The first half of July - official summer - has been downright cold and gloomy. However, not to worry, as it seems that summer is on its way with some warm air reaching the Netherlands and temperatures rising from Wednesday, July 17, onwards.

Cold start to the Dutch summer

The last two weeks haven’t exactly been typical of summer in the Netherlands. Usually, the average temperature for this period is 17,7C, whilst we have just experienced an average of 16,2C- a whole 1,5 degrees below normal. It’s crazy how much difference a couple of degrees make!

The last time it was colder than usual in the first half of July was back in 2017, but then it was only slightly colder, at 17,4C. For temperatures comparable to the ones we’ve just had, you’d need to go back to 2011. The last time it was colder in the first half of July than this year was in 2004!

Summer on the way

It looks as though the cold weather is almost behind us, with temperatures rising from mid-week onwards. On Wednesday, we can expect highs of around 23C to 24C in the north, middle and west of the country, and 25C in the east and south. On Thursday and Friday a mix of sun, clouds and a few showers is anticipated. Temperatures of about 22C in the northwest, 26C in the southeast and 24C to 25C in the middle of the Netherlands are predicted.

According to the latest calculations by the European weather model, temperatures could even turn tropical by the weekend and the southeast may experience a regional heatwave! Whether or not this prediction will come true remains to be seen. In any case, it’s going to be a warm weekend, with the west and northwest heating up to 23C to 25C, and the middle of the country reaching 26C to 28C.