfortable, but don’t be surprised if it gets 30+ degrees on some days. But on the other hand, you can also expect some rain once in a while.
Spring in Lisbon
Between March and early May you are guaranteed to have nice temperatures, expect about 20-25 degrees during the day and a lot of sunshine. A small shower here and there is possible but you’ll quickly dry up again. From mid-May it will be almost summer and then 30+ degrees days are no longer an exception.
Our tip for planning a Lisbon city trip? March-April or early November. The weather is almost always perfect and, not unimportant, it is outside the holiday periods, so everything is much more quiet!
