Today's weather for Porto, Portugal22nd Nov 2009 00:30

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Weather Overview for Porto

Porto (or Oporto) has a maritime climate and receives warm to hot summers and mild to cool, rainy winters. The city sits in the north of Portugal, on the Douro river estuary, on the North Atlantic west coast.

Summer, from June till September, is very warm but not stiflingly hot with plenty of sunshine and very little rain. On rare occasions it can get up to 30°C, but the average high temperature rises from 23°C in June to a peak of 25°C in July and August, cooling off slightly at the end of September. Ten hours of sunshine per day can be expected in the peak months; humidity is very low and night times cool off pleasantly. All in all, summertime in Porto is truly gorgeous, though the Atlantic Ocean provides rather cool swimming waters.

Autumn, in October and November, is mild but increasingly wet and grey. The temperature remains in the low 20s for most of October but drops to 17°C in November. Night time temperatures become quite chilly and swimming in the sea can be left to the brave. Sunshine levels reduce as clouds feature more heavily in the sky, dropping heavy showers on the north of Portugal.

Winter, from December till February, is cool and wet. Rain falls on more than half of the days in each month and the sun only comes out for around four hours per day. The average high temperature falls to 14°C for the entire season and the average low drops to its lowest of 5°C in January. It rarely gets down to freezing and frosts are rare.

Spring, from March till May, is warm but a little unpredictable. Average high temperatures heat up to 16°C in March, 18°C in April and 20°C in May. Rainfall decreases but is still quite frequent. The sun starts staying out for longer each day. Temperatures are very susceptible to the warmth of the sun which can be quite fickle. From April temperatures can jump into the 20s if the sun stays out for long enough, but it can drop below 15°C if the sky is grey. The weather tends to settle as the season progresses and rainfall levels fall. The sea is too cold for comfortable swimming.

Porto’s climate can be attributed to its position on the North Atlantic coast and Portugal’s topography. Cool currents and north trade winds moderate the heat of the city year round but especially in the summer. The south of Portugal, the Algarve, is much warmer than the north as the north is surrounded by mountains that create Portugal’s north and eastern boundaries with Spain. These mountains hinder airflow from Mediterranean regions of Europe to the east.

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