Weather month by month for six chateau regions, with France's public holidays and how long the days are, so you can pick your dates.
Daily highs and lows in °C, 1991 to 2020, one city standing in for each region. Tables are read from each city’s Wikipedia page, which cites Meteociel and Météo-France. Stations are Tours, Bordeaux-Mérignac, Dijon-Longvic and Rouen-Boos. The Reims and Bergerac pages do not name a station.
| Month | Tours (Loire) | Bordeaux | Dijon (Burgundy) | Reims (Champagne) | Rouen (Normandy) | Bergerac (Dordogne) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7.7 / 2.5 | 10.5 / 3.7 | 5.6 / -0.2 | 6.4 / 0.6 | 6.9 / 1.6 | 9.9 / 2.0 |
| Feb | 9.0 / 2.3 | 12.0 / 3.6 | 7.6 / 0.0 | 7.7 / 0.6 | 7.9 / 1.6 | 11.7 / 1.3 |
| Mar | 12.9 / 4.3 | 15.5 / 5.8 | 12.5 / 2.6 | 12.0 / 2.4 | 11.4 / 3.5 | 15.7 / 3.7 |
| Apr | 16.0 / 6.0 | 18.0 / 8.0 | 16.2 / 5.2 | 15.7 / 4.3 | 14.8 / 5.2 | 18.2 / 6.0 |
| May | 19.6 / 9.4 | 21.7 / 11.4 | 20.0 / 9.2 | 19.3 / 8.1 | 17.9 / 8.3 | 22.0 / 9.6 |
| Jun | 23.4 / 12.6 | 25.0 / 14.6 | 24.2 / 12.8 | 22.6 / 11.0 | 21.1 / 11.1 | 25.5 / 13.1 |
| Jul | 25.9 / 14.4 | 27.1 / 16.2 | 26.7 / 14.9 | 25.2 / 13.0 | 23.4 / 13.0 | 27.7 / 14.6 |
| Aug | 26.0 / 14.3 | 27.6 / 16.3 | 26.2 / 14.6 | 24.9 / 12.7 | 23.4 / 13.1 | 27.9 / 14.3 |
| Sep | 22.1 / 11.4 | 24.2 / 13.3 | 21.7 / 11.0 | 20.8 / 9.7 | 20.1 / 10.6 | 24.4 / 10.8 |
| Oct | 17.0 / 9.0 | 19.6 / 10.7 | 16.1 / 7.6 | 15.9 / 7.2 | 15.4 / 8.0 | 19.8 / 8.6 |
| Nov | 11.4 / 5.3 | 14.1 / 6.7 | 9.7 / 3.3 | 10.1 / 3.8 | 10.4 / 4.6 | 13.7 / 4.7 |
| Dec | 8.1 / 2.9 | 11.0 / 4.4 | 6.1 / 0.7 | 6.9 / 1.4 | 7.3 / 2.1 | 10.4 / 2.2 |
Millimetres, same period and stations.
| Month | Tours (Loire) | Bordeaux | Dijon (Burgundy) | Reims (Champagne) | Rouen (Normandy) | Bergerac (Dordogne) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 63.0 | 86.9 | 56.8 | 47.2 | 75.6 | 67.0 |
| Feb | 52.4 | 66.9 | 42.9 | 41.4 | 65.0 | 53.2 |
| Mar | 48.7 | 63.3 | 48.2 | 43.1 | 61.6 | 53.7 |
| Apr | 53.0 | 75.6 | 57.5 | 39.8 | 55.9 | 76.1 |
| May | 57.7 | 71.1 | 76.1 | 56.9 | 67.2 | 77.4 |
| Jun | 53.2 | 70.4 | 65.8 | 55.6 | 64.3 | 63.2 |
| Jul | 46.6 | 48.6 | 64.9 | 59.7 | 64.4 | 57.0 |
| Aug | 44.0 | 56.7 | 62.0 | 56.4 | 69.8 | 61.5 |
| Sep | 51.8 | 81.2 | 56.4 | 44.8 | 62.1 | 66.2 |
| Oct | 66.0 | 83.3 | 73.6 | 48.2 | 79.4 | 65.2 |
| Nov | 69.3 | 114.5 | 77.6 | 49.7 | 80.4 | 76.2 |
| Dec | 72.1 | 106.4 | 61.6 | 59.4 | 101.8 | 76.2 |
In Paris the longest day in 2026 is Sunday 21 June, with 16 hours 10 minutes of daylight, and the shortest is Monday 21 December, with 8 hours 14 minutes, according to sunrisesunset.io.
GOV.UK says there is a risk of higher than normal temperatures in summer, and that wildfires can occur across France, with the highest risk in the south. Check Météo-France forecasts and follow local advice. Wikipedia gives the mainland record high as 46.0°C at Vérargues on 28 June 2019.
| Date | Holiday |
|---|---|
| 1 January | New Year’s Day |
| 6 April | Easter Monday |
| 1 May | Labour Day |
| 8 May | Victory in Europe Day |
| 14 May | Ascension Day |
| 25 May | Whit Monday |
| 14 July | Bastille Day |
| 15 August | Assumption |
| 1 November | All Saints’ Day |
| 11 November | Armistice Day |
| 25 December | Christmas Day |
Service-Public.gouv.fr lists these 11 days. Alsace and Moselle add Good Friday (in some communes) and 26 December.
We could not find an official source for chateau hotel opening and closing seasons, wine harvest dates, wedding season or Christmas market dates, so we do not give them here. Individual hotels set their own dates, so check with the hotel before you plan.
The weather is mildest from spring to early autumn. The tables above give the average high and low for each month in the Loire, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Champagne, Normandy and the Dordogne so you can compare. Summer is warmest and, in the south-west, hottest.
GOV.UK says there is a risk of higher than normal temperatures in summer and that wildfires can occur across France, with the highest risk in the south. The mainland record is 46.0°C, set at Vérargues on 28 June 2019, according to Wikipedia.
Eleven, according to Service-Public.gouv.fr. They are listed above, with their 2026 dates. Alsace and Moselle have extra days.
Paris has about 16 hours 10 minutes of daylight on the longest day, 21 June, and about 8 hours 14 minutes on the shortest, 21 December, based on 2026 figures from sunrisesunset.io.
Facts on this site come from gov.uk, Atout France, regional tourism boards, UNESCO and the operators named, each listed at the foot of the page. Check dates, prices and entry rules with the provider before you book.