Just how wet is the Toulouse Area?

[Berlioz]

 

Can anyone in the Toulouse area help?  We are hoping to relocate to southern France in Summer 2006.  We had hoped to be in the Herault (34) an area that we know quite well during all seasons, but cannot find an international school for our 16yo as she will not have  time to catch up in French enough to do the BAC with International option. (Education Forum lots of help here) the International School in Toulouse would seem to be an option.

***I have also posted this on the 'Looking' forum as not sure of the best posting place!********

One of our reasons for wanting to move south is that I have a medical condition that is almost totally better in a warm dry climate.  I've looked up lots of climate stats but realise that microclimates may exist or the stats may be a bit misleading as extremes in a year can alter the results. 

We live in East Anglia which is actually quite a dry area rainfall wise but we have lots of days when mist/drizzle/damp changes in atmospheric pressure (even in so called summer)  and lack of any sun makes me feel like it is winter already!

 http://www.windal.net/weather/ is one site that depressed me is it really that bad? (I contrasted London and Toulouse 

If we can't sort out a suitable area we will have to wait until she has finished her A levels and gone to Uni in the UK before we move which would be hard on her younger sister (who we would like to enter the French system sooner rather than later)

Any comments (positive or negative or even suggestions of different regions) welcome!

[Patf]

Toulouse is our nearest big city - we live about 100k to the west - and we go there about once a month, shopping or to the airport. It's a beautiful city and I don't think we have ever had rain during a visit. However you have the stats. Don't forget that when it rains here it deluges, whereas London has more sustained drizzle. So you get less time here when it rains. Then within an hour it's all dried up. Having said that, this last month has been unusally wet, rain most days for a short time. Pat.

[Berlioz]

Thanks Patf, that is really helpful. I don't mind SOME rain as I want to have another organic Veg garden.

I have done a bit more research and it seems that overall there is less rain in the late summer and Autumn also the temperature is 3-5 c hotter and there are on average 475 more hours of sunshine! It certainly is the endless drizzle lasting all day and keeping me indoors that I really hate and having to have the heating on until June...

 We are visiting the Toulouse area and villages within school run distance of Colomiers next week. Does anyone have any reccomendations/ones to avoid?

 

[Llantony]

[quote]Can anyone in the Toulouse area help? We are hoping to relocate to southern France in Summer 2006. We had hoped to be in the Herault (34) an area that we know quite well during all seasons, but cann...[/quote]

I believe Toulouse is one of the warmest areas in France in the summer - heat seems to build up on that huge flat plain.  But in the winter it can be damp. We went once in Feb and it was cold and very damp but that was just one day. I don't think anywhere in France is warm and dry in the winter!

Our house is about 60 miles N W of Toulouse and there are some pleasant hilly areas. 

 

[Berlioz]

Thats interesting, is a a humid hot followed by thunder storms ? or a dry hot!

I don't expect to find 25c in the winter, just no snow ,no endless drizzle/fog etc lasting for 6 months or so

I expect we will drive along the major roads and see what areas look interesting/are reccomended.

 

 

[Fantine<br><br><br><br>Susie]

[quote]Thats interesting, is a a humid hot followed by thunder storms ? or a dry hot! I don't expect to find 25c in the winter, just no snow ,no endless drizzle/fog etc lasting for 6 months or so I expect...[/quote]

... it was 24 degrees on Christmas eve in the Dordogne the first year we were here!

[Logan]

With any medical condition that requires a warm dry climate, France in any region is not the country for you. It is only warm from June to September. Yes the odd few days outside those months does happen but in general its cool, damp and wet. The Atlantic effect produces moisture and humidity. Cold air comes from the north and central europe in the winter producing extremes such as last winter.

If your medical condition is serious I suggest you try the Almeria province of SE Spain. It's in the top 4 best places in the world to live according to WHO for those with Astma and arthritic conditions.

[Maddie]

At the moment? VERY!  I live about one hour from Toulouse (Nr St Gaudens) and am fed up this year with the amount of rain!  It's been pouring (torrential) or cloudy but warmish. 

It was suppsed to be a drought year with a heatwave but I'd say last year was a lot drier and hotter with decent weather right into December.  MOH was still swimming in our outdoor, non eahted, hilltop pool in November (and he's a real wuzz so it must have been warm!) On New Years Day he was painting the walls outside in his shorts!

There a lots of microclimates so it's very difficlut to compare one area with another.  Also rainfall can be very local - yesterday I was picking fruit in a friends garden less than 3 km away in bright sunshine and when I got home, 10 minutes, later my garden was flooded from torrential rain!

[Deimos]

You can look on http://www.meteofrance.com/FR/climat/dpt_tempsdumois.jsp?LIEUID=DEPT31 for more detailed historical information about the climate in the department. This offers detailed summary documents of the department weather on a month by month basis (probably going back a few years. However, it does not provide a nice “its dry” or “its damp2 type summary so you may need to look through each document in turn if it looks like they contain what you are looking for.

Ian

[Berlioz]

Thanks Deimos, I'm just about to leave Cambridgeshire, 14c, 100% humidity (Its raining AGAIN) and go to Toulouse which should be 19c and sunny by the time we arrive!

[Feuillant]

hello

I lived in Cambridge for 20 years, then South-West England (where it rained EACH day for 7 months...) and now live 30 miles South-West of Toulouse.

Providing you live up on the hills and not in the valleys you should expect to see a positive change.  We are 1000 feet up, and have wet days in march/april/may, but usually mild.  There are some very cold but short-lived spells (-6 to-12) in january and Feb., but these are mainly dry months.

I have given up using the "normalement" word in relation to weather here, but it Should be dry for the summer, autunm and winter, with sudden, heavy and brief thunderstorms in summer.  Altogether much more pleasant than the Fens!

We too had temperatures of 27o on Christmas Day, followed 5 days later by -6 - so I don't recommend underfloor heating unless it's cheap geothermic!

And of course there was the canicule, which was awful...farmers round here are still anxious about the water shortage, but maybe that's just normal for farmers?

[Iceni]

"And of course there was the canicule, which was awful...farmers round here are still anxious about the water shortage, but maybe that's just normal for farmers?"

We live in the N Lot. Our hamlet's water supply died twice this summer but we did not have similar probs in 03. So please, please let's have plenty of rain over the winter.

John

not

[Berlioz]

[quote]hello I lived in Cambridge for 20 years, then South-West England (where it rained EACH day for 7 months...) and now live 30 miles South-West of Toulouse. Providing you live up on the hills and not i...[/quote]

I think we will have to be on the flat for a while to be near the International School. Pitty as I fancied some gentle hills... I don't like the sound of -12 either!

We were in Isle Jordan and Toulouse last week and I though it was colder in the mornings but hotter in the afternoons. We only had one dull day.

I thought it all looked very green and am surprised that there are water problems in the Dept.

[Mike Harper]

Donna - drive just a few kms south in the direction of Samatan if you like hills..

[Berlioz]

We are over again in November and hoping to see more of the area, thanks for the tip.

[Mandrau]

We have a friend who used to live in wales and was almost totally crippled with problems with her wrists and arms, not sure exactly what, but now she lives in the Lot up on the "Causse" the limestone plateau and is now almost problem and pain free, she can now dig the garden, embroider, knit and do all the things she has been unable to do for years, as soon as she goes back she is in pain again.

There are hills around Toulouse that could possibly serve.

[Berlioz]

I am like human seaweed weather forecasting, I know without even opening the curtains what the weather is like, it really is a skill I could live without  My consultant actually advised moving to 'southern europe'!! (We have to be in France rather than Spain for business reasons)

Initially we need to be close to the Pibrac/Colomiers area because of School transport issues.

 So perfect rheumatic climate within France will have to be the next move, it is really helpful to get suggestions.